Reality Bytes

For the 26th episode of Private Parts Unknown, your hosts Courtney Kocak & Sofiya Alexandra welcome audio producer & Your Fave Is Problematic co-host Kristen Bennett to talk about racism, media & relationships. We get into SO MUCH in this episode: the problematic nostalgia of John Hughes movies, Dave Chappelle’s new standup special 8:46, Tina Fey’s weird racial streak, the inevitability of the white people in your life eventually proving themselves problematic, revisiting Drake, can Black Americans appropriate African culture?, cop shows & police depictions on TV, racism is the reason we don’t have universal healthcare, Southern racism vs. California racism & more. For more Kristen Bennett: Listen to Your Fave Is Problematic Follow Kristen on Twitter @anniewokely Follow Kristen on Instagram @killthemoonlight Private Parts Unknown is a proud member of the Pleasure Podcast network. This episode is brought to you by: Manscaped, #1 in men’s below the belt grooming. Manscaped offers precision-engineered to

For the 25th episode of Private Parts Unknown, your hosts Courtney Kocak & Sofiya Alexandra bring you the happy ending & finale episode to our Tokyo, Japan series. We explore what it was like to buy sex for the first time as women, what it takes to make it as a male happy ending masseuse among over 2,000 applicants, our experience at an S&M bar (shout-out Black Heart in Ginza!) & how paying for sex opened our minds on so many levels – open relationships, our perception of sex work clientele, sexual healing & its potential to deepen your connection with yourself & your partner. Private Parts Unknown is a proud member of the Pleasure Podcast network. This episode is brought to you by: You can join mygirlfund.com for free, and for a limited time you can become a lifetime premium member for less than $5 with discounted credits and bonus interaction features for life when you go to mygirlfund.com/private. We want to connect with you on social media! Follow the show on Instagram @privatepartsunknown & Twitter @priv

For the 24th episode of Private Parts Unknown, your hosts Courtney Kocak & Sofiya Alexandra, welcome reporter Hiroko Imai & video producer Marina Yajima Taylor for the 3rd episode from our Tokyo, Japan series. Hiroko (@hirokotv) is a 32-year-old freelance producer & reporter for Asian Boss who grew up in Japan & lives in the Tokyo area. Marina (@marina__taylor) is a twentysomething video producer & recent transplant from Seattle to Tokyo. Marina’s mom is Japanese, so she was raised having a strong familiarity with the culture. We chop it up about gender equality in Japan, the endearing term of "loser dog" for unmarried women over 30, the 5 levels of Japanese sex & intimacy work, inadvertently discovering that friends are sex workers, “I’m sorry for hurting you” divorce pay-outs, deeply entrenched discrimination against people perceived to foreign in such a homogenous society, the M-curve, how understanding of the kanji for girl power changes as girls get older & so much more. Private Parts Unknown is a proud

For the 23rd episode of Private Parts Unknown, your hosts Courtney Kocak & Sofiya Alexandra, welcome cultural translator Chris Wells for the 2nd episode from our Tokyo, Japan series. Chris (@chriswellstokyo) has lived in Japan for over 25 years. He's a founding member of the Tokyo Comedy Store, he co-owns Japan's first improv studio dedicated to long-form improv & method acting along with his husband Jun & he's the voice of the JR train (!!!). We dig into the evolution of gay acceptance in Japan, what it's like to be gay in Japan as a foreigner vs. as Japanese person, "gay marriage light" (aka relationship registration with no legal rights), the kind of 50s-style workplace sexism that results in "famous working mothers" & how their shame-based culture works differently than our guilt-based one. Private Parts Unknown is a proud member of the Pleasure Podcast network. This episode is brought to you by: Uberlube is a luxurious, high-grade silicone lubricant made from clean, body-friendly ingredients. Our listen

For the 22nd episode of Private Parts Unknown, your hosts Courtney Kocak & Sofiya Alexandra, welcome Keio University subcultures researcher Joe McReynolds & sex worker/model/columnist Yuki for the 1st episode from our Tokyo, Japan series. We explore the different levels of sex and intimacy work in Japan (most of it legal), how common cheating is in Japan, the Mad Men culture at old-school Japanese companies, the jaw-dropping amount of money made by Roland the most popular male host in Japan, why young Japanese women aren’t getting married, the economic triangle of sex work in Japan that keeps most of the money in-house, how cheap liquor licenses have allowed intimate businesses in micro-spaces to flourish, swingers clubs (aka happening bars), soaplands, the international image of Japan as the home of weird sex & weird technology, how common it is to seek a father figure in a sexual partner… even if you had a good dad & more. Private Parts Unknown is a proud member of the Pleasure Podcast network. This episode

For the 21st episode of Private Parts Unknown, your hosts Courtney Kocak & Sofiya Alexandra, welcome Nova Scotia-based married couple & co-hosts of the Turn Me On podcast – Jeremie Saunders & Bryde MacLean – for a really interesting episode about their journey opening up their relationship & becoming polyamorous. We also dig into how living with a life-shortening illness has impacted their trajectory, how they forged the relationship dynamic they truly wanted without having a model, relationship contracts, how their new partners fit into their daily lives, having different money values, separating finances, how their parents feel about the lifestyle, poly jealousies not being what you’d think & more. For more Jeremie Saunders & Bryde MacLean: Listen to the Turn Me On podcast  Follow Turn Me On on Instagram @turnmeonpodcast Follow Jeremie on Instagram @jeremiesaunders Follow Bryde on Instagram @brydemaclean Private Parts Unknown is a proud member of the Pleasure Podcast network. This episode is brought

For the 20th episode of Private Parts Unknown, your hosts Courtney Kocak & Sofiya Alexandra, welcome one-name wonder Smoove, co-owner of a very special queer bar called The Back Door, for the 2nd installment in a 2-part series from Bloomington, Indiana. We get into the origin story of The Back Door, its impact on the local LGBTIA community, how they fostered an impressive drag & burlesque scene, former governor Pence, the rollback of gay rights, the incredible “Periods for Pence” campaign, online dating in a small city like Bloomington & so much more. For more from Smoove: Visit The Back Door website bckdoor.com Follow The Back Door on Instagram @bckdoor Private Parts Unknown is a proud member of the Pleasure Podcast network. This episode is brought to you by: LOLA is a female-founded company offering a line of organic cotton tampons, pads, liners and all-natural cleansing wipes. For 30% off your first month’s subscription, visit mylola.com and enter private when you subscribe! Uberlube is a luxurious,

For the 19th episode of Private Parts Unknown, your hosts Courtney Kocak & Sofiya Alexandra, welcome our favorite keeper of sexual artifacts, Kinsey Institute curator Rebecca Fasman, for the 1st installment in a 2-part series from Bloomington, Indiana. We go deep into the archives to talk about George Platt Lynes & his little-known collection of male nudes, the Comstock law, community standards for erotic material, struggling with the a male gaze as a feminist curator, the state of the union for contemporary queer artists, WWII slut-shaming drops, the legacy of Alfred Kinsey, idealistic differences in the mediums of painting vs. photography & homemade sex toys. For more Rebecca Fasman: Visit the Kinsey Institute website kinseyinstitute.org Follow Rebecca on Instagram @rfasman Follow Rebecca on Twitter @rfasman Private Parts Unknown is a proud member of the Pleasure Podcast network. This episode is brought to you by: Simple Health is the simplest way to get birth control, with online prescriptions and

For the 18th episode of Private Parts Unknown, your hosts Courtney Kocak & Sofiya Alexandra, welcome our favorite mother-son duo, Karen Lee & Cameron Poter, co-hosts of the Sex Talk With My Mom podcast for a holiday how-to about coping with loss. We go deep into grieving process, how losing a partner & father respectively impacted them romantically & otherwise, recreating traditions in order to move on, reframing tragedy as a springboard for personal growth, superstition, spiritual messages & communicating with the dead — plus, Karen gives tips for cougars trying to get back out there & Cam explores his new mime-based sexuality. For more Karen Lee & Cam Poter: Listen to the Sex Talk With My Mom podcast sextalkwithmymom.com Follow the show on Instagram @sextalkwithmymom Follow Karen Lee on Instagram @karenleepoter Follow Cam on Instagram @singlecamcomedy Private Parts Unknown is a proud member of the Pleasure Podcast network. This episode is brought to you by: Simple Health is the simplest way to get

For the 17th episode of Private Parts Unknown, your hosts Courtney Kocak & Sofiya Alexandra take you on a quick trip to Mexico City for the 2nd installment in a 2-part series about romance, sexuality, gender & life in general in the largest city in North America. In this episode, we interviewed two Mexican artists — Alma Garcia Gil, a lesbian performance artist & Evelyn Excess, a trans/gender non-binary collage artist — who give us an inside look into their radical artwork & what it’s like to be unapologetically queer in Mexico City.  Find out more about these talented babes & follow them on social media: Alma Garcia Gil almagarciagil.com; twitter.com/gardeaamador Evelyn Excess evelynexcess.blogspot.com; instagram.com/evelyn_excess Private Parts Unknown is a proud member of the Pleasure Podcast network. This episode is brought to you by: BlueChew offers men a performance enhancement confidence boost for the bedroom. If you like sex, you’ll love BlueChew. Get your first order — just pay $5 shipping

For the 16th episode of Private Parts Unknown, your hosts Courtney Kocak & Sofiya Alexandra take you on a quick trip to Mexico City for the 1st installment in a 2-part series about Mexican romance, sexuality, gender & life in general in the largest city in North America. On the 1st day of Día de Los Muertos, we delve into our experiences on a food tour through La Merced Market & a bike tour to the Frida Kahlo Museum (Casa Azul, the Blue House). While in CDMX, we interviewed three local gentlemen who generously lent us their voices & taught us about their culture. Follow these fellas on Instagram & GO ON THEIR TOURS: Gevany Castillo was our fearless leader on the bike tour, giving us historical context & sweet, sweet patter in equal parts. Ubish Yaren (instagram.com/ubishyaren) gives AMAZING food tours through his company Mexico Undergound & hosts the Culinaria Nacional podcast. Alejandro Ruano (instagram.com/alteregoderuano) is a photographer, aspiring filmmaker & gift from the universe conjured in o

For the 15th episode of Private Parts Unknown, your hosts Courtney Kocak & Sofiya Alexandra take you inside Raising Hell, a super sexy & informative event thrown by Soldiers of Pole, the California exotic dancers union that we featured in our very 1st episode! We get into the passage of California labor bill AB5, why strippers need the same protections & workers’ rights as other physically demanding jobs, the fact that sex work is work, how to undo the industry’s long-time stigma, the dope community these dancers have created for themselves & the isolation a lot of strippers experience when they 1st start out — plus, Jacq the Stripper tells a hilarious story about auditioning for strip club owners & so much more! All hail the following queens for lending us their voices & stories: Jacq the Stripper jacqthestripper.com Antonia Crane antoniacrane.com AM Davies instagram.com/thequeenofsexy Selena the Stripper instagram.com/prettyboygirl (& check out her podcast Heaux in the Kneaux)  Megan Therese Rippey

We want to turn you on to a hot new podcast: Artemis is a lesbian retelling of the classic Greek myth of Artemis, Goddess of the hunt, from the original story written by Svetlana Ivanova. If you're mythology nerds like us, you're going to want to check out the rest of the Artemis series. The first five parts are available anywhere you listen to podcasts. But you can listen to all 16 parts now on Himalaya+. Here’s how: Download the Himalaya app: https://www.himalaya.com/artemis Search Artemis, and click "Become a Member" Enter promo code ARTEMIS to get the entire story for FREE!  If you love this episode, please leave us a 5-star rating & sexy review! xo Also, check out the video teaser from our trip to Helsinki at youtube.com/privatepartsunknown or click here. Don't forget to like, comment & subscribe. :)   Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

For the 14th episode of Private Parts Unknown, your host Courtney Kocak is flying solo to honor International Sex Abortion Day with a special episode featuring seven advocates & women who’ve had personal experiences with abortion & gone on to speak publicly about it. We cover the current legal lay of the land for reproductive rights in the U.S., how close Roe v. Wade is to being overturned, what a post-Roe America would actually look like, the fact that we’re already there in some states, the prevalent shame & stigma, how we change societal views & so much more.  Thanks to the following women for lending us their voices & stories: Lizz Winstead, Abortion Access Front founder & chief creative officer & The Daily Show co-creator aafront.org Amelia Bonow, co-founder of the #ShoutYourAbortion movement & co-editor of Shout Your Abortion shoutyourabortion.com Robin Marty, author of Handbook for a Post-Roe America  Danielle Perez, comedian thedanielleperez.com Kelly Fitzgerald-Junco, writer sobersenorita.co

For the 13th episode of Private Parts Unknown, your hosts Courtney Kocak & Sofiya Alexandra welcome another pair of sex-positive podcasters, Amy Baldwin & April Lampert, co-hosts of the Shameless Sex podcast. We talk shop about how they met, their industry experience as sex educators & sex toy salespeople, the most common listener question they get, their earliest respective memories of being turned on, their self-identified kinks & sexual preferences, the community service of being the cool stepmom with a sex podcast & how they’re working to banish STD, herpes & other sexual stigmas by sharing their personal stories — plus what they wish they could go back in time & tell their teenage selves about sex. Private Parts Unknown is a proud member of the Pleasure Podcast network. This episode is brought to you by: Manscaped, #1 in men’s below the belt grooming. Manscaped offers precision-engineered tools for you or your man’s family jewels. Get 20% Off and Free Shipping with the code PRIVATE at Manscaped.com.  For

For the 12th episode of Private Parts Unknown, your hosts Courtney Kocak & Sofiya Alexandra welcome another duo of female filmmakers — Dionne van den Berg & Pooja Tripathi — who created, wrote & star in the upcoming web series Amsterdam Ave about following your dreams, especially if they take you abroad (aka international apartment swapping between New York & the Netherlands!!!), loosely based on their friendship & real-life experiences. We get into how their meet-cute at a club in Saint-Tropez turned into a long-distance friendship before evolving again into a creative partnership, their cosmic pizza connection, bullshit cultural stereotypes (plus some that kinda hold up) & dating as 20-something women in NYC & around the world — plus the beauty of not having time for anything but your career & your ride or die BFF. For more Dionne van den Berg & Pooja Tripathi: Watch the Amsterdam Ave teaser on YouTube Check out their website for more info on screenings amsterdamave-theseries.com Follow the show on Ins

For the 11th episode of Private Parts Unknown, your hosts Courtney Kocak & Sofiya Alexandra drop the final dispatch from their recent trip to New York. For this NYC edition, we're joined by dominatrix and healer Aleta Cai, who tells us about her entrée into the BDSM world after growing up in a traditional Chinese home. We chop it up about the intersection of BDSM and healing, why she doesn’t usually see women in her practice—except sex workers, the tendency towards submissiveness in Chinese culture, what happens in subspace, the radical confidence that came when she started domming, what her clientele has in common, falling in love with one of her slaves & why 50 Shades of Grey was annoying. Private Parts Unknown is a proud member of the Pleasure Podcast network. This episode is brought to you by: Coconu organic lubricant. Have better sex. Naturally. Save 15% at coconu.com with promo code PRIVATE. Clone-A-Willy & Clone-A-Pussy allow anyone to make an exact replica of a penis or vulva into a functioning sex

For the 10th episode of Private Parts Unknown, your hosts Courtney Kocak & Sofiya Alexandra are back with another dispatch from their recent trip to New York. For this NYC edition, we're joined by hilarious comedian Wendi Starling, who gives us a glimpse into the world of sugaring & what it's like to be a sugar baby... it's probably a lot hotter & more feminist than you'd expect. This episode is brought to you by: Clone-A-Willy & Clone-A-Pussy allow anyone to make an exact replica of a penis or vulva into a functioning sex toy at home. Use promo code PRIVATE for 20% off at cloneawilly.com. Coconu organic lubricant. Have better sex. Naturally. Save 15% at coconu.com with promo code PRIVATE. For more Wendi Starling: Listen to the Pussy Fart Gang podcast Follow her on Twitter @wendistarling Follow her on Instagram @wendibird82 If you love this episode, please leave us a 5-star rating & sexy review! xo Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

For the 9th episode of Private Parts Unknown, your hosts Courtney Kocak & Sofiya Alexandra return with a dispatch from their recent trip to New York. For this NYC edition, we're joined by crazy/sexy/cool/freaky/funny comedian Billy Procida, host of The Manwhore Podcast. We met Billy at a standup show in Brooklyn and wound up interviewing him the next day in Dumbo about his foray into sex parties, his home club Hacienda, having a gender-fluid ex, organizing gangbangs (3 in 6 months!!!), his long-standing identification with non-monogamy, commons misconceptions about polyamory & why he won't call himself a feminist. This episode is brought to you by: The Shame On You podcast. Listen here for their unapologetic journey to zero f*cks. Coconu organic lubricant. Have better sex. Naturally. Save 15% at coconu.com with promo code PRIVATE. Clone-A-Willy & Clone-A-Pussy allow anyone to make an exact replica of a penis or vulva into a functioning sex toy at home. Use promo code PRIVATE for 20% off at cloneawilly.com.

For the 8th episode of Private Parts Unknown, your hosts Courtney Kocak & Sofiya Alexandra are back with the 3rd & final installment in our 3-part series featuring men talking about their personal experiences with abortion. For this edition, we're joined by two more guys — first, standup comedian & podcaster Jeff May (@heytherejeffro) who shares his story about supporting his ex-girlfriend through her decision to get an abortion, despite not liking the choice she made at the time. Then we talk to an anonymous father of two whose heartbreaking story touches on the genetic abnormality component to the issue. For this 3-part series, we flipped the script & asked dudes to shout their abortions. Many thanks to the five men who shared their nuanced stories with a humility & vulnerability so often missing from this hot button issue. People in Alabama, Georgia, Missouri, and Louisiana need our help. Please consider a donation to https://yellowhammerfund.org/, https://www.plannedparenthood.org/, https://abortionaccess