Call Her Daddy Drama Explained, Sofia Alex Suitman - Refinery29

Skip navigation!ADVERTISEMENTStory from Pop CultureADVERTISEMENTHere’s The Drama Happening With The “Call Her Daddy” PodcastKathryn LindsayLast Updated May 26, 2020, 8:40 PM Photo: Gotham/GC Images.Fans knew something was wrong with the Call Her Daddy podcast for months. The episode titles were getting stranger and more cryptic, containing secret messages about being prisoners. Then, after April 8, the show went dark. The final episode began with a snippet of Kesha's "Praying," and hosts Alexandra Cooper and Sofia Franklyn told listeners they could "interpret that however you want."AdvertisementADVERTISEMENTA few weeks later, the hosts wrote on the show's Instagram that while they legally couldn't get into what was happening behind the scenes, they encouraged fans to use the hashtag #FreeTheFathers, the nickname fans had given the hosts. Then, on May 17, the truth came out: the suspicious episode titles and pleas for freedom were all about...contract negotiations, as the New York Times details.This reveal, and the ensuing details from the dispute, tore fans apart. Many were upset that the women would use Kesha as a symbol of their struggle, when "Praying" is about suffering sexual harassment and abuse when in actuality their dispute was about the women making either a lot of money or a shitton of money. Others took sides — Franklyn vs. Cooper — but regardless of what you believe or who you support, the damage has been done. Call Her Daddy is done, and if it comes back, it will never be the same.

What is the Call Her Daddy podcast about?

Created independently in 2018 before moving to Barstool Sports a month later, Call Her Daddy is a show about hosts and roommates Cooper and Franklyn. In it, the pair basically just shoot the shit about dating in their 20s in ways that are refreshingly raunchy for women, albeit often not PC. Cooper described it to the New York Post as "a women’s locker-room conversation that we should be able to have." Period sex, tricking your partner into taking medication for sexually transmitted diseases, and whether or not men are allowed to do baby-talk are just some of the topics broached in their episodes, which have earned them 1.3 million followers on Instagram and a dedicated following on Reddit.AdvertisementADVERTISEMENT

So, are Sofia Franklyn and Alex Cooper famous influencers, or just podcasters?

The pair were just two regular girls before a conversation at South by Southwest sparked the life-changing podcast in 2018. Twenty-six-year-old Cooper worked in sales at Gotham magazine before the podcast took over, according the New York Post, and 27-year-old Franklyn worked in finance. While Cooper previously released vlogs on YouTube, their fame is pretty tightly linked to the podcast.

View this post on Instagram

Spilling the tea

A post shared by Sofia Franklyn (@sofiafranklyn) on Feb 24, 2020 at 5:59pm PST

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I never post pictures smiling so here we gooooooo

A post shared by Alexandra Cooper (@alexandracooper) on Jan 22, 2020 at 5:09pm PST

Why is everyone mad at Sofia Franklyn and her boyfriend, Peter Nelson?

The drama over their contract dispute appears to be thanks to one person: Franklyn's boyfriend, 38-year-old HBO Sport exec Peter Nelson. According to Barstool Sports founder Dave Portnoy, at least, Nelson was the one shopping around Call Her Daddy while Cooper and Franklyn were still under contract with Barstool Sports. Whatever the specifics are, fans are just mad that one dude may be responsible for the downfall of their favorite podcast.

Who is Suitman?

That's the moniker the podcast gave to Nelson, which it's also put on merch that, yes, you can buy.

It seems like Dave Portnoy has a lot to say.

He does indeed. He was the one who broke the cryptic silence with a Call Her Daddy episode titled "Daddy Speaks" on May 17, and continues to react on the show's Instagram to this day. In his episode, he explains that after he learned that Call Her Daddy was being secretly shopped, he offered Cooper and Franklyn a $500,000 annual salary, bonuses, and six months off of their initial three-year contract so they'd be free to take their talents elsewhere, sooner. Cooper, apparently, accepted, but said Franklyn would never agree because of her boyfriend — which brings us to the next bit of drama.AdvertisementADVERTISEMENT

What did Sofia Franklyn say?

In an Instagram Story, Franklyn does not mention her boyfriend and says she is more than willing to return to the podcast on Barstool Sports, but now her issue is with Cooper. She says Cooper went behind her back, presumably with that meeting with Portnoy. Franklyn claims that Cooper is seeking more than 50/50 control of the podcast, and that she won't accept that because they've always been a partnership.

SOFIA SPEAKS! (video attached) from r/CallHerDaddy

Did Alex Cooper's "The truth about Call Her Daddy" video reveal any new drama?

Oh my gosh, SO much. First, she revealed that she was secretly making more than Franklyn after getting a raise in December for the fact that she edits all the podcasts. However, the real breakdown between her and Franklyn happened after that rooftop meeting. Cooper was ready to accept Barstool's new offer but Franklyn was not. As they continued to negotiate, Cooper says she felt she and Franklyn were never on the same page, that Franklyn kept asking for more money and would never be satisfied. Finally, Cooper called Dave Portnoy and said she would stay with Barstool Sports. Going forward, she'll be hosting Call Her Daddy solo.

Am I crazy or is this drama all over TikTok, too?

Yes. All this drama has pissed off the show's listeners, and those listeners love the Tok. They're mad at Franklyn, they're mad at Suitman, and they're writing songs about it.

@stoolpresidente

##CancelSuitman @lauren_vannucci @callherdaddy

♬ original sound - stoolpresidente

@babyitsabbey

and that’s on ruining call her daddy ##callherdaddy ##daddygang ##alexcooper ##sofiafranklyn

♬ bow and arrow - little_red_empress

@jessiehiggy

Too bad lord farquad is the VP of HBO Sports 🥴 ##teamalex ##callherdaddy ##barstool ##sofiafranklyn

♬ original sound - datboiii223

Who am I supposed to be mad at?

No one, because the fact that this involves two women means it's being portrayed as a catty, emotional feud when if it were two men we'd see it for what it really is: a business disagreement. While in a recent Instagram post Portnoy suggests Barstool Sports would be happy to have both women back, or give them their own brand new shows, in another video he says he feels Franklyn is gearing up for a lawsuit, so while the podcast may be on hold, the drama is far from over.AdvertisementADVERTISEMENT EntertainmentFrom Boho Braids To Blonde, Serena Page’s Hair Is As Versatile As...When we met Serena Page on Love Island Season 6, she was rocking the best boho braids I’d ever seen on TV. For six weeks in the villa, she showed us the by Kathleen Newman-B...EntertainmentMaybe Sydney Sweeney Is Exactly Who She Appears To BeThe script of the past seven days of discourse has followed the same structure as it always does. The classic problematic campaign meets backlash, followedby Kathleen Newman-B...EntertainmentJaNa Craig’s Split Proves A Pattern & It’s Black Women Who Pay Th...Love Island Season 6 couple JaNa Craig and Kenny Rodriguez have broken up nearly a year after leaving the villa. As soon as the split was announced,fans imby Taryn FinleyAdvertisementADVERTISEMENTUnbotheredWhy Love Island USA Watch Parties Feel Like A ’90s...An audience of 130 people cheered infectiously at the big screen as they enjoyed cocktails, bar food and conversation with strangers at 275Park in Brooklynby Taryn FinleyUnbotheredDream Con Was A Black Girl Cosplay Fantasy & Megan Thee Stallion ...Megan Thee Stallion was on a mission as she scanned a room full of fans at the George R. Brown Convention Center in Houston: to find the best cosplaying hoby Taryn Finley¡Súbelo!Cardi B’s Claims Against Offset Reveal How Women Are Harassed Eve...Trigger warning: This article references domestic violence. Grammy Award-winning rapper Cardi B is no stranger to sharing her unfiltered thoughts onlby Zameena MejiaUnbotheredThe Entire Celebrity Interview Ecosystem Is Flawed — It’s Not Jus...Everybody has bad interviews. It’s part of the gig. If you talk to celebrities for a living, eventually one of those chats is going to go sideways. We’by Kathleen Newman-B...Unbothered“What We Deem As Important Is Enough.” Keke Palmer’s NAACP Image ...In December, I wrote that the best performances of the year were Black. The NAACP Image Awards is the only awards show that got the memo. Every year, the Nby Kathleen Newman-B...UnbotheredThe NAACP Image Awards Are The Brightest (& Blackest) Part Of Awa...The NAACP Image Awards show is an essential night of Black excellence, initially debuting in 1967 to “honor outstanding film, television, music, and liteby Alexandra PolkUnbotheredNetflix Brought A Different World Back — But It Never Le...What made A Different World such a cultural and influential staple within our community? Since its recent Netflix debut, I’ve binge-watched the serieby Dontaira TerrellUnbotheredDoechii, Janelle Monae, T-Pain & More. Inside Super Bowl LIX’s We...Doechii believes in the power of manifestation. And if you’re an Eagles fan, after last night’s Super Bowl, you probably do too. The Philadelphia Eagleby Kathleen Newman-B...¡Súbelo!Trevor Noah’s Grammys Jokes Were Aimed at Trump. But They H...In the midst of a wave of state violence against Latine immigrants in the United States, the host of the 67th Annual Grammy Awards Trevor Noah has made theby Nicole FroioAdvertisementADVERTISEMENTADVERTISEMENTADVERTISEMENT