Alex Cooper of the mega-popular podcast Call Her Daddy has announced the launch of a new talent agency called The Unwell Network.
The blonde bombshell, 28, rose to fame as a co-host of the sex advice-focused podcast, which launched in 2018 and was bought by Spotify in January 2022 for a whopping $60 million, with more than five million listeners per episode.
Cooper has racked up plenty of star power over the past 18 months – airing interviews with everyone from Zayn Malik and Post Malone to Ariana Madix and Gwyneth Paltrow.
Now she’s using that A-list allure to target another group of powerful personas — going after the world’s most successful influencers.
The Unwell Network already has two well-known influencers in the form of Alix Earle, 22, and Madeline Argy, 23, who have signed on as the company’s first two partners. deadline only reported.
Alex Cooper, 28, of Call Me Daddy fame, is launching a talent agency – called The Unwell Network – that will aim to represent Gen-Z influencers on the rise
Alix Earle, 22, who rose to fame for her #GetReadyWithMe TikToks, is one of two partners on board The Unwell Network
Together, the influencer duo has a following of tens of millions; New Jersey native Alix has nearly three million fans on Instagram, 5.6 million on TikTok and 90,000 on YouTube, while Brit Madeline has 1.6 million on Instagram and 4.6 million on TikTok, as well as 353,000 subscribers on YouTube.
According to Deadline, the agency will collaborate with “emerging creators to create projects and content across media, with an emphasis on genres such as pop culture, beauty, fashion and lifestyle.”
Alex told the publication of her new venture, “I have an unusual and wonderful relationship with my audience. We’ve built this connection and bond on trust that allows us to cover a variety of topics in a way that isn’t exclusive or intrusive.”
She continued, “We live in a world where we’re inundated with content, but The Unwell Network will be the resource everyone can turn to for unique perspectives to explore what’s top of mind with this generation today.”
While The Unwell Network claims to cater to a Gen-Z audience, Alex, born in 1994, is technically a millennial.
But Alix, who rode TikTok’s viral #GetReadyWithMe — #GRWM for short — trend to nearly ten million followers on TikTok and Instagram, is firmly in the Gen-Z demographic.
The New Jersey native started shooting #GRWM videos while attending the University of Miami.
As of January 2023, the so-called “hot best friend” of internet residents could rake in up to $70,000 for a product endorsement post on her social media feeds.
While The Unwell Network claims to cater to a Gen-Z audience, Alex (seen posing with new recruit Alix), born in 1994, is technically a millennial
Briton Madeline Argy, 23 – the second partner already on board with The Unwell Network – is known for her lip sync videos and lifestyle content
No less the consummate Gen-Zer, Madeline has 6 million followers on TikTok and Instagram. She is known for her lip sync videos and general lifestyle and wellness content.
Of her two Gen-Z age group partners, Alex told Deadline, “Alix Earle and Madeline Argy both have a unique presence that engages an audience, but I love how they approach content in very different ways.
‘Madeline is wildly popular in the UK and is one of the few creators who can keep an audience engaged for hours with her captivating stories.
Alix took the US by storm with her ‘get ready with me’ videos, her college lifestyle and her engaging personality,” she continued.
“I’m honored to be at a place in my career where I can pass on knowledge and advice so that a new generation of creators can flourish,” the multi-platform podcaster concluded.
As for her, Alix posted a TikTok timed the announcement of The Unwell Network’s imminent launch with a flashback to a #GRWM video posted in September 2022, in which she raves about Alex just following her and it “made my day.”
These days, in the confessional-style video, Alix gushed, “If you told Alix Earle at the time that she was going to be in meetings with Alex Cooper and join her network, I don’t even know — I think she would be passed out, threw up, like she just wouldn’t have been okay.
“This doesn’t feel real to me!” she added.
In 2020, the Call Her Daddy podcast became embroiled in scandal amid a contract dispute with its then-owner, digital media company Barstool Sports.
Alex originally launched and co-hosted Call Her Daddy with her former roommate and since-estranged girlfriend, Sofia Franklin, 31.
The trouble started around the time the podcast went on hiatus in April 2020, reportedly due to contract denials with Barstool.
Alex originally launched Call Her Daddy in 2018 with her former roommate and since-estranged girlfriend Sofia Franklin, 31
The two fell out in 2020 during contract negotiations with then-podcast owner Barstool Sports, bringing the pod back after a two-month hiatus with only Alex hosting.
Alex told Deadline about her social media credentials: ‘I have an unusual and wonderful relationship with my audience’
However, as reported by The New York Post in May of that year, the negotiations had somehow resulted in the relationship between the two co-hosts deteriorating.
“They completely turned on each other and started arguing about who was the real talent and who was doing more of the heavy lifting (for the podcast),” a source told The Post at the time.
“I think their audience will be surprised to hear what goes on behind the scenes with them. It’s not the loyal, cheerful friendship they expressed there.’
Sofia then took to her Instagram Stories to offer some insight, claiming, “I found out that Alex had gone behind my back and done something. And I found out it wasn’t the first time. And that’s why we’re here. I trusted Alex.
“I feel betrayed… I’m willing to do “Call Her Daddy.” I’m real. I just can’t do it under the circumstances she wants…she demands to control the show.
‘We are partners. That’s how we’ve always been. We’ve always been 50/50, so that put me in an extremely difficult position. So here we are’
Whatever the full story of what went on behind the scenes, Spotify eventually became the podcast’s new owner through a $60 million dollar deal — though Barstool remained involved in the “merchandising.”
And by the time the podcast returned in June, Alex had become the sole host.