Keeping it Real With 'Your Favorite Auntie' Marjon Carlos
Launched in quarantine, IG Live series "Your Favorite Auntie" hosted by Marjon Carlos is entering a new era as it becomes an official podcast.
Marjon Carlos doesn't hold anything back.
And why would she? Coming from a journalist background and always one to voice her opinions, Carlos has long since understood the importance of keeping it real, in both the fun times and in moments of discomfort.
In the blip times of what we call the pandemic, while everyone was desperate for human contact and connection of any shape or form, Carlos saw an opportunity to take on a venture she had been thinking about for a while: starting her own talk series. Called Your Favorite Auntie, within three years the show has quickly evolved into a safe space for pop culture obsessives, fashion enthusiasts, reality TV stans, beauty connoisseurs, and everything in between.
"The way that the show came about was that people kept DMing me asking me my thoughts on the world burning," Carlos tells L'OFFICIEL. "And it was specifically right after George Floyd had been murdered and people were dealing with all sorts of trauma and racial violence at work, in their own relationships, and in their friendships, and so I think it initially started from there and then it just branched out into an advice show and just developed into its own little world."
This "own little world" now unlocks a new era in its universe, as Your Favorite Auntie officially becomes a podcast. If you ask Carlos though, Your Favorite Auntie becoming a podcast was always the vision.
"It always felt like such a huge undertaking and such a heavy lift, and I knew I was going to need actual support, financial support," she says. "So I reached out to Cash App because they work so well with young creatives as we're on the cusp but they just need that extra push. And they were just really open to the idea and really allowed me to attain creative control. So it was great working with them and helping me take this to the next level."
The name behind the podcast came to Carlos much easier than you may think as it's inspired by her own aunties, and becoming an aunt herself. Growing up, she describes her aunts as having "represented another form of female expression and female livelihood. They were independent, they were outspoken, opinionated, very well respected, and revered. They dressed to the nines. They were fun, they were sassy."
They were "freeing female figures" in her life who weren't there to be "punitive" with her, but be an "advocate for [her]."
Taking those same qualities aunties have come to represent, she channels that energy in her podcast, sharing the knowledge she's accumulated over the years with her listeners and serving as the "cool auntie" in the industry for the young up-and-comers.
But don't think this is strictly just a show for career and advice. When it comes to the content, anything goes. Some conversations are a bit more lighthearted and fun, while others may be centered around cultural criticism happening in the world. Regardless, Carlos is keeping the "same tell it as it is energy."
"I think having the guests in the studio, talking to them, it's just a different feeling than having that screen," she says. "Our energy's able to feed off of one another in such a different way, and I've recorded everything. I interviewed Christopher John Rogers and Jessel [Taank] from [Real Housewives of New York] RHONY and Ira Madison [III] and Evan Ross Katz and Gabriella Khalil. These are all really good friends of mine or people that I really admired, and the energy is just really kinetic when you're in person versus IG Live. I'm still giving out advice. I'm still talking about culture, but it's also very transportive because we're on a set. So I think that's kind of the new twist to it all."
Her overall approach to her process is rooted in keeping it honest. When asked about how she reached a level of comfortability talking about fashion through the lens of race and gender, especially amidst our current political climate, she responded that she "says the things that people are thinking."
"That's kind of the point of being a journalist, just to be honest and to be transparent and get conversations going," Carlos says. "If I see something that's an injustice or I feel like is a gross inequity and we need to really hold ourselves in the industry accountable, I say something. Because I think that's the only way we affect actual change."
"Does it necessarily make people feel great? No, not all the time," she adds. "It does make you feel uncomfortable. But, I think that's when the best conversations happen — in that moment of discomfort."
Of course, the goal isn't to keep it too formal — quite the opposite. When chatting with her guests, she has "the bones of the conversation," but then sees where the tête-à-tête goes from there, having a fun time getting to know them.
As she describes it, "I hope it feels like a kee between your friends or people that are friends and you're overhearing their conversation."
It's these one-on-ones that she has found to be the best part of this experience so far. "It's not a job. It's so much fun. It's a passion. It's a calling," she says.
Being a still-working journalist, brand consultant, and host to her successful show, there is of course the question of how she balances it all. Balances her work, her relationships, and her plans, while still making time to rest and prioritize self-care. Keeping it on brand, she answers honestly.
"I don't do the best job, I have to say. I'm not going to even try to pretend," she laughs. "I don't really do the best job of balancing it all. I mean, the best I can say is that I try to break up the day into certain quarters."
Handling it all has certainly been a big sprint and a heavy lift, so much so you'd think Carlos would want to throw in the towel, or at the very least lighten the load — but no.
"I was listening to my friend Jenee Naylor the other day, and she talked about how she left her position and went freelance and became a social content creator. And she was basically like, 'If you are going to work as hard for these companies, why wouldn't you work as hard for yourself?' And so I love that sentiment and the sense of just being dedicated to your dreams and staying focused on that," she shares.
Even with this new dawn for Your Favorite Auntie, Carlos is already looking ahead, expressing her desire to eventually have her own TV talk show.
"I would love to have a TV talk show. I would love to be expanding and doing it that way because the best part of the show, when you're doing a podcast, is there are so many different parts to it that don't even realize are a part of it until you're in the thick of it," she says. "The best part is sitting down with people and talking to them. So I definitely want to have my own talk show one day, to do that and do other things on air. And just figure out other ways of expanding journalism."
Listen to Your Favorite Auntie podcast on Spotify and Apple Podcasts.
