Ep. 248: Dating, Ghosting & Found Family: A Girl and a Gay on Real Modern Love

Jacqueline & Japheth | A Girl and a Gay What happens when a metropolitan girly from New York and LA meets a Nashville-born gay man at a summer party — and they become instant best friends? Magic. Content. And a whole lot of tea. Zach sits down with Jacqueline and Japheth, the creators behind the TikTok account A Girl and a Gay, for one of the most wide-ranging, real-talk conversations the show has had in a while. These two met just a year ago through a mutual friend, and they've already built a growing platform giving dating advice to thousands of followers — from real DMs about heartbreak, ghosting, and whether a guy actually likes you. In this episode: How Jacqueline and Japheth met at a Nashville party and became instant best friends (what Japheth calls a "clandestine union of sorts") Jacqueline's move from New York and LA to Nashville — and why she traded city life for something more peaceful What the gay dating scene in Nashville is actually like: close-knit, warm, but also complicated when everyone knows everyone Ghosting, catfishing, and love bombing — why ghosting may be more psychologically damaging than outright rejection How to make friends as an adult (including Zach's Out Close dinner experience in Boston) Being gay in a red state: Japheth's experience growing up out in Tennessee and why he cries every year at Nashville Pride The origin of A Girl and a Gay — how a single TikTok video blew up and turned into a movement Why their DMs started filling up with real relationship questions when they still had under 1,000 followers Skincare secrets (shoutout to Revision Skincare and IT Cosmetics CC cream) And the conversation every aspiring podcaster needs to hear about patience, persistence, and not going in with expectations Connect with Jacqueline & Japheth: TikTok: @agirlAndAGay (combined account) https://www.tiktok.com/@a.girl.and.a.gay Plus their individual TikTok and Instagram accounts —   https://www.tiktok.com/@japhethfranco https://www.tiktok.com/@itsjacqs https://www.instagram.com/japheth__franco/ Everything & Anything…and a Bit Gay is hosted by Zach Randles-Friedman. New episodes drop regularly. Subscribe, leave a review, and share this episode with someone who needs it. Podcast song by SIXFOOT 5: https://www.sixfoot5prod.com Apple: https://music.apple.com/us/artist/sixfoot-5/1551774977 Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/artist/5rHMzoU0G0fLhaBsrQiOOY?si=laSZ5hiKTYubJJyhrzf2JQ Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.