We’re in the age of the podcast right now – so if you’re not already sitting with a queue of podcasts, ready for play on your phone, you can guarantee that someone you know definitely is. And one podcast that you should be listening to is The Receipts – headed up by hosts and good friends Tolani ‘Tolly T’ Shoneye, Milena Sanchez and Audrey ‘Formerly Known As Ghana’s Finest’ Indome, it’s best described as the chat you’d have with your closest girlfriends, said out loud. With laughter often in the very first seconds of every episode, you can tell immediately that these women have a great time as they discuss everything from childhood memories to failed dates; from issues with colourism, to favourite sex acts.
Unfiltered, straight-up, and pretty darn hilarious, the ladies of The Receipts have built a loyal following online since launching in 2016, and the brand is only set to get bigger, following the start of their weekly, additional show at BBC Radio 1Xtra. Pride caught up with the three hosts to hear about their impressive growth, their process and why their open discussion of sex and relationships is revolutionary.
Ladies, first things first: how did the podcast get started?
Tolly
Tolly: Literally, through Twitter. There’s a male podcast called 3 Shots of Tequila, and they share some specifically male experiences in a really open way. I love podcasts, so I was always listening – and I thought, ‘Oh, girls can do this, why is there not a female equivalent?’ I tweeted about it, and then people joined the conversation and said they were interested.
Audrey: It was like X Factor – in the DMs, there were about 10 people, then it got cut down to eight people at email stage; by the time we met up, we had five – but the fifth girl had other commitments, meaning that when we actually started, there were four of us. And now, three of us!
Milena: And that’s how it’s gonna stay, just three of us.
You discuss such a wide range of topics on your show – and you’re never afraid to get explicit with it! Are there ever any topics that are out-of-bounds, or too wild for the podcast?
Milena
Milena: I don’t think necessarily ‘too wild’; I just feel that if there’s something we don’t have experience with, we really shouldn’t talk on it, and instead get other people to share their story.
Audrey: I always surprise myself though, because every time I think I won’t share something, the moment will arrive and then I’ll just share it, because it makes sense to in the context of the conversation. I do still get worried, thinking “Oh sh*t, are people gonna judge?” – but they never do.
Milena: If we ever think we’ve said something wild, there’ll be three other people on Twitter who’ll be like, “Oh my God, me too!”
Part of the podcast’s success is that listeners feel like they’re listening to their friends chatting, because you all sound like great friends! How long did it take before your connection really started to mould together into strong friendships?
Audrey: It was instant, I think!
Tolly: We’ve been in a group chat since, like, July 2016 –
Milena: – and we’ve spoken like every single day for two years!
Tolly: Outside of the podcast, we really nurture our relationships. We know so much about each other – and I always say to people who want to start a podcast, to do it with people you like, because you’re with them all the time, especially once you get more successful. Also, we’ve now gotten to the point where we can say, ‘Alright, stop, you’re pissing me off’ – until you get there, I feel like you’re not really friends.
Audrey: We’re like sisters now.
What are some important podcasting tricks you’ve learned along the way since starting?
Audrey
Tolly: I don’t think we’ve learned how to do a podcast to be honest – though we probably could be more fine tuned, a part of me doesn’t want to be – there’s the rawness that allows us to really say what we want. When it turns into something super polished, it seems a bit-
Audrey: -fake.
Milena: Everything just flows. It’s not like, “Okay guys, now let’s talk about Monday.” It’s just conversational; for all you know, we could start talking about salt and end up talking about turtles. It’s just so random.
Tolly: We could probably stop talking over each other.
Audrey and Milena: Yeah…
Audrey: I think we’ve gotten better since episode one; you can see the development. The sound from episode one to the sound now, the journey’s aligned.
Milena: And that’s why I love my day ones, they actually stuck with us through our volume issues!
Your podcast is so open in its discussion of sex & relationships – and we don’t see black women talk about that on such a major scale very often. Was this intentional?
Tolly: For me, definitely. Growing up, I always viewed sex as something you endured, and something for men to do. It’s like thinking ‘good black girls’ don’t talk about sex…
Audrey: …like we’re ‘different’ to other girls…
Tolly: …but, actually, we’re grown women, these are conversations we have in our friendship groups – why is this not a conversation that’s not had openly? And once the conversation has been had, we can educate ourselves on what’s normal, and what’s not normal. When nothing’s being spoken about, you don’t know what you should and shouldn’t accept. A lot of black women are having a lot of sex, so why can’t we talk about it?
Audrey: We’re grownups – we should be able to talk about what we want.
Tolly: Women can also be crude about sex too. It doesn’t make you less of a lady, or anything. If I’m taking part in it, I should be able to talk about it.
Milena: It’s important to figure out what we like, as well. For a very long time, it was more of a man’s thing to enjoy, and we were just there – but now we’re actually experimenting with things, talking about it more openly, and understanding ourselves as much as everyone else around us.
Tolly: And it’s for the greater good of all women’s sex lives; men who listen are learning, like, “Oh, you don’t like we do ‘xyz’?” No, I don’t.
Audrey: And with the audience, and lack of [negative] feedback we get, lets us know that people listening are enjoying it. It’s good to get the conversation going.
You can listen to The Receipts Podcast every Wednesday on Apple Podcasts and Soundcloud.
