Morning Brew - 🎲 Game night

Good afternoon, Sidekick readers. If any of you are in touch with summer 2021, please tell her to slow down a bit. Thanks!

— Rachel Cantor

If you and your group chats questioned why four separate profiles of Call Her Daddy’s Alex Cooper dropped on July 21 (yep, see Time, Bustle, Refinery29, and WSJ), it’s because Cooper’s first episode with Spotify dropped the same day. First of all, kudos to whoever is doing her PR. And now that we’ve gotten a chance to read ’em all, let’s discuss. 

Since Cooper and her famously ex-BFF Sofia Franklyn launched Call Her Daddy with Barstool Sports in 2018, it’s become a crazy popular podcast about sex, dating, and your incognito search history. Then, amid the pandemic came a tumultuous contract renegotiation and fallout between the “Founding Fathers” (more details on that drama here). On the other side of it all, Cooper—who is now the “Single Father”—walked away with the show’s IP and a $60 million deal with Spotify (she’ll still write a CHD newsletter for Barstool and they’ll sell merch). 

Big-time creators know it is hella hard to go from working for a brand—especially one as big as Barstool Sports—to packing their bags and taking their audience with them. But over time, it does dawn on most creative types that it’s more rewarding to monetize their own platform versus create value for someone else. Cooper’s deal with Spotify is a big win in this regard. Last week’s profiles had a major opportunity to tell those who want to follow in Cooper’s footsteps how she did it. And yet they all left the biggest question unanswered: How’d she walk away with the IP? Our DMs are open...

• We never say “no” to chocolate...or homemade strawberry sorbet (sans ice cream maker). Pro tip: I cut the sugar in half and still loved it.
• Passport renewals are taking five months, on average. Cancel that stress with these passport-free destinations. St. Thomas, anyone? 
• Your who's who of the vinegars that belong in your pantry. (How are there so many? Rice, balsamic, apple cider...gah.) 
• Musical mastermind Jack Antonoff shares his approach to creativity (and Lorde and Taylor Swift reveal what it’s like to work with him). 
• Keep forest-green avocados and semi-squishy peaches off your kitchen counter with these creative storage solutions. 

Summer is almost over, but there’s still time to grow fresh basil for pesto pasta. Our latest Sidekick Special schools you on how to grow herbs from your windowsill and veggies in your backyard. For a flourishing indoor herb garden, find a spot with maximum sun exposure. And remember: “over-watering is worse than under-watering,” says our at-home harvest expert, Elizabeth Kiefer. She loves a once-a-week, kitchen-sink approach: “Stick it under a steady (not splashy!) faucet stream until water drips from the bottom hole, which confirms hydration has reached the roots.” 

The Sidekick Special also includes budget-friendly product recs and a super easy tzatziki recipe that’s tasty on top of crackers or spooned right from your Tupperware container. And for more plant-powered recipes, bookmark our master Sidekick recipe spreadsheet.

Scale up.

It’s time to ditch your old scale that only brought anxiety and (more often than not) incorrect readings. It’s time for an upgrade.

Withings’ Body+ is the #1 best selling smart scale in the US—a distinction they have very much earned. 

Wondering why? Let’s get into it:

• Body+ gives you a full body composition analysis, which includes water %, body fat %, plus bone and muscle mass
• Body+ syncs data via wi-fi to the free app so you can track your health trends over time
• Body+ connects with 100+ partner apps like Fitbit, Apple Health, and more

We guess you could say, Body+’s body of work is rather bodacious. 

And now you can get all those features for 20% off on Amazon.

Yep, get 20% off Body+ on Amazon until August 1.

Three games everyone (yes, everyone) will want to play on Game Night. 

• For a more intimate, get-to-know-you game, crack open an Actually Curious card deck. The questions resemble The NYT’s 36 Questions That Lead to Love, but they tap into broader topics like human rights and culture. 
• From the people who brought you Fibbage, the Jackbox Party Pack is a collection of five games designed to entertain everyone. Start with Quiplash, where players spew silly or raunchy responses to prompts and vote on the best ones. You’ll end each round rolling on the floor laughing. 
• If you still dream of joining MI6, it’s not too late. With Codenames, two players give their team clues while the rest try to make sense of what they’re saying. Your crew will leave with lots of new inside jokes.