Armchair Expert with Dax Shepard
Armchair Umbrella
Hi, I’m Dax Shepard, and I love talking to people. I am endlessly fascinated by the messiness of being human, and I find people who are vulnerable and honest about their struggles and shortcomings to be incredibly sexy. I invite you to join me as I explore other people’s stories. We will celebrate, above all, the challenges and setbacks that ultimately lead to growth and betterment. What qualifies me for such an endeavor? More than a decade of sobriety, a degree in Anthropology and four years of improv training. I will attempt to discover human “truths” without any laboratory work, clinical trials or data collection. I will be, in the great tradition of 16th-century scientists, an Armchair Expert.
Episodes
Mentioned books
27 snips
Feb 16, 2026 • 1h 57min
Charlie Puth
Charlie Puth, Grammy-nominated singer, songwriter, and producer known for Voicenotes and 'See You Again', talks music and life. He describes capturing room tone, his photographic auditory memory, and learning by ear. He reflects on fame, reclaiming authenticity, DIY recording tricks, TikTok teaching, and balancing touring with new fatherhood.
7 snips
Feb 13, 2026 • 46min
Armchair Anonymous: Meet Cute III
Meet Armcherry callers Emily, who bonded over shared childhood surgery and later reconnected; Claire, who found love while backpacking through Europe; Jeremy, who left his number on a napkin at Chicken Express and built a family; and Allison, who met her partner juggling at the Philadelphia Folk Festival and turned performing into a life together. They tell short, charming meet-cute stories and reflect on relationships, travel, parenting, and performance.
21 snips
Feb 11, 2026 • 2h 21min
Justin Garcia (on the science of sex)
Justin Garcia, evolutionary biologist and Kinsey Institute director, studies the science of sex, love, and fidelity. He talks about how human sex ties into social behavior. He compares primate mating systems, explains dating app choice overload, and shares stories from brothel hormone research. He also explores pandemic effects on relationships and why intimacy feels so messy.
12 snips
Feb 9, 2026 • 1h 39min
Kaley Cuoco Returns
Kaley Cuoco, Emmy-nominated actor and producer known for The Big Bang Theory and The Flight Attendant, drops by to chat about rescuing exotic animals and life on her ranch. She talks near-death fascination, napping anywhere as a superpower, her meet-cute with fiancé Tom, sleeping in separate bedrooms, and filming the mystery thriller Vanished in Europe.
8 snips
Feb 6, 2026 • 48min
Armchair Anonymous: Cooking Disaster II
Jen, a listener who suffered a deep wrist cut from a shattered glass bowl, shares her chaotic ER and long rehab. Emma, calling from Honolulu, recounts a French-press accident that left her husband severely burned and hospitalized. Seth tells of a sheet-pan bacon spill that caused a painful forearm burn. They trade tense, cautionary kitchen disaster stories and medical aftermaths.
16 snips
Feb 4, 2026 • 2h 10min
Claudia Rowe (on the foster care system)
Claudia Rowe, award-winning journalist and author who investigates crime and child welfare. She discusses long-form reporting, a five-year correspondence with a convicted killer, and how a single trial revealed systemic failures in foster care. Short, sharp stories explore how poverty, broken placements, overmedication, and lack of supports funnel youth into criminalization, plus hopeful examples of rehabilitation.
8 snips
Feb 2, 2026 • 2h 7min
Anderson .Paak
Anderson .Paak, Grammy-winning singer, rapper, producer and filmmaker, shares colorful stories from his rise. He talks collaborations with Dre and Mac Miller, viral Tiny Desk moments, church-bred musicianship, directing music videos into his film K-Pops, family struggles and reconciliation, and why he trusts his gut. The conversation jumps between music, movies, and personal milestones in lively, candid detail.
16 snips
Jan 30, 2026 • 43min
Armchair Anonymous: Foreign Object in Butt II
Hannah, a general surgery resident who operates on unusual cases, Rachel, an OR tech and PA student with hands-on removal stories, and Kristen, a nursing student who found a modified vibrator in a bike handle, share wild operating-room and clinical tales. They describe bizarre objects discovered on scans and in surgery. Listeners hear vivid, sometimes shocking surgical anecdotes and the realities of care.
39 snips
Jan 28, 2026 • 1h 56min
Ellen Huet (on wellness cults)
Ellen Huet, investigative journalist and author of Empire of Orgasm, digs into OneTaste and the rise of orgasmic meditation. She outlines how a startup pitch turned into deep reporting on sexual control, power dynamics, and manipulative systems. The conversation covers the mechanics of OM, growth tactics, financial pressures, legal outcomes, and why anyone can be vulnerable to indoctrination.
25 snips
Jan 26, 2026 • 1h 54min
Marcello Hernández
Marcello Hernández, a stand-up comedian and actor known for American Boy and SNL work, shares funny and personal stories about growing up in Miami and his family. He talks about finding a new writing process in Spanish. He recalls pivoting from soccer to comedy, viral TikToks that boosted his career, and the wild ride toward SNL.
