Glad To Hear It

How did Philly’s Gayborhood come to be in the first place?

In Part 1 of our Philadelphia Gayborhood history series, we’re going back to the beginning: queer life around Rittenhouse Square, the infamous Spruce Street Boys, police crackdowns that pushed the community west of Broad, and the bars, clubs, cruising spots, Pride marches, and community organizing that helped shape Philly’s LGBTQ+ community.

We’ll wrap up in the 1990s, when the area officially became know as the Gayborhood. Then in Part 2, we’ll pick up from there and explore how it evolved from the ’90s to the Gayborhood we know today.

Fall is officially here, and we’re getting into all the bratty vibes - cozy weather, crisp air, pumpkin spice, situationships, spooky nudes, and the travesty that is the sun setting at 5 PM. 🍂🎃

We’re also putting a gay twist on some classic fall activities… because why simply cruise through a corn maze when you can cruise through a corn maze? Why look for a needle in a haystack when you can... well, you get the idea. 🌽

From our favorite things about the changing season to the Christian Girl Autumn we could live without, we’re talking all things fall, with a little extra seasoning along the way.

This week on Glad To Hear It, we're talking about the Philly gay bar scene, so naturally, we went looking for someone else’s ranking to argue with. We couldn’t find much that felt recent, but we did come across an older Time Out list of some of Philly’s best gay bars. So we give you our updated ranking, talk about how the bars and the Gayborhood have changed over the years, and reminisce about where we used to go in our early 20s. We also share our favorite spots for different kinds of nights out, from the new Little Gay Pub to The Bike Stop. Consider this your unofficial guide to Philly’s gay bars, according to two gays who have spent a lot of time in them.

In an interesting departure from our usual silly conversations, this week on Glad To Hear It, Justin brings a new article about stem cell research to the table for a rather intellectual discussion about whether two men could one day have a baby that’s biologically linked to both of them. We get into the science, the ethics, and the BBC’s very dramatic question of whether this could mean the end of sex as we know it.

Justin also has to ask himself whether he actually wants a baby, or if he just likes knowing that he could have one. Plus, we may or may not be developing something…

This week on Glad To Hear It, we’re playing Slay or Nay, the only game where speedos and Anne Hathaway can somehow end up in the same conversation. We’re taking turns throwing out topics and deciding if they’re a slay or a nay, with absolutely no qualifications to back up our opinions.

From things we love to things we cannot understand the hype around, we’re giving our unsolicited takes on everything in between. Play along and let us know what gets your vote: slay or nay?

When is something actually worth spending more money on— and when are we just being financially irresponsible with a cute little justification?

In this episode, we’re talking about the things in life that are worth the extra few dollars (or several hundred). From food and fashion to everyday essentials and those little luxuries that just make life feel better, we’re breaking down what's worth the splurge.

Because sometimes you need to save your money. And sometimes you need the good burrata, the nice shoes, and the jewelry you’ll still be wearing 10 years from now... priorities!

Come for the hot takes, stay for the questionable financial decisions. 💳✨

If we could go back in time and give our younger selves some advice… would we actually listen? Probably not. But that’s not stopping us from trying.

We’re giving our younger selves the advice we wish we had heard sooner—from choosing passion over a paycheck (or maybe choosing the paycheck, because bills), going to the gym before our metabolism retires, embracing the weird things that make us us, and learning that tanning every single day is, in fact, not a personality trait.

Of course, we also tackle the really important stuff, like why we should have started saving for a private jet much earlier in life. ✈️

Some advice is heartfelt. Some is questionable. Some is wildly specific. And some is just two gay best friends trying to convince themselves they have their shit together.

Basically, it’s everything we’d tell our younger selves… if our younger selves would actually answer the phone.

Grab the popcorn because this week on Glad To Hear It, we’re taking a trip down the cinematic rabbit hole to revisit the movies that raised us, shaped us, scarred us, and probably gave us some wildly unrealistic expectations along the way.

From childhood classics and the early 2000s Lindsay Lohan takeover to horror movies that had us scared of our hometowns, we’re breaking down the films that became part of our personalities - for better or worse. Add a little Britney Spears, some questionable pop-culture influences, and two gay best friends with absolutely no film degree, and you’ve got yourself a movie night. 💅🎬

So press play, suspend your disbelief, and ask yourself the most important question: Did the movie make us… or did it simply make us here for the drama? 🍿

This week on Glad To Hear It, we’re asking the important questions: Is ChatGPT my new best friend? And can Jake actually save his hairline?

Justin dives into the strange new reality of having AI in our everyday lives — the ways it can help us, the reasons companies are pushing it so hard, and whether we’re getting a little too comfortable relying on something that isn’t human.

Then Jake shares his new hair restoration journey — the system he invested in, the hopes of regrowing his hair, and the bigger conversation around hair loss, confidence, and appearance as gay men. Is fighting your hairline worth it, or is embracing the bald life the better move?

So… are we glad to hear it? Bots. Bald spots. Existential crises. Welcome to your 30s.

This week, we’re exposing ourselves… but not like that (get your mind out of the gutter).

We’re asking the important questions: What’s your before-bed vibe? What’s your music vibe? What’s your airport vibe? Are you a terminal speed walker, a lounge lover, or someone who shows up 17 minutes before boarding with nothing but confidence?

Then we pivot from vibes to vices—because no one is perfect. We confess to everything from an unhealthy relationship with Taco Bell and chain-vaping to being painfully vain, expertly pretending to work, and a few other habits we should probably unpack with a therapist.

It’s a chaotic mix of hot takes, unnecessary oversharing, and two gay best friends enabling each other one questionable opinion at a time.

Grab a Baja Blast (or don’t—we’re trying to grow), and join us for an episode that’s equal parts self-discovery and self-destruction.