Gwyneth Paltrow launches a podcast for MEN to fight ‘toxic masculinity’

Gwyneth Paltrow’s lifestyle brand has tackled everything from vaginal eggs to moon dust, but its latest venture is taking on the ’emotional health of men’ with its new male-oriented podcast Goopfellas.

Though she is often mocked for touting products and treatments based on pseudoscience, the 46-year-old entrepreneur and actress has made a name for herself in the wellness industry with her ever-growing Goop empire that is worth a reported $250 million. 

If Paltrow and her team are correct, there are a whole slew of modern men who are desperate for their own versions of the bra-burning rituals and ‘sex bark’ recipes that have been infamously touted on her website over the years.

Venture: Gwyneth Paltrow’s lifestyle brand, Goop, has launched Goopfellas, a male-oriented podcast hosted by functional medicine practitioner Will Cole (L) and chef Seamus Mullen (R)

Goop is now inviting guys into the fold with Goopfellas, a podcast for men by men that will focus on personal health transformations, whether they be mental, physical, or a combination of the two.  

‘It feels like we’re at a point in the culture where men are rejecting that sort of toxic masculinity,’ the company’s chief content officer, Elise Loehnen, told Fast Company last week.  

‘We wanted to do something that was more about the emotional health of men, the importance of vulnerability, and this acknowledgment of how hard these things can be.’ 

The spin-off comes just a little over a year after Paltrow launched the inaugural Goop podcast with her interview with Oprah Winfrey. In addition to Goopfellas, the company also plans on rolling out a newsletter and G Label clothing for men. 

Hosted by celebrity chef Seamus Mullen and functional medicine practitioner Will Cole, the first episode of the Goopfellas podcast debuted last Wednesday. 

In the trailer for the podcast, Mullen explained that he spent most of his adult life sick with rheumatoid arthritis, an autoimmune disease that almost killed him. He is now dedicated to helping others ‘reclaim their health through the lifestyle choices they make.’

Meanwhile, Cole said his job as a functional medicine practitioner is ‘to get to the root cause of why people are going through health problems.’ 

The two couldn’t resist asking each other what the ‘Goopiest’ things they’ve ever done, proving that they are both solid male representations of what Paltrow’s lifestyle brand is all about. 

Fans: Both Mullen and Cole have part of the Goop universe for years. Goopfellas will focus on personal health transformations, including topics such as addiction, trauma, and nutrition

Fans: Both Mullen and Cole have part of the Goop universe for years. Goopfellas will focus on personal health transformations, including topics such as addiction, trauma, and nutrition

Goopy guys: Mullen has appeared alongside Paltrow in her brand's 'Real Men Eat Goop ' cooking videos (pictured), while Cole has been interviewed by the website

Goopy guys: Mullen has appeared alongside Paltrow in her brand’s ‘Real Men Eat Goop ‘ cooking videos (pictured), while Cole has been interviewed by the website 

‘I just recently got back from Bali, and I did this really bizarre, weird sound bath thingy where I laid on a waterbed in a pyramid and some crazy Estonian guy bounced around the room playing didgeridoo and gongs,’ Mullen recalled. 

‘And there was a light show and all this woo-woo stuff. And it was pretty frickin’ amazing. I actually, like, totally tripped out.’   

Cole pointed out that his entire career aligns with the Goop ethos, explaining that his ‘job is talking about poop transplants and parasite therapies.’

‘I live Goop,’ he said. 

Both of the men have been a part of the Goop universe for years.  

Mullen has appeared alongside Paltrow in her brand’s ‘Real Men Eat Goop’ cooking videos. In one clip published last summer, he demonstrated how to make grain-free taco shells using jicama. 

The chef also chatted about his knowledge of adaptogenic herbs, ‘earthing,’ and fecal transplants in a ‘How Goopy are You?’ video shared last year.  

Cole, meanwhile, has previously been interviewed by Goop in addition to writing posts and sharing recipes for the website. 

Promotions: Cole and Mullen took part in a panel discussion with filmmaker Kevin Smith (far right) at the Goop Health Summit earlier this month

Promotions: Cole and Mullen took part in a panel discussion with filmmaker Kevin Smith (far right) at the Goop Health Summit earlier this month 

First up: For their first Goopfellas podcast, Mullen and Cole spoke with Keith Mitchell, a former NFL player who turned to yoga and meditation after a career-ending football injury in 2003

First up: For their first Goopfellas podcast, Mullen and Cole spoke with Keith Mitchell, a former NFL player who turned to yoga and meditation after a career-ending football injury in 2003

First up: For their first Goopfellas podcast, Mullen and Cole spoke with Keith Mitchell, a former NFL player who turned to yoga and meditation after a career-ending football injury in 2003

As Slate has pointed out, Cole refers to himself as ‘Dr.,’ which would lead many to presume he went to medical school. 

In actuality, the functional medicine practitioner has a doctorate of chiropractic from Southern California University of Health Sciences, a private school that focuses on alternative medicine. 

For their first Goopfellas podcast, titled ‘The Warrior Construct,’ Mullen and Cole spoke with Keith Mitchell, a former NFL linebacker who turned to yoga and meditation after a career-ending football injury left him partially paralyzed in 2003. 

The yogi explained that he had a ‘gladiator’ or ‘warrior’ mentality at the time and wasn’t actually happy with his life. 

Mitchell recalled learning conscious breathing during his recovery and how that led to his physical and mental transformation as he redefined who he was without football. 

Even though he couldn’t walk for six months after getting a spinal cord injury on the field, he told the hosts that he would be okay with his own children playing football. 

‘What I would integrate is the healing aspect,’ he said. ‘As you go out and do the damage you have to come back also and do the healing.’

New territory: Chief content officer, Elise Loehnen (center), said Goop wanted to address the 'emotional health of men' as more and more of them are rejecting 'toxic masculinity'

New territory: Chief content officer, Elise Loehnen (center), said Goop wanted to address the ’emotional health of men’ as more and more of them are rejecting ‘toxic masculinity’

Start of it all: The spin-off comes just a little over a year after Paltrow launched the inaugural Goop podcast with her interview with Oprah Winfrey (pictured)

Start of it all: The spin-off comes just a little over a year after Paltrow launched the inaugural Goop podcast with her interview with Oprah Winfrey (pictured)

The former athlete also briefly referred to meeting with a doctor in Honduras who helped him heal from the concussions he sustained during his football career. 

He wrote about the experience earlier this year, recalling how he ate orchids and wore an herbal paste ‘inside a do-rag for seven days straight.’    

It’s unclear if Paltrow and her team will be able to tap into the male wellness segment, but it seems like they may be off to a good start.

Just as Goop appeals to a certain kind of woman, Goopfellas is likely to attract that same type of man.  

So far, Goopfellas has an Apple Podcasts rating of 4.9 out of 5 stars from 31 reviewers. As one enthusiastic reviewer put it, it’s ‘super brilliant and filling a much-needed void.’

‘As a fellow goopfella, I have been eagerly waiting this podcast and extension of an already incredible goop mission! Thank you for this gift of a podcast,’ another person wrote. 

‘Our culture of guys being divorced from their bodies and their symptoms and thinking they can push through it–we live in a time when that’s shifting,’ Cole told Fast Company last week. 

‘A lot of men don’t want to be put on another pill, but they’re told that’s the only option [in traditional medicine]…. They want to do something different.’

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