

How Did We Get Weird with Vanessa Bayer and Jonah Bayer
All Things Comedy
Before sibling duo Vanessa Bayer and Jonah Bayer took the comedy, music and general world by storm, they were just some lil weirdo kids. Joined by exciting guests who also started out this way, they reminisce about everything from toys to trends on How Did We Get Weird? Unless you’re a monster, you’ll want to listen to this nostalgia-filled, hilarious and surprisingly sweet podcast where they discuss how those formative years that shaped them into who they are today.
Episodes
Mentioned books

Sep 29, 2025 • 1h 9min
Remember Block Parties? (with Beck Bennett)
Today on the podcast the Bayer siblings are thrilled to welcome back their old friend Beck Bennett! Fresh off the release of his new podcast with Kyle Mooney "What's Our Pod?" Beck and the Bayers talk about what it feels like to start hosting a podcast and how there's definitely a learning curve! Then, the trio brainstorms ways to get on the "Kid Cuisine" Wikipedia page and did you know that the first reference on Beck's Wikipedia page is from his first time on this podcast?? Plus we reminisce about Block Parties and Beck recalls the epic parties in his neighborhood that included the game Bloody Murder (sounds scarier than it is), and Jonah and Vanessa talk about the Fourth of July parade and baseball game in their neightborhood that could kind of pass for a block party? And in a rousing game of CHANGE DOT DORK the trio debate the merits of bringing back Lean Cuisines, getting rid of algebra, and getting the boys lunch table back. And speaking of lunch, will this episode get us all free Ooni Pizza Ovens which we love and would love? You'll have to listen to find out, and a reminder to also check out Beck and Kyle's new podcast "What's Our Pod" wherever you get your pods!

Sep 22, 2025 • 1h 1min
Remember Ocean City? (with Dave Hause)
This week on the podcast, Vanessa and Jonah are joined by singer-songwriter and musician, Philadelphia's own Dave Hause! You may know Dave from his work with The Loved Ones and The Falcon, but did you also know that he's a big Spinal Tap fan? In that spirit, Vanessa talks about attending the film's Hollywood premiere, Jonah laments his tendency to get sucked into YouTube clip shows like "Neighbor Wars" and all three of us discuss why it seems so difficult to find anything to watch these days! For our topic, Dave reminisces about family trips to the Boardwalk in Ocean City, New Jersey, on the other end of the coast to where Jonah and Vanessa had their own childhood adventures in Atlantic City. Also is gambling fun or just stressful... and why doesn't Dave have a strong Philly accent? We get into all of it here! Finally in a round of CHANGE DOT DORK we discuss petitions for dismantling the Philadelphia Parking Authority (PPA), putting Tom Petty on a Forever stamp and should they serve tofu at Quiznos, Jimmy John's and Subway? We hope all of youse remember to pick up Dave's new album "Dave Hause... And The Mermaid" when it comes out this Friday, September 26th!!!!

Sep 15, 2025 • 1h 6min
Remember Family Jokes? (with Mary Sohn)
Give a tweet tweet because today on the podcast Vanessa and Jonah are thrilled to welcome their hilarious friend Mary Sohn!! They get into Mary and Vanessa's old Chicago days where Vanessa tried red velvet cake for the first time at one of their countless expensive brunches, plus what the trio are cooking at home and what kitchen appliances are worth the counter space?! Plus, Mary and Vanessa discuss what it's like having many records but no record player and Jonah explains why he doesn't care what color clothes are as long as they're less expensive. Along along those lines, the Bayer siblings are wearing almost exclusively restaurant merch these days. (Shout out to NO COMPLY FOODS in Great Barrington, Massachusetts!) For our topic, we get into our family jokes from restaurant bits to impressions of relatives, and why they're so much funnier (to us) than any other jokes! We also reminisce about piano lessons and trying to fake it 'til we make it re: telling our piano teachers that we had done our piano practice. Finally, in a rousing game of CHANGE.DORK, we discuss the merits of bringing back sour blue Skittles, cell phones in school,and Saturday replacing Sunday as the official brunch day. So stop tweeting around and check out this wonderful new episode!!

Sep 8, 2025 • 1h 3min
Remember Delilah? (with Kassie Carlson of Guerilla Toss)
This week the Bayers sit down with Guerilla Toss vocalist Kassie Carlson to learn all about what it was like growing up on Cape Cod. From dumpster diving for Cape Cod chips at the factory to steering clear of whatever is happening over at Nantucket Nectars HQ, we learn all about what the locals think of the "Upstreamers" who visit every summer. We also discuss whale watching, touring with indie-rock legend Stephen Malkmus (Pavement) and Smashmouth/Smashbox. For our topic, we discuss the soothing sounds of the radio host Delilah and the way she lulled us into an adult-contemporary cocoon as kids. (Also is there a Guerilla Toss/Kenny G collab in the works?) Finally we play a round of LEGIT MOAN OR UNNECESSARY GROAN where we discuss if radio DJs should talk over the beginning of songs, the prevalence of the phrase "you know?" and airplane/movie etiquette for kids and their parents. Don't forget to check out Guerilla Toss' new album "You're Weird Now," which comes out this Friday Sept 12th on Sub Pop Records. That much we do know!

Sep 1, 2025 • 1h 6min
Remember Personal Pan Pizzas? (with Martha Kelly)
This week the Bayer siblings are thrilled to welcome to the podcast their friend and star of shows like "Baskets" and "Euphoria," the delightful Martha Kelly! Not only do Martha and Vanessa use their comedy skills to punch up Jonah's new joke about texting, but Martha confesses to some ATM fraud she did score some pizza years ago, that still has her banned from one of our country's most popular banks. And speaking of, we dive deep into the time when Pizza Hut Personal Pan PIzzas hit the scene and the huge effect that had on Vanessa's favorite crew, the lunch crowd! Plus we reminisce on Pizza Hut dishes of yore, and Martha regales us with stories of her days delivering Domino's Pizza! And finally in a rousing game of CHANGE.DORK: PIZZA HUT EDITION, the trio must choose which Pizza Hut item they'd choose to come back between "Hershey's Dunkers," the "Priazzo" and "Spaghetti and Meatballs." (Spoiler alert: it is not spaghetti and meatballs.) So check out this delightful and delicious episode!!

Aug 25, 2025 • 1h 17min
Remember Dream Phone? (with Patty Guggenheim)
Today on the podcast, the Bayer siblings are thrilled to welcome their hilarious and wildly talented friend Patty Guggenheim!! You may know Patty from her role as Raven in Peacock's Twisted Metal, but did you know she grew up loving the game Dream Phone?!! We get into all the Dream Phone deets plus Patty's connection to one of the Dream Phone guys? Speaking of, remember calling boys at sleepovers? Scary! Plus we ask the age old questions: why did our mom's answer their phone calls by saying "this is she" and why do we do it now?? And we hear how Jonah is doing post-colonoscopy and and get into embarrassing anesthesia antics, like being sure we can beat out the anesthesia while we're counting down from ten. We also get into some BTS stories from Jonah and Vanessa's appearance on Family Feud and in doing so find out that both Bayer siblings have an affinity for the Gin Blossoms. And in a delightful game of CHANGE.ORG we discuss the merits of digitizing the Christian Slater vehicle "Pump Up The Volume", removing Sopranos spoilers from "She-Hulk: Attorney at Law", and bringing back Grad Dance to (Patty's!) North Central Highschool. WARNING: This episode contains spoilers from the 1999 film "The Sixth Sense" so proceed with caution!!

Aug 18, 2025 • 1h 11min
Remember Hanson? (With Taylor Hanson)
This week the Bayer siblings are thrilled to welcome Taylor Hanson!! You may know Taylor from the epic band Hanson but mmmbop know that he is also in the supergroup Tinted Windows or that he and Vanessa recently met when she awkwardly circled him multiple times at the Freakier Friday premiere party? Plus, hear the story of how Vanessa's old pal Sarah went to prom in a group with Taylor and his girlfriend (now wife!) and don't worry, Vanessa mentions that she was Prom Queen (again!) We also get into Hanson's many performances at various malls across America—and what was the free food sitch? Speaking of, Vanessa talks about almost uprooting her weekend to get a free room service dinner during Freakier Friday press. PFinally we talk about getting to meet our heroes, from Billy Joel to Carole King to the cast of Blossom? And in a rousing game of CHANGE.DORK, the trio are debating the merits of MTV devoting one day a week to the nineties, Hostess bringing back Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtle cpudding pies and the animated cast of Arthur performing Hanson's hit song "MMMBop." So whether you're at home, on the road or in the middle of nowhere, be sure to listen to this incredible episode where Taylor claims to have gotten smarter!! Sorry, but he did say it!

Aug 11, 2025 • 59min
Remember Back To School Fashion? (with Victoria Papa)
Who better to be on the back to school edition of HOW DID WE GET WEIRD? than a guest who has been on the academic calendar for most of her life??? This week on the podcast, we are joined by Professor Victoria Papa, who you have heard Jonah talk about a lot because she is also his wife! We discuss Vicky growing up in New York's capital district, mall culture and the easiest way to get Jonah to wear something. (Just put it in the closest proximity to where he is located.) As we already mentioned, we also get deep into the thrill of back to school fashion from picking out the latest outfits at Limited Too to postal pants as a trend that isn't just for those of you who deliver mail for a living. We also discuss Vicky's legendary fashion sense, Jonah's disdain for trying things on at department store dressing rooms and Vanessa's constant striving to get style compliments from teenagers. Finally in today's installment of LEGIT MOAN OR UNNECESSARY GROAN we debate the merits of kids in commercials, the societal limits of customer service etiquette and should the entire banking system be overhauled? Your homework this week is to listen to this episode and leave us lots of positive ratings!!!

Aug 4, 2025 • 56min
Remember Short-Lived Sitcoms? (with Paul Scheer)
On today's new episode, the Bayer siblings are thrilled to be welcoming the actor, podcaster and comedian Paul Scheer! We're talking about being adults who still follow rules we learned as kids (no tv in your bedroom!) plus some other things we learned as kids (Vanessa has the same birthday as Prince Charming?) And we get into Paul's amazing book "Joyful Recollections of Trauma" and how and why we find humor in sad or difficult times. Plus, Jonah teaches us about active listening from a therapist's POV and Vanessa realizes she's not the best at it? Then we get into TV show theme songs and intros, specifically the one that introduced the short-lived ABC sitcom "He's the Mayor." And on that topic, Paul tells us the real story of how the "Friends" theme song came to be! Plus, Jonah and Paul know almost too much about Steven Segall. And in a rousing game of "LEGIT MOAN OR UNNECESSARY GROAN" we're discussing complaints due to unfilled potholes, cranberry juice that also contains other juice, and incompetent contractors who think they can get away with it because they have... a dog? Check out this fantastic episode and be sure to check out Paul's delightful and enthralling podcasts "How Did This Get Made" and "Unspooled"!!

Jul 28, 2025 • 1h 8min
Remember Working at Hot Topic? (with Austin & Taryn Durry of Durry)
This week Jonah and Vanessa are joined by Austin Durry and Taryn Durry of the sibling band, Durry! Vanessa and Jonah compare and contrast the experiences of the Durrys with the Bayers' own sibling supergroup Jammin' Vibes, get into the dynamics of their seven-year age gap and explore the Minnesota phenomenon of nighttime running. We also discuss hanging out as kids at the Mall Of America, Austin's dream job working (and playing a show at) Hot Topic and Jonah's memorable visit to Hot Topic's corporate headquarters. We also discuss parental approval of tattoos, Durry's viral success and the way nostalgia is integrated into the band's lyrics. Finally we play a snack-oriented version of YESTOLGIA OR NO-STALGIA, where we debate the merits of Five Guys' coffee milkshake, the return of McDonald's Snack Wrap and Dairy Queen's questionable menu item known as the Oreo Dirt Pie Blizzard. Make sure to check out Durry's latest album "This Movie Sucks" which is available now and catch them on tour this fall! Thanks to our sponsors: Magic Mind & Quince! Get 60% OFF the Magic Mind offer: WEIRD60 - https://www.magicmind.com/weird60 Code: WEIRD60 #magicmind #mentalwealth #mentalperformance Elevate your fall wardrobe essentials with Quince. Go to Quince.com/WEIRD for free shipping on your order and three hundred and sixty-five -day returns.