So, you heard them, you laughed with them, but we don’t think you really got a chance to know them.
Meet the amazing women behind Overqualified & Drunk, Chloe Zora and Chanel Glover. Their podcast is fire, but they are so much more than voices on the internet. Before you listen to the next episode find out about the amazing creators behind this work.
Where were you when you decided to do a podcast?
It was 2014 and Chloe had just made a crazy (at the time seemed like a horrible idea) decision to move to NYC for a girl. The weekend Chloe moved in she found Chanel on OKCupid. We met up for drinks at Cubbyhole and have been friends ever since. The podcast didn’t come about until the NYE of 2016. At the time, we were trying to write a TV pilot and as we were playing around with it being based on our queer lives (Living Single meets Sex and the City, meets The L Word but Black) and before we could finish one episode Chloe said, we should just tell these stories, and Overqualified & Drunk was born.
Why did you decide to do one?
Chloe: For me, it seemed as if our stories weren’t coming to the light as a scripted series and we had such great times talking and laughing and sharing our stories at bars, restaurants or in my apartment, and I think it was me who said, we should just do a podcast like these stories are hilarious. I have always liked a few and enjoy them and thought to myself we really have an avenue to corner the market. Once we started, I researched and found that there were not too many shows like ours and the ones that did exist were nowhere near as #overqualified as ours.
Chanel: I’m still trying to figure out why I’m out here telling all of my business to the world, but despite my continual doubts, I DO NOT regret having used this platform for free therapy. I’m a private person unless you ask me a specific question, so our bi-weekly reveal requires liquid courage, hence our title. Chloe and I also have really amazing chemistry and laughter and warm lights always seem to be plentiful when we’re around one another, so why not spread the love?
Where did you come up with that name?
Overqualified has always reminded us of dating as if it’s a “job interview” you know how you give your best interview at a place and they tell you, it’s just not a good fit, you’re too good or you should be looking for something a bit more challenging. That’s dating for us as well. Chloe finds women who she would bend over backwards for but it seems like that’s too much at times. Or her vision of “happily ever after” is not syncing with theirs. Chanel feels overqualified because she “thinks” she knows what she needs and wants in a partner more than her dates, which makes it difficult or uncomfortable to end things.
And if we’re being honest, sometimes it comes down to pure education and standards. Sometimes we can’t find someone who appreciates music or history or the black cinematic experience the way that we do. And in some cases, ironically enough, we are actually underqualified.
And hello, after some of the stories we’ve shared, you just have to have a drink and talk through it with your good girlfriend. We met up for the first time and it was literally a podcast waiting to be recorded.
How do you come up with episode ideas?
Would you believe us, if we said they just come to us, from the beginning, we would have just had a situation that came up and as we hit record the “overqualified” section just wrote itself. We added the church component because we randomly realized that we both attended Middle without sharing and we love our church because it’s queer and exciting and just magic. We all have that story or know the struggles of being queer and still wanting a church “home,” so we wanted to add that piece to our segment. And since we ultimately are looking for love, and see how it changes from episode to episode or experience to experience, we thought why not say what love was for us at that time. It was so natural and fluid, I don’t remember us taking a lot of time to really come up with our segments. We try things, add things, subtract things as we play with it, but the core is there and it works.
What role to you think media plays in giving the LGBTQ community a voice?
A HUGE ONE! I personally have found such solace, peace and community from other queer media people, I have a huge queer community on YouTube especially. I always used to say if only “Friends” or “Living Single” were queer then it would be something I could relate to. Representation is so very important and being able to relate to a story, character or just see that there is normalcy attached to something you identify with is so very necessary. I think mainstream media has come so very far in allowing queer stories to be told but there is still way too much for work to be done. So creating content for yourself is still revolutionary because as we know there is really so many voices still yet to be heard.
What podcasts do you listen to?
Chloe: I love the Read, I love Another Round, another word for Lez and I was just floored by becoming Oprah and my favorite right now is Robin Roberts: Everybody’s got something. I also really enjoy listening to our podcast, sometimes I listen for tweaks or thoughts but most of the time I just listen because I really do enjoy us.
Chanel: I’m terrible. Just terrible. I’m a bad podcaster, because I don’t listen as often as I used to and WANT to. I am subscribed to: Another Round, Just Friends, Hunnid Grand, and The Heart. I am super obsessed with investigative or real life story sort of podcasts, so I was one of those NPR Serial listeners. Pretty much anything NPR.
If there was one thing you wanted this podcast to do – what would it be?
Chloe: I want this podcast to be a good friend to someone who is queer and on their quest for love. I want to be the content that I so desperately needed as I was newly coming out trying to figure things out. I want to be the representation for LGBTQ poc of color who can laugh at the randomness that is dating. I just want us to be the “voice” for those in places that don’t necessarily have a voice of their own just yet. I also want us to help bridge the gap between those of us living this life and those that don’t understand it. I love having my straight listeners tell me how much they relate to the things we say and it really just helps us show that love is love, a bad date is a bad date and these things happen regardless of who you’re choosing to be with.
Chanel – Free therapy for Chloe and I. But most importantly to provide a platform for stories we often to not hear, but also be relatable to everyone. Chloe and I are not perfect and we’re very vocal about that. We are so human, so flawed, and we are working out issues out on every episode. If our story can help you grow in a particular way or help you question your life decisions, then good…because it’s doing the same for us as well.