Meet Nymphet Alumni, The Podcasters Who Defined Culture in 2025

On their popular fashion podcast, Nymphet Alumni, Alexi Alario, Biz Sherbert, and Sam Cummins spew cultural criticism and coin complex trends (ever heard of female-coded neo-losercore?). But what happens when they’re off the mic, alone with their thoughts? We did our best to find out.

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Where are you from?

ALEXI ALARIO: I was born in Trinidad and Tobago, but mostly grew up in South Carolina.

BIZ SHERBERT: South Carolina.

SAM CUMMINS: I was born in Mexico, but grew up in the 361—Corpus Christi, Texas.

What’s a good day?

AA: Rising early, abundant time to get glam, at least six hours of thoughtful walkabout with my custom Nymphet Alumni Stanley cup full of ice water, including breaks for reading and scrolling.

BS: When I’m not in a rush for anything except maybe a dinner reservation or the theater.

SC: Wake up early, read a book, 16oz Americano. Spontaneously drive to the Hill Country, stop at every historical marker along the way. Waste hours inside a moldy store in the middle of nowhere, chat with local salty dogs. Drive home, work for exactly two hours, go dancing with my friends. My hair remains undisturbed throughout.

What brand do you ride for?

AA: Chantal Thomass.

BS: Tank Air.

SC: I live and breathe Marc Jacobs.

What embarrasses you?

AA: Being a foreigner in Japan. A related point of secondhand embarrassment: when people post up at ramen joints and take up precious counter spots for way too long. You’re supposed to eat quickly and GTFO!

BS: When I catch myself feeling awkward while walking into a restaurant; when people say things like “slay” when they talk to people they don’t know well.

SC: Excess. My own especially.

When do you feel sharpest?

AA: Two drinks in, or in the heat of an argument.

BS: When I’m feeling kind of mischievous and I just drank espresso with sugar, or in the middle of the night when all higher function has failed and I’ve given up.

SC: In my childhood bedroom and between the hours of 8 and 11 a.m.

What trend are you forecasting?

AA: Oshikatsu. Superfan idolatry expressed through IRL consumption, but for increasingly unexpected figures, like classical composers or climate scientists. (For example, I have plans to make my own photocards and even a chibi plush doll of Franca Sozzani.) I also played with a Moflin—a kind of robotic gerbil—the other day and found it irresistibly charming, so I can see robo-pets going somewhere. So overall, female-coded neo-losercore.

BS: None!

SC: Men are going to start wearing hats again. Very soon.

How do you dress to impress?

AA: I drew every item of clothing in my closet on my iPad, so I really feel my Clueless fantasy when I use this system to get dressed every day. I always like to be overdressed, even if it makes me look like a high-end escort from time to time. I will say that acquiring a Rolex and Chanel slingbacks years ago improved my quality of life by like 200 percent.

BS: Brushing my hair out so it’s as long as possible.

SC: Being bullish about puff sleeves, lowballing deadstock Victoria’s Secret on eBay, carefully pin-curling my bangs, handwashing my pajamas.

What’s the soundtrack of your life?

AA: The Well-Tempered Clavier and girl groups of all sorts—my favorites are the Ronettes and IZ*ONE.

BS: “Fruits of My Labor” by Lucinda Williams.

SC: Tom Petty, Tom T. Hall, Tom Tom Club.

How often do you read?

AA: Around an hour a day, on my Kindle before bed.

BS: Every day, but a lot of times it’s on my phone or laptop.

SC: I try to read 40 pages a day, but sometimes it’s one or two.

What’s the greatest book of all time?

AA: Madame Bovary.

BS: The Bible probably? And East of Eden.

SC: Ecclesiastes.

Who’s the next big thing?

AA: I could see Annie Moon breaking K-pop containment. I also think there’s an empty hole in our culture waiting to be filled by a Gen Z Chet Baker type, so I’m speaking him into existence.

BS: I met this Nettspend-type kid on Long Island who I want to be a model. I sent his photo to my friend Emma who’s a casting director. More people like that, who feel really American.

SC: Let me be cryptic: any baby-faced politician in their thirties. A tall, androgynous man. A woman who is muscular.

Fuck/Marry/Kill: Substack, Instagram, TikTok?

AA: Fuck Instagram—they’re constantly coming on to me with erotic Reels. Marry TikTok since I’ve been a user since early Musical.ly days. Kill Substack—humanely, regretfully.

BS: Fuck TikTok, kill Substack, marry Instagram.

SC: F*ck TikTok, k*ll Substack. Instagram and I have been married for 10 years.

What’s on your moodboard?

AA: Seiko Matsuda, lots of stuff from The Hunger Games franchise, hopecore globalism e.g. “It’s a Small World” and United Colors of Benetton ads.

BS: The hippie Vietnam photographer Tim Page. And this quote: “Her friend, the psychoanalyst Jacques Lacan, once remarked, ‘Marguerite Duras turns out to know what I teach without me.’”

SC: Luby’s cafeteria, hostess aprons made from upcycled Lilly Pulitzer fabric, Jean-Charles de Castelbajac AW 09, Giant (1956), Jacqueline Susann, O’Neal Ford buildings in San Antonio.

What keeps you up?

AA: The idea that all my friends in the Western hemisphere are having fun without me. And the Nankai Trough megaquake!

BS: The things I have to do tomorrow.

SC: The clerical errors I make in correspondence, the people who haven’t responded to me, the people I haven’t responded to.

What era are you in?

AA: Shōwa retro.

BS: New York.

SC: I’m in the waiting room.

What’s the last text you wrote?

AA: “World’s largest Ferris wheel!!!!” (This turned out to be false.)

BS: “Ur so funny”

SC: “I shudder to think.”

How do you kill time?

AA: Anki flashcards. (Spaced repetition can be used to memorize anything—fashion shows, works from art history, historical quotes—not just for exams!)

BS: I take naps.

SC: Make several phone calls to random assortments of people (I do this daily).

What’s a lie you tell yourself?

AA: “No one can tell you have hair extensions.”

BS: “I’ll do it later today.”

SC: “I’ll just get it tailored.”

What’s the last thing you deleted?

AA: Photos I took of the back of my head to check if my hair extensions were showing.

BS: A few words from an important email.

SC: A recently dormant text thread that caused me distress and a screenshot of that tweet about Jackie Kennedy eating sheet metal.

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Hair: Ginger Ryan using Bumble and Bumble at Muse Creatives NYC.

Makeup: Gianna Guerino using Chanel Beauty.

Nails: Kayo Hugichi using Chalen Le Vernis at Bryan Bantry Agency.

Prop Stylist: Ruby Hartman.

Fashion Assistant: Yuliana Estrada.

Prop Assistant: Abby Lorenzini.

Production: Mara Weinstein.

Production Coordination: Tyler Demauro.

On-set Production: Georgia Ford.