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Meet Precious and Melissa, the two incredible women behind Sex and The Single Parent. Sex and The Single Parent is a podcast, a community, a lifestyle. We interviewed Precious and Melissa to learn more about what it’s like to be a Single or Coparent in today’s world.

Precious and Melissa, how did you start this amazing podcast?

We met at a comedy show and my dad (Tommy Chong) had suggested I start a podcast because a lot of comedians were doing it, but I didn’t want to just do one for the sake of it. And a mutual friend and comic Sandra Battaglini suggested we do one about being a single parent. And the rest is history or herstory!

You say so yourselves, being a single parent in the 70s or 80s is a lot different than today. What can a single parent expect about today’s dating scene?

A lot of pictures of penises (and balls) but mostly penises. Seriously, more people are friendly with their exes or have unusual family situations so if you start dating someone you might end up dealing with their ex or baby momma or daddy. Fathers seem to be more involved with their kids even the primary caregiver. It’s all changing.

Tell us about your first directed sketch.

We did one called ‘The Meeting’, where we basically shot one of our business meetings where we gossiped and then we had to leave because we both have kids. But I really consider ‘They’ our first real sketch, where we play a lesbian couple who have a non gender specific child named ‘Storm’, interviewing a potential babysitter played by comedian Natalie Norman. She also has a really popular podcast with Jess Beaulieu called Crimson Tide, where comedians talk about periods. It’s really great and their weekly show was in Just For Laughs this year. Sandra Battaglini directed ‘They’ and Zach Gayne, who shoots most of our stuff, shot and edited it. We improvised a lot and basically cracked each other up for 2 hours. That day we shot 4 sketches and 3 of them ended up being some of our most popular sketches to date.

How do you co-parent with someone who HATES you?

Oh god! That’s so hard. Keep it civil. Try not to swear or yell until you hang up the phone. If you can’t control yourself or they can’t control themselves, just use email or text. But I believe that it’s like any other relationship. It’s constantly changing so hate might turn to civility when you give it time or even friendship. I’m an optimist. I hated my ex a lot when we first broke up and now him and his new partner are in tons of our sketches!

What is your advice for the newly single parent?

It’s not always going to be this hard or bad or heartbreaking so just ride it out as much as you can. Find some small pleasures to get you through those hard nights. Mine was watching movies and eating any kind of feta based meal (salad or pasta) and a glass of wine especially on the nights when I didn’t have my son. Date as much as you can stomach. If your ex is willing go to therapy or mediation to work out how to co-parent amicably. I had a hard time seeing intact families do stuff together when I was newly single. But there’s an upside which is some nights off (hopefully). Also your friends and family may give you lots and lots of advice about what you should do, how you should live, and what a deadbeat your ex is. Don’t feel obligated to listen or take any of it. It’s your life. They just want you to be safe but sometimes it’s based on the worst case scenario.

What are some of your most craziest single parent stories you have heard on your podcast?

We’ve interviewed a woman who is in a marriage with an already married couple. They share three children. And we’ve also interviewed a woman who was dating and sexually active when she was pregnant and newly single.

What are your plans for Sex and The Single Parent in 2016?
We want to shoot more videos and record more podcasts. We’ve lined up some celebrity single parents to interview in 2016. We’re pitching this as a tv show so that is the next step.

There is no doubt that your videos, blogs and podcasts are witty, hilarious and addictive. However, we feel that you are giving your readers and viewers a community to bond over all that is single parenting. Do you feel that you have created a bond with your audience?

Oh yes! One thing we really wanted was to create a place where other people who are single parents or co-parents can relate and feel less like outcasts. Sometimes it can feel like your married friends think your divorce is contagious. They just don’t know how to act around you. You might be living their nightmare. “How do you do it? All by yourself?! I don’t know how I would make it without my partner”. I remember feeling very alone when I was first going through my separation. My only choice at that moment was going to a ‘divorce’ support group and that seemed as fun to me as stabbing a fork in my eye (no offense to divorce support groups). Humor and creativity have always been a place for me to put the hard life stuff and give it meaning so that’s what we did with Sex and the Single Parent!