I listened to the first 2 episodes. Fortunately, I can’t relate to the host. Do people really spend this much time being self conscious of their social and economic status? I don’t get it, and I’m thankful for it. I think our culture is suffering from a major lack of self acceptance.

Terrific podcast that made me reflect, laugh, and entertained me. Some stand-out episodes included the first one, the one with Terry Gross. The one in which Jonathan goes to a fancy restaurant and the last one about his Abuelita going on a game show.

I love exploring this topic. It’s so fascinating as I find myself wandering between different classes depending on my surroundings. It’s also interesting what classes other people put you in vs what you self identify as. I’d love another season.

The entitlement of the shredded cheese lady! Beggars can’t be choosers!

I don’t know what it is with the tendency of some supposedly educated neoliberals doing annoying, show-offy things like using the Japanese word for springs or obsessing over cashmere socks they chose to buy, then getting self-conscious about it and being faux self-deprecating. It’s like some weird tribal ritual to show they’re still good people. That’s what this show comes across as. I didn’t learn anything new about class. Instead I learned that people can’t just stop doing things they think are irritating or decadent. Instead they drone on and on about them while continuing to do them with no plans to stop.

This is an interesting podcast but it seems to imply that anytime you’re around a group of people, it’s a problem if they act differently from you. Or have different interests. Isn’t this just the human condition?

Love this show. It is very relatable and also informative.

I would recommend reading the book Status Anxiety by Alain de Botton. This podcast doesn’t say much of anything about class.

Thank goodness somebody is having the conversation about class in America. I want this show to keep going and I’m sad it’s over. There’s so much in here that inspires connection and relationship over separation based on cultural class ideology.

There really does not seem to be any middle class anymore. The chasm between those struggling to get by (most of us) and the elite ultra rich, is downright cavernous and shameful. I really appreciate how you break things down here. Maybe more will see us ALL as human, which at the end of the day, we all are.

This show is so painfully relatable and so wonderful to listen to. 10/10 thanks for making it.

I think about the intersection of class and culture and society and privilege and find myself examining any experience in my life through this lens and I want more episodes of this show because it is literally my Roman Empire

I love this show!

Nice premise for a podcast, but could have been much better executed. I found it to be a very surface level of supposed “class” issues when most of the issues are clearly about cultural assimilation and race. This podcast is clearly catered to rich white liberals instead of the hosts POC counterparts that could actually relate to his experience. The standout episode was “Hemmed In,” which was the only episode I found to be intellectually honest and compelling and that was due to the guest speakers, not host.

you can hear how hard this show is to navigate in every word jonathan says. he does a spectacular job of telling difficult (and often deeply personal) stories, all of them surprisingly affecting. it's a privilege to take the journey with him.

I love this podcast. I grew up the Whittier area and I still live only about 40-50 miles away. I am a Hispanic who doesn't speak Spanish, I have an MBA and while working in Orange County often would hear "oh you are Mexican? You don't look or sound like one " lol I would work with people who grew up in the Newport Beach area and I still have family who live in East LA (where I was born). It's hard to describe to people who don't understand, but I always felt a little different around my co-workers. They were always super nice but just different, this podcast totally gets it. I used to feel not accepted by "real" Mexicans and in the office I just didn't grow up like many of my white peers. It's a real thing. But I know I am not alone in this, and this podcast just confirmed it. THANK YOU!

Funny, thoughtful, and man does it stick the landing! Binged in two days

this episode is ridiculous. wic recipients should shred their cheese from a block because it is better and most cost effective. pre-shred doesn’t melt well.

Insightful, fresh, grounded. Similar to “this is uncomfortable” which is great. Love the blend of sociology, economics, personal interest. Let there be a second season!!

This show provides a fresh perspective on class in a voice that is both relatable and unique. I highly recommend.

Every episode was really compelling, and the show hit so many of the topics that go into how we develop (or don’t) our feelings about class—family, food, clothing, jobs. Just great!

Would love to hear a Season 2. I really enjoyed every episode! Fascinating to hear differing perspectives from folks from a variety of communities. I could definitely relate to the idea of how class can play into our daily lives.

I appreciated this podcast. Appreciated the efforts to connect with a difficult topic, and to include a focus on people’s emotions. Will look for other work by the creators. Thanks!

anyone who reads the new yorker would love this

Self-indulgent navel gazing

The only reason I would consider finishing this podcast is to see if eventually they get to some reasonable rationalizations. Just finished episode one and I’m so confused! It’s clear that the host worked his way up from very humble beginnings as he’s described, but never does he actually address the issue about what that means. If I’m understanding correctly, there seems to be this sentiment that the wealthy should be sharing every last penny in some socialist, communist kind of income distribution kind of way with those that have less than them, no matter how they've earned their money. So, in this scenario, a person who comes from utter poverty, someone like my husband, who is an immigrant from Mexico and his family had barely enough money to keep food on the table, never having had a Christmas and such, who has worked and trained and studied for over 20 years to become a successful surgeon, should give all of that money to other people who have more modest means? And there should be some sort of a “revolution” because there are people who have more money than others? Especially considering most of those considered financially poor here in the United States, are 10 times wealthier than the poor in some countries? Do people not understand why communism has never worked? Do people not understand human nature? Mind blowing!

Thank you for creating this podcast, so many things I can identify with. The struggle of class is real!!! Thanks again. Please don’t stop !

Please please do Season 2! So eye opening!

This podcast delves into class and what it’s like for those of us who move between classes in our lives. It’s very relatable and insightful.

This fun, squirm-worthy, and important podcast feels as essential as it is entertaining. Menjivar is a real asset, honest and pitch perfect, as he wades into one of the biggest subjects we try to avoid as Americans—class differences and all that they mean to our feelings of self-worth. Many funny moments, too!

This show (and the host) do(es) a great job at simply discussing differences between class. It’s great for anyone wanting new perspectives and/ or validation of their own experience. I’m sad that there are only 8 episodes BUT I think that humility is fitting. The host kept the show within his scope.

Love this podcast as it is so relatable. Would love to see a season 2 and see him address situations where people have gone from upper to lower socioeconomic levels and how that has affected them.

This is a country of “opportunity” and it’s not uncommon for some of us to feel like we’ve moved into a different class because of our accomplishments. This posdcast gave the words for that experience. Words, thoughts and feelings.

This is a topic I’ve put much thought into but struggled to have meaningful conversations with others on and not found much good coverage in the media. Others have their gripes with some of the podcast’s quirks…well at least he’s finally talking about something that clearly carries meaning for so many people. This is an excellent podcast and he can make a hundred more mistakes before I wouldn’t rate it 5 stars. Thanks for the bravery to go off the beaten path and speak to an experience many of us trundle through in silence.

I’m sure Terry Gross has no idea she’s a part of Blerd (Black nerd) vernacular. I remember one friend over 10 years ago said in regular conversation “I’m going to go out and get a bit of Terry Gross” and I immediately knew he was saying “I’m going to go get a bit of fresh air”. It was an IYKYK situation that raised your credibility for having awareness of her show.

I really enjoyed your show and I hope you make a second season!

I loved every episode of this and wasn’t ready for it to end. For each episode, the host covers one topic and interviews multiple people for it. Examples of topics: possible military recruitment towards certain classes, dining in nice restaurants as a newly middle class person, how class shows up in the workplace (including his time at NPR), and going from “common person” to famous. Very informative, validating, and interesting!

I have really enjoyed this podcast. Can you please produce a 2nd season? I truly believe this topic is so juicy you could explore it for many more episodes. Anyway really wonderful series!

I listened to the whole series on a rod trip. It was enjoyable and witty but felt empty of depth. Often it felt like middle class hipsters coming to terms with their own realization that that have become economically successful and trendy despite their self hatred for everything it represents.

Please tell me there is a second season coming and to the guy who complained about the cashmere socks anecdote, PLEASE tell me where to get cashmere socks for $10?!!!!

I couldn’t finish the fist episode because the “poor little rich guy” routine was annoying. He’s not a jerk for wearing cashmere socks, they aren’t even that expensive, most places sell them for less than $10.

I’m from a mixed class background - highly educated but so poor growing up that other kids mocked us for having holes in our shoes. I learned how to behave in a restaurant by being a waitress. I dropped out of college after two years because I couldn’t imagine taking on debt, and then was admitted to an MFA program based on the quality of my writing and my publishing credentials. I emerged without debt and then was deviled by a problem in a women’s group I attended for more than ten years. We called ourselves the Wolf Pack. Almost all the other wolves came from money and were earning decently. Me, no - freelance writer, reasonably successful but that didn’t mean money. Every so often, I’d mention that I perceived a class difference, usually in a one-on-one convo with another wolf, and every blessed time, I was dissed about this, told I should let go of it, and that I should think better of myself. Yikes! Is it any wonder I had to leave the group eventually? When I found the CLASSY podcast, I just tore through all the episodes. Please make more!

Thoughtful and poignant, it addressed the anxiety and challenges of being an upwardly mobile first gen college student.

How have you got me out here crying on the sidewalk??!? I loved this podcast so much, and in so many ways it touched on my own class background and struggle. I love how carefully and thoughtfully each episode was curated. The final episode had me out here cryyyyying. I’m just trying to walk the dog, homie! But FR, this was incredibly lovely. It was so insightful about family dynamics and narratives and class markers and how we navigate all of that. The food episode was incredible. The food one just brought into focus so much different stuff that I’ve been quietly pondering for years. Anyway, just thank you to everyone.

My friend sent me a link to Episode 2 because I am a huge fan of Fresh Air and Terry Gross. I had not heard of this show before that. I loved that episode and the overall theme & ended up binge-listening to the entire series. Very well done! I now love the song, Common People, which I had never heard of either. You will learn a lot and think a lot…highly recommended!

Love this conversation. On episode 3 and I’ve wrestled with the same. My lessons have been to respect your housekeeper as a unicorn blend of an expert in his/her field.. like a doctor, and a thoughtful confidant like an amazing assistant. ❤️💪🙏 Approach with curiosity and humility, and all will be well.

This is such a great podcast. Jonathan does an incredible job of directly handling a topic we often tiptoe around. His ability to make me laugh while doing so is so impressive. I learned, I laughed, and I loved this.

This is a fascinating podcast and makes you think about a wide variety of topics, from super-serious to working up the courage to ask a snobby waiter what the ingredients are in an inscrutable dish

Binged the critically-acclaimed Classy podcast. It leans into what audio is made for - intimacy and emotion - and takes on a topic rarely discussed in this way in public media. While the podcast revolution has now been saturated, this one stands out as a star.

Best pod I’ve listened to recently. As a POC who grew up in an immigrant, working class household and am now a professor, I so identified with the cultural and social signifiers that I felt “marked” me as an outsider—from mispronouncing words, to never having gone skiing, to not knowing how to set a table, to getting the sweats at fancy restaurants. Now that I’m part of the cultural class, I realize how my working class students see ME as bougie or fancy… because I have access to healthcare and therapy, for example, to the fact my parents didn’t have SNAP benefits (tho my grandfather, who was lactose intolerant, was always trying to give us his government cheese). I feel such class anxiety both ways-up AND down. Thanks for articulating those complicated feelings so brilliantly.