Explorez tous les épisodes du podcast Brain Driven Brands
| Titre | Date | Durée | |
|---|---|---|---|
| DTC vs. B2B Marketing: Why the Buying Psychology is so Different | 23 Sep 2026 | 00:30:20 | |
Rabah Rahil joins Sarah and Nate to unpack the psychology behind B2B SaaS buying, from "don't get fired" decision-making to buying committees, long consideration windows, and the role of trust and brand affinity. They also get into why marketing and sales serve different jobs, why a great product needs to come before a big marketing push, and why paid ads are only one way to distribute a message. 00:00 Meet Rabah Rahil 👉 Join my community: skool.com/tether-lab CoHost: Nate Lagos CoHost: Sarah Levinger Guest: Rabah Rahil
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| 5 Things Great Static Ads Have in Common | 16 Sep 2026 | 00:26:36 | |
Seb Valiente, founder of Growth Pod, joins Sarah and Nate to break down how his team turns messaging into static ads that actually make people stop and feel something. They get into the difference between clarity and scroll-stopping visuals, why most teams struggle with the idea itself rather than the prompt, how to hire for creative thinking, and why static ads can still be some of the most dependable creative in an account. Seb also shares a practical framework for building a visual from scratch, including how to use references without simply copying what already exists. Timestamps 00:00 Meet Seb and Growth Pod 👉 Join my community: skool.com/tether-lab CoHost: Nate Lagos CoHost: Sarah Levinger Guest: Seb Valiente | |||
| What Happens When Your Brand Stops Relying on Meta Ads? | 11 Sep 2026 | 00:20:33 | |
DTC brands have spent years building around Meta. But what happens when you stop treating Meta as your only growth lever? In this episode, Sarah and Nate break down how brands can reach customers through YouTube creators, IRL events, organic content, mascots, and other ideas that don't depend on another Meta campaign. They also share examples from their own work, including a YouTube strategy that generated an average 6x return, a client that cut CAC from $110 to $35, and why sometimes the smartest move is simply giving your team a week where they're forbidden from thinking about Meta. 00:00 Why Nate's having a rough week 👉 Join my community: skool.com/tether-lab CoHost: Nate Lagos CoHost: Sarah Levinger | |||
| 5 Popup Tactics That Can Increase Your Lead Opt-In Rate | 03 Sep 2026 | 00:17:55 | |
Pop-ups can do a lot more than collect an email. In this episode, Sean from Alia breaks down how smarter timing, personalization, and offers can help brands get more leads without simply giving away bigger discounts. We get into why Alia became so focused on one thing, how a simple positioning change helped the company take off, and what happens when you treat every pop-up like a one-to-one experience. Then we get tactical: smart triggers, repeated exposure, A/B testing, mystery discounts, and other ways to give people a reason to opt in. Timestamps 00:00 Sean's $60M exit and what changed 👉 Join my community: skool.com/tether-lab CoHost: Nate Lagos CoHost: Sarah Levinger Guest: Shaan Arora | |||
| Your Customers May Be Using Your Product in Ways You Never Planned | 27 Aug 2026 | 00:17:41 | |
Q-Tips have a weird history. They started as a clever solution for cleaning babies, then became something millions of people use inside their ears, even after doctors warned them not to. This episode gets into how that happened, why earwax became a "problem" people wanted to solve, and what Q-Tips can teach us about consumer behavior. We also get into "desire lines," category psychology, changing consumer habits, and why marketers need to pay attention to how people actually use products. 00:00 Why creative strategy is attracting younger talent 👉 Join my community: skool.com/tether-lab CoHost: Nate Lagos CoHost: Sarah Levinger | |||
| The 3-Pillar Framework to Scale Any E-Commerce Brand (Feat. Abir Syed) | 12 Aug 2026 | 00:41:46 | |
Most eCom marketers are optimizing for the wrong number, and a real CFO explains exactly how to fix that! Our good friend Abir Syed has a rare take on how to scale brands: he's run an eCommerce brand, built a performance marketing agency, and now runs a fractional CFO firm specializing in eCom. In this episode, he breaks down why MER is basically useless, what cohort profit actually tells you, and the three-pillar finance framework that gives marketers and CFOs a shared language for growth. Nate also gets uncomfortably personal about his own brand's cash flow situation. You'll walk away understanding how to set real scaling targets, why over-revving your marketing engine costs you money, how to predict LTV decay as you shift from organic to paid customers, and what questions to actually ask your finance team. 00:00 Why selling out early isn't the flex you think it is01:45 Introducing Abir Syed — the CFO who hates accounting 03:30 Why 80% of your business story lives in the finances 05:30 The #1 thing to get right before anything else: inventory costing 07:00 Why MER is a useless metric (hot take, but hear him out) 08:30 How dropping MER led to 130% growth in one year 09:15 Cohort profit: Abir's favorite metric explained 13:00 Over-revving the engine — the hidden way brands lose money scaling 16:30 Incrementality testing vs. the scaling target table 18:00 LTV decay: what happens when you go from organic to paid acquisition 20:00 Paid customers get stolen by ads — a concept that breaks your brain 23:00 The 3 things a CFO and CMO should never fight about 24:30 Pillar 2: Investing in the marketing engine (creative, tools, talent) 26:00 Pillar 3: Cash flow strategy and payback periods 33:30 Expense leverage — making sure every dollar has a job 37:00 Nate's regret: not taking big shots during a 2.5-year hot streak 38:30 The $100K YouTube deal that looked like a disaster until Q4 39:30 The one thing to do this week if you're looking at your numbers 👉 Join my community: skool.com/tether-lab Guest: Abir Syed Twitter: https://x.com/Abir_CFO Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/abir-syed/ Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/abir.cfo/ Website: https://www.upcounting.com/CoHost: Nate Lagos CoHost: Sarah Levinger | |||
| The Headline Formula That Works on Every Type of Customer | 30 Jul 2026 | 00:12:34 | |
This headline formula works for every customer...confident or not! This week, Nate breaks down a single copywriting structure he's tested across every brand he's worked with: "Our [product] is [adjective] and [adjective], just like the [customers] who use it." Sounds simple. The psychology behind it pretty complex though! We dig into why this format hits differently, how it flatters the buyer who already sees themselves that way, and motivates the one who wants to. Plus: how to pick the adjectives that actually do the heavy lifting, why customer reviews are the starting point (not the finish line), and how the winning words from a headline test should be dictating your next photo shoot. Timestamps 👉 Join Sarah's Creative Strategy Community: skool.com/tether-lab CoHost: Nate Lagos CoHost: Sarah Levinger | |||
| 7 Pricing Psychology Tricks That Work on Smart Shoppers | 16 Jul 2026 | 00:22:20 | |
Get ready for a good show today...we're going through 7 pricing psychology tricks that work even on savvy consumers! Backed by real studies, from why discounts can make a painkiller feel less effective to a 1-cent pricing hack that made 25% more money on eBay. In this episode, we break down the research behind charm pricing, price anchoring, credit card spending, partitioned pricing, and more — plus real test results from their own brands, including a $777 bundle that outsold a $699 control and a free-shipping test that flipped conversion rates. 00:00 Cold open: we've been sleeping on this topic 👉 Join my community: skool.com/tether-lab CoHost: Nate Lagos CoHost: Sarah Levinger | |||
| 9 Marketer Biases That Are Killing Your Meta Ads | 09 Jul 2026 | 00:34:52 | |
We asked 28 marketers what single change in their ad account made the biggest difference — and nobody put creative at the top. What came back instead was account structure, cost caps, better data, and one answer that stopped us cold: doing nothing at all. This episode breaks down the nine cognitive biases quietly running the average media buyer's decisions, from action bias to the expert's curse. We get into why excluding past purchasers dropped one brand's new customer CPA by 40% overnight, why "data-driven" has become a red flag on a resume, and why the last 20% of Meta optimization is worth less than the first 20% of your landing page. If you manage ad accounts, hire people who do, or spend your Sundays reorganizing campaigns you shouldn't be touching, this one's for you. ⚡ IN THIS EPISODE ⏱ TIMESTAMPS 👉 Join Sarah's Creative Strategy Community: skool.com/tether-lab ─────────────────────────────────── Sarah Levinger Nate Lagos | |||
| Fewer Ingredients = MORE Sales? (The Data On This Is Wild...) | 02 Jul 2026 | 00:17:36 | |
Fewer ingredients. More sales. It sounds backwards — until you see the data. A study across 19 food-and-beverage experiments found people were 21.6% more likely to choose an identical product when it simply listed fewer ingredients. This week we break down why "less is more" is quietly one of the most reliable levers in DTC advertising. We get into how this plays out in real ad accounts — why single-ingredient, single-benefit ads consistently outperform "kitchen sink" messaging, why competing claims cancel each other out in the buyer's brain, and where the rule breaks (spoiler: it doesn't apply to candy). We also map the white space for "clean" CPG, the psychology of un-dyed products, and how to apply ingredient minimalism to supplements, consumables, and honestly whatever you sell. ⚡ IN THIS EPISODE ⏱ TIMESTAMPS 👉 Join Sarah's Creative Strategy Community: skool.com/tether-lab ─────────────────────────────────── Sarah Levinger Nate Lagos | |||
| A Rubber Pickle Caused a Riot (The Heinz Pickle Strategy) | 24 Jun 2026 | 00:19:11 | |
This week we break down what might be the oldest example of influencer/offer marketing ever! We get into why a thing you find on the ground beats a thing you're handed, how a tiny wearable pickle pin turned one million people 🤯 into walking billboards, and the bigger lesson hiding inside the story: most marketers think marketing is fishing when it's actually hunting. If you feel stuck on Meta, TikTok, or any platform you can't leave, this one's for you. ⚡ IN THIS EPISODE ⏱ TIMESTAMPS 👉 Join Sarah's Creative Strategy Community: skool.com/tether-lab ─────────────────────────────────── Sarah Levinger Nate Lagos | |||
| Why Meta Only Lets 2-3 Ads Win (No Matter How Many You Launch) | 11 Jun 2026 | 00:23:35 | |
You can launch 100 ads... Meta's still only going to let 2 or 3 of them win. In this episode, we went down a deep rabbit hole on Meta's new Andromeda update to try and figure out why the mechanism keeps starving 97% of your creative. We also dive into what this actually means for media buyers and creative strategists. We get into why dumping more ad volume doesn't create more winners, why the algo is basically playing blackjack and doubling down after seeing a single card, and why "make organic content that works as an ad" just went from a nice-to-have to the entire game. Plus a real-time (slightly too honest) consulting session on whether to cut ad spend and go all-in on organic. ⚡ IN THIS EPISODE ⏱ TIMESTAMPS 👉 Join Sarah's Creative Strategy Community: skool.com/tether-lab ─────────────────────────────────── Sarah Levinger Nate Lagos | |||
| 17 Things Brands Get Dead Wrong About Millennials | 03 Jun 2026 | 00:28:46 | |
In this episode we break down 17 things every brand gets wrong about marketing to millennials, from the skinny-jeans myth to why "this will change your life" is the fastest way to lose us. We get into why millennials aren't in their "prime spending years" the way marketers assume, how the sandwich generation actually makes buying decisions, and why peace — not aspiration — is the emotion that's quietly winning in DTC ad creative right now. If you're building a brand that needs to sell to the biggest consumer group in the country for the next 10-15 years, this is the consumer psychology you can't afford to skip. ⚡ IN THIS EPISODE ⏱ TIMESTAMPS 👉 Join Sarah's Creative Strategy Community: skool.com/tether-lab ─────────────────────────────────── Sarah Levinger Nate Lagos | |||
| Reduce Cart Abandonment by 21% with THIS Psychology Tactic | 27 May 2026 | 00:20:58 | |
What if the reason customers are abandoning their carts isn't price...it's guilt? New research across 14 million e-commerce sessions reveals that the more pleasure-based items are in a cart, the higher the abandonment rate. (The solution for this is simpler than you'd think.) In this episode, we break down the psychology behind practical vs. hedonic upsells, why cold traffic wants logic before emotion, and how messaging sequence is the most underrated lever in DTC marketing. Nate also just bought an RV and accidentally became the perfect case study for why practical add-ons are a conversion cheat code for e-commerce brands and direct response marketers. Source: https://app.sciencesays.com/p/suggest-practical-items-to-reduce-cart-abandonment 🎉 Join the community: skool.com/tether-lab CoHost: Nate Lagos Twitter: https://x.com/natelagos CoHost: Sarah Levinger Learn more at: https://www.tetherinsights.io/
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| What Makes a Good Creative Strategist? | 06 May 2026 | 00:17:21 | |
In this episode, we get into the three layers of the job (tactical, exterior, interior), why "taste" is the hardest skill to teach, and the in-house vs agency debate that keeps getting it wrong. If you're a creative strategist trying to level up (or a founder trying to hire one) this is the framework we wish we had years ago. Plus: why the apprenticeship model dying is the real reason the industry can't produce great talent anymore. ⚡ IN THIS EPISODE ⏱ TIMESTAMPS 👉 Join Sarah's Creative Strategy Community: skool.com/tether-lab ─────────────────────────────────── Sarah Levinger Nate Lagos | |||
| The Psychology Trick That Makes Your Price 26% More Persuasive | 01 May 2026 | 00:21:33 | |
In this episode we break down the science behind price font size, why hiding your price reads as "embarrassed about the value," and how to use category psychology and price anchoring to justify premium pricing in crowded categories like supplements, meat snacks, and beyond. We also share a live test we're running this week on Meta ads and why most brands are still pricing like it's 2022. ⚡ IN THIS EPISODE ⏱ TIMESTAMPS Source: https://app.sciencesays.com/p/numbers-in-larger-fonts-are-more-persuasive 👉 Join Sarah's Creative Strategy Community: skool.com/tether-lab ─────────────────────────────────── Sarah Levinger Nate Lagos | |||
| The New Avatar Framework (How to Build Avatars That Scale in 2026) | 16 Apr 2026 | 00:19:24 | |
The customer avatar wasn't invented by a marketer. It was invented by a software developer in 1983 who just wanted to know how someone would click through his app. And yet, we've built entire marketing strategies around it. In this episode, we're gonna question everything we know about avatars so you can too. 😅 We get into why obsessing over WHO your customer is (age, gender, zip code) might actually be the wrong starting point and what we think marketers should be focusing on instead: When → Why → Who. Market to the moment first, understand the emotional driver second, and let the demographic details do the last 5% of the work. From OG watch brand case studies to the Taco Bell drive-through at midnight, this one was just a brain dump of consciousness around one simple question: how should we be building avatars that scale in 2026 and beyond? ⚡ IN THIS EPISODE → Why the customer avatar was designed to understand *behavior*, not predict who would buy → The difference between psychographic avatars and avatars that actually tell you what to do → How the same ad made men and women buy the exact same watch for completely different reasons — and why that's the whole point → The "when" framework: how to map customer wins first, emotions second, and demographics last → Why Taco Bell's "open late" campaign is a masterclass in marketing to the moment, not the person 👉 Join Sarah's Creative Strategy Community: skool.com/tether-lab ─────────────────────────────────── 🎙 CO-HOSTS ─────────────────────────────────── Sarah Levinger 🌐 tetherinsights.io 🐦 x.com/SarahLevinger 💼 linkedin.com/in/sarahlevinger 📸 instagram.com/sarah.levinger ▶️ youtube.com/channel/UCKwfjt_7PU5N_2fTfHemXXg
Nate Lagos 🐦 x.com/natelagos 💼 linkedin.com/in/natelagos 🎧 Tactical & Practical Podcast: podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/tactical-practical/id1752915534 | |||
| We're Back! 🎉 And We Need to Talk About What's Happening... | 08 Apr 2026 | 00:29:14 | |
We're back from a 3-month break to break down the three "storms" reshaping the industry: Meta's algorithm quietly flipping the paid ads playbook upside down, an AI-fueled brand identity crisis draining trust faster than anyone expected, and something we're calling "AI gentrification" and why it might be the most dangerous shift of all. We're all feeling the pain. But there's a path through and it's not what most people are doing. ⚡ IN THIS EPISODE → Why running more ads is making your performance worse → The organic vs. paid reach gap nobody's talking about (99% vs. ~80%) → How AI is destroying the apprenticeship model in DTC → What "conviction" actually looks like in a brand and why almost no one has it → Our contrarian take on what comes next A Renaissance is coming and it's going to be built by the anti-AI crowd!
👉 Join Sarah's Creative Strategy Community: skool.com/tether-lab Sarah Levinger 🌐 tetherinsights.io 🐦 x.com/SarahLevinger 💼 linkedin.com/in/sarahlevinger 📸 instagram.com/sarah.levinger ▶️ youtube.com/channel/UCKwfjt_7PU5N_2fTfHemXXg
Nate Lagos 🐦 x.com/natelagos 💼 linkedin.com/in/natelagos 🎧 Tactical & Practical Podcast: podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/tactical-practical/id1752915534 | |||
| We're Taking a Break: What's Next for Brain Driven Brands | 06 Apr 2026 | 00:12:09 | |
After years of weekly conversations unpacking consumer psychology, growth strategy, and how brands actually make decisions, they step back to talk candidly about priorities, growth, and what it looks like when your work evolves faster than the containers around it. They unpack why Brain Driven Brands started, what it became, and why it's time to pause and rethink what comes next. Along the way, they reflect on personal growth, career shifts, and the behind-the-scenes realities of running fast-growing businesses without pretending it's all tidy or linear. You'll also hear:
This isn't a goodbye it's just a pause for now. A reminder that growth sometimes means stepping back to build the next version properly. | |||
| 41 Things Every (Senior) Creative Strategist Learns Too Late | 30 Dec 2025 | 00:22:16 | |
In this episode of Brain Driven Brands, Sarah and Nate play a rapid-fire game of Smash or Pass with some of the most overused, misunderstood, and quietly dangerous ideas in modern marketing. We tear into things most teams can't say out loud… and the ones they're afraid to admit: This isn't a how-to episode. It's a how-are-you-thinking episode. We talk about idea tracking vs. concept hoarding, empathy vs. data, AI vs. taste, speed vs. depth—and why most ads fail because they're answering questions no customer ever asked. If you're running paid media, managing a creative team, or quietly wondering why "doing more" keeps working less… this one will feel uncomfortably familiar in a good way. (Listen for the moments where we disagree. That's where the real insight lives.) Original tweet:https://x.com/SarahLevinger/status/1994428068220273056?s=20
CoHost: Nate Lagos Twitter: https://x.com/natelagos CoHost: Sarah Levinger Learn more at: https://www.tetherinsights.io/
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| Our 2026 Predictions: Here's What You Should Bet Money On | 23 Dec 2025 | 00:22:22 | |
What's going to happen to DTC in 2026 once the AI noise dies down, tariffs stabilize, and brands stop pretending vibes are a strategy? In this holiday episode of Brain Driven Brands, Sarah and Nate don their ugly sweaters, roast underperforming AI tools, and make real predictions they'd actually put money on. They break down why 2026:
You'll hear takes on: If 2025 felt like learning to ride with training wheels again, this is the conversation about what happens when brands finally stop wobbling, and start moving with intent.
CoHost: Nate Lagos Twitter: https://x.com/natelagos CoHost: Sarah Levinger Learn more at: https://www.tetherinsights.io/
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| 16 Prompts to Rule Them All | 22 Dec 2025 | 00:24:00 | |
In this episode of Brain Driven Brands, Sarah and Nate pull back the curtain on the exact AI prompts they actually use to generate high-performing ad ideas—the ones that don't sound robotic, generic, or like every other brand on the internet. After revisiting one of the show's most-downloaded episodes, Sarah shares why most AI-written copy fails, how she rebuilt her prompts from first principles, and what happens when you tell AI which psychological mechanisms to use before it writes anything at all. Together, they live-test these internal prompts on a real brand ad (cowboy boots), exploring how different psychological levers change the creative direction entirely—including:
Instead of asking AI to write headlines or scripts, Sarah shows how to use it to generate raw ad concepts—and why the last 10% (the human part) is where all the money is made. This episode is part live teardown, part psychology lesson, and part behind-the-scenes look at how six-figure ads are actually born—not from clever wording, but from properly framed ideas. If you care about better creative, higher prices, and ads that don't feel like ads…this one's for you. Sarah Makes Nate Cry With a Prompt Episode: https://open.spotify.com/episode/2cVZ3nIE8YUMAlO6Qm0NFN?si=UWSUywsJTmqoz5bkRVgADw
CoHost: Nate Lagos Twitter: https://x.com/natelagos CoHost: Sarah Levinger Learn more at: https://www.tetherinsights.io/
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| Stop Chasing the "Why": Here's How Real People Actually Buy | 18 Dec 2025 | 00:19:53 | |
For years, marketers have been told to "find the why"...which drives Sarah absolutely nuts. 😅 In this episode of Brain Driven Brands, Sarah argues with Nate that this idea of the "one true why" is what broke modern marketing. People don't buy for one reason. They buy for many reasons—depending on mood, timing, environment, identity, stress level, and context. The real driver isn't why someone buys. It's when. Using real-world examples (from whiskey splurges to Starbucks rituals to Rolex buyers at different life stages) this conversation breaks down why over-optimizing for a single "why" leads to brittle brands, shallow segmentation, and wasted creative effort. Instead, Sarah and Nate explore how brands should think in terms of emotional "whens," behavioral states, and consistency over persuasion. If you've ever felt stuck hunting for the perfect insight, this episode reframes the problem entirely…and gives you a more realistic way to build brands, messaging, and creative that actually scale
CoHost: Nate Lagos Twitter: https://x.com/natelagos CoHost: Sarah Levinger Learn more at: https://www.tetherinsights.io/ | |||
| This 2013 Discovery Explains Why Your Ads Won't Convert | 16 Dec 2025 | 00:12:10 | |
We unpack a wild 2013 study by economist M. Keith Chen: proof that the language you speak completely rewires how you save, spend, exercise, plan, and even respond to marketing. Germans retire with more wealth, smoke less, and make healthier choices… not because they're more disciplined, but because their grammar collapses the future into the present. English pushes actions into "later." German makes the future feel like right now. We riff on examples, rewrite real campaigns in real time, and even end with a mini-rant about why AI struggles with time itself. If you sell anything to English speakers, this is a masterclass in linguistic persuasion. Tune in. Your future self… thanks you.
CoHost: Nate Lagos Twitter: https://x.com/natelagos CoHost: Sarah Levinger Learn more at: https://www.tetherinsights.io/ | |||
| The TikTok FYP Rewired the Brain…Now Your Ads Have to Adapt | 11 Dec 2025 | 00:16:53 | |
This episode was supposed to be about something else entirely…but TikTok's algorithm had other plans. Sarah and Nate fall headfirst into a conversation about why our For You Pages are changing how people perceive content, other people, products, and the world…and what that means for the ads we create in 2026. From cave-death phobias to zoo-bear attack headlines, we unpack why humans are magnetized to bizarre, emotionally charged micro-stories, and why traditional "polished" ads have no chance against that dopamine roulette. They break down: The episode ends with a simple question that might reshape your 2026 creative strategy: This one is a wonderfully unplanned, unnervingly honest look at where attention is going and how brands can evolve with it.
CoHost: Nate Lagos Twitter: https://x.com/natelagos CoHost: Sarah Levinger Learn more at: https://www.tetherinsights.io/
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| The Weird Psychology Tactic That's Boosting Conversions by 149% | 09 Dec 2025 | 00:14:14 | |
Today's episode cracks open one of the most unintuitive persuasion effects hiding in plain sight: Sarah and Nate break down the original Journal of Marketing Research study (2013), walk through real examples from DTC, SaaS, and Nate's own infamous bar-tab email campaign, and show how brands accidentally stumble into this effect all the time. We explore: If you've ever run a "we weren't supposed to do this but…" promo (or fallen for one) this episode makes the science obvious…and profitable.
CoHost: Nate Lagos Twitter: https://x.com/natelagos CoHost: Sarah Levinger Learn more at: https://www.tetherinsights.io/
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| The 3 Forces Behind Every High-Performing Campaign in 2026 | 02 Dec 2025 | 00:21:23 | |
Marketers love to argue about tactics: structures, caps, creatives, bids, funnels. But the data from this year paints a different picture: every winning campaign in 2026 will be powered by the same three forces… and almost nobody is preparing for them. In this episode, we pull together the most revealing moments from the show; the ones where emotions spike, buying behavior becomes predictable, and the old rules of persuasion fall apart. You'll hear how valence and intensity shape conversions, why WHEN someone sees an ad matters more than WHO they are, and how abstract language can increase willingness-to-pay by 35% without changing the product. If you want your 2026 campaigns to scale instead of stall, these are the forces you need to master emotion, timing, and framing. Everything else is noise. Sarah Makes Nate Cry Episode: https://open.spotify.com/episode/2cVZ3nIE8YUMAlO6Qm0NFN?si=8_gGsWQbR4i7cDvMBfID6A Get People to Pay 35% More Episode: https://open.spotify.com/episode/5iBY6204hJvT69ejFS3MeI?si=HHKyRErhTkuvPU11fCuQhQ Marketers...Think About WHEN Episode: https://open.spotify.com/episode/5yTuYTNUDsGS3obpsiCOr2?si=EY9qh43JRNa3q6BjQ6Kx7g 👉 Join my community: skool.com/tether-lab CoHost: Nate Lagos Twitter: https://x.com/natelagos CoHost: Sarah Levinger Learn more at: https://www.tetherinsights.io/
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| The Invisible Enemy Strategy: Why Systems Marketing Will Dominate 2026 | 27 Nov 2025 | 00:18:09 | |
In this episode, we dig up the wild (but true) story of Borax — yes, Borax — and how a forgotten cleaning brand quietly rewired consumer psychology long before Meta ads, hooks, or CTR dashboards existed. This one hits everything marketers secretly crave: By the end, you'll rethink your product, your positioning, and maybe your entire funnel. The Orange is a Lie Episode: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/brain-driven-brands/id1752169629?i=1000702690496
CoHost: Nate Lagos Twitter: https://x.com/natelagos CoHost: Sarah Levinger Learn more at: https://www.tetherinsights.io/ | |||
| BFCM Week Survival Episode: Anxiety, Pressure, and the Real Talk Operators Need | 26 Nov 2025 | 00:12:08 | |
On this episode of Brain Driven Brands, Sarah and Nate dig into what actually helps most during BFCM week: simplifying your work, limiting decisions, touching grass (literally), planning something fun, rewarding yourself for non-revenue wins, and keeping alcohol out of the mix until the storm passes. It's the conversation everyone in DTC needs during the wildest season of the year and the reminder that none of us are doing this alone. CoHost: Nate Lagos Twitter: https://x.com/natelagos CoHost: Sarah Levinger Learn more at: https://www.tetherinsights.io/ | |||
| Consumers Got Weird This Year: 5 Truths Marketers Aren't Ready For | 20 Nov 2025 | 00:21:03 | |
This week on Brain Driven Brands, Sarah and Nate crack open 25 Core Identity Maps (CIMs) collected across nearly every category — supplements, apparel, home goods, tech, sleep, skincare — and uncover the five global consumer behaviors defining 2026. These aren't the usual "people want convenience and trust" surface takes. They're weird, psychologically sideways, deeply human patterns emerging across thousands of responses… the kind of stuff your attribution dashboard will never show you. Inside the episode, they break down:
Along the way, Nate confesses the uncomfortable self-truth the research exposed in his buying habits, Sarah explains why most marketing overestimates aspiration and underestimates avoidance, and both of them dig into why belonging is quietly becoming the dominant motivator in nearly every market. If you want to understand how real people actually think before they buy — not how marketers wish they thought — this episode is a masterclass in modern consumer psychology wrapped in friendly self-roasting. Perfect for founders, operators, and anyone who suspects their customers are running way deeper scripts under the surface than their spreadsheet can explain. Plus: A live breakdown of how brands should adapt their messaging sequencing to match these psychological shifts — and why one wrong emotional signal can kick you out of a buyer's world instantly.
CoHost: Nate Lagos Twitter: https://x.com/natelagos CoHost: Sarah Levinger Learn more at: https://www.tetherinsights.io/
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| The Worst Ad Takes We've Ever Heard (And Why They Refuse to Die) | 18 Nov 2025 | 00:20:48 | |
Some myths haunt the ad industry like immortal raccoons rifling through the garbage. In this episode, Sarah and Nate crack open a tweet that asked a simple question: "What's the dumbest take you've heard about running ads?" Turns out…people had thoughts. They wade through the greatest hits — "never turn off an ad," "you gotta season the pixel," "ads hurt organic," "just follow Andromeda best practices," "DR can't build brand," "scale winners 15% a day," — and then get into the deeper psychology behind why these ideas still survive in 2026. Along the way, they break down:
It's equal parts catharsis, strategy, and industry group therapy. By the end, you'll understand not just what the worst takes are… but why people cling to them — and what smart operators are doing instead. Perfect for anyone who loves ads, hates nonsense, and wants their marketing to be grounded in actual sanity.
CoHost: Nate Lagos Twitter: https://x.com/natelagos CoHost: Sarah Levinger Learn more at: https://www.tetherinsights.io/
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| You're Not the Hero: Big Brand Truths Small Brands Hate Hearing (Feat. Will Leach) | 13 Nov 2025 | 00:35:29 | |
When a PepsiCo-trained behavioral scientist crashes the studio, things get weird…and wildly useful. In this episode, Will Leach walks us through the emotional math behind why customers buy, why brands plateau, and why most marketers have their goals entirely backward. We dig into why value ≠ "saving money," how DiGiorno tricked America by anchoring against delivery pizza, why buyers change personalities between Monday and Friday, and the surprising reason your brand matters way less than you think. Come for the spicy takes on Coke vs Pepsi, stay for the "Batman vs Utility Belt" analogy that will permanently change how you write ads. If you've ever wondered why your logical pitches flop, why people buy cowboy hats during burnout, or how to outmaneuver giants without outspending them — this episode is a masterclass in real human behavior, not the stuff your personas pretend.
CoHost: Nate Lagos Twitter: https://x.com/natelagos CoHost: Sarah Levinger Learn more at: https://www.tetherinsights.io/ | |||
| 99% of Marketers Are Using AI Wrong (Including YOU) | 06 Nov 2025 | 00:16:41 | |
Most marketers are using AI to replace their thinking instead of sharpen it—and it's showing. In this episode, Sarah and Chase break down why lazy prompting is the reason your creative feels stale, your tests flop, and your "winners" die in two weeks. They'll walk you through 50 wild "what if" experiments that flip marketing psychology upside down and show you how to use AI as a thinking partner, not a content mill. Here's a taste:
It's a crash course in using AI to break your own biases, surface hidden insights, and create ideas that actually stick. Listen if: you're tired of cookie-cutter AI advice and want to see how behavior science meets chaos in the best possible way. (By the end, you'll never ask ChatGPT to "write me 10 headlines" again.) What If List: https://docs.google.com/document/d/1Do2K506-V6TrXBK43gLrLGGunjeYL3uicNZXJ0Jh7Wg/edit?usp=sharing
CoHost: Nate Lagos Twitter: https://x.com/natelagos CoHost: Sarah Levinger Learn more at: https://www.tetherinsights.io/
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| Boost Your Brand's "Cool" Factor by 20% Using [SECRET PRODUCT] | 04 Nov 2025 | 00:12:29 | |
Sarah and Nate dive into one of marketing's strangest scientific findings: launching [secret product] can make your brand 20% cooler. So which product is it? No hints on this one…you'll just have to listen and find out! Source: https://app.sciencesays.com/p/crazy-mini-products-make-your-brand-cool
CoHost: Nate Lagos Twitter: https://x.com/natelagos CoHost: Sarah Levinger Learn more at: https://www.tetherinsights.io/
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| The 8 Marketing Mistakes We Made in 2025 (and How to Fix Them in 2026) | 30 Oct 2025 | 00:21:33 | |
2025 was a weird year for marketers..an avalanche of AI hype, output obsession, and soulless creative cycles. In this episode, Sarah and Nate dissect the biggest missteps brands made this year and what needs to change before 2026 hits. From mistaking outputs for outcomes to realizing AI isn't ready to think for us, they break down why "volume" culture is killing creativity and how to rebuild your strategy around clarity, authenticity, and actual human intelligence. Expect hard truths, some laughter about naming cows "Ribeye," and a challenge to run your own "What Could Go Wrong?" meeting before the new year. It's a roadmap for smarter, saner marketing in 2026…no AI attitude required. CoHost: Nate Lagos Twitter: https://x.com/natelagos CoHost: Sarah Levinger Learn more at: https://www.tetherinsights.io/
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| Two Truths and A Lie: Why the Weirdest Ads Work (and Yours Don't) | 28 Oct 2025 | 00:26:54 | |
Ever seen an ad so bizarre you couldn't look away? In this episode, Nate and Sarah play Two Truths and a Lie: 1980s Ad Edition and then break down why the strangest, most nonsensical ads of the decade actually worked. We'll talk about:
It's a crash course in how to make people think about you later — even if your ad makes zero logical sense in the moment. If you've ever wondered why your "clever" creative underperforms, CoHost: Nate Lagos Twitter: https://x.com/natelagos CoHost: Sarah Levinger Learn more at: https://www.tetherinsights.io/
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| Stop Staring at Me: The Weird Psychology of Eye Contact in Ads 👀 | 23 Oct 2025 | 00:08:30 | |
In this Brain Driven Brands episode, Nate and I unpack a wild little study that found ads can be 30% more effective depending on where your model's eyes are looking. Turns out, the difference between "I trust this brand with my organs" and "why is she looking at me like that?" comes down to whether your product is utilitarian or hedonic (fancy words for "practical" vs "fun"). We break down why eye contact builds trust for supplements and skincare—but looking away sells fashion and for-funsies products. TL;DR: Your model's gaze might be the cheapest conversion hack you've never tested. 👉 Learn more how to become a psychology-based performance marketer: skool.com/tether-lab CoHost: Nate Lagos Twitter: https://x.com/natelagos CoHost: Sarah Levinger Learn more at: https://www.tetherinsights.io/ | |||
| Sarah's $2,000 Haircut: Why "When" Beats "Why" in Marketing Every Time | 21 Oct 2025 | 00:30:52 | |
On this episode of Brain Driven Brands, Sarah's bad haircut spirals into a four-week behavioral case study—and an accidental masterclass in consumer psychology. From identity triggers ("am I that kind of person?") to timing misfires and disqualifying sales moments, this story exposes how every brand loses money by misunderstanding when a buyer is ready—not why. In this episode of Brain Driven Brands, Sarah and Nate dissect: If you've ever wondered why great products don't convert—or how to fix the sequence that kills your sales—this is your wake-up call. 🧠 Listen in and rethink every "why aren't they buying?" meeting you've ever had. 👉 Learn more how to become a psychology-based performance marketer: skool.com/tether-lab CoHost: Nate Lagos Twitter: https://x.com/natelagos CoHost: Sarah Levinger Learn more at: https://www.tetherinsights.io/ | |||
| How to Turn Hate Comments Into Your Best Marketing Strategy | 17 Oct 2025 | 00:21:51 | |
What if your next viral ad came from your meanest review? In this episode of Brain Driven Brands, Sarah and Nate dive headfirst into the world of negative feedback, brand psychology, and emotional resilience—starting with a spicy listener review about Sarah's voice. 😅 From Liquid Death's savage comment campaigns to Domino's "We're Sorry for Sucking" rebrand, they unpack how smart brands turn criticism into currency (and why most founders take it way too personally). You'll learn: A mix of humor, honesty, and a little therapy banter (don't worry, Nate's still anti-therapy 😆), this episode will make you rethink how you handle haters—and maybe even thank them for your next creative breakthrough. 🎧 Listen if: 👉 Learn more how to apply psychology to your ads: skool.com/tether-lab\ CoHost: Nate Lagos Twitter: https://x.com/natelagos CoHost: Sarah Levinger Learn more at: https://www.tetherinsights.io/
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| 🎃 Scary Good Advertising: The Tango Slap, Diamond Shreddies, and the Pepsi Riot | 14 Oct 2025 | 00:22:16 | |
In this Halloween-themed episode, Sarah and Nate dive into the wildest (and weirdest) campaigns in advertising history (the ones that shouldn't have worked… but somehow did.) From the Tango Orange Man who literally slapped sales up 33%, to the Diamond Shreddies intern who made millions by tilting a cereal 45 degrees, to Pepsi's 1992 Number Fever fiasco that sparked riots in the Philippines, this episode is a masterclass in how psychology, timing, and cultural context can make or break a campaign. Expect laughter, disbelief, and plenty of "wait, that actually worked?" moments...plus two challenges for listeners at the end. Because sometimes, genius isn't about doing more — it's about seeing differently. 👉 Learn more how to apply psychology to your ads: skool.com/tether-lab\ CoHost: Nate Lagos Twitter: https://x.com/natelagos CoHost: Sarah Levinger Learn more at: https://www.tetherinsights.io/ | |||
| The OK Soda Story: How One Brand Died Before It Began | 09 Oct 2025 | 00:18:13 | |
Coca-Cola once tried to sell apathy in a can. They called it OK Soda — a grungy, "anti-brand" aimed at cynical Gen Xers. The ads were clever, the design was bizarre…and the product died within a year. In Episode 107, we dig into why "anti-branding" almost always backfires, why Liquid Death succeeded where Coke failed, and the psychology of why brands can't thrive on indifference. Inside the conversation: ✅ The real reason OK Soda flopped despite massive hype If you've ever wondered:
…this one's for you. 👉 Learn how to become a psychology-based creative strategist: skool.com/tether-lab CoHost: Nate Lagos CoHost: Sarah Levinger | |||
| The Weird Ad Length That Drove 40% More Traffic | 07 Oct 2025 | 00:22:48 | |
What if everything you've been told about the "right" ad length is wrong? In this episode of Brain Driven Brands, Sarah and Nate dive into a surprising new study showing that one oddly specific video length outperformed the standard 15–30 second format — driving 40% more traffic and 3X engagement. They break down:
Source: https://app.sciencesays.com/p/keep-video-ads-under-10-seconds 👉 Learn more how to apply psychology to your ads: skool.com/tether-lab CoHost: Nate Lagos Twitter: https://x.com/natelagos CoHost: Sarah Levinger Learn more at: https://www.tetherinsights.io/
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| When to Use % Off vs. $ Off Discounts | 02 Oct 2025 | 00:20:35 | |
We dropped a stat this week that stopped Nate in his tracks: brands can see up to 42% more sales just by framing discounts the right way. No new ads, no extra products...just choosing percent off vs. dollar off at the right moment. In Episode 105, we dig into the psychology behind that lift and why most brands blow Q4 by overcomplicating offers, stacking promos, and teaching customers not to trust them. Inside the conversation: ✅ The science behind when to use % off vs. $ off (and why it changes sitewide vs. single product) ✅ The 5 offer types we see every year — and which ones are worth your testing budget ✅ Why "combo deals" and "sale extended" emails wreck trust long-term ✅ Sequencing tactics (like Nate's "Better Than Black Friday" play) that build urgency without burning credibility ✅ Why sometimes the boldest Q4 strategy is raising prices, not cutting them If you've ever wondered: 1. How to simplify offers so customers don't need a calculator 2. Why half-off deals aren't always the flex you think they are 3. How to build trust during the most profitable month of the year 4. And why less discounting can actually mean more margin …this one's for you. Season 3 keeps pushing, and the data's spicy. 🧠 Source: https://app.sciencesays.com/p/coupons-when-to-give-10-off-vs-10 👉 Learn more about applying psychology to your ads: skool.com/tether-lab CoHost: Nate Lagos Twitter: https://x.com/natelagos LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/natelagos/ Tactical and Practical Podcast: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/tactical-practical/id1752915534 CoHost: Sarah Levinger Learn more at: https://www.tetherinsights.io/ Twitter: https://x.com/SarahLevinger Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/sarahlevinger/ Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/sarah.levinger/
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| Surviving Q4 Burnout: The Real Black Friday Ad Strategy No One Talks About | 30 Sep 2025 | 00:31:57 | |
This episode of Brain Driven Brands is a survival guide for founders, media buyers, and creative teams heading into the chaos of Q4. Sarah sits down with Joanna Wallace (VP of Paid Creative @ Bird Dog, formerly HexClad) to pull back the curtain on what it really takes to prep for Black Friday without burning your team out—or losing your sanity. We dig into: ✅ Why burnout hits creative teams hardest in September (and how to stop the slide) If you've ever felt like Q4 is a treadmill you can't get off, this episode gives you the strategy shift (and the permission) to slow down, get organized, and protect your team while still hitting your numbers. 🎧 Listen in—and if you're a founder or creative staring down Q4 panic, this one's for you. 👉 Learn more about applying psychology to your ads: skool.com/tether-lab Guest: Joanna Sloane Wallace, VP of Paid Creative @ Bird Dog CoHost: Nate Lagos CoHost: Sarah Levinger | |||
| Retention Marketing Isn't Marketing...It's Habit-Building (with Alyssa Wallace) | 26 Sep 2025 | 00:28:56 | |
This week, Sarah and Nate are joined by Alyssa Wallace, retention & lifecycle marketing pro, for a conversation that flips the usual DTC playbook on its head. Here's the hard truth: blasting 100+ AI ads and endless "buy now" emails isn't retention. It's noise. Consumers aren't dumb—they're tired, frustrated, and tuning out. Together, we dig into:
If you've ever wondered why your retention campaigns feel flat, how to build real loyalty, or what it actually takes to keep customers around, this episode will give you the straight answers. Season 3 is here, and we're starting loud. 🧠⚡️ 👉 Learn more about applying psychology to your ads: skool.com/tether-lab Guest: Alyssa Wallace CoHost: Nate Lagos Twitter: https://x.com/natelagos CoHost: Sarah Levinger Learn more at: https://www.tetherinsights.io/
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| From 1,000 Ads to 12: How Smart Brands Are Winning Differently | 23 Sep 2025 | 00:35:31 | |
This episode of Brain Driven Brands is a wake-up call for every founder, media buyer, and creative who's been told the secret is more ads, more volume, more work. Sarah, Nate, and guest Kevin (Head of eCom at High Camp Flasks) pull back the curtain on the creative hamster wheel and share why "a thousand ads a month" isn't just unrealistic—it's wrecking teams, draining budgets, and distracting from what actually drives growth. We dig into:
If you're tired of the spray-and-pray approach and want to fall back in love with marketing again, this episode will give you the strategy shift you need. 🎧 Listen in, and if you're a brand stuck on the volume hamster wheel, this one's for you.
👉 Learn more how to apply psychology to your ads: skool.com/tether-lab\ Guest: Kevin (Never "Kev") Luby, Director of Ecommerce @ High Camp Flasks CoHost: Nate Lagos Twitter: https://x.com/natelagos CoHost: Sarah Levinger Learn more at: https://www.tetherinsights.io/
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| 7 Good Cookies: The Marketing Lie That's Costing You Growth | 18 Sep 2025 | 00:27:52 | |
We kicked off Season 3 with some heat. 🔥 In this episode, Nate and Sarah talk about why the volume game in ads is broken — and how brands are shooting themselves in the foot by flooding their accounts with 100+ AI-generated ads a week. Spoiler: consumers aren't dumb. They're tired, frustrated, and tuning out repetitive, irrelevant creative. We share some new stats on consumer behavior (61% are less likely to buy after seeing the same ad too many times, 49% flat out refuse). We dig into why volume ≠ diversity, why overloading creative teams is unsustainable, and why the future looks more like "7 great cookies" than "50 mediocre ones." Nate and Sarah also shift into brand strategy — how to prime buyers long before the sale, the reality of emotional lag in purchasing decisions, and why building memorable brand campaigns is the antidote to cookie-cutter volume. We even talk about why silly things (like my little red dinosaur) actually work for brand recall. If you've ever wondered:
…this episode is for you. Season 3 is here, and we're starting loud. 🧠⚡️ 🔑 Episodes Referenced:Marketers...Don't Think About WHO Think About WHEN: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/brain-driven-brands/id1752169629?i=1000675762314 👉 Learn more how to apply psychology to your ads: skool.com/tether-labCoHost: Nate Lagos Twitter: https://x.com/natelagos CoHost: Sarah Levinger Learn more at: https://www.tetherinsights.io/ | |||
| 🎉 Episode 100: The Top 7 Episodes You Need to Send to a Friend | 16 Sep 2025 | 00:20:47 | |
In this episode of Brain-Driven Brands, Nate and Sarah kick off Season 3 by reflecting on some of our favorite episodes from past seasons, share the lessons that stuck with us, and give you a preview of what's coming next. If you haven't listened to Brain Driven Brands for long, or if you jut wanna send your friend some good content this week, SEND THEM THIS. 🔑 Key Takeaways
👉 Learn more how to apply psychology to your ads: skool.com/tether-lab CoHost: Nate Lagos Twitter: https://x.com/natelagos Tactical and Practical Podcast: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/tactical-practical/id1752915534
CoHost: Sarah Levinger Learn more at: https://www.tetherinsights.io/ Twitter: https://x.com/SarahLevinger Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/sarahlevinger/ Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/sarah.levinger/ Watch me on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCKwfjt_7PU5N_2fTfHemXXg
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| Steal Your Customers from Your Competitors (the Easy Way) | 28 Aug 2025 | 00:24:07 | |
In this episode, Nate and Sarah walk through one of the easiest ways to steal customers from your competitors using psychology and behavior science…by using Consumer Casey as a case study!
JOIN The TETHER Community- https://www.skool.com/tether-lab/about
CoHost: Nate Lagos Twitter: https://x.com/natelagos LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/natelagos/ Tactical and Practical Podcast: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/tactical-practical/id1752915534
Learn more at: https://www.tetherinsights.io/ Twitter: https://x.com/SarahLevinger Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/sarahlevinger/ Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/sarah.levinger/ Watch me on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCKwfjt_7PU5N_2fTfHemXXg
Thanks to Cytrus for the theme song, "Sky High" You can follow and find them on Spotify:https://open.spotify.com/track/1oKGDsxjRdQlf2xHLZsiSJ?si=8fbd275dbbb54cbf
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| Boost Your Sales by 42%...With ONE Great [Secret] | 26 Aug 2025 | 00:19:41 | |
On this episode of Brain Driven Brands, Sarah quizzes Nate on a super secret study that could boost his sales by 42%...if he's only willing to do what Sarah says he should. 😅 Source: https://app.sciencesays.com/p/your-product-benefits-must-seem-related
JOIN The TETHER Community- https://www.skool.com/tether-lab/about
CoHost: Nate Lagos Twitter: https://x.com/natelagos LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/natelagos/ Tactical and Practical Podcast: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/tactical-practical/id1752915534
Learn more at: https://www.tetherinsights.io/ Twitter: https://x.com/SarahLevinger Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/sarahlevinger/ Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/sarah.levinger/ Watch me on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCKwfjt_7PU5N_2fTfHemXXg
Thanks to Cytrus for the theme song, "Sky High" You can follow and find them on Spotify:https://open.spotify.com/track/1oKGDsxjRdQlf2xHLZsiSJ?si=8fbd275dbbb54cbf
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