How bad do you want it? Sorority Rush 2026.

Two Ts In A Pod with Teddi Mellencamp and Tamra Judge

The podcast 'Dirty Rush' explores the intense world of sorority recruitment at the University of Alabama, with a journalist embedded on camp

Key takeaways

• Southern sororities like those at Bama have become increasingly guarded due to intense media scrutiny and TikTok exposure.
• The 'old row' sororities are seen as more prestigious, while newer ones gain visibility through digital platforms.

Main topics

• Sorority Rush at University of Alabama
• Media influence on Greek life

Notable quotes

"They've been advised from their advisors to not talk to anyone about rush just because they probably need to have like their you know media training."

Conclusion

The episode reveals how sorority rush at Bama remains deeply tradition

Transcript preview

Speaker 1 (0:00) This is an iHeart Podcast. Guaranteed human. Speaker 3 (0:05) Welcome to Dirty Rush, the truth about sorority life with your hosts, me, Gia Giudice, Daisy Kent, and Jennifer Speaker 4 (0:12) Fessler. Speaker 4 (0:15) Welcome back to another episode of Dirty Rush. I am Joan Bassos and I am joined today by Trista Sutter. And today we are going to talk to our anonymous Dirty Rush producers who touched down on college campuses to get the inside dirt on all things Rush. We are so excited to be here because. We have, I feel like we have spies at the colleges at Dirty Rush, which is so fun. And I'm picturing our producers who are all Cali girls who don't look like the typical Southern girl Rush students. And I'm thinking they all had to go like borrow clothes from people and do like do different stuff to them so they would fit in. I'm having a hard time picturing those. And actually, I think we're going to get some honest answers also from, I think we have joining us first hi Speaker 4 (1:06) How are you doing? It's been too long, but I understand you're on the road. Speaker 3 (1:12) Yeah, so I was at Bama. We went in the beginning of August, which is when they were starting their work week into Rush. And those girls take it very seriously. I want to hear, Speaker 4 (1:26) like, I'm sure you had assumptions because we've all watched the Bama Rush videos, along with a lot of the other Southern schools. Like, did you, when you kind of were in the house, Is it even more intense in the house? I picture it being very frantic getting ready for Rush. Speaker 3 (1:41) Yeah. I mean, so we were just kind of like walking around getting the lay of the land. The thing that was kind of the barrier to entry is these girls, I think with all the media attention around Bama Rush in the last few years, you know, with that Netflix doc or HBO documentary, everyone was very just hush hush about it. Speaker 3 (2:05) I went full, like, I've got a lot of preppy clothes in my closet. Okay. And I went full, like, Southern prep. Yeah. Kind of trying to get the uniform to be, like, more approachable and talking to these girls about it. And they, nobody wanted to talk to me. Like, okay, wait. Speaker 1 (2:25) So can you set the stage? Speaker 3 (2:27) Yeah. So I flew to Bama purely, like, in a journalistic realm. Got it. Like for the purpose of just being there on the ground to report back to our podcast about, you know, the differences and rush there from my experience. And also like, it's why we have this podcast, right? Like sorority life is just something that's so particular to the colleges in the United States and that whole culture. And so. very different from the West coast to the East coast, South Midwest. Like it varies. So it's like actually quite fascinating because. Yes, totally. And you went to school where? I went to UCLA. Okay. Got it. Thank you. Like huge school. And then has like a bit like a Greek life presence, but. But not like Bama. Speaker 2 (3:21) Not like Speaker 3 (3:22) Bama. And the style is totally Speaker 4 (3:25) different. And. Speaker 3 (3:27) So they Speaker 4 (3:27) could tell that you were not like what you said you were being. They could tell they looked at you and they're like, hmm, she's a little. Yeah, I wasn't like Speaker 3 (3:37) going in being just like I wasn't going in to try to rush or what. It's like while everyone was. Yeah. Like while everyone was going through work week, I was like walking up and down sorority row. Mm Speaker 4 (3:50) hmm. Speaker 3 (3:51) just asking going up to girls and being like hi can I ask you a few questions I love that podcast and you know would love to hear whatever and like a lot of these girls were like no I don't want to talk to you or I know so much of it yeah just because I think a lot of them have gotten a lot of that in the last few years you know and and I found out later on the trip that actually like they have been advised from their advisors presidents you know people on exec like do not talk to anyone about rush just Speaker 4 (4:27) don't Speaker 3 (4:28) get Speaker 1 (4:28) yourself that was Speaker 3 (4:29) that Speaker 1 (4:29) was going to be my assumption my family has been told by the powers that be to not talk to the press um just because they probably need to have like their you know media training The people who have been media trained talk to the press. The talking, yeah. Right. Yeah, Speaker 4 (4:48) probably older girls. Do you think that sororities have gotten kind of a bad rap? Like maybe they've gotten too over the top? Is that why they're not wanting to talk to you? Are they trying to tamp it down a little bit? Speaker 3 (5:05) I think there's been two things at Bama. There's been like... you know more it's been more under a microscope like a southern rush in general has been more under microscope in the last few years with like outside media attention but then like there's also been like internal girls either in sororities or who are going through rush documenting their experience like on tiktok and blowing up for it and then also like trying to expose it and so i think overall especially like kind of the southern way is to just like I don't know, like, not just like keep things more to yourself or be polite and like, and be more, um, yeah, but a little proper radar. Yeah. Proper, you know, whatever it's like, especially Southern women. So I think like, it's kind of out of their nature. I don't want to say there, like, I just want to like, it's kind of out of the nature to, to want to be like exposing the sororities or whatever, the way like a lot of girls like going through rush have tried. Speaker 4 (6:09) Were you able to talk to any of the PNMs? Were they on campus yet? Or were they around where you had access to them? Speaker 3 (6:16) Yeah, there was a lot of excitement. Like I would talk to, there were some girls who were, yeah, PNMs who were getting ready, like at the hotel that I stayed at to talk to them. And it was like, I mean, like purely out of just wanting to get to learn more. But in terms of like, if sororities have gotten a bad rap, I think they're just trying to like, limit the media attention and the people going into rush for like the reasons of getting famous on tiktok like it's totally lost the plot a little bit right yeah Speaker 4 (6:47) so they're trying to yeah they're trying to bring it back to we're here to meet the girls and find the best fit for us as opposed to it being a media show and an instagram opportunity i Speaker 3 (6:57) mean the south is like and southern sororities are so traditional right and that just goes against the grain so i think Speaker 1 (7:05) Yeah. Yeah. Would Speaker 4 (7:06) you Speaker 1 (7:06) say that you got a feel for who is the, like which sorority is the considered the top sorority or maybe a couple? What I came to understand was that there's old Speaker 3 (7:18) row sororities and fraternities in the new row and the new row. It just means like the oldest sororities, which happen to have like. Just more prestige, I think. And then some of these newer sororities are the ones that newer sororities are the ones that have like gotten the more of like the maybe less traditional girls and more like Speaker 4 (7:41) who Speaker 3 (7:43) are like blowing up on TikTok and becoming like big in that way. Speaker 4 (7:48) Yeah. Speaker 3 (7:49) But I I got mixed reviews, but I think like Find You is the top. old row sorority because yeah i don't know it's just like what i was hearing and everyone who said fine you was top they'd be like it's the only white sorority house on campus where everyone everything else is like brown brick were Speaker 4 (8:12) the houses insane were they like incredibly gorgeous i Speaker 3 (8:17) mean i short answer is yes and i was shocked because the UCLA sorority houses are like stunning.