This week on It’s Ben A Week, Ben is back from three weeks in Europe—and before he can talk about the incredible vacation, he has a few things to get off his chest about getting there and back.

From overweight luggage and sweltering jet bridges to questionable international business-class service, missed connections, sprinting through the Philadelphia airport, getting separated from AJ, missing bags, and a compensation battle that came down to just four minutes, Ben has some thoughts for American Airlines. And yes, he fully acknowledges these are first-class problems.

Ben also talks about the whirlwind following his Traitors: New Blood announcement, getting recognized in public for the first time, some interesting new auditions—and, most importantly, the return of the pumpkin cream cold brew.

Then AJ joins Been There, Done That to recap their unforgettable three-week European adventure aboard their friends’ yacht, KAOS. From thunderstorms at the Acropolis and dancing in Mykonos to helicopter rides over Santorini, visiting the hotel from The White Lotus in Sicily, drinking entirely too much sake in Capri, partying beside an erupting volcano, and making their way through St. Tropez, they revisit some of the most unbelievable moments of the summer.

And because coming home to the ranch can never be simple, Ben and AJ introduce the newest member of the family: Sally the duck—who promptly disappeared for three days before staging a miraculous return from underneath a hay pallet.

Airline drama, yachts, volcanoes, sake, pumpkin cold foam and a missing duck. Somehow, it’s all Ben a week.

In this episode:

• Life after the Traitors: New Blood cast announcement
• Ben’s first time being recognized in public for the show
• Ben’s grievances with international air travel
• The 19-hour journey home from Europe
• Getting separated from AJ after a missed connection
• Why four minutes became a $300 argument
• Ben’s thoughts on airline status and loyalty programs
• The proper way to order a pumpkin cream cold brew
• Three weeks aboard KAOS
• Zeus crashing their visit to the Acropolis
• Mykonos, Santorini and a helicopter adventure
• Visiting The White Lotus hotel in Sicily
• Ben accidentally taking 12 shots of sake in Capri
• Club KAOS and an erupting volcano
• St. Tropez, beach clubs and an unforgettable Euro summer
• Sally the duck’s three-day disappearance
• AJ’s upcoming National Anthem performance

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New episodes every week filled with unfiltered stories, wild guests, and brutally honest laughs. Hosted by photographer and professional barrel racer Ben McDonnell.

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This week on It’s Ben A Week, Ben sits down with friend—and AJ’s former boss—Debra Berman, a powerhouse marketing executive whose career has taken her from advertising and consumer brands to serving as Chief Marketing Officer of JCPenney and Yahoo!

Debra takes Ben inside the career journey that eventually brought her to the C-suite, from working on household brands like Cheerios, Lucky Charms, Maybelline and Bacardi to helping rebuild JCPenney’s relationship with its customers during a critical period for the company. She shares what it was like walking into a room of more than 400 employees on her first day, the importance of making leadership human, and how her team used bold marketing—including an intentionally typo-filled Olympics campaign—to get people talking about JCPenney again.

Then Deb shares how an unexpected speaking engagement helped lead to an opportunity at Yahoo, where she joined during one of the most fascinating chapters in the company’s history. She and Ben discuss working alongside Marissa Mayer, the changing role of digital marketing, the eventual sale to Verizon, and how Deb discovered a certain employee named AJ who would become an integral part of her team—and eventually Ben’s husband.

Deb also gets candid about navigating corporate America as a woman, the pay disparities she believes existed throughout her career, why becoming CEO was never the goal, and the advice she gives anyone wondering how to take the next step professionally. Her philosophy is refreshingly simple: stop obsessing over titles, do the work, stay curious, and choose opportunities that give you more than one possible path forward.

Then on Been There, Done That, AJ joins Ben to reflect on working with Deb at Yahoo, why colleagues once called him the “Deb whisperer,” and the importance of truly listening to the people around you. The conversation expands into creativity, branding in the age of AI, why great creative work still requires human judgment—and ends with AJ revealing a little piece of Yahoo history: he’s the voice behind the Yahoo yodel.

In this episode:

• Deb’s journey from advertising to the C-suite
• Working on some of America’s most recognizable consumer brands
• Taking over marketing at JCPenney during a major turnaround
• The intentionally misspelled Olympics campaign that got everyone talking
• Why career success doesn’t always happen on your terms
• How one speaking engagement unexpectedly led to Yahoo
• Working with Marissa Mayer and navigating Yahoo’s sale to Verizon
• How Deb discovered AJ inside Yahoo
• Deb’s experience as a woman climbing the corporate ladder
• Why she believes women still have work to do when it comes to equal pay
• Why she never focused on becoming a CMO
• Three pieces of advice for anyone feeling stuck in their career
• Why AJ was known as the “Deb whisperer”
• Branding and creativity in the age of AI
• Why human judgment still matters
• The story behind AJ becoming the voice of the Yahoo yodel

🎧 Subscribe to It’s Ben a Week
New episodes every week filled with unfiltered stories, wild guests, and brutally honest laughs. Hosted by photographer and professional barrel racer Ben McDonnell.

📍 Listen & Subscribe:
Apple Podcasts | Spotify | YouTube | Amazon | Wherever you get your podcasts

🔗 Connect with Ben:
Instagram: @itsbenaweek
TikTok: @itsbenaweek
Website: itsbenaweek.com

💬 Want to be on the show?
Submit your story or pitch at itsbenaweek.com

This week on It’s Ben A Week, the secret is FINALLY out: Ben is officially joining the cast of The Traitors: New Blood, premiering September 17th on NBC and streaming the next day on Peacock!

After months of keeping one of the biggest secrets of his life, Ben can finally talk about traveling to Scotland, entering the castle, and becoming one of 22 contestants on the first U.S. civilian season of the hit competition series. As a longtime fan of The Traitors, Ben breaks down how the game works, explains Faithfuls, Traitors, murders, banishments and the infamous Round Table, and shares what it feels like to go from binge-watching the show at home to actually becoming part of it.

Ben also reflects on the journey that brought him here. Just months before filming, he recorded an episode about rejection and wondering when his next “yes” would finally come. Now, after one of the most mentally, physically and emotionally challenging experiences of his life, Ben opens up about feeling like years of hard work may finally be leading to his moment.

Then AJ joins Been There, Done That to reveal what it was like keeping Ben’s secret, convincing everyone he was away filming a Christmas movie, and holding down the ranch while Ben disappeared to Scotland. They also talk about discovering The Traitors together, why AJ thinks he’d make an incredible Traitor, and what they’re most excited—and nervous—to see when the finished episodes finally air.

The game has already been played. The secrets have been kept. Now it’s finally time to watch it all unfold.

In this episode:

• Ben officially announces The Traitors: New Blood
• How The Traitors actually works
• Going from superfan to contestant
• Filming in Scotland and experiencing the game firsthand
• Why Ben decided to say yes to reality television
• Looking back at rejection before getting one enormous “yes”
• Why this experience feels like a major turning point
• What Ben can—and definitely cannot—reveal before the premiere
• AJ’s elaborate Christmas-movie cover story
• Whether AJ would make a better Faithful or Traitor
• The nerves of waiting to see how everything was edited
• What listeners can expect from It’s Ben A Week throughout the season

🎧 Subscribe to It’s Ben a Week
New episodes every week filled with unfiltered stories, wild guests, and brutally honest laughs. Hosted by photographer and professional barrel racer Ben McDonnell.

📍 Listen & Subscribe:
Apple Podcasts | Spotify | YouTube | Amazon | Wherever you get your podcasts

🔗 Connect with Ben:
Instagram: @itsbenaweek
TikTok: @itsbenaweek
Website: itsbenaweek.com

💬 Want to be on the show?
Submit your story or pitch at itsbenaweek.com