Presented by PEPSI® MANGO
Can you feel that? The temperatures are getting warmer, and for the first time in forever, buying clothes that aren’t sweatpants doesn’t feel like a complete waste of money. Summer is right around the corner, and everyone is single and ready to mingle. Okay, obviously not everyone is single, but if you managed to find love in the time of corona, you don’t have to rub it in.
This year is all about experiencing unexpected things, from trying new foods (and delicious drinks), to actually going out in public again, to hopefully meeting someone who gives a little added kick to your life. MTV and PEPSI® MANGO understand the vibe, so they’re bringing us a new reality dating series full of surprising combinations and sweet surprises. It’s called Match Me If You Can, and we need to talk about it. The cast of Match Me If You Can is full of fan-favorites from lots of your favorite reality shows and, one by one, they’ll be matched up to go on one-of-a-kind dates.
Really, the casting department went above and beyond on this one. Match Me If You Can has higher standards than any of us, apparently, and the cast features FOUR winners of their respective shows. The show is hosted by Lauren Speed Hamilton who knows a thing or two about finding love in an unusual situation., Real talk, if anyone can keep this train from going off the tracks, it’s Lauren. A queen, icon, legend, and one of the only people to ever get a guy to commit before he could even see what she looked like. We all need Lauren’s energy for summer 2021.
On the contestant side of things, Match Me If You Can features a roster of all-star alums from your favorite dating and competition shows, and these familiar faces are ready to get mixed and matched. Like we said, Lauren isn’t the only one with winning experience. We’ve got Joey Sasso (the world’s most adorable person), competition queen Ashley Brooke Mitchell, and Harry Jowsey, AKA everyone’s crush. Obviously, things didn’t work for Harry in the relationship department last time, or else he wouldn’t be here right now, but going on another dating show should be the answer to his problems.
Harry, Joey, and Ashley will be joined by lots of other esteemed reality colleagues. We’ve got experienced reality daters—Onyeka Ehie, Eric Bigger, Kylie Smith, and Kyra Green—plus Natalie Negrotti, who managed to find a relationship on a show where that wasn’t even the goal. It’s a real who’s who of reality alums, and with all these people in the mix, you know there will be some surprising and memorable moments.
Will any of these singles find true love on their mix-and-match dates? Who knows, but we’re ready to enjoy the ride and ~trust the process~. There’s no engagement ring at the end of this journey, and to be honest, we don’t really care who’s here for the right reasons. But life is all about unexpected pairings, and who knows, maybe one of these dates will lead to something as surprising and exciting as PEPSI® MANGO. Match Me If You Can premieres on MTV during the finale episode of The Challenge: Double Agents, on April 21 at 8pm ET/PT, so mark your calendars now. Plus, make sure to check out new episodes each week on MTV YouTube.
First comes Love Is Blind, then comes marriage, then comes yet another f*cking reality dating show. It’s 2020, and most of us can relate to being isolated and isolated and sex-starved, but imagine this: you’re champagne-wasted on a free beach resort vaca surrounded by super hot people…the catch is, you’re literally not allowed to hook up with anyone unless you want to lose money. Harry Jowsey, the Australian hunk from Netflix’s reality dating show Too Hot To Handle, has experienced this ~traumatic~ experience firsthand. On the most recent episode of the Let Me Finish podcast, Taylor Jackson and Abby Lloyd sat down with Harry to discuss his recent breakup, sex, and breakup sex.
Harry and his THTH costar Francesca Farago, a Canadian model and Instagram personality, left the show together, broke up, then got engaged during the reunion special. But, in true influencer fashion, Francesca announced their second split via a YouTube video entitled “Our Break Up.” According to Harry, he was totally blindsided by the video, since he and Francesca had actually filmed a joint video explaining their breakup. “Everything was going to be civil, but she posted her video and it kinda just had a whole bunch of fabricated stories to attack me,” he said. “And I was like, I’ve got receipts and everything.” (Screenshots, screenshots, screenshots, people.)
The dramatic breakup has, understandably, been pretty tough on Harry’s mental health. In addition to anxiety attacks and a loss of appetite, he’s been getting attacked by commenters on his Instagram and TikTok accounts. “I don’t know what happened with me and Francesca because we had a great relationship, the breakup wasn’t bad, we just didn’t see eye-to-eye on a whole bunch of stuff,” he said. “Then that video got posted and then she just kept sending this tirade of hate toward me and my friends and my family, and I was like, ‘I don’t know who she’s talking to or who’s in her corner, because this isn’t the girl that I know.” As if the heart-wrenching breakup weren’t bad enough, Harry now has to call in his lawyers. “It’s gotten to a point where it’s affecting my brand…so I’m like okay, everything you’re saying is a lie, so…” We’re here for this passive aggression.
Francesca rebounded quickly, while Harry—who really is too hot to handle IRL, Abby confirms—has been easing back into the dating game. Just this weekend, he took a girl to dinner then to a party with a bunch of Gen Z TikTok stars (seems like a pretty sh*tty date idea, but that’s just me). Turns out, his date had ~history~ with one of the other guys there and ended up leaving with him, so Harry ended the night, declaring, ”Okay, I’m calling an Uber, I’m going home.” I mean, we’ve all been there. On the bright side, this means that Harry is single….He reports that he’s into tattoos, girls that text first, and post-breakup sex, so slide on into those DMs, ladies.
For more on Harry’s love and sex life, listen to the full interview on the latest episode of the Let Me Finish podcast.
Images: harryjowsey / Instagram
