Chelsea Handler & iHeart Are Launching A Podcast Network — And Yamaneika Saunders Goes First

Yamaneika Saunders Is Getting Thee Mic She Deserves

Mark your calendars on us: Chelsea Handler and iHeartPodcasts are officially expanding the Dear Chelsea universe into a brand-sparkling new podcast network, and the premiere launch show belongs to none other than one-of-one comedian extraordinaire Yamaneika Saunders.

The new Dear Chelsea Network begins its multi-year iHeart partnership with You’re the Problem … with Yamaneika, a weekly comedy talk show set to debut July 15. Chelsea will serve as executive producer across the network, while Yamaneika takes the first new seat at the table with a show built for pop culture, current events, news, politics, listener thoughts, and whatever else needs to be dragged lovingly into the light.

For INYIM, this one hits especially right. Yamaneika has long been one of our favorite funny girls — the kind of comedian we have religiously followed on Instagram Live, the kind who had us fully entertained and dying laughing during the Covid-era YouTube days, and the kind of voice that always sounds like it is one sentence away from telling the truth too loudly on purpose.

If you have ever caught one of her lives, you already know the format: Yamaneika can start with a small personal inconvenience and build a full comedy storm around it. In one gloriously annoyed live-video spiral, she calls everybody in because somebody has “pissed” her off — and the alleged offense is pure friendship chaos: she got dressed for an event, only to find out the event was not until the next day.

That is the Yamaneika gift. The wrong date becomes outfit commentary. The outfit commentary becomes a one-woman fashion show. The fashion show becomes a friendship trial. The friendship trial becomes a Dave & Buster’s negotiation, a Branzino craving, a holy-oil blessing, and a reminder that she can move from personal annoyance to politics, relationships, religion, and back again without ever dropping the rhythm.

Very outspoken? Absolutely. Hilarious enough to make the outspokenness feel like a public service? Also absolutely. Yamaneika has that rare comedy gear where she can be loud, precise, emotional, messy, brilliant, and brutally funny all at once — and that is exactly why this next break feels earned, overdue, and deliciously dangerous for anyone who thinks they are safe from her mouth.

Watch Yamaneika Saunders Turn Being Pissed Off Into A Full Show

Press play on Yamaneika’s “Andy Played Me” live-video chaos, where a wrong event date becomes outfit theater, friendship court, and peak no-filter comedy.

Chelsea Handler made the launch sound personal, too. In iHeart’s announcement, she said building Dear Chelsea into a network feels meaningful because she gets to launch it with someone she knows, loves, and believes in. Chelsea also called Yamaneika one of the funniest people she knows, which is correct behavior from a woman who knows funny.

The official setup for You’re the Problem … with Yamaneika sounds tailor-made for her. The show will cover culture and in-the-moment current events while giving listeners room to share their own thoughts. Yamaneika’s longtime friend and producer Tyree Rush is also part of the mix, helping build a community for the outspoken while reminding everyone that no matter what they think, there is a home with Yamaneika.

Yamaneika said she is excited to join the Dear Chelsea Network family and for the world to hear the new show, adding that she loves “running my mouth, joking around and telling it like it is.” The official punchline lands right in the title’s spirit: she is not the problem. You are.

Handler’s own podcast glow-up is not small either. Dear Chelsea launched in 2021 and has become one of iHeart’s signature comedy/advice shows, with Chelsea continuing to build a lane around honest conversation, community, and the kind of blunt advice that does not come wrapped in a scented candle. The network move gives that world more space, more voices, and, blessedly, more chaos.

For Yamaneika, the timing feels like a well-earned next phase. She is a stand-up comedian, actor, WGA Award-winning writer, and the kind of stage presence who does not need to soften the edges to make people listen. She has appeared on shows including Hacks, Life & Beth, and Inside Amy Schumer, while continuing to work rooms from the Comedy Cellar to the road with Chelsea.

And now, naturally, we hope her two cats, Pryor and Carlin, are prepared for the next phase of their luxurious living. New podcast network. New iHeart bag. New treat budget. Same mother yelling truth into a microphone while the babies nap like wealthy heirs. That is the dream, honestly.

That is why this iHeart moment feels bigger than a standard “new podcast announced” headline. Yamaneika already knows how to turn real-time life into a show. She does not need a perfect setup. She needs a mic, a thought, one person to annoy her, and maybe a friend named Andy to walk into the room and accept accountability in front of the internet.

So yes, Chelsea Handler and iHeart are launching a network. But thee headline inside the headline is Yamaneika Saunders getting a bigger platform for the kind of comedy voice that has already kept so many of us laughing through mess, lockdown, live-stream delirium, and everyday foolishness. The mic is on. The problem has been identified. It is us.

Watch Yamaneika Saunders On Dear Chelsea

Press play on Yamaneika Saunders’ Dear Chelsea episode, “Crackers with Yamaneika Saunders,” ahead of her new You’re the Problem … with Yamaneika podcast launch.

Source: iHeartMedia, Dear Chelsea YouTube, and Yamaneika Saunders YouTube.