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Y’all, I owe Amy Robach and T.J. Holmes a huge apology. I genuinely thought that their podcast, “Amy & T.J.,” was a vanity project as they bought time to try and get back on television. I also thought they’d last a year, tops. Well, not only are they still doing the podcast and still going strong, they’ve somehow managed to parlay both of those things into a daily news podcast, semi-regular headlines, and now, a relationship advice column on Yahoo. Yes, that’s right! My favorite messy former news co-hosts have a new gig doling out weekly relationship advice. They’re even leaning into their reputations because, as Amy says, ”Love is messy.” Yassss.
Longtime journalists Amy Robach and T.J. Holmes have firsthand experience with the messiness of modern relationships and the complexity of combining family, finances and more when you’re starting over with a new person. “We’re here to be the face of life is messy,” Robach says. “Love is messy.”
Love is messy, alright. From the moment their relationship was first turned into clickbait fodder, Robach and Holmes have been learning to navigate life’s difficult moments together. Now, they want to help you address yours in Ask Amy & T.J., the celebrity couple’s new relationship advice column from Yahoo, debuting June 9. In this weekly series, the pair will take on your relationship questions, however complicated, bizarre or intimate — there are no taboos here — with the humor and humility you know them for.
Who better to tackle your trickiest problems than two people with hard-earned wisdom of their own? “I feel like we’ve become experienced relationship veterans because we’ve had a lot of trial and error,” Robach explains (Holmes chimes in, with a laugh: “a lot of errors”). And that’s the point, according to the couple. “I think you really, truly learn when you make mistakes; when there are problems, even failures,” Robach admits. “And we have learned significantly.”
Both Robach and Holmes have been married (twice) and they’ve been through divorce (twice). They are an interracial couple. They have a blended family. “We are not here to say we have it all figured out,” says Robach. “We’re still learning, we’re still fighting, we’re still growing, we’re still evolving — but being open and honest about the fact that it isn’t perfect, I think, is a huge starting point.”
Thanks to Robach and Holmes’s realness, friends, acquaintances and even strangers have approached them to divulge relationship issues — and this column aims to bring those intimate conversations online. “What it boils down to is that ours is a story people can relate to,” says Holmes. “I think it’s a more attainable goal for people in relationships to get where we got: We went through hell and then realized on the other side, I’m gonna be OK, and this relationship is worth fighting for.”
Robach and Holmes don’t always see things from the same angle. Robach is an over-sharer (“I’m working on it,” she admits). Holmes, on the other hand, is a “big boundaries guy.” From this battle-tested couple, you can expect pragmatic advice from two points of view, with one core value in common: authenticity. That’s how they’ve made it through their challenges stronger than ever and how they want to help you through yours.
It doesn’t matter if your relationship looks nothing like theirs. No topic is off limits and no problem is too big or too small. You can tell them about a secret you’re tired of keeping or the deepest rift in your marriage. From skeletons in the closet to petty dramas, the politics at the playground to your workplace frenemy — they’re ready to help you wade through it all.
“We’re here to be the face of life is messy.” LMAO, appreciate the self-awareness. But seriously, I cannot wait for this column. I amm jumping up and down at how entertaining it’s going to be. I’m also not joking when I say good for them. They’re hustling hard here, so I’ll give credit where it’s due. They get bonus points for switching mediums, too. I don’t think they’ll ever get back to their previous professional statures, but they’re making lemonade out of those lemons they grew.
Anyway, if you have any burning questions about any relationships in your life, there’s an email address for people to write them in to, askamyandtj@yahoo.com. I am so looking forward to the types of questions they’ll receive and answers they’ll give. I wonder if they’ll set a record for how many times you can talk about yourself while trying to focus on helping solve someone else’s problem. Congrats on the new side hustle, A&T!