The ongoing drama between Alix Earle and Alex Cooper was rooted in an “ego-driven” conflict that ultimately led to their very public feud, a source exclusively tells Us Weekly.
“It was not one isolated incident that led to the feud. There were multiple occasions where Alex made Alix feel uncomfortable,” the insider explains. “Alix felt ‘mean girl energy’ from [Alex] especially after they did the podcast together and didn’t think Alex had her best interests at heart.”
The “Hot Mess With Alix Earle” podcast officially joined Cooper’s Unwell Network in September 2023, but their distribution partnership ended abruptly in February 2025 when Earle stopped making new episodes. Theories have swirled for the past year over what led up to Earle leaving Cooper’s Unwell Network and putting podcasting on the back burner.
“Alex began treating the relationship as if she ‘owned’ Alix, despite the fact that Alix had built a massive platform and success on her own,” the source continues. “There were a lot of ego-driven issues. Alex didn’t want Alix landing bigger deals than her and if she did, she wanted to cash in on it. Everything was expected to revolve around Alex.”
Tensions reportedly reached a boiling point when Cooper allegedly tried to interfere in Earle’s attempts to make deals outside the podcast.
“Alix’s dad had to intervene to help her make better business deals,” the insider reveals to Us. “Leaving Unwell and stopping her podcast was the best thing Alix could have done for her career. She’s in a much better place now, happier and feeling a sense of freedom.”
The latest round of drama kicked off over the past week when Earle shared shady posts about Cooper, including one that referred to her former boss as the “grim reaper.” Cooper responded with a TikTok video on Monday, April 13, where she encouraged Earle to directly address the beef.
“Just say what you gotta say about me. There’s no NDA, and no one is stopping you. Stop hiding behind other people and just say it yourself. What’s the beef?” she asked. “I’m really tired of waking up and seeing you using this fake drama to distract from other s*** going online for you. Not interested. I know what happened and so do you. So talk. Unless the fake narrative that you’re creating happens to be way more interesting than the truth. I have nothing to hide when it comes to you and me.”
Cooper tried to draw a line under the drama, saying, “Unless you actually have something to say, I’m out. This is over.”
Earle responded directly to Cooper’s challenge, writing in the TikTok video’s comments section, “OK on it!!”
The former “Hot Mess” host later shared a clip of her first reaction to Cooper’s video while attending Coachella last weekend. While she’s yet to explain what allegedly went down between her and Cooper, a separate source tells Us, “There were a series of things where Earle felt like she had been taken advantage of by Alex and that Alex was leveraging her for other talent.”
Us Weekly has reached out to reps for Cooper and Earle for comment.
