Summer House is back and the vibe is weirder than ever. Season 7 is all about the OGs reconfiguring their relationships. We have couples like Lindsay Hubbard and Carl Radke gearing up to walk down the aisle. Some friendships like HubbHouse and Danielle Olivera experience major falling-outs. Kyle Cooke, for one, is not at all prepared for a lame summer full of drama, but it’s starting out that way.
Kyle and Carl’s relationship is also being tested. The buddies have always been pretty solid since the early days of Summer House. Carl entered a new relationship and got more involved with LoverBoy. The fact of the matter is that they’re totally different people than they were in Season 1. Carl is sober now and Kyle, by the grace of God, is Amanda Batula’s husband. Change is natural, but it is sad to watch the breakup between Carlito and Cookie.
The Season 7 premiere episode built the tension between Carl and Kyle from the second they entered the Hamptons house. Kyle kept making digs about Carl’s lack of effort when it came to working for LoverBoy. It’s shocking because any fan that follows Carl or Lindsay on Instagram knows that they spent a ton of time traveling to promote the brand. Well, the writing was on the wall because Carl has finally kissed Kyle and his LoverBoys behind. At least, from a professional sense.
Carlito revealed to Entertainment Tonight that he is no longer working for LoverBoy. He’s still an investor in the company, but he’s put a pause on the day-to-day activities of the brand. “I’m beyond proud of what I’ve done for that company,” Carl said. “I definitely was hitting my wall of like, is this the best fit for me?” Carlito is putting his full focus on his intense relationship with Lindsay, including their upcoming nuptials. I bet those two will have trouble getting together that guest list.
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Carl felt like it was time to move on. Especially due to his sobriety, it didn’t feel like traveling and promoting booze in bars was the best environment for him to be in. “My dream was never to build the baddest, coolest alcohol brand,” Carl said. “I wanted to support Kyle’s dream. It’s hard because we’re friends, but the friend world has gotten very blurred by the professional life.” You can say that again. Kyle and Carl need to just kiss on the mouth and skinny dip in the pool together and they’ll be back to normal. I hope.
While Carl understands he wasn’t totally open with Kyle about his complicated feelings toward their personal/professional relationship, he was disheartened by Kyle’s negative comments. Kyle claims that Carl has been “checked out” of LoverBoy since last April, which lines up with the last messy reunion.
Carl disagrees with his old boss’s assessment. “I’ve done things that no one else in the company would have done. Now, it’s been a group effort,” Carl said. “So, it was sad and surprising to hear Kyle’s perspective.”
While Carl isn’t counting out the possibility of working with LoverBoy in the future, he has his sights set on bigger things. He’s looking to put his TV and film degree to work by looking at film projects, and potentially starting a podcast with Linds. Sure, it’s the Bravo cliche to start a podcast, but Carl believes his perspective on sobriety and mental health could be useful. The biggest shock is that he’s looking into the idea of leaning into the non-alcoholic beverage business as well. Sounds like LoverBoy might have some NA competition. That should do wonders for all the rising tensions among the Good Vibe Tribe (not).
TELL US – ARE YOU SURPRISED THAT CARL LEFT LOVERBOY? DO YOU THINK CARL AND KYLE CAN GO BACK TO BEING CLOSE FRIENDS AGAIN?
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