Michael Shamblin Black on The Way Down and Escaping Remnant (Part 2)
A Little Bit Culty
Sarah Edmondson & Anthony “Nippy” Ames
4.6 • 3K Ratings
🗓️ 2 July 2026
⏱️ 80 minutes
🔗️ Recording | Apple Podcasts | RSS
🧾️ Download transcript
Summary
Michael Shamblin Black is back for Part 2, and this one goes to the darkest corners of life inside Remnant Fellowship—and the even darker corners of life after it. Michael walks us through the red flags he couldn't ignore: Gwen's suffocating control, the Remnant "guidance system" cataloging every member's doubts and mapping their homes (collateral, just without the branding), an arranged marriage designed to keep him monitored, Joe Lara's sniper threat with a Creedmoor round, and the moment the plane went down and he felt, honestly, relief. We talk about what it's like to be PIMO—physically in, mentally out—for years, secretly recording meetings and writing in a hidden journal while singing worship songs on stage. Then comes the aftermath: sleeping on an air mattress chasing rats with a machete, stress-induced chest pain, hair falling out in clumps, suicidal ideation, and a stalker with 15 arrests who'd been at it since 2010.
Michael's still here, still fighting, and still hoping his kids find their window out. We end with his message to anyone still inside Remnant, the healing power of finally being able to say the things out loud, and the wild fact that Jennifer Grey—yes, Baby from Dirty Dancing—plays his mother in the Lifetime movie, Starving for Salvation. Reaction video incoming…
Follow Michael Shamblin Black on Facebook, Instagram, YouTube, X, or TikTok. Also check out our chat with ex-Remnant member Gina Wilson from Season 4.
Trigger warning: This episode contains frank discussion of suicidal ideation, depression, stalking, death threats, physical abuse, and grief.
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CREDITS:
Executive Producers: Sarah Edmondson & Anthony Ames
Production Partner: Citizens of Sound
Co-Creator: Jess Tardy
Audio production: Will Retherford
Production Coordinator: Lesli Dinsmore
Writer: Sandra Nomoto
Social media team: Eric Skwarzynski and Brooke Keane
Theme Song: “Cultivated” by Jon Bryant co-written with Nygel Asselin
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Transcript
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| 2:05.6 | The views and opinions express do not necessarily reflect the official policy apposition of the podcast |
| 2:10.2 | and are not intended to malign any religion, group, club, organization, business, individual, anyone, or anything. |
| 2:27.6 | I'm Sarah Edmondson. |
| 2:30.7 | And I'm Anthony Nippy Ames, and this is a little bit culty. |
| 2:35.1 | We woke up from a cult, and that journey was captured in The Vow on HBO and in my memoir, Scarred. Now, in this podcast, we break down the shame and secrets that make these experiences |
| 2:39.8 | so destructive with honest conversations on how seemingly benign groups can cross into the cultiverse, |
| 2:45.4 | and how to spot and recover from trouble if it happens to you. Each week, we bring an expert, |
| 2:49.8 | survivors, and whistleblowers to explore red flags, resilience, and even share a few laughs because sometimes you got a laugh. Subscribe to our Patreon for early and ad-free listening, some live Q&A and exclusive content at patreon.com slash A Little Bit Culty. Welcome to Season 8 of A Little Bit Culty. |
| 3:22.0 | Okay, welcome back to part two with Michael Shamblin Black. |
| 3:25.5 | If you haven't listened to the first episode, this one will not go smoothly. Okay, Michael. So we've been, we kind of jumping around in the timeline, |
... |
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