What if the role models young men need aren't influencers, but ordinary people showing extraordinary character? Jo and Kush's victory in the programme Race Around The World,  revealed a version of masculinity brands should be championing, writes MAD//Fest event consultant, and  Psychotherapist, Alison Fulker.

In recent weeks, I’ve been charmed by two Scouse young men, Jo and Kush.

In case you’ve been under a rock, Jo and Kush beat the other teams to the finish line of this year’s Race Across the World. 

Now, in case you actually HAVE been under a rock, RAW (not an official acronym, but I’m going to make it stick) is a reality show where teams of two go head-to-head to get from point A to point B using any means of transportation other than air. This year marked the sixth series, and teams spent fifty-one days racing from Palermo in Italy to Hatgal in Mongolia, some 12,000 km. The route retraced the Silk Road for much of its journey, and took the teams through extreme temperatures, from 30°C in the Mediterranean to minus 20°C in Mongolia.

I was rooting for the boys from the start. Throughout their journey, the boys were respectful, hard-working and showed great tenacity. They had a wonderful, cheeky charm, which served them well when they needed to call on the kindness of strangers. They rarely complained; instead, putting their heads down and pushing on, working so well as a team. They both spoke openly of their love for their mothers, who raised them as single parents, and of their personal struggles with anxiety and identity, citing many times that they supported one another through these.

It struck me from episode one that Jo and Kush represent the antithesis of what, as a mother of a young boy, I worry about daily - toxic masculinity. It gave me so much joy to watch them after what I can only describe as the horror of watching the so-called young men showboating in Louis Theroux’s deservedly acclaimed documentary, Inside the Manosphere*. Interestingly, it was noted that these young men all came from single-parent mother-led households. Just like Jo and Kush.

In Theroux’s documentary, these self-titled influencers were allegedly making life-changing amounts of money from brands and platforms. Now, while I accept that there’s a lot of smoke and mirrors around the actual wealth of these “men” (quotations intended), I’m quite sure it’s some degree more than the £10,000 Jo and Kush both made from RAW (see, it’s stuck).

As brands continue their focus on Gen Z, I hope that some have knocked on the doors of Jo and Kush to offer them life-changing amounts of money to (stealing here from a well-known soda brand) be the "The Choice of a New Generation". It’s time for young men and young women to see masculinity represented in the way Jo and Kush represent it – with strength that comes from openness, with respect for others, and with relationships that allow for vulnerability and sharing.

Good luck to you boys, whatever you decide to do next, you both did your mums proud.

*Note for all the possible under-rock dwellers that Louis Theroux is a guest speaker at this year’s MAD//Fest ☺