Many people have at one time or another wondered what they would do for $1 million. Turlock’s Merna Aodisho now knows the answer to that question — and it involves a lot of games that look easy but are actually very challenging.

Aodisho is one of 100 contestants on a brand-new reality competition, “99 to Beat,” which premiers today on FOX and Hulu. The show features 100 everyday people thrown into intense, creative, and often hilarious physical and mental challenges—all for a shot at a $1 million prize.

Contestants play the games and hope not to be the last person to finish or not finish at all, which leads to elimination. Aodisho said one game involved 1,000 balloons that were dropped from the ceiling. In the balloons there were 99 Hawaiian leis and the contestants had to rush around popping balloons and hope to get one of the leis.

When she’s not playing carnival-like games for big stakes, Aodisho is a full-time bank employee and a caregiver for her brother who has Cerebral Palsy. The Turlocker is also no stranger to the entertainment industry and has been in other TV shows and movies, but this is the first time she’s ever been on a reality program. But she’d do it again in a heartbeat.

“The best part of doing this show was meeting all those wonderful people…We still speak every single day and it’s been months and months…We all grew so close to each other in such a short amount of time. And now I understand why people cry when they leave these competition shows.”

She said the biggest challenge was the long days on set and having to film in London, England, which gave her some jet-lag and messed with her sleep schedule.

Aodisho is looking forward to the premiere and she flew into New York City for a special viewing with over 50 of her fellow competitors. But she is planning a special viewing partying with family and friends for the second episode on Oct. 1.

In honor of her reality show premiere, Aodisho — a longtime singer/songwriter — released a new single, “Big Deal.” This is a song she had written over a year ago, but hadn’t released.

“I think it’s very fitting for the timing,” she said.

The song is available on all streaming platforms.