Pop Culture Mondays/1.22.24
The “Baby…” Edition
Happy Monday, my darling pop culture junkies. I am coming to you from NYC where, at least today, early Monday morning, it feels almost balmy compared to what this weekend was like. As a New Yorker, I felt like such a tourist on Saturday, actually being out and about on a day that barely got out of the teens. Those are the days you are meant to never get out of your sweats and order a bacon, egg, and cheese to be delivered from the corner deli. BUT New York has changed. I have changed. What they say about California making you soft is true. I am SUCH a baby. But also, I went out like a rookie and now have to complain about it for days.
And BABY BABY BABY is a big theme today so let’s get to it. But first, RIP to DeSantis’s presidential campaign. Sucks for you Gov, but great for America…I mean, we have a long way to go still, but your kind of crazy can go back to Tallahassee, thank you very much.
Buh Bye Rhonda..
If you missed last week’s pod…please check it out. It’s a fun one!
Grab some headphones and enjoy this week’s PCM!
LET’S TALK BABIES:
This week had a lot of babies. From Baby Girl Jacob Elordi (we will get to THAT, don't you worry) to the latest drama having a chokehold on TikTok that we shall call KYTE BABY DRAMA.
So, let’s start there.
Kyte Baby was founded by Ying Liu, a mom whose youngest child suffered from eczema, and normal PJs made her daughter even more uncomfortable as not only did it aggravate her skin, but it also made her hotter, making eczema worse. So, a revolution was born that started with sleep bags and then moved into clothes for babies, toddlers, and even adults.
They are made from bamboo. Bamboo is like a wonder material, man…think about how many uses! So, apparently, for clothes, it is soft and cool, and three full degrees cooler than regular cotton. WHO KNEW. I am sure a lot of you have heard of this brand or something LIKE it, at any rate. It has 783K followers on Instagram, and I can only imagine ALL the Facebook groups.
The drama started when new mom Marissa Hughes posted a video, which is no longer up, or at least I cannot find it, and a GoFundMe detailing her family’s predicament. She was employed by Kyte Baby, and she and her husband had been on a long journey trying to have a baby and finally decided to adopt. They received a call that a newborn preemie was theirs to adopt but in the NICU and 8 hours away.
LET me be clear. Whether you birth a child, have one via surrogate, adopt or foster…you are a mother. That is your child. There is NO difference, sorry. OK, I digress.
The point is, Kyte Baby, was basically not extending her the same parental rights to her that they had to mothers who birthed their children. And she was told if she could not get to work, she would be fired. A horrible thing at any time, but in the moment of dealing with a new baby and all the health issues they are navigating? NOPE.
BTW here is their GoFundMe, and it SEEMS that the stuff about Kyte Baby has been edited but stick with me:
But it WAS there, and there was a TikTok from new mom, and it went viral. TikTok MOMS went nuts.
And many NICU moms began to share their own stories in support:
And there was a growing call to boycott KYTE BABY.
So this is where things got worse. Ying, the founder and CEO posted an apology video on TikTok.
GUYS….how many TIMES do we need to go through this??? APOLOGY VIDEOS!! They are an art form. They need to be handled in a different kind of way. Scripted does not work. Oh Ying…
So, this did not go over well. The community tore her apart. And I am going to be honest here. I FEEL for Ying. I wish she was my friend and had called me as this drama was unfolding and asked me for guidance. Because let’s be clear…I don’t know how ANY company big or small would handle an employee giving them zero notice to parental leave. It’s a tricky situation. But her apology was not ideal.
I should say, her FIRST apology. Because she quickly followed it up with this one:
UGH I know what she is going through…that panic, that pure panic. I hope this smooths out for her because I think she is trying to correct it.
But the brand took a reputational hit on the one hand…on the other hand, I had never heard of it, and now I have, so there is that. But also enter the opportunists. A competitive brand called Kate Quinn:
…apparently gave $2K to Marissa’s GoFundMe, adding fuel to the fire in the comments.
I remember back when I was starting my career, my parents died only months apart. I started a new job after my mom died, but then my dad died. The company was not mandated to cover more than a day or two of bereavement as I had only been there a few months, but MORALLY, especially a smaller company, you would think they would understand the circumstances and do the right thing. I was told I could take the rest of the week off under bereavement and could take as MUCH time as necessary but not be paid, and if I took longer than a month, I would lose insurance. I couldn't afford that, obviously; I was 23. I was back at work a few days later. So I am told…I have zero recall of that time, and I most certainly was not doing my job well as I was catatonic. I did not have TikTok. HAD there been, I absolutely would have posted a HELL OF ONE.
Let’s PIVOT to another BABY-ESQUE topic.
The Internet’s BABYGIRL, Jacob Elordi.
In case you are not familiar with the term, it is one we reserve for the men who have a chokehold on us, like Pedro Pascal. There are a lot of definitions for said “BABYGIRL,” but basically, it is just a THING they exude. They are naughty but sweet. Dirty but nice. They can cry but kill. Basically a red flag, and I am here for it.
Jacob hosted SNL this past week, and I am going to say something controversial; maybe it is because, unlike some of the other men we have objectified recently…he doesn't do it for me. I am a Short King kind of girl; what can I say? And Pedro Pascal, which is a whole other situation, IYKYK.
BUT this SNL was quite awkward because most of the skits were just about how handsome he was and how women just want to bang him and how he basically has his career just for being hot, and unfortunately, the show was not great (in my opinion) and showed he was not ready for hosting abilities.
OK…It's NOT quite a baby theme, but we are here in SNL land, so let me just go with it. I can call her BABY because I am obsessed with her, and that is Reneé Rapp, the musical guest on SNL. She is an actress and singer who is starring as Regina George in the new Mean Girls movie (and originated the role in the musical on Broadway. And she is basically the Internet’s favorite right now…our baby, you could say. She has been giving UNHINGED interviews in the best of ways. She just gives zero fucks. She is openly gay and outspoken, and we LOVE her. This was actually the best skit of the night, and she was a big reason why…watch the whole thing:
Here’s her performance along with Megan thee Stallion, and it’s great:
And a look at just some of her awesome interviews:
AND MOVING ON to our last topic in the BABY CATEGORY….
Let me introduce you to TikTok creator Ballerina Farm, which is an account of a TRADWIFE, a type of woman who believes in the old-school approach to families and motherhood. She has 7 kids, makes her own food from scratch, and does all the housework and childcare (she is also a pageant mom), and her goal is always to be skinny. What is NOT talked about on her account is her family or her husband’s family is somehow connected to JetBlue, so they have tons of $$$. But here is an example of a video…which has 181 MILLION views:
And THIS is her postpartum…
Here is more of an explainer on Trad Wives. And as many commentators point out, if you want a Trad Wife or want to be Trad Wife you need TRAD WIFE MONEY BABY. Lols.
This creator’s analysis is flawless:
WOO BABY. I tried tying the baby thing together…a stretch I know!
A LITTLE OF THIS, A LITTLE OF THAT:
Well, that was fun. I am racing through this to face a mad day in NY. So, let’s take a quick look at other things that have happened this past week:
- JLO has a new movie coming out, and it is WILD, and I don’t mean it in a good way. It looks BANANAS:
“I haven’t been sleeping well lately….I guess I never have.”
🫣
- Jimmy Fallon did another subway thing, and this time with…
I love this one of them, and the one guy is like, wtf is happening? I just want to GO HOME:
I think he is actually security but who knows! Still amuses me.
- Have you been following #SEPHORAKIDS Trend? Oy. It’s got to be rough being the parent of a pre-teen at this moment in time. Apparently, pre-teens are taking over Sephoras and raiding the stores for their fave brands like Drunk Elephant and Selena Gomez’s Rare Beauty.
This compilation is so funny:
As this creator says, these kids need to go touch some grass. (That’s for you, Britt!) Touch Grass is a meme that got adopted, unfortunately, by the worst people (they live on X). But I digress…
- These facelifts have gone viral. I have to believe these are fake…I really hope SO. DEAR GOD, I HOPE SO.
- MUKBANG! In case you are not aware, there is a whole subculture of creators who eat food and talk to their audience who watch them eat food — and that is called mukbang. This creator, Gabby Eniclerico, is a mukbanger. She went viral a while back, covered here at PCM, for her video on Trader Joe’s CACIO E PEPE sauce:
That turned into a meme:
WELL, she is at it again and this time it is another one of my favorite pastas: Pasta Aglio e Olio which is pasta with garlic and olive oil. CHEF’S KISS. Here is her mukbang:
And again, she has become a meme:
Could watch these all day.
- Jason Kelce is the MVP of the Chiefs game. NO, I am not mixing up Travis, the actual Chiefs player, and his brother, who plays for the Eagles. I DO, in fact, mean Jason. WHO understood the assignment. What he did last night is the stuff of HEROES. IN celebrating his brother scoring a touchdown, not only did he bring amazing brotherly love and pride…but he took the attention OFF of Taylor. But also made a few little girls' dreams come true.
I mean, people were booing him but also loving it. Booing because they are in Buffalo, but how can you not love him? The cop in this video is like this is nuts:
And while many are saying Travis made the heart gesture to Taylor, it was to the fans:
These Kelce boys….I loves them.
- It is PARIS FASHION WEEK. I am not here to talk about all the videos coming out, but the brands the cool kids are ALL about at the moment are SCHIAPARELLI and LOEWE (again, if you are new here, it is NOT pronounced LOW; it is pronounced LU-AY-VAY). So, if you start seeing this stuff around…well, now you know (I say this whilst wearing old jeans a T-shirt, and Nike sneakers)
And LOEWE had it’s men's show and brought all the boys:
THAT IS IT, my darlings…
An early one this week. The way it used to be back when I was living in NY and cool and living on 4 hours of sleep a night with a diet of martinis and bagels. THOSE WERE THE DAYS.
If I missed something, please let me know! Or if something you want me to explore more next week. AND…If you aren’t already a subscriber and you want this in your inbox, please send an email to:
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Have an amazing week.
Xx,
Brooke
