Pop Culture Mondays/4.18.22
The “COUCHELLA” Edition
HAPPY Monday my darling pop culture junkies and I hope you are all rested and ready for a barrage of silly memes and TikToks and Tweets to get your week off to a fantastic start. I am trying to fast away my sins from the weekend which included Passover feasts, Easter feasts, and Mexican feasts and I am paying the price for it I assure you. But I ALSO spent a lot of it on my couch watching Coachella play out on the socials so I have named this edition COUCH-ELLA in honor of all my hard work to bring you in on the journey. You’re welcome. 🥳
So let’s just get right to it. Welcome welcome to my new subscribers! Just a reminder if you are finding yourself here for the first time, grab some headphones to “read” this newsletter and I love any and all feedback (as long as it is GLOWING) and anything you would like to see more of LMK!
And please check out my podcast which is getting more fun as we go. Here is last week’s:
XOXO…
EVERYTHING YOU NEED TO KNOW:
Not since Alabama Rush-Tok has anything so taken over my socials than this year’s Coachella music festival. Now look, I have said from the moment lockdown began in March 2020 that the thing I missed most was live music and I swore I would see everything I could when the world opened up again. And I have seen a lot from Billie Eilish to BTS to an acoustic Snow Patrol show in a church. And I swore I would go to Coachella even though I am most def not a festival girl because I worry about how I am going to get there and then what do I do when I have to pee and then what happens if I want to go and I cannot leave and I am stuck and I am cold and my feet hurt and I have to pee again and I want to go to sleep or I need to pee. Welcome to my brain. NOW on top of ALL that, one apparently has to worry about what to WEAR.
That is what did me in and I opted out and decided to instead watch it all play out on TikTok and Twitter and I AM SO GLAD I DID. Because apparently all the things I panic about were real and it was a STRUGGLE for some. And the fashion was…it was a lot. Lots of stylists apparently get their clients in the least amount of clothing possible and the requirement it seems was just to be skinny. SO…let’s get into it.
I am a fairly rational human. But I will say if this kid looked at me and said “come on tour with me” I would drop everything and do it. I would find a home for my dog, and that would be that and no questions asked. JUST to give you a little insight into my head. And if there was a reason to go this year it was HARRY STYLES. So before we get into the COACHELLA fashion TikToks, let’s just focus on some Harry moments which have dominated social media…
OK, are you breathing? I am sorry, but whatever age you are and whatever gender you are, this will still HIT you in a certain way. The man is the epitome of a rockstar. He is an incredible performer and he knows how to stir up a frenzy. AND just when you think I am too old for this shit…the man, the LEGEND, brings out Gen X superstar SHANIA TWAIN. I mean…
Dear. Lord.
OK, Ok I know I need to move on (I am still lingering on Harry TikTok..) but this compilation by a smitten fan is art:
You’re welcome.
And my friends on the ground there were captivated and captivated by him smiling at his girlfriend Olivia Wilde who he saw in the crowd. Captivated by James Corden becoming emotional during the performance. Captivated by a lone Tim Cook right up front and center ALSO seemingly captivated by Harry.
SPELLBOUND.
AND…I think this sums it all up perfectly:
Ok, so now let’s get to some of the messy bits. FIRST, you have the “fashion”….the amount of money spent and anxiety it causes these girls seems crazy to me. I mean nothing sexier than a tank and a pair of jeans tbh but we will get to that. Here’s just a little taste of what your kids have been served 24/7 this weekend:
Girl, good luck keeping those pasties on in the HEAT but ok.
The fashion was hilarious tbh. AND THIS sums it up perfectly. Also, those poor girls and their feet I mean brand new cowboy boots at Coachella? THOUGHTS AND PRAYERS ladies.
BUT then the strangest thing happened that probably will send shockwaves through the fashion/festival community for YEARS to come. The BIGGEST influencers of them all…Kylie Jenner and Hailey Bieber…show up IN JEANS AND TANK TOPS (AS I was saying…) and it was effortless and casual and appropriate rock-show attire and funny AF how this would spin everyone into a frenzy and hopefully a good sign for your kids…
And best said:
Ok yes, we are STILL here guys. Look, a lot happened. And yes there were so so so many amazing artists but that’s not what’s dominating the socials. What is dominating the socials besides the above is the REVOLVE FESTIVAL which was a festival within a festival basically. If you're not familiar with REVOLVE well then here you go but if you have a pre-teen or teen child, I am sure you are:
So, they had their own festival in Palm Springs for influencers which was invite-only I gather. It was meant to be the festival you go to before Coachella. They promised activations and experiences and music as well like Post Malone performed. And they promised food and drink and MOST importantly… transportation TO Coachella.
Well, things didn’t all go as planned and is being compared to the Fyre Festival:
And then you started to see some TikToks of people sharing regret and other feelings:
Ok, let’s move on from Coachella…BUT one last thing. If you listened to my podcast the other week, I spoke to JAKE CURTIS (LISTEN HERE) who is my friend and son of Emma Freud and Richard Curtis and the brother of Scarlett, Charlie and Spike. Jake spoke about DAVE THE RAPPER and I learned he is a massive in the UK.
SO, last night something happened that is my ONLY regret for not going to Coachella and that is, Jake’s younger brother, 18-year-old Spike was randomly pulled from the crowd to join Dave on stage and sweet, shy little Spike…well see for yourself. A STAR WAS FREAKING BORN:
I have honestly watched this 125 times and will watch it a lot more frankly. WHAT A DREAM and the perfect way to end this post. Spikey, you’re legend.
WE ARE STILL HERE:
If it were not for the utter star power of Harry Styles and the complete obsession with OOTD (outfits of the day) TikTok, this surely AGAIN would have been the lead story. But the fact is we are still here in this matrix we call Elon and Twitter. So, last week we left off with Elon NOT joining the board of Twitter which the company said was still pending a “background check” despite the company ADDING him to their corporate website…(OK GIRL..)
And I felt like the CEO’s tweet about this was basically a declaration of war.
AND it was.
Elon woke up and chose violence and announced he had made an offer. for Twitter (aka a hostile takeover bid) at $54.20 a share. PLEASE NOTE…the man’s dedication to the number 420 is IMPRESSIVE. And if you have no idea the 420 references which we have discussed a few times here well do NOT worry my little ones…here you go:
Ok, ok again I am not a journalist or a business writer so let’s just focus on the funny things that unfolded on socials after he announced. But do I think he will get Twitter? I do. Do I think some big private equity company will come in and help out? I do. but what do I know. Let’s talk memes.
OK, so you get it. But while we are ON the topic of Elon…let’s take a sharp turn for a moment into another pop culture thing unfolding on the socials and that is the civil trial in Virginia between Johnny Dep and Amber Heard which is around an Op-Ed Amber had published in the Washington Post where she detailed her experience as a domestic abuse victim (at the hands of Johnny though she doesn't mention his name.) Johnny is seeing for $500 million and Amber is countersuing for $100 million. According to the Washington Post,
“The suit is taking place in Fairfax County because The Post’s printing press and online server are in Virginia, although The Post is not a defendant in the case.”
Anyway, the socials are all over this:
So let’s get into it for a second. The story between Amber and Johnny is ugly and sad and each side has its own story BUT I will say the socials certainly have taken a turn and that is to support Johnny. This is not due to a popularity contest but due to some pretty telling audio of Amber and images of Amber and Elon during her marriage to Johnny Depp.
Here is some audio that is getting loads of attention:
And while Amber and Elon were a couple after she and Johnny Depp split, there was lots of speculation she had Elon started seeing each other before the split…which is why this has become part of the trial. And the footage of them in the elevator of Johnny’s apartment is making its rounds on socials:
ANYWAY, if it were not for Coachella and Elon trying to buy Twitter, I believe this biggest story would be this trial and how in fact TikTok is coming out swinging for Johnny. And I am just sharing what is unfolding on socials and not taking any side THOUGH…I do think Amber clearly had anger issues and as I talked about on my last pod…I have seen that rage before and it stems from ADDERALL which causes you to lose your appetite and stay skinny and be creative and energetic because it is SPEED…but the rage that comes from it is irrational and terrifying. And while I have NO idea if this is the cause…it is something to consider. ANWAY….
And full circle:
Elon is on the witness list for this trial though because he is not a Virginia resident he will not be forced to attend BUT there are some people who wonder if his Twitter stuff is in a way to deflect from this trial…which is OBVIOUSLY not true but timing IS everything.
AND JUST A FEW OF MY FAVORITE THINGS (AND SOME DESPICABLE ONES TOO…)
OK, I am in the final stretch…My back hurts and my hands are cramping from all this writing and TikTok searching and I have to go do my real job. But just a FEW more things…
- LET me say, if I was on this plane I would have lost my mind. I am the daughter of an ordained minister and if my mom had been on that plane I assure you she would have told them to sit their asses down. But this is everywhere and apparently NOT a chartered flight but some pastor and his flock decided to inundate the plane with their SONG. OY.
And this guy is totally correct…imagine if someone of ANY other religion did this:
- Rumors went crazy last week around cheating rumors with Rihanna and A$AP Rocky. First, let us pay tribute to Riri on the cover of Vigue:L
She is everything. The article is great.
BUT because we cannot have nice things…all of a sudden socials broke out and the news was everywhere that A$AP rocky had cheated on her and the proof seemed to be they had not been photographed together in over a month so…
But as the world stopped, the woman being accused of being the other woman made a statement on Twitter. A painful reminder of how people can be torn to pieces on the global stage over a RUMOR:
And then the person who apparently started all of this had to issue an apology:
But Riri and Rocky took to the PR machine and whisked off to Barbados where they were photographed hand in hand putting an “end” to the break-up rumors and we can all breathe.
- Another use case of socials…Hailey Bieber took to TikTok to beg people to leave her alone and the sound and video themselves have become trending topics. Hailey is constantly talked about and questioned and called out by fans whether Selena Gomez fans or those obsessed with Justin and she has HAD IT:
- Ok lastly….I watched this series over the weekend and I LOVED it. Just what the doctor ordered. Check out “Anatomy of a Scandal” on Netflix when you can!
THAT IS IT my darlings.
There was so so much more but I have gots to go…but tune in to Thursday’s pod for all the stuff we haven’t covered. Have a beautiful week my darlings.
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