Pop Culture Mondays/5.20.24
The I AM BACK Edition
HAPPY MONDAY, my darling pop culture junkies. OMG it has been a MINUTE. I am sorry I left you at a time when the world of pop culture went crazy. I know, I know, I left you all in the lurch. Trends came and went, and viral moments have come and gone. But I DID record a pod last week that you can check out, which covers some stuff we missed…though we recorded it before the Harrison Butker Commencement speech debacle (we will get to it) or the debacle of our Congress and the amazing response from Jasmine Crockett (and we will get to that TOO!) But we had Drake and Kendrick Lamar beef, the Tom Brady Roast, which was appalling, and the Apple ad and the brain worm and the Black Wife Effect trend on TikTok, and so much more…so check out the pod for a catch-up:
But I have missed you guys! And thanks to all of you who have reached out asking when I am coming back because you missed PCM so much. I am now 50, which is weird AF, but the celebrations have been magical, and my heart is full. Also, so much pop culture happened on my trip, including meeting Kim Kardashian, who was interviewed by the one and only Kara Swisher. Kara and I traveled for 20 hours from the jungles of Jamaica to Hamburg Germany, to meet Kim, who had flown straight from the Met Gala. AND I may have taken the greatest photo of all time, in my opinion:
How great is that…I was actually taking a photo of Kara, and she photo-bombed it initially in this one:
That girl knows her way around a camera. What a photo-bomb. Anyway, she was lovely and beautiful, and the two had an amazing conversation despite neither of them getting much sleep. But they were pros, naturally.
I was then in Paris to see Tay Tay, and what an experience that was. The tour is different than the US one as she incorporated her Tortured Poets Department ERA into it, and I was here for it. If you are on the fence about hopping over to Europe to go see her, get off that fence, buy yourself a plane ticket, and go. And one last TRAVEL BLOG photo, but maybe the funniest, as I look like an escapee from a retirement village in Boca while the breathtaking Stephanie Ruhle and her daughter look like they are going to an actual Taylor Swift show. But guys, it was hot, I was out of clothes, and I couldn't wear sequins. I just decided to become Steven Tyler and call it a day. What do you think?
So there you have it. I am a travel blogger now. But tbh, that would be to ME the greatest job of all time. Can someone please pay me to travel and write about it?? Like…literally, my dream
But let’s get to pop culture…we have a LOT to get through. Grab some headphones and some popcorn or your snack of choice and enjoy…
JACKASS ALERT:
By now, all of you know who this person is, I IMAGINE. But in case you have been on a silent retreat and missed this avalanche of drama, this is Harrison Butker, the kicker for the Kansa City Chiefs. Admittedly, he is a VERY good kicker. But our man here decided to kick his way into the pop culture zeitgeist. You may have seen the clips, but in case you want to kill brain cells, here is his whole commencement address:
But if you want to see where the drama really begins, start around the 11:50 mark. This is where he gets into telling us ladies we have been lied to and really, the place we are going to be happiest is as wife and homemaker. How much happier can we be if we ignore the career noise and instead get married and have babies? His wife’s life, he says, didn't begin until she married him. He also goes off on birth control. He is NOT A FAN. He is a big fan, however, of the older traditions of the church. Does he self-flagellate? I BET HE DOES!
He also is against IVF and surrogacy.
He also puts out misinformation hilariously. For example, Biden is the one responsible for Covid lockdowns (ummmm….)
AND LORD…he even quotes Taylor Swift, who he refers to as “MY TEAMMATE’S GIRLFRIEND” in trying to make a hateful point.
THIS GUY.
For some of the hot takes, here you go:
The responses have been incredible…obviously, he has his ridiculous defenders…but who cares about them? Am I right? Let’s see how people have responded with humor, my fave:
Yeah…the whole THOUGH DOTH PROTEST TOO MUCH thing seems about right here.
And thank god for EDDIE VEDDER (Pearl Jam, in case this is new info for you):
This is amazing:
But really, when it comes down to it…we need to bring Sigmund Freud back into the mix. HEY FREUD FAMILY…I love you guys. Can you help here?
Because it turns out…Harrison’s MOMMY? IS AN ACCOMPLISHED PHYSICIST. Correct. According to this article from Sporting News:
Butker’s mother, Elizabeth Butker, is a medical physicist at Emory University in Atlanta. She has been at the university since 1988 and works in Emory’s Winship Department of Radiation Oncology.
The wild thing is, many, many comments on these TikToks are in support of Harrison Butker, and his jersey is now outselling that of Patrick Mahomes which should tell you where we are as a society.
Gilead is not as farfetched as you might have thought.
BUT the NUNS…the nuns have responded beautifully. The NUNS from the very school he gave the address to:
The NFL also gave a statement…soft at best:
“Harrison Butker gave a speech in his personal capacity,” Jonathan Beane, NFL senior vice president and chief diversity and inclusion officer, said in a statement released Thursday. “His views are not those of the NFL as an organization. The NFL is steadfast in our commitment to inclusion, which only makes our league stronger.”
There is a petition to have him fired, but so far there has been a growing amount of support from him from his community and the team’s owner’s family.
We need Taylor!
BLEACH BLONDE, BAD BUILD BUTCH BODY:
Ok, let’s start with the fact we are TRUMP-FREE here at PCM. And I even try to be TRUMP-ADJACENT free as much as possible. This means his acolytes and all the drama they bring on the daily that makes it to the zeitgeist culture….but this is one that cannot be ignored.
ALSO…let me add that I am not a fan of mocking someone’s appearance. However, this was done in a way that made a point and was initially a reaction to an insult on someone’s appearance.
In case you missed it, here is a video of what happened. This is not from a mock congress at a high school….this is from our current congress, so buckle up:
The whole thing is a mess…but it was instigated by MTG, who then got off scot-free. She was called out by AOC, who brought the “BABY GIRL” to the room. Then Jasmine Crockett delivered the statement heard around the world. To her credit, she was trying to understand what would be considered inappropriate, which apparently her words were, and MTG’s were not. We can all probably understand why. Do I need to say why?
Whereas you KNOW….you know what the men are thinking…Dems and Republicans at that moment…you just know. I KNOW. We have to admit we know what they were thinking. OK, I am not saying I know for sure, but I can almost guarantee some of the good ole boys made the joke later that day along the lines of:
This is why we shouldn't let the ladies in the government.
I feel it in my bones.
Let’s look at some of the reactions.
And as for Crockett’s response to this afterward? FLAWLESS:
And let’s end it here with this creator:
A LITTLE OF THIS, A LITTLE OF THAT:
It is definitely harder today to write all of this as I get my groove back. I am getting through it slowly but surely! I need to breeze through the next things, so consider this a bit of a round-up of things you might have missed:
Portrait of King Charles:
I think regardless of the portrait, it would have hit off social commentary…but this one took off like a rocketship in terms of reactions.
Here’s my take.
This is incredible. I love it tbh. But you don't have to. You can hate it. Be horrified by it. Be confused by it. Be moved by it. But you will likely have an opinion one way or another. And that is ART. Art is subjective. But if it gets you to FEEL something, then it is doing its job.
But I think this piece, by the incredible British artist Jonathan Yeo, whom I have met a few times and admire greatly, is remarkable. It will be something people will be talking about 100 years from now. But it has launched a million memes…so here are a few I loved:
Yeo, who is VERY cool, loves the memes and is totally here for it:
Cottage Cheese is the Viral Food Star of the Moment:
I understand a lot of people have strong opinions about cottage cheese. But no one is happier at this moment in time than the producers of it because they are flying off the shelves as creators are posting videos and recipes of all the amazing and theoretically healthy things you can make using cottage cheese.
This past week has seen COTTAGE CHEESE FLATBREAD become a star, and guys…I made it. And it is delish. Like for REAL, it is delish. You just need cottage cheese, some eggs, some seasoning of whatever you like, olive oil, parchment paper, and VOILA.
The Real Life Stewie Has Been Discovered:
THIS BABY!!
The reactions are amazing:
Jack Schlossberg TikTok:
His are private, so I cannot share but I have found some others who have used his videos… he’s definitely having fun on the platform.
THAT IS IT, my darlings…
I skipped over a lot of stuff that happened while I was away…, but for the sake of time, it had to be. If you have any requests, hit me up on Insta at https://www.instagram.com/brooke
We are switching off of Medium SOON….so expect an update there. NOT SUBSTACK do NOT worry. Lols.
And remember, if you aren’t already a subscriber and you want this in your inbox, please send an email to:
subscribe@popculturemondays.com
Have an amazing week…and a long weekend! Despite the holiday, I will be in your inbox next week!
Xx,
Brooke
