Pop Culture Mondays/7.1.24
The “AMERICA?” Edition
Hello, my darling pop culture junkies, and happy Monday and HAPPY JULY can you believe it?? In the US, this is a short holiday week to celebrate….AMERICA.
You guys. HOW ADORABLE is that?
Who knows? This may ACTUALLY be our last 4th of July as a democracy, so we might as well party it up hardcore this week. Like, light those fireworks, drink those martinis, eat those french fries. Get it all out now because who knows what the future holds. Look, we are Trump-free here and always will be, so I am really not going to talk about the debate this week. But we all collectively know what is happening, whether it was Biden’s terrifying performance to the 26 or more lies Trump spewed or the fact they were both fighting over their golf game, it was just not a good moment for the country all around. And there were a lot of memes, and I have gone through ALL of them. Here are some of my faves:
GOOD times. We all know what the collective conversation is all around the country, so we don’t really need to say more. I happened to be in NYC and trying to cross Houston Street right when Biden’s motorcade came driving by the day after the debate. If you haven’t ever seen the Presidential Motorcade, it is a spectacular spectacle. Motorcycle cops line the streets, making sure no one can cross, and then a ton more motorcycle cops lead the charge with cars and SUVS following and ambulances, and the car with the President has flags on it, and it is a THING. I happened to be held at a corner with a group of Italian high school students on a summer tour with their school. They had no idea what was going on, so someone asked me, in all seriousness, “Is this Beyoncé?” and without missing a beat, I said, “Yes.”
And now, those kids will tell that story to all their friends.
They saw Beyoncé. 🤗
Let’s just get to the fun stuff that will help us escape, even for a few minutes.
And last week’s pod was awesome…do not miss it!
A few little things popped up this past week other than the debate.
Enjoy…
WHAT IS PRIVACY?
We all have to think before we act in this day and age. We all have bad days, but you need to keep that shit tight, and if you feel like being a bitch to someone, stay home. Because if you snap at someone, it will likely be filmed and shared. A fight with a partner? It will be filmed. A loud convo on the phone? Filmed. Crying to your friends about your partner while at brunch? Filmed. Flirting with someone on an airplane that is not your wife? Yeah, you’re fucked.
Remember the time when you could cheat on your spouse and NOT have your privacy invaded? THOSE WERE THE DAYS.
Last week, a creator took a video and put it on TikTok where she claimed the couple she was secretly filming behind her on her flight were actually not a couple but a married man cheating on his wife with a woman he allegedly met drinking at the airport bar. The creator went on to tell us that the woman moved her seat once they all boarded the flight so she could sit next to this married man. The married man and she continued drinking, and flirting, and eventually making out and basically, she was sending this message out to the man’s wife, letting her know that her man was cheating.
The video went viral. It is now down, but we are able to get some clips:
Can you imagine being the wife? Whether these people were behaving badly or not, it really was of no business of this creator’s in my opinion. I just hate this trend on socials, especially TikTok. And people have been reacting.
And this got a lot of press:
The reactions were great:
But this was not the only incident this past week.
In a slightly different scenario but still, a questionable one, YouTuber and podcaster Brooke Schofield decided to do a 14-part TikTok series decimating a guy she dated…more than two years ago. Apparently, he referenced her in this TikTok, and that set her off:
And she did not react well. She decided to spill all the tea in a 14-part series where she accused him of all sorts of lies.
I am not posting all, but here you get an idea:
PS: they were not married; it’s just the series she is framing it as a part of that exists as a trend.
LORD, IF I HAD SOCIAL MEDIA IN HIGH SCHOOL…I cannot even comprehend what would have happened. We would have destroyed each other.
Here are some reactions :
A LITTLE OF THIS, A LITTLE OF THAT:
It was a bit of a slow week, and tbh, I am in Florida visiting family, and I got to HUSTLE. So here are a few other things that popped up:
THE GOOD & BAD OF GLASTONBURY:
I am all for self-expression. I really am…even if it is something I do not necessarily stand for. BUT…not at the risk of making others feel unsafe. And that’s where music festivals get tricky. The fact of the matter is the FREE PALESTINE movement is an anti-Israel movement — it should not be, but it has become that. So this must have been really hard for people in the audience who were Israeli or connected to Israel who just simply believed Israel should exist. They may be opposed to the war, too…that’s what is so troubling about this whole thing. But alas….
But there were some great things about Glasto, as the kids call it.
Like, Paul Mescal sporting his signature short shorts. THANK YOU SIR.
And One Directioner, Louis Tomlinson, who set up a TV so attendees could watch some footie:
But this moment was the best…thanks to Coldplay, one of the greatest live bands ever. Really. And this moment with Michael J Fox, a throwback to his famous scene in Back to the Future, will have you in tears.
I have watched this 100 times. Here is a shorter clip from Twitter with better quality:
But for the FULL impact, watch the entire clip on YouTube:
I AM SOBBING.
SOBBING.
ACTUALLY sobbing.
Here is a quick round-up of some of my fave things that people are talking about.
Do you remember last week when I brought you up to speed on all things Chappell Roan? I didn’t talk about PINK PONY CLUB, her hit that is just growing and growing despite being several years old.
The song is about a girl from a small town dreaming of drag clubs in Santa Monica. AND IT IS A BANGER. Here she is on NPR’s Tiny Desk:
If you want to watch the whole show, I highly recommend:
BUT, thanks to AI…we have a new viral moment from the song. And that is Plankton from SPONGEBOB SQUAREPANTS is now a viral sensation. Who?
PLANKTON.
Let me show you…
YESSSSSS.
And here are some of the TikToks using the sound….FFS it is so good:
HOW GOOD IS THIS??
AND SOME THINGS…
Zach Bryan brought Hawk Tuah girl on stage because….because…
And here are some must-watch videos for you to understand the kids today:
Riri just gave us a concert.…this is all we will get, and we will take it:
Moving on to Paris Hilton.
By now, you should know that Paris is an incredibly intelligent, thoughtful, and savvy human. She has shown us that most of what the world has seen of Paris was a character she created, not the real her. She has also put a huge amount of effort into helping kids by getting regulations in place for these TROUBLED TEEN facilities like the one she was sent to. Abuse and other horrible things have gone down at Paris is trying to get that changed. So last week she spoke in front of Congress…and for a minute, her old Paris character slipped out.
We will be studying this for generations.
And now for Tay Tay. Of course.
You guys remember Newsweek? At one point in time, this was an incredibly respected and important weekly news magazine that discussed politics and technology and culture.
NOT ANYMORE! I mean, it is owned and operated by totally different people and is now just a troll farm, so take this with a grain of salt…but some douchebag clearly looking for clicks wrote this absurd piece:
Want to know why she is not a role model?
Because she is unmarried and childless at 34!!!
LORD.
But my fave are the responses:
And…You guys MUST download Gracie Abrams's new album, The Secret of Us.
It is SO good. My friends and I (we are teenage girls) found ourselves next to a photo booth set up in the West Village as part of the promo for this album. We sat there and watched hundreds of young women lining up to get their pics, and it was amazing. Everyone was so excited and polite, but we couldn't handle the line, so we cheated and took our own pic:
Three teenage girls.
AND LASTLY…I have some thoughts on this guy:
Zac Efron.
I haven’t given this guy credit. I mean, I LOVED “The Greatest Showman” and “Iron Claw” was really exquisite, and he was overlooked here for awards.
But then I watched this darling romcom on Netflix this weekend, and he is DELIGHTFUL. He plays a movie star, and MAN, is he in on the joke, and there is nothing more adorable than that. I mean, the movie was cliché, and had it not been for him and Joey King, it would have been a non-event, but it was fun and sweet. Again, my fave genre—older women with younger, hot, famous men. HA…the best genre.
THAT IS IT, my darlings…
I hope you have a wonderful holiday week if you are in the US…be safe! No handling of fireworks in your backyard without someone who knows what they are doing. PLEASE.
We are switching off of Medium SOON….so expect an update there. NOT SUBSTACK, so do NOT worry. IT IS COMING…
And remember, if you aren’t already a subscriber and you want this in your inbox, please send an email to:
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Xx,
Brooke
