Pop Culture Mondays/8.26.24
The THAT WAS SOME SHOW Edition
Happy Monday, my darling pop culture junkies. Does this week even really count? Let’s be honest…we are all likely PRETTY checked out at the moment. I will power through this one for you, AND I will take a break from PCM next week, so I won't see you until September 9th. SAD!
I have said this many times, but I don’t write about politics…but sometimes, more often these days, like at this past Democratic National Convention, pop culture and politics collide…and THAT is where PCM comes in. I cannot, for the love of god, cover everything that came out from last week…memes and so forth. But there are a few worth noting.
The above image is obviously AI and shows maybe a younger Yoda vs Baby Yoda, but it does the trick. It’s a very demure and mindful look at COMMA-LA and Baby Y. Another very demure and mindful moment last week? MY PODCAST!! Please listen to it and RATE IT so I can get some juice on the platforms. THANK YOU.
We have the DNC and the moments. We have an Oasis reunion. We have some TikTok creator drama. We have a new water bottle trend. We have a dance. We have fashion wreckage from “It Ends With Us.” So, let’s get to it!
WHAT DO I WATCH NOW???
Because let’s be real. We had the Olympics for three weeks of nonstop excitement, only to be followed by four days of the best-produced event I have ever witnessed. I have never watched more television in my life…and a win for NBC, I imagine, as I had all my TVs in every room on during the Olympics and for the DNC on MSNBC. I have never watched a convention ever before other than a speech here and there. The only time I remember talking about a convention in multiple settings was back when I was about 14 in 1988, and Rob Lowe had made a sex tape with a 16-year-old girl and another woman he met at a party during the DNC, and that rocked our worlds. SO…not really the same thing.
I will say this again and again…the producers of this year’s DNC should go and produce everything moving forward. The Oscars, the Golden Globes, the Super Bowl Half Time show. EVERYTHING. It was electric. And fun. And yes…joyful.
Now…it will be interesting to see if they OVER-indexed on the Hollywood/Celeb thing which, tbh, I am not a huge fan of and is exactly the stuff that divides this country because there are a LOT of people out there who are, like, SHUT THE F UP thank you so much. It was a lot, from Oprah to Eva Longoria to Tony Goldwyn and Kerry Washington to Mindy Kaling to Kenan Thompson. I am not talking about the performers but rather the celebs who addressed the audience. So we shall see. But some of the speeches were electric. But let’s take a look at some things that went viral, creators' creations, and some other things that popped up at the DNC.
I just need an intro from Lil Jon, but maybe next time….
And let’s just give a moment of gratitude for all the memes and moments Michelle Obama gave us as a result of a her BARN BURNER of a speech:
You will have this song in your head all day. YOU’RE WELCOME!
Meanwhile, how much do we love Gus Walz? We all saw his emotional response to his dad on stage. It was a beautiful moment, but I will admit as soon as I saw it…I knew the crazy right-wingers would try to weaponize it. It failed.
Anne Coulter’s now-deleted tweet:
AND…the perfect response. NO notes.
Oh, and this guy:
These guys are disgusting.
And thankfully, we have Mark Cuban. Love him.
And we have laughter that is contagious:
This is an older clip, but it is going around now because it shows sisterly love and fun and joy.
Speaking of joy, we have a 12-year-old content creator and Democratic STAR, Knowa:
Did you see the Pillow Guy, who was IN DISGUISE at the DNC, get into it with the 12-year-old who SLAYS HIM:
Which led to it’s own memes:
And this kid will be president one day:
Oh, let’s not forget President Obama’s CROWD SIZE joke:
Then we did have some crazy camera work trying to do this lady dirty:
But she turned it into a MOMENT:
OK, so many more moments we can talk about, but we would be here all day.
There was a moment EVERYONE WAS talking about that DID NOT happen and that was the BEYONCÉ rumor. Yes, we all heard it, and all really believed it was happening. People on the ground were tweeting basic confirmations that it was happening.
It did not happen. And I DO think, personally, the Harris campaign SHOULD have done more to kill this rumor but I am sure a lot of people were glued to the TV waiting for the Queen B moment.
White House Political Director tweeted this early last Thursday:
And Mitt Romney tweeted this:
And the BASTION of news, TMZ reported this:
I mean look, even I got into the fantasy that it was going to be B and Tay Tay arm in arm.
I even started imagining crazy things like it was going to be Beyoncé AND George W Bush crossing over and doing a thing. So did others.
The memes were funny:
AND ….FIGHT SONG. It was triggering to all of us. The song is so connected to Hillary Clinton AND her loss to Trump…we did not need this guys.
You remember:
So, yeah…there were a lot more memes and moments. There are tons of moments around the Emhoffs that I am ignoring and other moments I just cannot get to. But I will close with this little perfect moment from Steve Kerr, the coach of the Golden State Warriors (basketball team):
And with this — the most iconic photo of 2024:
A LITTLE OF THIS & A LITTLE OF THAT:
And just a quick look at some other fun things (or horrible things that will kill brain cells) we need to know about.
My friend and colleague Rebecca told me after she saw “It Ends With Us” that the movie was fine, but the fashion of Blake Lively was SO distracting and was really the only thing she could focus on. Well, it turns out, she was NOT the only one, and a huge trend has been born thanks to this “fashion” or lack thereof throughout the film:
SO good. I now have to see this movie just because of this.
The comments killed me:
And lastly…
Moving on from Blake Lively, to her husband Ryan Reynolds. There is a viral dance going around that comes from “Deadpool,” though not actually Ryan Reynolds in costume but rather his DANCE DOUBLE doing this dance to NSYNC’s “Bye Bye Bye”…
And now…the trend:
And the actual dancer who was under the mask:
Literally, I DO Not Care:
Breezing through this one because it bored the hell out of me. But your kids might be talking about it, so here you go. TIK TOK CREATOR DRAMA.
The redhead is a content creator named Sophia La Corte…note, she is the VILLIAN.
The dude is content creator Reed Williams, and the woman in the pic with Reed is content creator Halley Kate. WOO BOY.
This all started back in 2023 when Reed and Halley broke up, and then very shortly thereafter, he was spotted out on a date with Sophia, who was characterized at the time as a good friend of Halley’s. Which is up for debate, but also like, who cares?
And now Halley and Reed are apparently back together so now this is all being rehashed as each are going on podcasts and saying this and that. But it is clear Sophia is leaning into the villain role she has created for herself.
This is a good explainer:
The reactions are good:
And you have to actually watch this whole thing, and then you will see why the below comments are SO right on target:
OK, that’s it. I am done with this storyline. But now you know, and I apologize.
THE WORLD IS HEALING:
Never thought we, GenXers, would live to see the day that Noel and Liam reconcile and announce a new tour. I mean, look, money has a way of splitting us up…but IT ALSO HAS A WAY of bringing us together. Am I right?? The tour will make a KILLING.
I know Liam seems like the scary one, but I once was at a party, and it was crowded, and I found myself in conversation with Noel, who all of a sudden put his face right up to mine and shouted at me, “Brooke, you are a LOUD TALKER,” and then walked away from me. I think about this moment a lot and cringe, and now, when you are talking to me at a party, I will barely whisper.
But let’s look at the amazing reactions to this news.
Also, no truer words have ever been typed:
Will be a fun one to watch how it all unfolds!
ALERT: NEW WATER BOTTLE ON THE SCENE!
I heard about the new water bottle the young are obsessing over via Stephanie Ruhle’s daughter, Drew. And man, this thing is coming to take the Stanley Cup for a RIDE.
They have been on the scene for a while, so I am late to the game but definitely growing in awareness:
THAT IS IT, my darlings…
That is that, my darlings. Happy short week and Labor Day weekend, and eat all the hot dogs and cheeseburgers because calories don't count on holiday weekends. IT IS FACT.
We are switching off of Medium SOON….so expect an update there. NOT SUBSTACK, so do NOT worry. IT IS COMING…
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Have an amazing week!!
Xx,
Brooke
