Tag Archives: pop culture

Celebrity Sunday, pop culture

OH JE(YE)EZ

An in-depth dissection of what went down on Wednesday.

I triaged to the triad of the Kanye West-Wiz Khalifa-Amber Rose mess (suck my ass, Shelby)—

Side bar: I don’t actually know the real meaning of “triage” but that’s not gonna stop me from triaging—

And I’m not going to do a full rundown of the entire history of the triangle, because Sam Stryker from BuzzFeed already did that and he probably did it better than me, so I’m just going to highlight the best moments.

Okay, so if you were living under a rock—or under The Rock, amiright ladies—then you might not know what went down on Wednesday. But mama’s here to tell you. I’m mama, for reference.

First, for references:

Kanye dated Amber Rose before marrying Kim Kardashian, and Amber Rose has a child with Wiz Khalifa. Amber’s former friend is Kim Kardashian, and her current best friend is Blac Chyna, who has a child with Tyga who is currently dating Kylie Jenner, and Blac Chyna has recently begun a relationship with Rob Kardashian. Khloe Kardashian has had major beef with Blac Chyna over Kylie Jenner, and recently tweeted some shady things about “not going against the fambily (Caroline Manzo voice)” that could be interpreted about Rob and Chyna’s new relationship. Okay, are we all good?

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Source: @kanyewest

On Tuesday, Ye—‘Ye* (?)—announced that he was changing the name of his album to WAVES. First of all, I enjoy it. But then Wiz tweeted at him basically saying that he didn’t like the name change and that Kanye should “hit this kk” and get back to his roots. Apparently “kk” is code for that sweet dank kush—marijuana—as well as me when I’m trying to be salty over text, but Kanye took it as a slight dig at his wifey, Kim Kardashian West.

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Source: @wizkhalifa

That, clearly, didn’t go over well. Over a series of more than seventeen tweets, Kanye proceeded to wreck all over Wiz, insulting his music, his pants (?), his slim frame, and—and this is important—Amber Rose, Wiz’s ex. And since it wouldn’t be Kanye if Kanye wasn’t promoting Kanye, Kanye also made the tweets a backdoor brag for himself, claiming that though he wasn’t “tall and skinny” he was still the greatest artist that ever lived and is the pinnacle of music creation. Maybe that’s not so much of a backdoor brag as it is a full-out BRAAAAAAAAG.

So the fourth tweet is where things get interesting. Kanye says, “You let a stripper trap you.” The “stripper” in question is Amber Rose, a mutual ex of both Kanye and Wiz. Kanye dated Amber first, and then when they broke up, Amber and Wiz got together, eventually having a son, Sebastian Taylor Thomaz (which is straight up such a cute name). Kanye went on to marry Kim, and have two children: North and Saint.

Kanye has disparaged Amber in the past, claiming that he had to take “thirty showers” after being with Amber before he could be with Kim, and has taunted Wiz saying that Amber “trapped” Wiz for 18 years with their son, and that he basically “owned” Wiz and Amber’s son and made him happen.

Ouch. And ew.

Now, we all know that Kanye is a complete egomaniac and has said on multiple occasions that the biggest crime of human history is that he will never get to see himself live. I disagree, but let’s not split hairs. But his comments on Twitter—which he has since deleted—contain such a heavy misogyny and double-standard that it’s painful.

Amber Rose seems to be shaded by past men in her life, to the point where they’re practically obsessed with her. Her past as a stripper and her outspoken sexuality are demonized by Wiz and Kanye, but she refuses to bend, appearing at the 2015 VMAs with Blac Chyna wearing dresses covered in misogynistic slurs, and hosting the Slut Walk soon after. So, she’s basically amazing and refers to herself as “Muva” in the third person on Twitter.

Amber hit back against Kanye by saying that she was hurt by his words and wouldn’t ever attack him like he’s attacked her, because regardless of where they are now, they were once in love. She’s so dope. But she’s also not taking shit, so she entered the dialogue with this iconic tweet:

“Awww @kanyewest are u mad I’m not around to play in ur asshole anymore? #FingersInTheBootyAssBitch (pointer finger emoji).”

AND THE WORLD JUST STOPPED.

AMBER ALERT. She’s throwing down.

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Source: Wifflegif

And later on the Allegedly podcast, Amber said that she would never talk shit about Kanye’s kids because A) she’s classy, and B) they’re kids. She’s disgusted that Kanye would talk about her son, but she’s not surprised. And are any of us surprised?

It was Tyler Oakley who said that if you hate someone, then why would you give them promo? And Kanye West has been essentially giving promo to Amber for years. He calls her a slut and a stripper and tries to demolish her, but they dated for over two years. They went around the world together. His anger towards her is curious and interesting, and it goes beyond just a nasty break-up.

Kanye West employs a dangerous double-standard, lauding his wife Kim and demonizing his ex Amber. But how can you do that? How can you do that? How can you have a wife and a daughter whom you praise and cherish and completely trash on someone else’s mother, someone else’s daughter? You can’t. You shouldn’t.

How can you slut-shame when you have seen firsthand people do the same to your wife and watched her go through that? How can you witness that and then turn around and completely shame another woman?

Kanye’s misogyny is dangerous, because it employs the stereotype that owning your sexuality makes you a slut, and being married makes you virtuous. I love Kim and the entire Kardashian clan, but how different are they from Amber? All are strong, independent, capable women who own their sexuality. But Amber is slut-shamed and shunned whereas we applaud Kim, Khloe, Kourtney, and Kylie.

You don’t have to love everyone, but you should always respect them. And Kanye’s treatment of Amber shows that to him, respect for women is circumstantial. That if you’re on his bad side, you’re a whore and a bitch and a slut. But if you’re on his good side, you are virtuous and noteworthy. But how easy is it to slip from side to side? Answer: very easy.

Kanye is teaching the world that however much he loves and honors the women in his life, he is still a misogynist because he relies on sexist, misogynistic and derogatory language to tear down a woman for her sexuality and her independence. His rhetoric is damaging for his listeners, his daughter, and his family, because he is perpetuating slut-shaming. Like bro, can we not? Can we absolutely abstain from slut-shaming?

Muva Amber doesn’t need my help in defending herself, so I won’t go into all of her amazing attributes. But I will say this. She is strong, and she defends herself. And she refuses to be ashamed or stoop to low levels. She has respect for Kanye when he doesn’t have respect for her, and that is such a hard thing to remain on the high road when some asshole is slinging mud at you from below.

So now you’re all caught up, and, frankly, you’re welcome. It was exhausting. I suppose what we’re supposed to do now is just watch and wait and see what happens. Either way, I don’t really anticipate anything beyond Amber owning it and Kanye just digging himself into a hole with a gold-plated shovel. Über-chic, but still tragic.

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Essay, Inspirational

WHY POP CULTURE MATTERS

A large part of why I am often hesitant to label myself a “journalist” is due to the lack of representation that anything other than “hard news” gets in journalism classes. Professors act on the assumption that we all want to be helicoptering into Iraq, or walking the streets of a broken-down city to get a story of a struggling kid with a heart of gold. They act on the assumption that those kinds of stories, hard news and gritty, are the only of substance.

And while there is literally nothing wrong with that kind of reporting—we obviously need it—I’m tired of that being the primary. I was in a journalism class where the professor was discussing the skills we’ll need if we want to succeed. But those skills were only really marketable if I’m going to be pursuing a career as a Woodward and Bernstein “on the case” reporter. He demerited the importance of “first person narrative” and how it has no place as the first mode of storytelling.

But the kind of journalism I want to do—pop culture—relies on my voice and my narrative and the ability of an audience to trust me to be funny and knowledgeable and real. And I couldn’t maintain a straight face because, three years into it, I was tired. I was tired of feeling like I was dumb for wanting to talk about pop or that my career wouldn’t have as much value as if I was to follow a more traditional career path.

Not every journalist wants to write for the New York Times. Not every reporter wants to be going undercover, tailing a lead or spending hours into the night poring over ancient tomes. And that’s okay.

I love pop culture. I love dissecting it and discussing it and thinking about it. Because pop culture, of which celebrity culture and the “Stars: They’re Just Like Us” is only a very small part, is the representation of what people are thinking. And that’s as important as knowing what’s going on. I love people—from celebrity to politics to local news—and I love studying them. I love seeing what makes them passionate or angry or happy. I’m a pop cultural anthropologist.

And here’s why pop culture matters: because we can take individual celebrity instances and stretch them into a wider scope. Nicki Minaj calling out Miley Cyrus publicly at the 2015 VMAs pointed to the complex way that the media portrays black women. The world buys into the “Angry Black Woman” model and it plays out over and over, with Nicki, or with Amandla Stenberg. And the portrayal of Caitlyn Jenner as the leader of the trans community because of her white, priviledged, and cisnormative conventional beauty is a reflection of our desire to keep the status quo. Because trans people aren’t making her their leader. Cisgender people are looking to her because she is palatable.

Pop culture brings conversations of cultural appropriation, transgender politics, and gender equality into the public dialogue. And that’s important. And it’s important how we laud women like Jennifer Lawrence and Amy Schumer for being “real” while simultaneously shaming women by putting a size 10 model—below the national average for women’s sizing—on the forefront of the Calvin Klein “Plus Size Range.” And even the fact that we use language like “plus” to alienate woman and other them is mind-blowing.

Pop culture simultaneously shows how far we’ve come and how far we have still to go. It can be both serious and silly, stimulating and mindless. And that’s why it’s amazing. Because it is what we are talking about, what we think about. And if the day-to-day journalism of pop culture is as prevalent in our lives as hard-hitting news, why is it not represented in my journalism classes?

I just want to feel like my interest is valid. I want to be in a classroom where I can stand next to someone who wants to write about Middle Eastern conflict and I can say that I would rather discuss the career trajectory of Hollywood It-Girls or the media empire of the Kardashians. Like, wouldn’t that be so cool?

And on a large scale, wouldn’t it be so cool if we could all feel accepted and lauded for our career interests?

If you have an interest and a driving passion and it’s not hurting anybody and you want to pursue it, I want you to. I want to write about pop culture and write books about myself and review TV shows and live-tweet the red carpet of the Golden Globes. And that’s dope that I want to. Like, I’m not cooking cocaine in my kitchen. I just want to be weird and funny and make people laugh and think. I want to be someone’s “having a bad day so I’m gonna read this.” I want to be someone’s security blanket. I want to uplift and take our collective minds off the bad things and just, if even for a moment, laugh and cringe and be happy.

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And that’s as important and as valuable as being a New York Times reporter. Cue the Hailee Steinfeld “Love Myself” emotional collage.

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Review, Things I Like

REVIEW: KOCKTAILS WITH KHLOE

Grade: B-

I made a conscious effort to enjoy Kocktails With Khloe and even by repeating, “You like the Kardashians, you like the Kardashians,” I still kept checking the time left on the episode because it’s kind of a trainwreck.

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Kocktails doesn’t have a traditional camera set-up. It’s more of a hidden-in-the-walls, rigged to the ceiling situation, which feels about as intimate as watching someone in the locker room. Not that I’ve ever done that.

The guests come in through the front door—Kym Whitley, Brandi Glanville, and Aisha Tyler. And there’s a hot bartender who’s making custom drinks and his name is Sharone which is confusing to me but I’m not gonna pursue it.

Since the set is a “house” and the guests come through the front door, I have a few questions. Do they have coats? Where does the front door go to? Do they have to wipe their feet?

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The conversation is a little stilted and uncomfortable, and it’s mostly just Kym hitting on Sharone—who is married with kids—and Brandi Glanville refuses to talk about her ex-husband’s wife Leann Rimes. Brandi Glanville also makes me uncomfortable because she has total shark-eyes and I think she’s unpredictable, like she’s going to reach through the screen and grab my throat. Also later on she admitted to a threesome, so why can’t you give me the gossip about you and Leann?? Also they never even talk about how Brandi fell off a hoverboard. Literally stop avoiding all the things I care about.

Aisha Tyler is hands-down awesome—even when casually promoting her new range of alcohol (how koincidental)—and after a while, the awkwardness begins to dissipate. They do a lot of moving around—kitchen counter to couch to round table—so I want to go on the show just to get a major workout. And they play a lot of physical games—hop on one foot if you’ve ever…xyz or Brandi dancing like a ballerina as she admits to a threesome—and play “Would Or Wouldn’t Bang” which is only slightly more uncomfortable than watching a couple fight in the grocery store.

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It also feels a little bit forced in the “girl talk” sections when Khloe is forcibly cackling when talking about wanting to bang Michael Fassbender. Like I wanna bang him too, but ladeez please.

Also omg Kendall Jenner was there. I had literally forgotten that until just now because she looked so uncomfortable. I mean, her outfit was amazing, but you could tell that Khloe pulled some sort of IOU to get her there.

Snoop Dogg shows up, because…I’m not sure why. The only thing I knew is that he doesn’t smoke pot while he coaches boys’ baseball and that he had no idea he was in Straight Outta Compton until he was in the theater watching the movie and saw someone playing him.

Also I learned that when Khloe gets to drinking, she becomes Khlomoney. Which is uncomfortable.

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Some of the conversations are totally amazing—like Khloe talking about the double-standard of dating while separated, and Aisha and Kym talking about black women being represented in the media.

I think that the format leaves a lot to be desired, but that can always be reworked. Like, because it’s a talk show and it’s discussion-based, sometimes it can feel like it drags on. And I don’t think FYI wants me to be eighteen minutes in and feeling like it’s been forty minutes. With a little more structure—even though they “breaking the mold by changing up the late night format”—I think that Kocktails could actually be funny. Khloe is the most outspoken and doesn’t do that whole “whisper-talk” thing, so I think that she could really have a career out of interviewing people.

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Celebrity Sunday, Holidannys

CELEBRITY SUNDAY: KYLIE, COLTON, BATMAN AND THE BIRTH OF YEEZUS

THE FIRST “CELEBRITY SUNDAY!” Let the people know! Now, if you didn’t know—you didn’t know—Celebrity Sunday is your recap of the top events in pop culture of this last week. Wow, that’s a little bit convoluted. Basically, it’s everything you have and haven’t heard re pop culture!

So without any further ado, here’s the weekly recap!

(Okay, we all know that I’m going to talk about Kim Kardashian having her new baby, but I’m not starting with it, so stop freaking out).

1). The release of a teaser and full-length trailer for Batman v Superman:

Okay so I’m not a massive superhero fan, but this is still cool and newsy, because it’s Superman and Batman, aka every nerd’s wet dream. However, from an extremely outside perspective, the trailer was messy, confusing, and not very clear. It had a lot of throwing shade between Clark Kent and Bruce Wayne, and Jesse Eisenberg in a “The Californians” wig and then suddenly a mud-monster and then Wonder Woman, and I was just like, “What? Hon? What’s happening here?”

Seeing Ben Affleck as Bruce Wayne was weird because he was very suave and I always imagine Ben as the quintessential good boy from Boston, but he was looking old and not in a cute way. Clark Kent was hot as per usual. The teaser looked good though; it’s interesting to see Superman portrayed in a villainous light, and you almost root for Batman. Who knows? Maybe it’ll end up being a rom-com. That’s possible.

 

2). Kylie Jenner appears on the cover of Interview magazine, and causes controversy:

Kylie Jenner, ingénue and scion of the Kardashian-Jenner clan, was recently photographed on the cover of Interview magazine. The photoshoot is eerie, portraying a plasticized Kylie being carried around and propped up like a massive, hellish Barbie. Her face, already altered by her plumped-up lips, looks glacially placid and especially plastic. However, the controversy comes in when the cover portrayed her in a wheelchair, the leather choker around her neck almost reminiscent of a neck brace. Critics have called the photograph “ableist” and frankly, it does seem incredibly inappropriate and insensitive.

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The magazine defended their choice by saying, “The Kylie Jenner cover by Steven Klein…places Kylie in a variety of positions of power and control and exploring her image as an object of vast media scrutiny.” And I understand their intent, but I think it could’ve been done without using a wheelchair as a prop. The other poses—her astride a tuxedo-wearing man, being carried around stiff-limbed as an homage to Allen Jones, and in a latex bodysuit perched on a pedestal—explore her sexuality, her own power, and the powerlessness she has as a media object.

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I think the magazine does an excellent job of portraying Kylie as we see her, but having an actual in-depth and honest discussion with her. I just think they fucked up with that cover.

3). Sandra Bullock Adopts Another Child:

Sandra Bullock has confirmed that she has adopted her second child, a 3-year-old girl named Laila. The actress adopted her son Louis in 2010. The news comes just as the adoption has been finalized, but apparently the process has been going on for a few years. Sandra first fostered her daughter before officially adopting her. I’m so happy for the new family who will be celebrating their first Christmas all together! Congrats, Bullock fam!

4). Colton Haynes admits he has anxiety:

This is something close to my heart. Colton Haynes—Teen Wolf, Arrow—has disclosed, through a series of Tweets, that he suffers from extreme anxiety. Since he was in the fifth grade, the actor has suffered from the illness, causing fainting, hyperventilating, and sometimes even seizures. While the stigma surrounding mental illnesses is diminishing, a well-known and well-accepted actor like Colton, who is probably traditionally depicted as “having it all,” really helps to erase any stigma. Illnesses like anxiety, OCD or depression can completely destruct lives, but through medication or therapy, they can be managed. As someone who suffers from anxiety and depression, it’s nice to see other people come forward and say, “I have this too, but it’s not my whole being. It’s not me.”

If you or someone who you know suffers from a mental illness, I encourage you to take action, do your research, and seek out help. It is manageable and treatable, and should not incapacitate your ability to have a happy, healthy life.

5). Mary-Kate Olsen marries Olivier Sarkozy:

50% of the Olsen twins are now married, and she did it in an intimate Manhattan ceremony to the brother of the former French President. How goddamn chic. Apparently the only décor was bowls of cigarettes which is 50% ew, and 50% so eleganza. So cool. Mary-Kate, you’re so cool.

6). Amy Schumer and Serena Williams appear in a body-positive photo-shoot:

The high-powered force behind Inside Amy Schumer and Trainwreck appeared alongside tennis superstar in the 2016 Pirelli Calendar. Shot by Annie Leibovitz, the calendar usually features nude models, but this year chose to honor 12 women who excel in their various fields. Amy looks like her hair was done to the nines, and she’s holding a coffee cup. Serena is posed powerfully against a wall. Both women have been targeted for not endorsing “traditional” beauty standards—Amy for being average-sized and Serena for having a “man body”—so it’s amazing to see them literally give no fucks and take pride in their bodies. They look amazing and confident and strong, and inspire not only me but probably thousands of others by living honestly and confidently.

7). There was an information breach for fans buying tickets to Adele’s tour:

Adele’s limited tour through the UK and Europe started off with a bump. Fans, when going through the website to buy tickets, discovered that other people’s information was already put into the payment section. The website also features re-routes that stopped fans from purchasing. However, the problems were allegedly fixed. Additionally, despite adding more tour dates, every show is sold out, and 95% of the population is still crying in the bathrooms of their respective workplaces that we weren’t able to get tickets. I’m not okay. Not even a little bit.

8). Instagram releases its Top 10 Most-Liked Instagram posts for 2015:

Taylor Swift has five photos on the list, but surprisingly the most-liked photo—with 3.2 million likes—is that photo of Kendall Jenner with her hair in artsy hearts. Rounding out the list with two photos of Kendall and Taylor and her cats is Kylie Jenner holding up her diploma and Selena Gomez in a sweater. Truly iconic. But I can’t help but wonder how Kim didn’t get on the list. Or me, for that matter. Are we being blackballed? Does Instagram see us as a threat? I need to get Eva Chen on the phone stat. this is unacceptable. Also, I didn’t realize that Calvin Harris was so hot? But he is? And I’m into it.

9). A teaser trailer for the new season of Game of Thrones has been released:

While it doesn’t confirm that Jon Snow is back, he’s coming back. Most of the clip was just flashbacks to previous seasons of ~wAcKIneSs~ and ~WiLd anTIcs~ so that’s obviously very exciting, with a voiceover of some old dude and Bran Stark. I’m, like, annoyed that Bran is back because this season was great without him and he’s such a downer and so angsty, but it’s like going to the dentist. Unless you want to be gumming on some Jell-O, you have to get through the annoying painful things. Hopefully we see more of Daario Naharis’ cute butt. We should make a petition. Does anyone have any puff-paint or Sharpies?

 

10). KIM KARDASHIAN WEST HAS HAD HER BABY:

I’m so glad I didn’t decide to pre-write this and that I’m so good at procrastinating, because last night (Saturday), Kim Kardashian West and her husband Kanye West welcomed to this earth a baby boy. They haven’t released any name yet for the petite bundle of joy, but I’m actually kind of partial to “Wild.” As long as it’s not goddamn Easton or South, I’ll be fine. But I still vote for Ocean West. I heard that Kanye wants to name him Yeezus, which isn’t even that crazy for them.

After a difficul time conceiving, multiple surgeries—including one to “clean out the uterus”—Kim got pregnant. The pregnancy had its ups—that black lace Givenchy gown—and its downs—the resurgence of last year’s Met Gala carpet-pattern dress—as well as health scares—diabetes and the baby in breech—but Kim delivered a healthy baby and is doing well, despite going into labor three weeks shy of her Christmas Day delivery date. But I guess that they want to differentiate this coming of the Son of God from the last coming of the Son of God, which was like, idk, 2000 years ago or something. Who even knows who “Jesus” is? What’s even his Instagram??

While this might potentially mark the end of Kim Kardashian pregnancy style—which was amazing this time around—I’m excited for the new baby and classic Kim Kardashian non-pregnancy style. Additionally, I immediately told my sister about it. I have literally been waiting for this day for multiple weeks, so it’s almost like this is happening to me too, and I couldn’t be more excited! Long live baby Ocean Wild Yeezus Lexus Holy Trinity West!

Also, do you think that he’ll get a pair of Adidas Yeezys, or is he too late? Pls discuss.

P.S. Bonus: This didn’t happen during the week, but Caitlyn Jenner just got bangs, and I really have a strong opinion about it. Like, why?? Why did you do that, Caitlyn?!

ANYWAY, I hope you enjoyed the first edition of Celebrity Sunday. I actually love doing this because it’s pop culture and journalism in a beautiful blend. I might continue doing this even after Holidannys ends. Would you guys like that? Answer me!

Okay, see you guys tomorrow for Miscellaneous Mondays!

HAPPY HOLIDANNYS!

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