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THE POP CULTURE RAG VOL. 4

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5 min read

THE POP CULTURE RAG VOL. 4 Photo

by Team Thinx | 05/10/2016

1. KENDRA WILKINSON-BASKETT CELEBRATES BEING A MOTHER

Model, author, and television star Kendra Wilkinson-Baskett took to social media to celebrate mother's day. Not only did she make a lovable shoutout to her children Hank and Alijah, but she praised her hard working body, too.

Wilkinson-Baskett wore a sports bra, exposing her stomach and stretch marks, with the caption "Look what my 2 babies did. They made me happy." She is smiling down at the photo, letting her stomach take center stage.

Wilkinson-Baskett posted another picture of her a week after the birth of Alijah,1, with a cloth around her stomach, and the baby snuggled up against her leg. The picture is captioned “Happy mastitis day. Ooops I meant Mother's Day!! Flashback to the first week with Alijah.”

Wilkinson-Baskett's celebration of the challenges and realities of motherhood was well received by her fans and the media, who appreciated her honest tone the embracement of imperfection. teary eyed over here

2. LUPITA NYONG’O CORRECTS VOGUE

The Met Gala 2016 was held last week, and is a major holiday for anyone fashion obsessed. (Note: I often send my close friends a recap of my top 10 looks. I was not/have never been asked to do this. They are kind and praise me like they would a toddler.) One of the frontrunners this year was red-carpet all-star and Oscar winning actress Lupita Nyong’o, who wore a Calvin Klein jade sequined dress. The gown was stunning, but it was Nyong’o’s hair that had everyone talking.

@lupitanyongo via Instagram

Vogue Magazine questioned Nyong’o about her hair for their Met Gala video series, to which she responded, “Well the sculpture of hairdos is (inspired) from all around the world.” André Leon Talle, her interviewer and a contributing Vogue editor, said “This (the hair) is very Nina Simone. I knew Nina Simone, and you are very Nina Simone. It’s quite beautiful. “Oh yeah,” Nyong'o replied, “and she was an inspiration as well.”

Despite the interview between Talle and Nyong’o being filmed, edited, and published by Vogue, an article comparing her hair to Audrey Hepburn (wait, what?) was also released the next day. The article, titled “Is Lupita Nyong’o the New Audrey Hepburn?” describes the actresses' similarities in hair and work. 

“The sculptural style is also reminiscent of the updo Audrey Hepburn sported in a 1963 Vogue shoot with Bert Stern. And the similarities between the two ingenues extend beyond hair; both, like Hepburn’s famous incarnation of Eliza Doolittle in My Fair Lady, have mastered the art of transformation, from head to toe.”

Nyong’o seemed to disagree with Vogue's sentiments. The same day, she clarified her inspiration by posting an instagram video with the caption “Hair Inspiration. Check. @vernonfrancois @voguemagazine #metball2016.” The video displayed photos of Nina Simone and traditional african styles. Not a Hepburn in sight.

@lupitanyongo via Instagram

What Lupita brought to light was the impulse of mainstream media outlets to give credit to white people for styles or ideas (or literally anything else) that actually come from the minds and bodies of people of color. Not that there’s anything wrong with being compared to Madam Hep--she’s a beloved cultural icon and queen all the same. But we applaud Nyong’o for correcting Vogue and subtly calling them out on their whitewashing efforts when it needed to be done. #MetBallSoWhite?

3. J LO’S FEMINIST ANTHEM IS QUESTIONED

Jennifer Lopez came out with a new song this week called Ain’t Your Momma, for which we all rejoiced because, hey, why not throw another feminist anthem on the pile?! Unfortunately, Jenny from the block didn't quite deliver. Sure, there were quotes by Arquette, Steinem, and Clinton about the wage gap and gender equality (all supes fun, pop anthem material for sure), but the song ended up centering around her being upset with her lazy/emotionally distant boyfriend (with a whole lotta product placement to boot). Confused feminist over here.  

While Lopez appears in an array of American female cultural clichés throughout the video (50’s housewife, 60’s secretary, 80’s business woman), it plays a backdrop for lyrics like “Lucky to have these curves/Stop getting on my nerves/You still tryna ride this train?/ Cause things have gotta change.” Many have questioned whether the song is feminist-ing in the right direction, including publications like Refinery29, Bustle, Slate, and xoJane. Lots of critics are skeptical when feminism is given a seat at the mainstream kids' table because sometimes the "feminist message" is borne of a desire to be trendy instead of a desire to stick the patriarchy in that blender you see above and hit "pulverize."

One woman who does approve? HRC herself. In fact, Clinton retweeted the video, adding her own take: “@JLo Thanks for this. Women are so much more than the roles they’ve been assigned.”

4. MEGHAN TRAINOR REMOVES HER OWN VIDEO

On Monday, Meghan Trainor released the video for her new single “Me Too.” The same day, she removed it. The reason? Photoshop-- lots of it-- and without her final say. What else is new, TBH.

Trainor took to her Snapchat to fill in her fans on the status of the video, and why she ultimately decided to take it down. “They photoshopped the crap out of me, and I’m so sick of it, and I’m over it, so I took it down until they fix it,” she said.

“My waist is not that teeny,” she continued. “I had a bomb waist that night, I don’t know why they didn’t like my waist, but I didn’t approve that video, and it went out for the world, so I’m embarrassed.”

Later that day, Trainor went on Bravo’s Watch What Happens Live! with Andy Cohen and talked more about her decision to re-release the video. A still shot of Trainor from the video appeared on screen during the interview, exhibiting her photoshopped waist. “Hold up, bring the cameras back to this beautiful waist,” Trainor said, standing up.

“I was so upset because I thought the fans were doing it online when they were screenshotting it, I was like, what’s going on?” Trainor told Cohen. “Then I saw my video, I was like, oh my god. It’s my own video. And I called the gods of Vevo and I said, ‘Take that down now.’”

Trainor has since approved a new version, which is out now.

BONUS: KENDALL JENNER IS HANGING WITH A FAMILIAR FRUIT 

****

http://fashionista.com/2016/05/calvin-klein-spring-2016-campaign


What’s good, Calvin Klein? Jk jk, we know, highest form of flattery, etc.

by Team Thinx

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