Chappell Roan is the biggest story out of Gov Ball — and possibly of the whole summer; Blackpink’s Jennie makes runway debut for Jacquemus’ Italy show; and Vice Media is returning as a Beehiiv newsletter (they’ve since deleted the tweet, suspiciously!).
HOW SOFIA RICHIE GRAINGE BECAME A PEAK INFLUENCER, airmail
I talked to writer Lauren Larson about Sofia’s many, many brand deals — by Airmail’s tally, at least 19 — and what it means to be “peak influencer.” “Even five years ago, influencers generally sought a few monogamous relationships with sponsors,” Larson writes. “Now the influencer economy is an orgy.”
TIKTOK SHOP HAS BECOME A HUGE ONLINE BEAUTY RETAILER AS THE CATEGORY HAS GROWN, adweek
Just nine months after hitting the market, TikTok’s in-app shopping tool has emerged as the ninth-largest beauty e-commerce retailer in the U.S. market, surpassing most major department stores and many beauty specialty retailers.
GEN Z LOVES STILETTOS. SO DO WOMEN OVER 50., wsj
“Stilettos cross generations,” said Marion Parke, a designer and podiatrist in Manhattan. “My 20-year-old niece wanted a pair…My mother, who is 78, has the same ones,” she said. “It is literally the one thing my mother and I agree on,” said Linda Hammoodeh, 27. (I think wearing stilettos in 2024 is crazy, but I’m not a Gen Zer nor a woman over 50, so I’m not supposed to get it!)
THE SICKLY RISE OF ‘TWEE MISANDRY’, dazed
From The Best Way to Bury Your Husband by Alexa Casale to How to Kill a Guy in Ten Ways by Eve Kellman to Look What You Made Me Do by Katherine Olson, there’s been an uptick in popular novels that feature similar scenario: girl next door turns ruthless feminist vigilante with a burning desire to kill predatory men. I simply cannot imagine why anyone might enjoy reading “empowering tales of women’s violence and revenge” right about now, can you?
THE INTERNET'S LATEST CRUSH IS CHARMING – AND CONFUSING – ALL OF TIKTOK. LEAVE HIM ALONE., usatoday
Grant Magdanz, a 29-year-old software development entrepreneur, has amassed more than 37,000 followers on TikTok in less than a month for his vulnerable videos about facing his fears, losing his job, and living with his grandma. The comments “reveal a borderline hedonistic hunger” for Magdanz; "Grant must be protected at all costs," one TikTok user wrote. “Grant I have a fear of being single. Can you help me with that?” This guy’s definitely going to be the next Bachelor.
H2WHOA – THE RADICAL REBRANDING OF WATER, ft
The market for single-serve water in the U.S. is worth $34.4B and growing, with brands like Liquid Death and Not Beer offering provocative, eye-catching canned water options to a countercultural Gen Z audience. “It’s slightly depressing to think that today’s version of sticking it to The Man amounts to chugging water and paying three times the price for it. But you have to applaud the evil genius of the brands that made it so; they are the new homeopaths.”
WHAT’S BEHIND TIKTOK’S BEEF WITH CHIPOTLE?, nyt
Long favored by young people, Chipotle is facing backlash with Gen Zers going viral for protesting purportedly small portion sizes by walking out without paying or filming workers. (A missed opportunity that the reporter didn’t mention the rise of “Chipotle Boys,” a trend that has taken over headlines in the last 72 hours! “Overheard two twenty-something women discussing the concept of a ‘Chipotle boy,’ apparently a boy who eats Chipotle 5-7 days a week, ‘the Chipotle boys are everywhere,'” Jackson McHenry posted on X, which led to this reported Bustle piece.)
One last thought:
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