Culture Club - Fashion Weak

00:00:00.000 what's the deal with modern concert ticketing a big deep dive into Australian fashion week

00:00:12.120 and why does everyone have a book club now I'm Maggie Zhao and I'm Jasmine Wallace

00:00:16.860 and you're listening to Culture Club where we chat about pop culture current affairs

00:00:21.920 the internet and our lives. We acknowledge that the Wurundjeri Woiwurrung people are the custodians 0.99

00:00:32.320 of this land we are on today. We would like to pay our respects to Elders past and present. We

00:00:37.700 would also like to celebrate the rich history of First Nations culture and storytelling that

00:00:42.500 we are continually learning from. This always was and always will be Aboriginal land.

00:00:47.840 mags normally you and i are quite lucky when it comes to concert tickets we got through with taylor

00:00:59.600 quite easily like we got we got seats which felt really lucky in comparison to a lot of people

00:01:06.160 the only other time i haven't gotten tickets to a concert i wanted was actually embarrassing it

00:01:11.940 was cold play a few months ago and they were playing like four or five shows in melbourne

00:01:17.480 they are at the end of the year and in marvel stadium so that's like 40 50 000 people and i

00:01:24.320 couldn't get a single ticket for that but i was like whatever i'll see them another time but this

00:01:28.480 week it happened again it happened again with olivia and i know you said that we have pretty

00:01:33.380 good luck with tickets i honestly think pre-sale tickets are like it's my idea of hell and i

00:01:39.480 actually don't get them off it i just i put bad juju on it i know because i go in being like i'm

00:01:44.760 not gonna get it like terrible the opposite of manifestation you do you do I agree I do you're

00:01:51.660 like oh if we get it I guess whereas I'm so like we're getting these tickets girls like let's do

00:01:58.280 it I know I know um I am so bummed that with four shows in Melbourne we still do not have tickets

00:02:07.140 to Olivia but you know it doesn't stop there right there's still options there's time if anyone's got

00:02:13.720 any leads i just i can't name like a single person in melbourne that i know that got tickets so

00:02:19.760 literally i put this on our story and the percentage of people who didn't get tickets

00:02:27.540 who were trying and people who did get them was like five to one so she's in hot demand but i feel

00:02:34.120 i mean i'm disappointed there's still a chance i guess um but it feels different to taylor like

00:02:39.940 with taylor i'd never seen her before in concert it was like such an experience whereas this is

00:02:44.640 olivia's first ever tour i think she's only going to get better with time she's only got a couple

00:02:49.140 albums out so like i know she'll come back so there'll be more opportunities oh no that's still

00:02:55.780 a loser mentality no no i agree with you but we're still going to get tickets this time

00:02:59.600 okay let's watch this space watch this space it has been a big girl week i want to say because

00:03:06.820 Billie dropped her new album which I have to say I still haven't fully listened to but what I have

00:03:12.080 has been incredible and I can't wait to dive in have you gone into it I was listening to it when

00:03:17.520 I was working from home on Friday so you know when you're playing something but you're also

00:03:20.760 like going through emails at the same time and it's like not fully listening to the lyrics so

00:03:25.520 I was really enjoying what I was hearing but it kind of was all blending into one I feel like the

00:03:30.660 sound it's very much like a running album which is cool like a piece of artwork you know versus

00:03:36.080 like individual songs that each have their own personality it's like a vibe oh my gosh I am so

00:03:40.780 excited I've heard such good things I just I'm like so ready do you know when it's like that

00:03:45.640 anticipation like I like I know I'm going to love it and it's just a matter of time before I

00:03:50.560 get to listen yes the with the Billy concert tickets though I wanted to talk about this

00:03:57.280 on the podcast do you think that like the modern way of dropping tickets is kind of weird in terms

00:04:05.320 of olivia makes sense she's released these albums we know them like we love them we'll sing along to

00:04:09.300 every song but billy released tickets to her world tour for hit me hard and soft like weeks before

00:04:17.120 the album even came out and they're you know like 150 200 tickets and i think i saw a tweet that was

00:04:25.020 like what is with the modern ticket dropping cycle where it's so expensive you also have like

00:04:31.400 five days notice usually like even for the olivia tickets it was like the week before

00:04:38.120 announced and then you've got to find that money that's spare lying around which not a lot of

00:04:44.040 people have these days and in the case of billy you might not even like the album unless you're

00:04:49.180 a mega fan you probably will like the album but like what if you what if it was a flop and then

00:04:53.600 you're like oh yeah i bought these tickets do you think that's interesting oh my god yeah that's

00:04:57.160 why i didn't even try for tickets because i was like wait for an album that we haven't heard yet

00:05:01.880 yeah that is so ballsy and i get it she's got massive fan base but i was like

00:05:07.860 i didn't it didn't didn't gel for me yeah me too i saw her live in 2022 though she was

00:05:15.580 incredible um but i'm trying to not spend too much money on concert tickets you would know that like

00:05:21.720 it was my biggest expense last year yeah well one one of them my biggest you know disposable

00:05:28.140 expenses so Olivia was one of the only concerts that I was like yeah I'll go to that yeah so

00:05:33.060 we'll see we'll see I mean I'm pretty happy because this week I mean the last two days I

00:05:39.500 should say I've just been in Bridgerton land so nothing's really phasing me I'm like I'm in

00:05:44.760 Regency land baby like it's all good up here um have you watched season three yet I watch

00:05:51.480 i've watched three episodes i probably will watch the fourth tonight i've been trying to like

00:05:57.020 edge it for lack of a better word to savor it lol but i'm i'm loving the season so far and you and

00:06:06.080 i are actually going to a bridgerton ball this weekend how fun it's not this week it's next

00:06:11.580 weekend oh thank god no it's this weekend wait you're going on friday and i'm going on saturday

00:06:17.040 Sorry, I need to check.

00:06:20.680 Sorry.

00:06:21.500 Hold on a second.

00:06:23.360 Oh, my God.

00:06:24.960 Oh, my God.

00:06:25.600 I'm going to Bridgeton Ball this week.

00:06:28.680 This Friday.

00:06:29.740 Yeah, this Friday.

00:06:30.780 Oh, my God.

00:06:31.420 I had no idea. 1.00

00:06:32.960 You're a busy gal. 0.96

00:06:34.080 You're losing track of all your events.

00:06:36.400 Gee, gee, gee.

00:06:38.080 Okay.

00:06:39.180 We're going to Bridgeton Ball.

00:06:40.980 So you're going on the Friday night.

00:06:42.660 I'm going on the Saturday night.

00:06:43.940 Sally, we couldn't make it on the same night.

00:06:45.760 But I'm going with our friend Ali Daisy King and our friend Lizzie.

00:06:50.560 Oh, that's going to be so much fun.

00:06:53.640 I'm going with my friend Simran.

00:06:55.120 So this Friday, apparently, the rumors have told me.

00:06:58.500 So I'm very excited.

00:07:00.120 So in the show notes, we will link to this ball in Melbourne.

00:07:03.800 It's essentially like a night of dancing, Bridgerton-inspired cocktails,

00:07:10.640 there's entertainment, obviously everyone dressing up.

00:07:14.360 I have no idea what I'm going to wear to a Regency ball.

00:07:18.840 Exactly.

00:07:19.420 Because I've got like a 50s, 60s style like ball dress,

00:07:23.700 but it's like obviously not Regency era.

00:07:26.100 But I'm like, yeah, it's close.

00:07:27.240 And it's like baby blue and it's got a bit of sequins.

00:07:29.780 My only pet peeve is like it's only for 90 minutes,

00:07:33.020 like the whole entire event start, finish 90 minutes.

00:07:36.860 So, yeah.

00:07:38.060 Interesting.

00:07:38.800 Just make the most of it.

00:07:39.900 Yeah.

00:07:40.100 We'll report back though and let you know how we find it.

00:07:44.360 speaking of events it's jazz's birthday soon i can't believe it i feel like we've got a little

00:07:49.560 um itinerary this this chit chat session for us we're just going through everything we've loved

00:07:55.060 everything that we're trying to go see or we're going to see but yes it's almost your birthday

00:08:00.160 it's like culture club what's on like events around yeah literally so on my birthday we are

00:08:07.040 going to see the incredible jane goodall who is the chimpanzee expert live at the ballet theater

00:08:13.880 in St Kilda there are still tickets available to that one as well um if you want to come see

00:08:19.380 an icon speak so it's at 7 30 p.m 4th of June my birthday Palais Theatre St Kilda and it's going to

00:08:28.500 be like what a way to spend your birthday like seeing this like inspiring iconic woman share

00:08:35.280 you know her thoughts on the environment and just to hear her stories will be amazing so like I said

00:08:42.980 there's still some tickets available to that as well if you are interested yes I am so excited

00:08:49.160 I've actually seen her speak once before when I was in primary school it was like a very special

00:08:54.320 school excursion in my head they only picked a few people to go and I was one of them but I could be

00:08:58.880 wrong um my memory does not serve me well but I'm so excited to see her again it's gonna be a lovely

00:09:07.720 time we needed this catch-up just because i've been in sydney this week we haven't seen each

00:09:13.900 other much so thanks listeners for joining in yes we need to discuss australian fashion week

00:09:20.260 i was living for your content i sent you a voice memo on monday being like i'm just so proud of

00:09:25.500 you like every time i opened my tiktok app you would be featured in like some different video

00:09:30.180 or yeah it was really cool and inspiring to see some creators who are really killing it at the

00:09:38.720 moment yourself included i think carmen as a party zig's mom jolly malcolm like that new

00:09:45.460 generation it feels like a new generation like obviously you guys have all been around for years

00:09:49.420 and years making content but um feels like a new generation of like almost leaders in the industry

00:09:54.160 and it could just be my algorithm speaking um the fact that we're kind of in these circles but

00:09:59.300 um it was cool to see that side of Australian Fashion Week but of course there were some

00:10:04.580 there was some controversy this year as there is every single year I swear to god but yeah I felt

00:10:09.880 so lucky to have gone to Australian Fashion Week I went because I was working with eBay and then I

00:10:16.020 was doing some writing and just like attending shows on behalf of myself um and it was a great

00:10:22.420 this is so weird because we're recording a week exactly after the first day of Fashion Week so I've

00:10:28.520 had a few days to sit with it post week and I'm still like so unsure about how I feel about it all

00:10:34.620 like on one hand so grateful to be there there were moments of like it was really fun it was

00:10:39.920 great to hang out with Sydney people other times it was like the fashion felt a bit uninspired or

00:10:46.220 like again we're talking about we're going to get into it but there are a few like controversies

00:10:51.160 around so it was fun I almost feel like I wasn't fully present like I can't put my finger on

00:10:58.880 exactly how I felt and like what I did and it all kind of blurred because I was there for five days

00:11:03.700 I think that's kind of where my head is at even though you said you've been home for a couple

00:11:08.040 days I still think it'll take you like a few weeks for it to like yeah for like the stronger

00:11:12.840 memories to stick out I guess yeah um one thing that I know that us and a few friends were talking

00:11:20.300 about was the lack of size diversity not so much well on the runways as well but I feel like

00:11:28.740 the experience of Australian Fashion Week nowadays in 2024 and probably last year as well

00:11:34.160 is through street style for people at home being like hey what are like the fashion people

00:11:40.420 wearing to go to the shows as well as what's on the runways and then because of like the

00:11:45.820 proliferation of Instagram you're now seeing these like a 10 photos from a whole like 50 usually

00:11:52.660 album on a website 10 are chosen and put into street sale carousels across like the major

00:11:58.480 publications one thing I was noticing is that pretty much all of them except I would say

00:12:05.580 refining 29 I know that I work for them but like they were doing an amazing job a lot of publications

00:12:10.660 were only including skinny white people or if they were people of color they were still very slim

00:12:20.220 um yeah they were wearing cool outfits but it was very much that model off-duty look and there was

00:12:27.140 one of them that was like I think I posted on my close friends but it was like little shorts

00:12:33.140 an oversized blazer and some heels like basic as like it was a cool outfit but I was like

00:12:39.620 is this the best the best of street style from this whole day it was like the third photo the

00:12:45.820 best really is this the best we're doing and a friend commented on that being like it feels like

00:12:50.460 her legs are the outfit like that's it's almost like your body your body has an accessory and

00:12:56.060 it's just like haven't we done that we've had this conversation before why did it feel like this year

00:13:01.120 we went backwards when it came to the magazines basically pushing like the people that were there

00:13:10.520 and I'm so glad that we we can bring like a dual perspective of someone that was there and someone

00:13:16.100 watching at home because we're seeing different things I felt a bit funny when it before I posted

00:13:23.420 that video on TikTok where I was talking about this just because one like you know I work in

00:13:29.720 space i don't want to yeah tread on anyone's toes too it is like so uncool to be pointing

00:13:36.860 out things like this i feel like you're being outspoken but it's also a bit cringy like people

00:13:42.360 be like yeah we get it i don't know i just i still feel like i'm kicking up a fuss because we're

00:13:47.360 talking about this stuff when it's like and it's obvious like this stuff isn't rocket science it's

00:13:53.080 like yep we've been doing this every year um is that weird that's a that's a me problem i don't

00:13:58.760 think so because even when we were like writing notes for this episode I was like how much do we

00:14:03.380 say because like yeah we do work in media it is such a small industry and I think if you piss

00:14:11.020 someone off you might not even know about it like you just won't you'll just basically be blacklisted

00:14:15.440 which has actually happened to me with a couple brands I just know I'm not on certain PR lists

00:14:20.960 now because of articles I've written so one person that I think was doing an incredible

00:14:26.260 job um at australian fashion week was kim russell her instagram account is the kim bino

00:14:33.380 and she she usually lives overseas i think i think she's from perth yeah and then she travels

00:14:40.860 yeah like she's australian but she travels all yeah she's like invited to paris fashion week and

00:14:45.940 like she's huge huge in the in the fashion industry sorry not just australia and yeah it

00:14:51.620 was interesting to hear her takes i'd recommend her account if you're interested in fashion in

00:14:55.740 general um she was also covering australian fashion week for rush magazine and and also

00:15:02.060 calling the publication out there was like she posted a few pictures and carousels and texts

00:15:07.300 being like yeah i'm reporting for your magazine but can i also call out your magazine i thought

00:15:11.740 that was quite like brave and cool for instance uh on kim's story she wrote this looking at best

00:15:17.980 dress lists for vogue at australian fashion week and not surprising at all that best dress equates

00:15:23.220 to thinness is it a matter of sticking to an aesthetic what is it I don't even need explanations

00:15:28.840 because I think we all know what it is and as I mentioned up the top Jolie and Carmen have also

00:15:36.020 been um talking about in the same way that you have talking about Australian Fashion Week on

00:15:40.740 their TikTok accounts so we'll play a few snippets from their perspective as well not calling them

00:15:45.580 out but I saw a show one night that somebody panned across and the entire front row this 1.00

00:15:49.380 giant front row was all thin white blonde women and I understand I am a thin white blonde woman 0.98

00:15:52.840 But I'm using my privilege to speak for all the people that feel like they can't speak.

00:15:56.040 There are so many people coming to me with the same issues that I'm saying.

00:15:58.400 The problem is the people that are pulling these iconic looks aren't being platformed

00:16:01.460 like they should be.

00:16:02.300 People who are choosing and selecting best dress lists, right, are also the people that

00:16:06.120 have historically only championed white, skinny, able-bodied, hot people.

00:16:10.580 I was really happy to see more conversations like this on TikTok and I got a few stitches

00:16:15.320 as well um from my video because especially having like white thin people in the industry speak about 0.56

00:16:24.800 it is so impactful and like it kind of sucks that that is a way sometimes but otherwise it's like

00:16:30.820 you're shouting to people who already know like the amount of time side conversations in private

00:16:35.460 with people this week being like oh like so agree with what you're saying like blah blah blah and

00:16:40.740 then publicly there isn't that much um conversation about it i totally understand why people like

00:16:49.140 obviously people don't have to publicly speak about this there's so many reasons why someone

00:16:53.020 might not but for people who do choose to i think that's really um great to see and especially you

00:17:00.020 know people are tied to different publications or agencies or brands that they're working with

00:17:03.920 so people have things on the line regardless so as i mentioned at the top i think refinery 29

00:17:09.560 Australia was doing a great job of street style the photographers they were using um the carousels

00:17:16.240 and also just the content in general our friend Ali Daisy King made a video that you were in

00:17:22.060 about um about how much influencers are paid that was an interesting one that got people talking

00:17:28.880 they also commissioned an article by the writer and founder of Z-Feed Crystal Andrews and the

00:17:34.340 title is The Unsexy But Necessary Way to Ensure Truly Diverse Fashion Week. We luckily enough

00:17:40.640 have Crystal to read out a snippet of the piece in her own words. The only way to know if efforts

00:17:46.340 to make change are having an impact is to measure them. And to measure that impact, we have to

00:17:51.260 collect meaningful data. Australian Fashion Week can become a leader in this space by surveying

00:17:56.280 everyone involved in the production of the event to determine the baseline level of diversity on

00:18:01.180 race, disability status, and queer representation. It will take targeted, data-driven strategies

00:18:07.280 operating at all levels of the industry to start making things measurably better. Without it,

00:18:13.280 Fashion Week attendees and those watching from afar can only go off the vibe of whether it felt

00:18:17.940 like a good year or a bad year for diversity, and it's clear that people who love fashion are

00:18:22.860 craving more certainty than that. I love that point. I think it echoes what I said at the start.

00:18:28.340 like for people sitting at home it's such an aspirational event and we will only see what we

00:18:35.120 see you know what i mean like i know that there was also a tiktok i saw of all the beautiful like

00:18:40.340 modest fashion and things like that that just weren't platformed in the same way that certain

00:18:46.780 other brands and aesthetics essentially which is basically the model of duty thing you're so right

00:18:52.800 about that so the modest fashion runway um it's the brand sem and i covered it for harper's bazaar

00:18:58.340 and at the time of publication like no one else had written about it and i was really shocked by

00:19:03.960 that um and i think it's very pointed i think with this whole conversation when we're talking

00:19:09.680 about diversity there are just so many layers so even with street sale i was talking about how you

00:19:15.300 know it's the photographers who are at the right place at the right time looking at people it is

00:19:20.340 then like people who are choosing which photos go into the gallery and then it might be another

00:19:24.520 social media person that chooses what goes in the carousel and then before all that it's like

00:19:30.020 who's actually invited into these spaces in the first place because it's like you can't show 0.56

00:19:35.500 what's not there and it's you know the attendees are predominantly white and that like we need to 0.51

00:19:43.460 be asking like okay like who's welcome in these spaces in the first place as well 100 percent

00:19:49.200 another piece of discourse i heard about australian fashion week and saw online

00:19:54.320 was influencers turning up to australian fashion week in glasses or white fox boutique people

00:20:02.600 who didn't attend were kind of on tiktok sharing their thoughts about like oh my god you've been

00:20:08.540 invited to australian fashion week why are you wearing fast fashion and also i think it also

00:20:13.940 felt a bit like people just being pissed off at traditionally beautiful influences um did you see

00:20:21.500 any of this only a little bit so i can't wait to jump in with you it was so funny in one of my

00:20:28.140 like i was in a video breaking down one of my outfits and that outfit had a skirt from glass

00:20:33.640 on's in it and i said it weirdly glassons or however you're supposed to say it no you said

00:20:38.060 glass on yeah i'm like i don't care i can butcher their name but you know i've had that skirt for

00:20:45.540 over six years but um yeah i was like yeah i i said their name like what is it talking about me

00:20:51.460 well obviously they're not they're talking about like bigger more mainstream um influences okay

00:20:56.980 so what's your take on this i thought that some of it felt a little bit mean-spirited i will say

00:21:03.700 that some of it did feel a bit like jealousy i think just because you don't like an outfit

00:21:10.180 doesn't mean that that person doesn't deserve to be there they've obviously been invited for a

00:21:15.340 reason i did hear the story that two traditionally pretty influencers attended the beckon bridge show

00:21:22.720 took photos and left before the actual show things like that are upsetting there was all

00:21:28.020 well not upsetting but dramatic things like that are like a bit I guess warranted of the criticism

00:21:34.380 I also saw a video by the creator Ben Blue and they are known for their like quite outlandish

00:21:43.460 fashion looks and they were saying that they wore this like amazing flower dress by the designer

00:21:50.580 Rachel Burke actually I'll just play the clip so you can hear for yourselves so there are people

00:21:55.540 that come dressed in like crazy outfits but then there's also people that come just in like you

00:21:58.840 know normal clothing they're usually there just to like see the crazy outfits and then there's

00:22:02.880 the instagram models not specifically instagram because they're also on tiktok as well but these 0.96

00:22:07.000 are the girls coming in wearing like white fox boutique beginning boutique which is fine if you

00:22:10.980 want to wear that but what gets me is how they treat the people that are wearing fun fashion

00:22:15.240 for instance i was getting a photo in my rachel burke dress and obviously like one photographer

00:22:19.700 would be like hey can i take some photos so i would stand there and pose and then five other

00:22:23.340 photographers would come over and they would all take photos of me. So I would just be sitting there

00:22:26.240 posing while a bunch of people are taking photos. That's basically what happens. If you look good

00:22:30.200 and you're posing, photographers will take photos of you. So multiple times it happened where I had

00:22:34.820 a bunch of photographers taking photos of me and obviously like they're all, you know, bending down

00:22:38.500 taking the photos. I'm there posing and I could see behind the photographers, there's a bunch of

00:22:43.460 Instagram girls wearing basic dresses looking at you like this. I can't tell if they're just jealous 1.00

00:22:48.940 because the photographers are focusing on me and not them or if they just didn't like what I was

00:22:52.900 wearing which is fine because fashion is subjective but they parade around fashion week as if they are

00:22:58.360 the top as if they own it and making fun of the people that are actually wearing fun outfits so

00:23:03.940 i think there's so many so many layers to this and it does make me sad i guess or not sad but

00:23:10.860 it it is interesting when you have people who maybe don't work in the space who are only there

00:23:17.220 for like the clout or whatever who are making other people feel bad that's just what i don't

00:23:21.660 like that like mean girl energy of it and don't know if you want to share this but you did say

00:23:26.880 to me that it did feel almost like it was quite showy obviously because oh yeah it's like the one

00:23:34.740 of the most not conceited that's like a negative word but it's one of the most like it's all about

00:23:40.420 how you look there's not many industries that are that intense and everyone's kind of judging each

00:23:45.960 other completely especially the first two days i was there i was really taken aback by it all like

00:23:51.960 it felt like a um like a zoo kind of enclosure while everyone's looking at everyone in the

00:23:58.600 funniest way i was like it feels like a zoo but i'm the animal no one wants to look at like

00:24:01.880 like relegated to the corner yeah it was just an interesting atmosphere to be in because you're not

00:24:07.540 so usually so aware of how you're being perceived or like watched or how you move all the time

00:24:15.740 but back to that conversation around like oh you know like influencers wearing white fox

00:24:20.840 glass-ons whatever um it's just interesting because a lot of the alternatives that people

00:24:26.920 are wearing like let's say cos or um things like that that's still fast fashion it's just like more

00:24:34.140 unpopular fast fashion it's fast fashion that people like prefer obviously not all fast fashion

00:24:41.340 is made equal but I think like when people are saying those comments they're probably just

00:24:45.980 wanting people to dress in more expensive brands or something I just don't think it's about

00:24:50.660 people's distaste of fast fashion when they say things like that I agree I feel feel like more of

00:24:57.760 it was jealousy than actually like what what are they wearing when they're at home like critiquing

00:25:03.020 this you know probably fast fashion before we changed the topic there was also another great

00:25:08.680 um real that refinery 29 australia posted which again you were in you were everywhere

00:25:13.360 um it was about fast fashion are you wearing fast fashion do you wear fast fashion um

00:25:19.940 we'll play a little clip now so you can just hear some of the answers

00:25:23.180 i don't okay i am yes a lot of my basics are from like cotton on supra i will say fast fashion

00:25:30.100 isn't ethical but i do think there are ethical ways to participate and consume it unfortunately

00:25:34.900 it is fast fashion is accessible for me as a plus-size woman it's not a fun thing to shop but

00:25:42.480 it's something that sometimes I only have access to last four years are kind of sworn off fast

00:25:48.480 fashion but things do peek through from time to time there were a few comments under this

00:25:55.700 um video some from um Asia Barber who is a amazing sustainability advocate Clementine Ford

00:26:03.220 also commenting on it um and they were basically like nope this is like unacceptable you can't

00:26:09.280 like these answers still don't can't justify like participating and consuming fast fashion

00:26:17.000 as someone who is an advocate for sustainable fashion um and you're obviously against slave

00:26:24.040 labor what are your thoughts on this because you answered as well and made a tiktok on this

00:26:30.140 subject so I'd love to hear some deeper thoughts oh this was like I felt um like encouraged to

00:26:37.680 make a TikTok because when I opened the refinery reel and then saw that Clementine Ford and Aja

00:26:43.700 Barber had commented like my heart dropped like you know these are two women I really look up to

00:26:47.840 and I'm like oh like no don't hate me or something like I really I did feel quite like affronted by

00:26:55.160 that and I think it was just missing a lot dare I say the nuance of the conversation to be like

00:27:01.960 it is unacceptable because this reel I think did a really great job of just showcasing like

00:27:07.640 diversity of thought when it comes to fast fashion um people who like unabashedly were like yeah I

00:27:14.280 shop it people being like yep um it's more accessible for my size there was a range of

00:27:19.400 responses which i think really mirrored real people's experiences so to be like you're wrong

00:27:26.300 but then on the other side like people using it to like over justify their fast fashion like

00:27:31.440 they're like finally like i can speak about it safely i don't know yeah yeah i i know you mean

00:27:37.280 like the thing where it's like there's no ethical consumption under capitalism so therefore i'm

00:27:42.400 gonna like do an h&m haul and buy my work outfits from shein like that almost uh cognitive dissonance

00:27:50.280 yeah completely and i just feel like in the video with ali um obviously it's been chopped up so it's

00:27:57.820 more engaging but i was talking about like well yeah like in the past i'm thinking i'm like

00:28:02.620 undies i've bought or like tights or some exercise gear i would consider that probably fast fashion

00:28:10.020 and sure I try to pick better alternatives but in my head like that's not perfect so it's like

00:28:15.760 that's what I'm admitting to and the first girl in the video she also made a comment said yeah

00:28:20.840 all I said was like I buy underwear like but again it's like that's not good enough for some people

00:28:26.460 I don't know it made me feel so many things yeah well thanks for sharing I commented on that video

00:28:34.120 and was like wow love the honesty here because there is that like black and white thing I think

00:28:38.700 in these conversations that um can make it hard to admit that yeah you do participate in this

00:28:44.060 even if it isn't the most ethical choice there you go that is a big

00:28:48.900 in the best way possible it does feel like every man and his dog has a book club at the moment

00:29:02.320 yes we are in one it's honestly like the highlight of my month same there's also a great

00:29:09.960 book club slash book community in read my blurb which is a melbourne-based um book community it

00:29:18.440 feels like books are really having a moment oh yeah i feel like it's every second tiktok of mine

00:29:24.100 is a new in-person book club meet um or you know people just speaking about books in general maybe

00:29:30.420 that's how algorithm probably is but it is nice to see this book community shine so as well as like

00:29:37.280 your everyday person getting into book clubs and reading more um there are a lot of celebrity book

00:29:44.340 clubs that i think may be contributing to this almost like brand change for books would you agree

00:29:52.100 yeah i feel like i didn't make the link between like specifically celebrity book clubs and i guess

00:29:58.800 book clubs that we have in our real lives now but like that does make sense um there's been a

00:30:04.180 latest culprit of celebrity who has made a book club did you see that dakota johnson started one

00:30:10.020 no yeah that is random yeah and the weirdest thing when i was reading into this um she in

00:30:17.280 an interview for bustle this is how she described it are you ready our book club is literary fiction

00:30:22.920 it's not beach reads it's not silly it's not all female authors but it is female forward

00:30:28.800 and it's a lot of first-time novelists people need to deep dive into knowledge about specific 0.94

00:30:33.700 things rather than talking about what fucking face serum they're using and thinking that that's 0.96

00:30:39.720 the most important thing in the world boo boo i hate that i know i know what she means but it 0.98

00:30:49.740 probably came across wrong um I hate that it's not beat reads it's not silly and also being like 0.92

00:30:58.940 women who like beauty are dumb like that just feels so freaking outdated completely two things

00:31:06.700 can be true at once I love talking about face serum and I also love books I love literary fiction 0.99

00:31:12.440 and I love beat reads like why are we still doing that thing of like I'm not like other girls this

00:31:18.300 isn't a silly book club it's a real book club like that's just just oh i know um dakota johnson

00:31:25.380 i know she's like quite an icon but she likes so much she scares me in her frankness and like her

00:31:30.580 sometimes like brashness like she's quite um not unlikable but she is a peculiar person i'm just

00:31:38.700 thinking about her madam webb interviews where she speaks so strangely about her co-host like

00:31:44.200 i'm just scared of her yeah yeah she's very frank so not super surprising that she would

00:31:49.920 say this i think a book club and like someone who has gone into that space really naturally as well

00:31:56.660 is do a leaper her podcast and book club i think are really cool or her book community and then

00:32:03.900 you've also got emma roberts who runs bellatrist um which doubles as a production company and has

00:32:11.760 converted two of its monthly picks into streaming shows that is first kill on netflix and tell me

00:32:17.180 lies on hulu which i think is binge in australia i love following bellatrix nice i actually hadn't

00:32:22.960 heard of it before but when i was reading up on it i was like oh it does sound like it's a

00:32:28.560 uh like following in the footsteps of reese witherspoon's like highly highly successful

00:32:34.500 book club slash production company and oprah i feel like oprah was like the first woman to like

00:32:39.980 do that whole thing of like Oprah book club in like the 2000s completely and this concept of

00:32:46.040 celebrity book clubs was explored in an article in the cut by Emily Gould it is just plain and

00:32:54.000 simple to the point titled why does every famous woman have a book club now so in the article Emily

00:33:00.180 writes one agent I spoke to said that having a book photographed in Kaya Gerber's arms was more

00:33:05.080 of an ego boost for everyone involved than anything else though it might have galvanized

00:33:09.420 efforts behind the scenes somewhat the agent says i don't think it had tangible sales results but it

00:33:14.920 did make us feel that the novel had momentum and buzz at a crucial time in its publication

00:33:19.260 which i think also encouraged the publisher to double down on their publicity and marketing 0.97

00:33:24.080 efforts we are also desperate for people to give a shit about books that honestly will take all we 0.95

00:33:29.300 can get yeah i mean when i think like kaya gerber she is one of the biggest you know new gen models 0.96

00:33:38.400 that we have and she is quite explicit about her love of books she has been for quite some time

00:33:44.240 now so to find out that even her book picks don't make such a difference in book sales shocked me

00:33:50.440 um the another agent said in the piece quote it used to be that things like oprah's or reese's

00:33:57.500 book club book of the month or being in a good morning america pick would be an instant rocket

00:34:03.440 to success, but their effect seems to have been diluted in a really oversaturated market.

00:34:10.400 It does feel slightly oversaturated, but it also must be impacted by algorithms. I think that

00:34:19.360 a book that we might think is really, really popular at the moment because it's all over our

00:34:24.660 book talk might not be the same for my colleague. They'll be like, oh, I've never heard of this,

00:34:29.360 even though it seems like it's the most popular book of the month do you think that you use books

00:34:36.420 to like signify parts of your identity online definitely I think reading can be such a crutch

00:34:45.420 in many ways like it's a hobby which is identity forming but it's like almost in lieu of my own

00:34:52.480 thoughts or my own experiences it's like well I read widely or I've got this which like creates

00:34:58.680 an illusion of something more maybe what do you think yeah I agree I think yeah if you post a

00:35:06.280 picture of a book whatever it may be whether it's like it's kind of showing that you're in the know

00:35:10.680 like if you post the new Coco Mellors book you're like yeah I'm a lit girly like I know that this

00:35:18.080 book came out this month so I'm like I'm first to read it or like I have thoughts on this book or

00:35:22.500 whatever the writer and former podcaster pandora sykes talks about this a lot in the way that

00:35:30.940 reading is seen as like one of like the ultimate hobbies because it shows i don't know it shows you

00:35:37.200 can disconnect from the internet it shows that you can pay attention to things for a long period

00:35:41.900 of time when all of our attention spans are fried from tiktok but she also talks about she recently

00:35:47.180 spoke about in her newsletter um but she's spoken about it previously about the fact that she um

00:35:54.300 gets rid of so many other hobbies and chooses actively chooses reading over so many things

00:36:01.060 like exercising she says that she doesn't cook she just heats things up um her screen time's

00:36:06.140 really low i think she deletes instagram during the whole week um things like that that she like

00:36:11.000 makes sacrifices for or that thing she was like in her newsletter she's like i really wish i was

00:36:16.640 like an exercise girly like I know that it's really bad that I don't exercise at all like

00:36:21.980 she just I don't know I think she says I just go for walks or whatever um but I do that so that I

00:36:27.420 can read like three books in a week or whatever it is so I guess my point is like why is reading

00:36:34.180 such a iconic hobby yeah and is it because of celebrities or is that too like tenuous of a link

00:36:42.060 no maybe because i'm thinking like things that are similar to books so i don't know knitting

00:36:47.840 or something it's like a cross between knitting and like watching movies or something um like

00:36:53.340 they're they haven't been elevated to this like holier than thou like intellectual status and

00:36:58.680 there's like wise books and especially because books are so broad as well like you could be

00:37:02.780 reading a sport memoir you could be reading a cookbook you could be reading like yeah whatever

00:37:07.980 so it's like oh it is interesting that people have such a strong take on it but maybe again

00:37:15.680 it's our circle it's like maybe other people like reading what a waste of time yeah i do like this

00:37:23.060 quote from the article as well that says my working theory about all of this is straightforwardly

00:37:28.540 cynical celebrities mostly use books to add another layer to their person a carrying around

00:37:33.860 status handbags shaped like piles of paper with pages. Their rationales may vary, but cultivating

00:37:39.340 bookishness is as good a way as any to transition from one career phase to a more multidimensional

00:37:45.080 one, which I think goes back to my point about Dua Lipa especially. So well said. I feel like

00:37:50.120 Emily summed that up really well. I think that's kind of bang on.

00:37:55.400 speaking of books and recommending books what have you been loving watching reading or listening to

00:38:08.560 this past week i've got a book to recommend yes um and you're so bookish and the double whammy

00:38:16.580 it's like a book that hasn't come out yet so it is another flex in that yes uh the book i've got

00:38:23.880 is The Honey Eater and that is written by Jessie Tu. If her name sounds familiar she is the author

00:38:30.480 of A Lonely Girl is a Dangerous Thing. I haven't read that one so I didn't know. I have. I liked

00:38:36.720 it. Oh nice. So she's Australian. She's Australian. This is her second novel and boy oh boy it's a

00:38:43.660 good one and also I think it's quite different to the first. Again did not read the first but

00:38:47.680 anyway. I didn't read it but I think it's quite different. I think it's quite different because

00:38:52.160 this one is quite weird like it's a bit more weird than her other book i assume anyway so just sticking

00:38:59.160 to what i know this one um the honey eater is a contemporary fiction it's a bit mysterious it's

00:39:07.220 got an intriguing story and i really love the writing um a quick kind of synopsis without

00:39:13.320 revealing too much because i went in like knowing nothing which i think is a better way to go in um

00:39:19.320 if you google it the blurb gives away something anyway so what i've got for you today is that it

00:39:25.400 follows the main character her name is faye she's a young academic and an emerging translator she

00:39:31.800 is navigating a strained relationship with her mother she takes her on a holiday to france

00:39:37.980 she's got her first ever book translation she's working on it's kind of like messed up some of

00:39:44.880 that story which is another layer of it and then she's also got a close relationship with her boss

00:39:51.260 who she calls professor and on top of that there's an all-consuming affair and then something happens

00:39:57.900 as well so i don't want to say too much very vague but i really don't know i know it sounds

00:40:03.520 like a lot but uh there's only like three other main characters apart from the protagonist so

00:40:10.200 it's kind of doable um yeah that that is my book recommendation it comes out very early July so

00:40:18.740 pre-order if you like but we'll keep out an eye for it yeah would recommend cool well I did enjoy

00:40:26.260 her debut so I will keep an eye out as well yay uh it is time for your recommendation what have

00:40:32.860 you brought for us this week I'm recommending the article in GQ magazine called why members only

00:40:39.480 clubs are everywhere right now and it's by the writer emily sunberg it is a long form reportage

00:40:46.900 on the private members clubs in new york obviously this is very american centric um but it's a

00:40:53.700 fascinating look into the private members clubs of the mega wealthy there's also some really

00:40:58.460 cool photos that go with it her writing is so rich and entertaining you can see how much time

00:41:05.380 and work has gone into this article which is always nice to just appreciate that there is one

00:41:11.360 club called the zz club and if you give them 48 hours and a recipe they can make whatever you want

00:41:17.200 read a quote that says we're the first private club ever to have something called a culinary

00:41:23.040 concierge with as little as 48 hours notice we can reimagine a diner's favorite meal from when

00:41:28.740 they were a child or make their mother's chicken soup recipe what would you ask for

00:41:33.520 oh good question good question i haven't really thought about that maybe like um a vegetarian

00:41:42.560 american style club sandwich they always look so good but i can't usually eat them because

00:41:47.720 it's a veggie yes so probably like yeah like a blt but veggie oh god that's so good what's coming

00:41:54.000 to mind is molly baz's recipe that i have made once but it's a mac and green so it's like a

00:41:58.900 really decadent mac and cheese but with kale and the bechamel sauce has beer in it so it was so

00:42:05.220 good I need to make it again um but someone else can make it for me can I come over for dinner

00:42:10.340 yeah I'm gonna make it again and I'll freeze little batches for people

00:42:14.000 um yeah it's just a really interesting article that goes into like a whole different number of

00:42:22.640 clubs and you know these memberships are like tens of thousands of dollars a year they're super

00:42:28.300 private so you know the photos aren't like photos from the kitchen or the lounge like they're really

00:42:33.440 like almost anonymous um photos talks about the type of clientele who go there and it's just like

00:42:39.380 this whole it's like another world you know that that level of wealth that's like succession vibes

00:42:44.400 where you just like you you think you see wealthy people at like australian fashion week or whatever

00:42:50.060 for example and then you realize like oh that's not even wealthy like there's a whole another

00:42:54.940 world that is like mega wealthy and I think it's just interesting to to comment on and she talks

00:43:00.460 about um how like Instagram has changed like Instagram's actually and TikTok have made more

00:43:07.100 people want to go to these things because they have privacy whereas like anyone can just film

00:43:11.860 anything and it's on TikTok you know in clubs and bars and stuff so yeah it's a really interesting

00:43:18.120 intersection of like a few different topics would you say she was critical about them or just more

00:43:22.400 just like observing what they're like I'd probably say she was more observing she does critique a

00:43:28.260 little bit especially towards the end but it's more just like whoa look at this this whole other

00:43:34.280 world like this is what I experienced as like a regular millennial woman in these clubs love it

00:43:40.660 that brings us to the end of the episode thinking about mac and cheese now um thank you for joining

00:43:47.020 us listeners and we can't wait to talk to you again soon talk to you next time bye

00:43:52.980 one of the hottest k-pop groups on the planet is back momsta x returns with the x nexus 2026

00:44:06.000 world tour get tickets now at lination.com

Culture Club - May 20, 2024

Fashion Weak

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