Culture Club.

Lucinda Price, AKA Froomes, is one of Australia’s most riveting creatives. A writer, presenter, comedian and self-confessed reformed podcaster, Lucinda is smart and hilarious. 

This month, Lucinda added author to her list of achievements with the publishing of her debut book, All I Ever Wanted Was To Be Hot. 

An interrogation into self image, desirability, pop-culture and power, Lucinda’s book weaves in her own experience with eating disorders and body image alongside clever analysis of Western beauty standards. 

In this ep, we dive into the image-obsessed media industry, chat about the epidemic of plastic surgery and Ozempic, and discuss just how far the Australian health industry has to go when it comes to recognising disordered eating. 

You can buy All I Ever Wanted Was To Be Hot from all good bookstores and follow Lucinda @frooomes.

This episode contains mentions of disordered eating. If you or a loved one are struggling with your mental health, reach out to the Butterfly Foundation or Beyond Blue.

Jas & Mags xo

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Hi pals. 

Bennifer (2.0) is officially over. We reference this Vanity Fair article titled J.Lo, Ben, and The Art Of Timing Your Celebrity Divorce Announcement by Savannah Walsh and this opinion piece in The Guardian titled Bennifer is Over – Again. But Why Does Ben Affleck and Jennifer Lopez’s Divorce Feel So Sad? by Sian Cain. 

Taylor Swift has broken her silence about the cancelled shows in Vienna and Sabrina Carpenter has a new album out.

Pop star of the moment, Chappell Roan has released a two-part TikTok captioned, “Do not assume this is directed at someone or a specific encounter. This is just my side of the story and my feelings".

We share our thoughts and read from an article for Betches titled Is The Internet Already Turning On Chappell Roan? An Investigation Into The Rise And Fall Of *The* Midwest Princess by Melanie Whyte. We also hear from writer Allie Daisy King who wrote an article for Missing Perspectives titled Female Singers Don't Owe Us Anything. 

Next, we're fully in Black Mirror territory. Recently, a new AI product was announced, set to be released in early 2025. ‘Friend’ is an AI-powered companion that aims to help society’s loneliness epidemic. We discuss our thoughts and read from an interview with the founder, Avi Schiffmann in Dazed. 

In recommendations, Maggie went to MIFF and saw the documentary, No Other Land while Jas shares her thoughts on the film, The Worst Person In the World. 

Chat next time! Jas & Mags xo

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Hi friends!

The Love Island UK golden couple have split and Raygun is Australia's new icon (for better or worse). 

Everyone is feeling very demure, very mindful. But where did the phrase originate from? We reference this Dazed article titled Very Demure, Very Mindful: Who Owns An Internet Buzzword? by Laura Pitcher. 

Next, It Ends With Us has been the messiest media circuit since Don't Worry Darling. We share some thoughts and reference articles including The Drama Over It Ends With Us Has Almost Eclipsed the Film Itself by Scaachi Koul for Slate and It Ends With Us Movie Tries to Fix Colleen Hoover Book’s Problems, But Still Reeks of Hollow Girl Power by Sriya Tallapragada for Teen Vogue. 

In recommendations, Maggie enjoyed Emily Sundberg's recent newsletter, The Machine In The Garden from her substack, Feed Me while Jas watched Lee, a war film about Vogue's WWII war correspondent, Lee Miller – released in October. 

Speak soon! Jas & Mags xoxo

Katie Zhou created our fab cover art and India Raine is our wonderful editor and composer of our jingle. Email us at [email protected]. Find us on Instagram @cultureclubpod or on our personal accounts @jasmineeskye and @yemagz.

This is a DM Podcast.

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Hi pals, 

A conversation on TikTok is suggesting the microtrend era we’ve come to love to hate, is seemingly over. But that doesn’t mean trends are dead. 

We discuss this shift and reference fashion analyst Mandy Lee's TikTok on the subject. Underconsumption core is also trending at the moment. Will this stick around or is it just 2024's version of deinfluencing? 

Plus, when it comes to fashion influencers, should we be expecting more of them? We reference this TikTok by user Rian Phin and Viv Chen's substack The Molehill. 

Next, "fruity boys" i.e. straight men with traditionally feminine qualities, are the subject of internet discourse thanks to a Dazed article How Fruity Boys Became The New Soft Boys by Halima Jibril. We discuss their appeal, the issues with it, and the subsequent TikTok sound that's popped up in response. 

In recommendations, Maggie loved an episode of This American Life, 24 Hours at the Golden Apple while Jas enjoyed When The Collective Taste Doesn’t Include You by Corinne Fay for her fashion newsletter Big Undies. 

Chat next time! Jas & Mags xoxo

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How are we feeling, babes? 

After we spill the deets of our Book Club getaway, we dive headfirst into the week's wildest internet stories. This includes Sheer Luxe launching an AI bot as their new editor (at a time when journalists are losing jobs worldwide), and adidas pulling their latest campaign with queen, Bella Hadid. Yikes. 

Brat has been taking over our feeds but this week marks Charli XCX's foray into US politics. We discuss why nothing seems real at the moment and reference this article from Dazed by Günseli Yalcinkaya. 

We also reference a newsletter from Taylor Lorenz' substack on the Pop Craveification of breaking news. 

This week, Maggie recommends the book How to End a Love Story by Yulin Kuang while Jas has been loving the Working Hard, Hardly Working Business podcast by Grace Beverley.

Chat to you next time! Jas & Mags xo

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Alyssa Huynh is the Vietnamese-Australian writer you’ve most likely seen across your social media pages. With her pink aesthetic and educational text posts, Alyssa is creating anti-racism resources for the online generation. 

The writer has also just released her debut book, Safe Space, a part-memoir, part-anti-racism resource in which she shares her personal experiences with racism in Australia – including in the dating space. 

In this ep of Culture Club Chats, Alyssa discusses the model minority myth, internalised racism and what allies can do to help people of colour. 

You can follow Alyssa and her work @alyssahuynhwritings. 

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In today's ep, Jas & Mags debrief about the latest round of media redundancies that have hit ~very~ close to home.

The Devil Wears Prada looks like it's back for a sequel (good luck, Miranda) and Vogue US has appointed a Kennedy as its election political correspondent. Is this an iconic choice or good old nepotism? 

Next, we discuss Katy Perry's flop rebrand and ask if she's simply capitalising on the hyper pop train. We reference journalist Eilish Gilligan and this piece titled Why Are Mainstream Pop Stars Suddenly Getting Hyperpop Makeovers? by Kyle Munzenrieder. 

One of 2024's most viral memes has arrived in the form of Hawk Tuah. Hailey Welch has been catapulted into her 15 minutes of fame after a snippet of a TikTok street interview went super viral. We discuss this phenomenon and reference a piece by Thomas Mitchell titled From Chk-Chk-Boom to Hawk Tuah: How TikTok Transformed Street Interviews for the Sydney Morning Herald. 

We have two light-hearted recommendations this week with Jas loving A Family Affair on Netflix and Maggie reading Red, White, and Royal Blue. 

This episode is brought to you by I Want to Die But I Still Want to Eat
Tteokbokki, the sequel to the Sunday Times and international bestselling South Korean
therapy memoir by Baek Sehee.  

Chat to you next time - Jas & Mags xo

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Hi pals, 

In today's episode, we chat about Emma Robert's 'Nepo Baby' comments and Paul Mescal's latest pap shots with a certain indie musician. 

Next, do cheaters deserve to be exposed online? It's a question that was asked following the viral clip of a man on a United Airlines flight this week. We reference the article Exposing Cheaters Isn't Always A Flex by Angelina Chapin for The Cut and this TikTok. 

New friendship discourse dropped this week. What the hell is a 'medium friend' and why is the New York Times optimising friendship? And next, are people choosing their friends based on aesthetics only? That's what Dazed asked in an article by Nia Shumake. We also reference this TikTok by user Hey Miss Kelsey.

Also, have your friends ever airbrushed your social media pics? That's what happened to Manon Gilbart who wrote about it for Cosmopolitan UK. 

In recommendations, Jas enjoyed this personal essay by Victoria Spratt for Refinery29, while Maggie loved Elif Shafak's book which is out in August. 

Thank you for listening! 
Jas and Mags 

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Maggie is back from her holiday so let's get into it. 

Justin Timberlake was arrested last week and made Jas realise media literacy is DEAD. 

Next, Jas is being served 'No Sugar' videos on her TikTok. Is she alone in this or is it the next iteration of diet culture disguised as wellness? 

Pop music is dominating 2024 but not everyone agrees. We discuss two pieces with differing opinions. One is for British GQ titled How Pop Music Got Its Personality Back by Daisy Jones. The latter is for the Wall Street Journal and is titled Why Pop Music Is So ‘Meh’ Right Now by Neil Shah. We also reference an ep from Pandora Sykes' podcast Doing It Right titled How Tech Flattened Personal Taste, With Kyle Chayka. 

Charli XCX and Taylor Swift battled it out for the UK's number one album last week. We share our thoughts on whether this was intentional and reference this TikTok by pop culture journalist Eilish Gilligan and another by Zee Feed's Crystal Jane. 

In recommendations, Jas loved this debut novel while Maggie watched an animated film. 

Love you! Chat soon xo

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What doesn’t Aurelia St Clair do? The German-Cameroonian comedian, writer and podcaster has been bringing their hot takes and particular flavour of comedy to our stages and screens since their first open-mic comedy night in 2018.

With almost a million likes on TikTok, Aurelia tackles everything from suburban stereotypes, the housing crisis, and their takes on pop culture as well as sharing parts of their Melburnian life on Instagram. They’re a regular performer at the Melbourne International Comedy Festival as well as Fringe Festivals in Melbourne and Sydney.

In this candid ep, we chat about navigating Australia’s male-dominated comedy scene, setting boundaries online, the capitalism of Pride month and so much more. 

Katie Zhou created our fab cover art and India Raine is our wonderful editor and composer of our jingle. Email us at [email protected], find us on Instagram @cultureclubpod, or on our personal accounts @jasmineeskye and @yemagz.

This is a DM Podcast.

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.