KIMBERLY HAS THOUGHTS 💜

Hey y’all!

Today, I decided to revisit Lauren Michele Jackson’s sharp New Yorker piece “How Dare Celebrities Cheat?” and reflect on how cheating scandals activate something primal in us: projection, heartbreak, misplaced rage, and a sense of justice that’s way too invested in other people’s business.

You know I looooove mess, but even I can acknowledge that we’re all a little too close to the celebrities we claim to love. In twenty years, we’ve gone from Team Jolie vs. Team Aniston to TikTok detectives stalking the Saltburn dude’s grandma. The line between entertainment and activism has blurred, and sometimes it feels like people are cause-hunting on Instagram instead of building real community.

This episode is about gossip, grief, the illusion of access, and the dangerous ways accountability culture turns personal pain into public spectacle.

Let’s talk about it.

Love y’all 💜

Kim

P.S. Subscribe to the new YouTube channel if you only want the newsletter videos!

Hey y’all,

Right now, I’m thinking about cycles and how the past keeps showing up in our present in new clothes and cheap wigs. I hopped on Instagram Live to talk about Trump’s authoritarian antics and the MAGA movement’s not-so-subtle revival of Confederate logic: surveillance, exclusion, and the gutting of public services. But I also explore the weight of knowing history, the danger of fetishizing facts without context, and why so many Black folks are quietly breathing a sigh of relief that Trump’s emphasis on immigration enforcement means the targeting isn’t aimed squarely at us. I don’t support it, but I understand.

Love,

Kim

💜Livestream Highlights 💜

Hey y’all—this one got away from me a little. I sat down to do a chill little livestream and ended up going on a full-blown rant about where we are in America right now. If you’ve been feeling the tension of this moment—between disbelief, anger, and fatigue—this episode is for you.

💜 Travel Warnings, ICE Raids, and Authoritarian VibesI talk about why I wouldn’t recommend anyone travel to the U.S. right now—yes, even with valid paperwork. The surveillance and arbitrary detentions are giving Gestapo.

💜 Free Speech Was a Trojan HorseTurns out the folks crying about “free speech” were never really about it. Now they’re justifying imprisoning people for criticizing Trump on social media.

💜 Political Apathy Is Not an Option—Even If You’re TiredI get why people are checking out, especially Black women. But even if you don’t care about politics, politics still cares about you.

💜 Why History Keeps Me CalmI talk about how reading U.S. history—especially about the Reconstruction-era—helps me stay grounded. It’s all happened before: the backlash, the regression, the rewriting of rights.

💜 AOC, Pelosi, and the Politics of VisibilityWe break down why Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez’s political rise stalled and how party dynamics (and Nancy Pelosi) helped block her ascent.

💜 What’s Actually Happening with Federal Worker FiringsSpoiler: it’s not just women and people of color being targeted—it’s also working-class men, veterans, and red state workers. The chaos is strategic.

💜 Why MAGA Is a Death Cult and Nothing MoreThey want to tear down science, education, and the economy—not because they believe in anything better, but because they’re too bitter to share what already works.

Hey y’all!

Back in 2019, I made a video for For Harriet called Instagram is Bad for Black Women, and a few months later, Jia Tolentino published her essay The Age of Instagram Face in The New Yorker. Both of us were analyzing the same phenomenon—the way social media warps beauty standards and pushes women and girls toward a homogeneous, algorithmically-approved aesthetic.

Fast forward to 2025, and while the exact face and body that dominated Instagram may have shifted, the underlying mechanics of digital beauty culture haven’t changed.

In fact, we now have concrete proof that the platforms steer grown women and little girls toward a single ideal in order to optimize engagement.

The “Instagram Face” era of obvious fillers and exaggerated features has given way to the “Undetectable Era.” Everything old is new again! The new ideal still demands work, but insists on making it look effortless. Sound familiar?

The Algorithm Decides

“Online metrics push us toward a generic sameness. Some things just perform well.”

Social media platforms are not value neutral. Perhaps there was at time when we could’ve believed that Instagram or TikTok would provide everyone a seat at the table of beauty, but that naivete should’ve died long ago.

What started as a phenomenon among what Tolentino called “professionally beautiful women” (aka influencers and celebrities) has been the expected norm for about a decade.

Algorithms rewards conformity and pattern-matching. If you engage with these technologies, you opt into the endless loop where the rules change, but the expectation stays the same: keep up or get lost.

Beauty is Hustle Culture for Women

To my mind, the most important takeaway from revisiting this conversation is that beauty culture is hustle culture for women. This idea was concretized for me in Glamour Labour in the Age of Kim Kardashian by Elizabeth Wissinger.

Right after the election, Robin D.G. Kelley explained how Americans don’t see themselves as exploited laborers but as entrepreneurs running their own mini-businesses. Women and girls have internalized the same logic and applied it to our faces and bodies.

In contemporary beauty culture, looking pretty isn’t enough. We need to see the work. If you’re not enhancing, you’re losing, and the language of “empowerment” obscures the coercion.

It’s not “assimilation.” It’s “self-improvement.”

It’s not “coercion.” It’s “self-care.”

The “Undetectable” Era Is Here

Instagram Face isn’t dead, but now it’s for poor people. The new celebrity/rich lady beauty standard is all about invisible work—procedures that “don’t look like procedures.”

Women have realized that:

* Filler doesn’t dissolve the way they were told it would.

* Surgery, while more expensive, offers “cleaner” long-term results.

This is why the rich girls are moving away from filler and into full-scale facial reconstruction. I was gonna list out all the women who’ve clearly gone that route, but that felt a little mean. I’m just gonna say, iykyk.

Shout Out to Little Baby Kim

Looking back at photos from my 18th birthday, I’m overcome with sadness because I felt confident in myself in a way that seems impossible for young girls today.

✨Book Recommendations✨

I’m wearing merch! You can cop the Are Y’all Okay? Sweatshirt here.

Full disclosure: My face looks weird af in this video because I tried to adjust the color of my foundation in CapCut because it’s too dark. Feel free to drag me, but please do it for the right reason! Thanks!

💜 Today’s Podcast Highlights 💜

Hey everyone! Here’s a recap of today’s paywall exclusive podcast. Let’s dive into the biggest takeaways:

💜 From Wellness to the Alt-Right: The Radicalization Pipeline

How did holistic health culture become a gateway to conspiracy theories and right-wing extremism? I explore the "Make America Healthy Again" movement and how influencers like Alex Clark are pulling young women into their ideological orbit.

Hey y’all,

Today’s topic is Elon Musk’s current paternity drama. The man is out here collecting children like they’re limited-edition Pokemon, and somehow (most) of the conservatives who preach “family values” have nothing to say about it. 🤷🏾‍♀️

In case you missed it, Ashley St. Clair, a 26-year-old conservative influencer, recently revealed that she had Musk’s 13th child—THIRTEEN. (That we know of.) And because this is Elon Musk we’re talking about, the situation is messy.

She says they were in a relationship; he flew her out, swept her off her feet—and then when she got pregnant, he put her up in a luxury New York City high-rise and promptly disappeared—classic deadbeat behavior.

And now, Ashley is suing to have Musk legally declared the father of her child. In a Manhattan court filing, she alleges that Musk has only met the baby three times and has made zero effort to be involved in his life​. She’s asking for sole custody, calling Musk an absentee father who refuses to even respond to her lawyers about a paternity agreement. The only time he acknowledged their child, she claims, was in text messages where he said, “If I make a mistake on security, [the baby] will never know his father”—which is a hell of a thing to say when you have 13 kids and no time for any of them​.

But Musk’s mess doesn’t stop there. Grimes, his former girlfriend and mother to three of his other children, is publicly begging him to respond to their child’s medical emergency. Just days after Ashley St. Clair’s lawsuit went public, Grimes tweeted at Musk, asking him to help with a “medical crisis” that would cause lifelong impairment if not handled quickly. And Musk? Silent. No response. It’s just another day in the life of a billionaire who treats fatherhood like a hobby he’s lost interest in.

And let’s be real: Ashley St. Clair is not the type of woman Musk wants to claim. His other baby mamas? B-list musician Grimes. Ivy League-educated AI executive Shivon Zillis. Ashley? A Twitter troll with a history of racist, anti-trans rhetoric and a children’s book about how gender ideology is ruining the youth. This is not the kind of woman Elon wants the world to associate with him. So, instead of taking responsibility, he’s ghosting her.

Where’s Joe Clark when you need him?

It’s giving fatherless homes are only a problem when it’s Black people.

Let’s discuss.

Talk soon,Kim

✨Links & Resources✨

Ashley St. Clair Blasts Elon Musk: ‘He Can’t Be Counted on to Even Communicate, Let Alone Be a Father' (Exclusive), People

Daily Mail dominated by Elon’s baby mama, The Spectator

How Ashley St. Clair fits into Elon Musk’s tangled love life — after his very public outings with his kids, New York Post

“Infamy Is Kind Of Fun”: Grimes on Music, Mars, and Her Secret New Baby With Elon Musk, Vanity Fair

MAGA influencer Ashley St Clair claims she had child with Elon Musk five months ago, Independent

MAGA influencers viciously slam Elon Musk's baby momma Ashley St Clair's 'liberal behavior', Daily Mail

Right-wing influencer sues to declare Elon Musk as her baby’s father, Washington Post

Hey y’all,

I’m back once again to discuss FX’s Social Studies, a docuseries about the havoc social media platforms have wreaked on childhood.

I just finished watching episode five (the last one), and my goodness—get your kids off these damn phones!

The show had a surprisingly uplifting ending, but the core message was clear: to optimize your child’s happiness, no social media and no phones. If I had a baby today? Zero screens. Zip. Zilch. None.

And I know I sound like a full-on auntie every single time I say that (which is often), but the series made me feel as much sympathy for the parents as I do the kids. Just as Gen Z and Gen Alpha have no idea how to fend off the ubiquitous allure of digital drugs, their Gen X parents have no idea how to help them cope.

Caretakers handed their phones and iPads over to little babies and watched pubescents set up TikToks and Snapchats with no idea what they had introduced into their lives.

The moment in this episode that floored me was when Jonathan, one of the teens featured, said “Social media is our lifeline, but it’s also a loaded gun.” Devastating.

The series wasn’t perfect, but director Lauren Greenfield effectively highlighted the terror of how, in addition to the typical teenage trials many of us endured, like falling out with fleeting friends or getting stood up by ornery boys, they now have to worry about global humiliation constantly. It’s a depressing, compelling, but often unfocused watch. I’d still check it out if you’re worried about the kids.

Later in the podcast, I detailed some classic Fast Kimberly nostalgia circa 2007 and touched on how Prince’s estate killed a sprawling documentary based on his life by Oscar-winner Ezra Edelman. Quite simply: our faves were fucked up.

Talk soon,Kim

✨Links & Resources✨

* Prince estate blocks release of Netflix documentary by Oscar-winning director Ezra Edelman, The Guardian

* True Life: Fatal Dose (1998), MTV

Dopamine Nation: Finding Balance in the Age of Indulgence by Dr. Anna Lembke

Alright, y’all, that’s a wrap! We covered Social Studies, the impact of social media, college admissions struggles, and the lost Prince documentary. Now, I want to hear from you! Do you think social media is a lifeline or a loaded gun? Is college admissions more brutal now? And were you surprised the Prince doc got shut down?

Drop a comment with your thoughts—I love hearing from you! Make sure you’re subscribed, and I’ll see you next time!

Hey y’all,

The BAFTAs took place last night, and the Oscars are just around the corner. This awards season has been marked by a full-blown scandal that once again highlights the ruthless machinations of the Hollywood PR Machine and the superficial, self-serving politics of white women (cis and trans alike).

What was supposed to be a groundbreaking moment for Karla Sofía Gascón, the first openly trans actor nominated for an Academy Award, has turned into an utter disaster.

Journalist Sarah Hagi resurfaced Gascón’s old tweets filled with racism, Islamophobia, and transphobia—and now, she’s been dropped by co-stars, the film’s director, Jacques Audiard, and Netflix.

In today’s episode, I break down the controversy, the power of social media and IRL cancellations, and how this moment simultaneously propels and undermines the culture war. Is this accountability or just another example of how Hollywood moves when its image is at stake? Probably both.

Let KKKarla’s downfall serve as a reminder that identity alone doesn’t determine one’s politics. While she faced vile transmisogyny, she had no issue spewing racism and xenophobia herself.

Let’s discuss.

Talk soon,Kim

✨Links & Resources✨

‘Emilia Pérez’ and the New Era of Online Oscar Scandals, New York Times

BAFTAs: ‘Conclave’ Wins Best Film in the Latest Awards Season Shake-up, New York Times

‘Emilia Perez’ Star Karla Sofia Gascón Files Official Complaint Against French Far-Right Politician For Transphobic Comments, Deadline

How Emilia Pérez Is Being Removed from the ‘Emilia Pérez’ Oscar Campaign, The Hollywood Reporter

Karla Sofía Gascón's posts derailed an Oscars run. In Spain, that raised eyebrows, NPR

Meet the Trans Actress Who Could Make Oscar History, New York Times

The Making of an All-Time Oscars Villain, Vulture

Hey y’all,

Well, well, well. It finally happened. Beyoncé won Album of the Year. After years of snubs, the Grammys finally handed her the big one for Cowboy Carter. And I can’t lie—I have thoughts.

Let’s start with the obvious: this Grammy Moment™️ wasn’t just about this album. It’s about the decades of exceptional work, the years of “so close but not quite,” and the cultural weight of being Beyoncé Giselle Knowles-Carter.

Cowboy Carter was undoubtedly a standout from 2024, but I still kinda hate that they crowned Beyoncé now when she’s safely in her “legacy artist” era—just like they waited to give Kendrick his flowers. (Side Note: Remember this token of white liberal guilt?)

Was Cowboy Carter the best album of the year? Maybe. Maybe not. That particular debate bores me because that’s not what Grammy wins measure. Timing and math made this win possible, and hopefully, this will close the “Beyoncé Got Snubbed” chapter of her narrative.

I break it all down in today’s podcast: the win, its significance, and why, despite her matchless career, Beyoncé still wants these Grammys real bad. Let’s talk about it.

Love,

Kim

P.S. Subscribe to the Podcast Clips YouTube Channel

P.P.S.

P.P.P.S. Adele and Pregnant Bey were both adorable here.

Hey y’all,

Today’s episode explores the ongoing debate about “crossover” success in the music industry. What does “crossover” success even mean in our incredibly fragmented media environment? Should Black artists prioritize mainstream appeal, or is cultivating a strong, loyal Black audience more important? I explain why artists like Victoria Monét and Coco Jones thrive exactly where they are, and why streaming numbers don’t tell the full story.

Plus, I reflect on Flo’s latest performance and why Bruno Mars is the king of making hits that stick.

Talk soon,Kim

✨Links & Resources✨

How Coco Jones Went From Teen Disney Star to Grammy-Nominated R&B Singer-Songwriter, Billboard

How OneRepublic Accidentally Became The Most Viral Band

Victoria Monét on Her 7 Grammy Nods (and One for Her Toddler), New York Times

💜 Today’s Podcast Highlights 💜

Hey everyone! Here’s a recap of today’s paywall exclusive podcast. Let’s dive into the biggest takeaways:

💜 The "Cruel Kids" and the Rise of Young Conservatives

I break down New York Magazine’s piece on the new wave of stylish, well-connected young conservatives embracing the MAGA movement. What does this cultural realignment mean, and how did we get here?