STARGIRL

*Full episode on Patreon*

This month, we rehash the recently upwelled Ballerina Farm discourse, and I talk about what she represents to me: not a “trad wife” (outdated, meaningless term), not a hard-headed business woman, but a secret third thing.

Discussed:

• “Meet the queen of the ‘trad wives’ (and her eight children)” Megan Agnew in the Times

• “My day with the trad wife queen and what it taught me” Follow-up article by Megan Agnew

• Inspired / ridiculous TikTok edits of Hannah dancing on the prairie: here, here, here

• Egg apron video

• Hannah’s response: IG Reel and full statement

  Christian influencers we been watching: Cecily Bachmann, Josie Conely, Lunden & Olivia on TikTok

  
  

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*Full episode on Patreon*

Eloise Skinner is a psychotherapist, author, and fitness instructor whose work focuses on existential themes, embodiment, and wellbeing. In this episode of The Body Series, Eloise explains the principles of existential therapy, how she’s built a life that combines her many varied interests (law, spirituality, therapy, fitness, dance, modeling, etc.), how our fundamental sense of trust in the world reflects our sense of safety in our bodies, and what Eloise calls "the pursuit of aliveness."

Follow Eloise on Instagram and TikTok!

Discussed:

• Eloise’s TEDTalk

• But Are You Alive?Eloise’s most-recent book

  
  

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Announcements: 
1. STARGIRL in-person event is happening!

Sunday, July 28 at 10am in Williamsburg (exact location details will be emailed out), a meetup and all-levels yoga class in NYC!

Fill out this Google Form to RSVP Space is limited, so serious responses only please

2. Submit your Rants and Raves! Record a 0:30 - 2:00 hot take on a Stargirl of your choice, and email it to me at [email protected]. I’ll play my favorites in forthcoming episodes!

Show notes:

This week, I’m joined by Holly Friend, a writer and trend forecaster based in London. We delve into the perverted world of Ottessa Moshfegh, one of the most commercially successful fiction writers of the last 10 years. We discuss how she unwittingly predicted / defined a cultural moment with My Year of Rest and Relaxation, her apparent obsession with self-mastery and anti-victimhood, unique sobriety narrative, and how her gross, sensory world compares to Sally Rooney’s romantic, cerebral one.

Holly Friend is a writer and futurist based in London. She makes sense of the world through identifying trends and narratives, which does as a freeland cultural strategist for brands, and as a fiction writer. Follow Holly on Instagram!

Discussed:

• Diva Discourse, a Beyoncé podcast by my friends Shaan and Enzo

• Kim is producing and featuring in an upcoming docuseries on Liz Taylor

• “#TurnOutForWhat” Rock the Vote campaign video (2014)

• Books by Ottessa: Eileen, My Year of Rest and Relaxation, Lapvona, Homesick for Another World

• “Ottessa Moshfegh Is Praying for You” Andrea Long Chu in Vulture

• Ottessa on the Bret Easton Ellis podcast

• Interview with Ottessa in the Guardian

• “Jailbait” essay by Ottessa in Granta

  
  

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*Announcements! 

• The first STARGIRL in-person event is happening! Details will be announced on my Instagram first @emmaglennbaker — can’t wait to share more and see you there!*

• In this week’s episode, I introduce a brand new segment to the public: STARGIRL Rants and Raves! I welcome all listeners to send in a Rant or Rave on a Stargirl, person/persona you fixate on, or cultural event/moment that you love or hate. This first round was open to Patrons only, and we listen to my favorite three submissions here today!
  

Here’s how it works:

• Record a 0:30 - 2:00 minute-long voice note

• Email the audio file to me at [email protected]

• Subject line should read “Rant / Rave” on [your subject]”

• In the email, please not e how you’d like to be attributed (full name, first name only, IG handle, etc.)

Show notes:

This week we tackle a classic Stargirl: Dame Elizabeth Taylor. I talk about the many elements of her myth that I somehow inherited—her violet eyes, “married eight times to seven men,” her health issues, etc. I decide that although Liz Taylor is indeed beautiful, prolific, and messy, her real singularity lies in her Sturdiness: She is womanly, down-to-earth, and robust. We also discuss Camille Paglia’s incredible fixation on Liz, and leaf through Liz’s memoir/self-help/recipe book about her own weight gain and loss, Elizabeth Takes Off.

Plus, I finally acknowledge the Chappell Roan phenomenon, praise Addison for her underwater Dhanurasana, and challenge myself to discuss the election head-on, rather than roll my eyes and look away. We got this y’all!

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*Full episode on Patreon!*

Happy July! In this month's letter, available to Dream / Threat-tier subscribers on Patreon, I give my final thoughts on "Brat Summer," dive into Azaelia Banks' recent Twitter run on today's poised-for-greatness pop stars, and ground down to the principles of manifestation/Law of Attraction that will get us all where we want to go.

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*Full episode on Patreon!*

In this episode of The Body Series, I interview Sloane Elizabeth, a food freedom coach and the founder of the Food Freedom Collective. She is a holistic wellness expert who helps women eat, move, and live with Love & Intuition and empowers women to stop dieting, obsessing, restricting, and playing small so that they can experience food and life freedom. She uses a unique and powerful combination of science and spirituality to help her clients heal and live their dream lives. Sloane is also a published author and has been featured on Food Network, The Doctors, SHAPE, Betches, and Authority Magazine.

We discuss how intuitive eating is a result of healing (not something you do or perform), how restricting and overeating both stem from the same root wounds, and how Sloane navigates the saturated and highly charged online space around diet, weight gain and loss, and body image.

Check out Sloane’s website

Download this free resource from Sloane on Masterclass

Mentioned:

STARGIRL profile in Coveteur by Katy Kelleher

Sign up to take a free online yoga class with me in July!

SKIMS for Team USA

*Full episode on Patreon!*

Welcome to Part II of my conversation with my friend and the writer Shaan Sachdev. In this episode, we tackle Beyoncé as a Stargirl: how she handles controversy, deploys narrative control, and the Dream / Threat she represents. We discuss who she offends, and in which ways the jury is still out on her morality, despite her not being an edge-seeker in her personal life. We also wonder about what a Beyoncé successor would even look like, and worry about the decline of performance value in the singer-dancers of today.

Plus, a very special announcement for our Patreon community!

Beyoncé at Glastonbury (2011) 

Read Shaan’s work and listen to Diva Discourse

Subscribe to the STARGIRL Patreon!

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Welcome to Part 1 of our Beyoncé special, with my friend and the Beyoncé evangelist Shaan Sachdev! This week, we take it all the way back to Wayne Koestenbaum’s 1993 book The Queen’s Throat, the seminal text on the Diva, fandom, and Vicariousness. We discuss the border between true Divadom and generalized cuntiness, and use Shaan’s recent piece in the Wall Street Journal to discuss Beyoncé’s supreme athleticism and what it means, then, to watch her age.Shaan Sachdev is a cultural critic and essayist based in New York. He writes about ontology, city life, and his two favorite Divas: Hannah Arendt and Beyoncé. He co-hosts Diva Discourse, a Beyoncé-centered podcast.

Discussed: Tinx’s podcast episode on weightlifting Alix Earle for Sports Illustrated Swim Kim Kardashian and Chloe Sevigny for Variety The Queen’s Throat: Homosexuality, Opera, and the Mystery of Desire, Wayne Koestenbaum (1993) “Beyoncé the Athlete Is Adjusting to Midlife” Shaan in WSJ “The Key to Beyoncé’s Lasting Success” Shaan in Slate “Beyoncé Is Finally Embracing Her Role as Fairy Godmother to the Gays” Shaan in The Daily Beast“Taylor Swift’s Invisible Merchandise” Shaan in Salon

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*Full episode on Patreon!*

Cameron Yuen, PT, DPT, CSCS, is a performance physical therapist with a specialty in strength and conditioning, and the Director of Rehabilitation and Training and Bespoke Treatments in New York City. I worked with him in 2023 after I injured my lower back, and his coaching transformed both the way I approach training and my overall relationship to my body. 

In this episode, we discuss the importance of strength, mobility, and motor control, how to approach injury and rehab, and simple ways to improve your health and longevity: resistance training, cardio, blood sugar management, sleep, and more. We also ask the question: Why is it important to have a healthy, well-functioning body?

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*Full episode on Patreon!*

Celebrate two years of STARGIRL in this patron-only special episode, where we look back at the genesis of the project and check in on some of the Stargirls.

We discuss Tinx as a DJ, EmRata as a mom, the race to represent “mainstream white America,” what the heck is up in New York, and more. Plus, breaking my silence on Addison’s downfall and "the Girls and Gays" as a market segmentation.

Subscribe to the STARGIRL Patreon!

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