*Full episode on Patreon*

Today we welcome Nisa Neza, the host of CAN'T TAKE ME ANYWHERE, to tackle Lana: Part I/ ! We explore: Lana's meandering, sun-flared world, the various sexual tropes she plays with, and how her music and look have evolved (/deteriorated) over the past decade. We also discuss how she foretold our collective Americana nostalgia moment, how patriotism plays out in her music and reception, and how she seized authority as *the* chronicler of Los Angeles. Plus! The threat of women whose self-destructive behavior leads to Great Art vs. Looking Bad :/

Follow Nisa @this.albanian.life

Listen to CAN'T TAKE ME ANYWHERE

This week we use TikTok star Alix Earle as a vessel to tackle one of my favorite topics: Blondeness! I discuss what it "means" to be/go blonde, the sorry state of blonde discourse, and how blondeness is deployed as a device in art vs. real life. I also pose the big-kahuna question: What is the beauty standard in 2023? and argue that our collective quest to "transform beauty standards" is less about changing on-the-ground sexual preferences and more about increasing access to commodification. Scary....

Discussed:

"Does Parade Underwear Make You Feel Good About Yourself?" Brock Colyar in The Cut

"Spiritual Bimboism" Nymphet Alumni episode

"What Does It Mean To Choose to Dye Your Hair Blonde?" Interview with Claudia Rankine on NPR

"Why So Many Asian-American Women Are Bleaching Their Hair Blond" Andrea Cheng in the Times

"The Enduring, Invisible Power of Blond" Tressie McMillan Cottom in the Times

"The Age of Instagram Face" Jia Tolentino in The New Yorker

"Botoxic Masculinity" Red Scare episode

"The Class Politics of Instagram Face" Grazie Sophia Christie in Tablet

"Hozempic" Red Scare episode

"Will the Ozempic Era Change How We Think About Being Fat and Being Thin?" Jia Tolentino in The New Yorker

This week we are joined by a real-life Stargirl, the writer Katie Roiphe, to discuss Mary McCarthy, one of the best and most controversial writers of the 20th century. We talk about the sharpness and brutality of her voice, her rejection of political movements in favor of a more intimate, material investigation of people's behavior, how her mass appeal violated the norms of her intellectual circle, and why she's been written out of certain feminist literary histories. Plus, Katie shares a handful of quotes about the myth of McCarthy's unnerving smile.

Discussed:

Stories in The Company She Keeps: A Cruel and Barbarous Treatment, The Genial Host, The Man in the Brooks Brothers Shirt

This week we tackle the backlog of "are they or aren't they" potential-Stargirls, revisit the Too-Too-ness, and talk about the importance of meaningfully alienating people with your ideas. Come play in my world! 🤸

Discussed:

Also discussed:

*Full episode on Patreon*

This week we delve deep into the uncanny world of the D2C underwear brand Parade and its CEO, Cami Téllez. I talk about the downsides of bridging art and editorial, the botched AI-ness of everything we're forced to look at, and the tendency for powerful, beautiful women to reject their normie power for the sake of 'relatability.' 

My essay "Late to the Parade: The Self-Own of Influencer Marketing in 2021"

*Full episode on Patreon*

This week we go long on Azealia Banks, the American rapper who can't STFU to save her life. I talk witchiness, how mean women problematize fourth-wave "Do You" feminism, and the thin line between being an aesthete and being a bully. 

Discussed:

"Perpetual Childhood: The Rise of Cute Feminism" by Mikaela Dery in Soft Punk
"#MeToo Will Not Survive Unless We Recognize Toxic Femininity" by Meghan Daum in Medium **I kept saying "Doud" instead of "Daum" — brain lapse — apologies!!**

Lena Dunham's Girls is my favorite piece of art that's been created in my lifetime. I talk about why writing off the show as "narcissistic" is a massive missed opportunity, Lena's compulsion toward self-exposure and body horror, and her acute (unmatched?) understanding of how people behave. Happy Holidays y'all, and see you in the new year! 🌠

Discussed:

Joining us this week is one of my dearest friends, Molly, to discuss the musician and de facto Sad Girl cult leader, Mitski. We talk about the liminal space of teenage girlhood, extended adolescence, how to elevate melodrama into art, and the social power of female passivity.

Mentioned:
Addison + archival fashion by Janelle Okwodu in Vogue
"Grand Unified Theory of Female Pain" Leslie Jamison in VQR
"The Misreading of Mitski" Jia Tolentino in TNY

*Listen to the full episode on Patreon!*

This week we explore The Myth of Julia Fox: her hard-partying youth, various artistic endeavors, explicit sex appeal, and attempts at provocation in 2022. We also talk about the fragility of the dream(s) she represents: being young, hot, and reckless in New York; representing a milieu just by being yourself; and turning out just fine (and famous) after following your impulses to the bitter end.

Mentioned:

⁠"A Retired Dominatrix Goes to Church"⁠ Naomi Fry in The New Yorker  ⁠

"Julia's Box: Where the Legend of 'The Fox' All Began"⁠ Cat Marnell in PAPER 

⁠IDEA⁠ on Julia's art books ⁠

"Sex, Blood, and the Ritual of Rebirth: RIP Julia Fox"⁠ Jill Di Donato in Huffpost ⁠

Julia's Into The Gloss interview⁠

This week, we recap the foundational STARGIRL themes: the nature-artifice continuum, ripe/dead, and the quest for narrative control. Then, we analyze one of the world's highest-profile MPDGs, Grimes, and discuss the power/limits of self-mythology and caricature, how to safely court Evil, and the deep threat of the effortless Weird Girl.

Mentioned:

"On Duplicity: Grimes and the Allure of the Fantasy Self" Emma Baker in Soft Punk