In The Buzz Cut, we bring you a round-up of all the weird, controversial, and wonderful stories we’ve been reading all week.
Canadian singer and mother to a weirdly-named-baby, Grimes, is putting her soul up for sale. Grimes, who considers herself a visual artist first and foremost, has an exhibit titled “Selling Out” in Los Angeles, that includes the deed for her soul. The price? Your choice.
*
The video of a white woman threatening to call the police on a black man in New York’s Central Park, while pretending to be threatened herself, has chalked up views globally. In addition to sparking outrage against her, the video also incited conversations around the pretense of white fragility, and the role white women have played in subjugating black people under the guise of victimhood.
*
Kylie Jenner’s billionaire status has been the focus of many conversations regarding what it means to be self-made. But an investigation into Jenner’s recent cashing out on half of her cosmetic empire reveals she might have never been a billionaire after all.
*
There’s a fight brewing between TikTok — the beleaguered video app people hate-love — and YouTube content creators. It all began when YouTuber CarryMinati made a homophobic roast of a TikToker. Now, it has all descended into chaos.
*
The Internet’s biggest roastmaster, SwagMasterEDP, is the founder of the subreddit r/RoastMe, where almost two million members vie to get roasted mercilessly. Why? SwagMasterEDP thinks it’s simple. Attention. Here’s how they keep the peace, straddling the line between comedy and hate.
*
Sex and orgasms are no longer the ‘it’ thing, at least not in pop culture. Shows like Normal People and Run have made not having sex exciting, displaying perpetual states of horniness as, well … hot. Lifting the focus off of the actual act of sex, and glorifying the buildup, has also allowed creators to explore consent, and sex from the female gaze.
*
The concept of arranged marriage has long been conflated in the West with a loss of free will, a stereotype aided by self-proclaimed desi shows such as Never Have I Ever. But modern renditions of arranged marriage seldom pose youth a choice between happiness and family duty, and can even be consensual.
*
‘The rise of ‘Karen,’ as a name assigned to entitled, often tone-deaf white women, has taken root in the coronavirus pandemic, offending sensibilities of white people who think it’s a slur. (It’s not.) How did ‘Karen’ become such a viral pandemic meme?
