Jaz Zepatos is featured on this week's episode of Nicstalgia. We talk about being funny, not caring about what people think, and getting used to feeling stupid. (Or in the words of the inimitable Weird Al, “Dare To Be Stupid”.) You will come to discover in this episode that both crying in public and falling down a flight of stairs are essentially rites of passage living in New York City.
We discuss Jaz’s experience with improv, making music, being a former child actor, and how to dismiss the limiting tropes and stereotypical boxes that female-identifying comedians are put in so you can be be the funny, smart, sexy, and [whatever you want] person to desire to be.
We realize just how many similarities there are between Mean Girls and Never Been Kissed, My So Called Life, and well, kinda everything that came before it. We also play a game where Jaz composes songs about our favorite movies! Am I the next Princess of Genovia? Who's to say. Shout out to (probably) listeners of the podcast, Weird Al, Dua Lipa, and Evan Rachel Wood.
Watch/listen: YouTube • Spotify • Apple Podcasts • Website
🛼 Haven’t You Heard?!
My fav things from the internet rn:
This 2022 Gen Z Field Guide by Horizon Media is super cool!! (It’s formatted like a magazine and is easy to read.) Aimed at marketers to this increasingly culturally relevant generation, this report dives into five sectors: gaming, entertainment, education, fashion, and beauty.
One of my favorite newsletters is Goodwill Hunting, which curates the best of pre-loved fashion finds, insights, and jobs from across the web. If you love thrifting, vintage, the circular economy, and the intersection of fashion and tech, this is for you!! The most recent edition talks about greenwashing (hard agree on ‘vegan leather’ being the best scam ever lol), and amazing curated vintage picks. (Danielle goes through Goodwill’s website to find epic luxury and designer pieces!) We even get a nostalgic moment – Barbie Fashion Designer, anyone??
I went down a rabbit hole and found this video from 1998 where Melanie B interviewed the symbol formerly known as Prince! My favorite part is where she asks him why he started selling his music on the internet and if he thinks music will be done “through the internet” in the future. Catch the full interview here.
Mel B: I was having a word with my drummer…and he goes, “At some point, there’s gonna be no need for record companies. Everything is gonna be done through the internet.” You’ll be able to sell, download, everything. It’s gonna be through the internet. Do you think that?
The symbol formerly known as Prince: I’m not so sure about that.
BTS has officially announced that members will be fulfilling their mandatory military service and the group will reunite around 2025. While I’m kicking myself for not immediately flying across the country to see them perform in LA or Vegas, I am forever grateful for my sister introducing me to the band that literally alleviated my clinical depression during the panini. It can be hard to explain the impact of ARMY to someone who is not familiar, but it has changed my life! Although it is from 2018, which seems like an eternity ago, this Vulture article – 40,000 BTS Fans Can’t Be Wrong – shows a quick glimpse of how much this fandom truly means to people.
📹 Pop-Up Video
One of my favorite albums of all time (actually…all-time favorite????) is Stripped by Christina Aguilera, aka. Xtina. The range, both vocally and thematically, was life changing. It defined my coming-of-age era aka. when I plucked my eyebrows off in their entirety. I can’t listen to it without feeling like my younger self again. “Soar” is my favorite song off the album, and fun fact, it was the song I did my first dance recital solo to in 9th grade. 🥲 🥰
“One of the things that I truly have had to learn, sometimes the hard way, that I’d like to share with you is to trust your own instincts – no matter people might say about you, no matter what criticism or what negativity might come your way for just being who you are and just being yourself. It’s so important. Tonight is your night.”
-Xtina about the inspiration behind “The Voice Within”. Stripped Tour, 2003
Let’s explore the videography of this iconic era and what it represents: Being yourself, expressing yourself, accepting yourself, and staying true to yourself at the risk of criticism, shame, external invalidation, and disapproval.
📲 I’m Just a Simple Girl in a High-Tech Digital World
🏆 Nicstalgia Trivia
We discuss on the pod this week that Mean Girls has many similarities to other teen pop culture before it. (Is it a ripoff or a callback? We discuss it on the pod this week.)
There is one show in particular where the resemblance is a little too uncanny, from the red circled failing grade, to the mom condoning drinking only in the house, and even reference to a not-so-chic vest. What is this 90s influential teen drama, which is also my fav show ever??
Find the answer in this week’s episode of Nicstalgia!
Last Week’s Answer
While I didn’t have an extensive Beanie Baby collection, I did have Sneaky the leopard. (Don’t love this name, as it has a negative connotation, but okay.) What’s my favorite animal which I erroneously thought Sneaky was for the last 22 years??
An ocelot. I saw one at the Beardsley Zoo as a kid (and as an adult, actually) and was so excited!! I said on the podcast it wasn’t native to the Americas but what I meant to say was literally the complete opposite – it IS native to the Southwest US, Mexico, and Central and South America. Oops 😇
Watch last week’s episode, Sugar, Spice, and Everything Nice with Danielle Petty, on YouTube!
🧨 Spice Up Your Life
Connect with Nic on TikTok, Instagram, and Twitter
Watch and subscribe to the Nicstalgia podcast on YouTube
Watch, listen, follow, and rate the Nicstalgia podcast on Spotify
Listen, follow, review, and rate the Nicstalgia podcast on Apple Podcasts