Ninety-nine problems and a win
On whose advice?
On a list of lifehacks celebrities and corporates need to adopt is how to take better care of who they let into their entourages. The world is full of graceless managers and tone-deaf marketing teams. Singer Tinashe was allegedly told by her manager that it would be a terrific idea, during a shoot with Travis Scott, to grab hold of his crotch area.
But wait, there’s more to cringe over. The folks at Dove thought they might join the queue of advertisers making flawed statements. They have manufactured bottles of products in shapes that “evoke” the range of curves women have. Just Dove’s way of ensuring that every woman is represented in a wonkily shaped bottle. Awkward.
We miss you, etiquette, where are you?
Norma Gigaba was entirely too candid on camera in an interview that had us howling at our browsers to “make it stop!”. The information technology specialist, the wife of new Finance Minister Malusi Gigaba, also goes by the moniker Mrs Gigabyte on the internet. It’s the name tag on a Baywatchesque bodysuit she wears in a photograph for her 267 000 followers on Instagram.
In a deceptively light-hearted interview with eNCA’s Ayanda-Allie Paine, Gigaba bares a cringeworthy load on the subject of her marriage to the minister. Her advice to her husband’s initial concerns about his new job was: “Just go to finance, the rand will drop and it will go up, babe.’’
All the seemingly innocent one-onone interview did was put her under greater public scrutiny — Twitter didn’t let it slide.
And the internet, thanks to Buhle Mkhize, was never the same. In a series of PowerPoint slides, a woman going by the Twitter handle @ BuhleMkhize85 and who claims to have been Malusi Gibaba’s former mistress, came for the Gigabas or “Mpandlomz’’ and ‘“Homonaledi’’. The allegations had South Africans gripped on the account that was created on the same day, as file after file on the affair was alluded to. Her main gripe? Being referred to as a liar and prostitute by Mrs Gigabyte who at the time of publishing, was yet to respond to the virtual tirade.
Host with the most
This year’s MTV TV and Movie awards were worth watching because Trevor Noah is unstoppable. For his witty and relentless critique of America in the time of Donald Trump, The Daily Show anchor and comedian took home the Best Host award. His views on the United States president are unsparing, his punchlines often nothing you saw coming.
Jordan Peele’s much-talked about work of genius, Get Out, was nominated for Film of the Year, with actor Daniel Kaluuya winning Best Actor and Best Duo for his role in the postmodern thriller. Issa Rae was nomination for her HBO series, Insecure, whose second season is due to air later this year.
Tough pill for patriarchy
“Men are trash.’’ This hashtag made it on to a T-shirt range and on the wrong side of proponents of the culture, who went on to prove that men aren’t right. The phrase is being fleshed out on Twitter, as the focus was taken away from the issue of, first, problematic social structures that engender unfair spaces of male privilege and, second, men getting away with unacceptable behaviour towards women since forever.
Similar to #BlackLivesMatter, #MenAreTrash ventures bravely and frankly to the heart of the problem. It also breaks the silence. The “Not all men” brigade and “I have a sister/ mother/woman I know” types came out in protest, calling the hashtag disrespectful and proposing that women be called trash too. Some guys went so far as to create “Black women are trash” Ts, looping in the race card and missing the point altogether.
The age of the young president
Emmanuel Macron has broken a record by being the youngest president in French history. But that may not be a real feat. Macron’s win comes under a number of extenuating circumstances. According to reports, more than half the population chose not to vote or spoilt their ballots. For those who did vote for Macron, he was the lesser of two evils — Marine Le Pen being the alternative.
Back on the African continent, Diane Rwigara (35), a Rwandan businessperson who is the first woman to run for president in the country, woke up on Friday morning to nude pictures of herself all over social media. These were shared after the announcement was made. The identity of the person responsible is unknown. Rwigara is still in the running.