Ep. 301 - Popping Corns and Nate the Hoof Guy with Erika Qwerk aka Lauren Banall

It’s season three baby!!!!  Britney Shields is joined by the queen of it all, Lauren Banall, fresh off her viral Erika Kirk impression that birthed the internet’s newest anti-hero: Erika Qwerk.And because subtlety is dead, Britney shows up to the studio dressed as Melania Trump, giving you a historic summit between Erika Qwerk and Melania C*nt. Diplomacy has never been this glamorous.We start by unpacking the power and parameters of satire. Why drag has always critiqued those in power. Why punching up is sacred. And what responsibility white performers have when operating inside an art form rooted in Black and Brown resistance.Lauren and Britney get candid about:·      Weaponizing white privilege to actively dismantle white supremacy·      How to take feedback from POC and marginalized communities without ego·      The difference between intention and impact·      Why correction is growth, not cancellationThen we pivot to the It Girls of the Week:·      Bad Bunny, fresh off a Grammy win and a culture-shifting Super Bowl performance·      The ongoing chaos of the Epstein files·      Melania Trump’s documentary flopping at the box office and a revisit of her infamous “Be Best” speech as we question what she may have known while preaching about protecting children’s innocenceFrom there, we descend into our Niche Girls — the hyper-specific internet content getting us through the rise of fascism:·      Pediatricians shaving calicos and carving out corns in oddly satisfying foot-care videos·      Nate the Hoof Guy, bravely treating infected cow hooves for millions of captivated viewersBecause sometimes survival looks like dissociation via oddly specific grooming content.We close with our It Girls Who Got Away:·      A plea for Swedish pop deity Robyn to reclaim her throne and a rallying cry ahead of her new album drop·      Cirie from The Traitors, and the anticipation surrounding her upcoming appearance on Survivor 50It’s absurd. It’s political. It’s deeply online. It’s counterculture grit and pop culture glitter now with higher stakes and better wigs.Season three has arrived.