A highlight of news related to music, books, tv and other art forms, mixed with politics, current affairs and advocacy.
February started with the Grammy Awards and the Super Bowl, events you probably haven’t missed. At the Grammy Awards, we saw heartfelt statements against ICE from different celebrities. Billie Eilish and Olivia Dean spoke up, just like Bad Bunny. He won Album of the Year, making it the first time this title went to an album entirely in Spanish! And then he still had the Super Bowl Halftime Show in prospect. There he celebrated his Puerto Rican heritage and created an incredible and important momentum.
He reminded everyone there’s so much more to America than the United States and spread unity and hope in a time where this is so needed. Yes, a certain group of people was offended that his entire performance was in Spanish, but that’s on them. Especially in a time where we see uncertainty in Venezuela, Mexico, Cuba… (often at least partially caused by the US), Bad Bunny’s performance meant a lot to many people. I loved that he also brought out Ricky Martin – who paved the way as a fellow Puerto Rican artist – and Lady Gaga, who has always been an ally for everything that’s right. Especially the fact that Ricky Martin sang the following words from “LO QUE LE PASÓ A HAWAii” felt very powerful:
“Quieren quitarme el río y también la playa
Quieren el barrio mío y que abuelita se vaya
No, no suelte’ la bandera ni olvide’ el lelolai
Que no quiero que hagan contigo lo que le pasó a Hawái”
Apart from this big news, there have been some other moments this month that stayed with me. Let’s take a look.
1. Jesy Nelson’s documentary
Former Little Mix member Jesy spoke up about her leaving Little Mix and life after the split. In the Prime Documentary ‘Jesy Nelson: Life After Little Mix’, she looked back on how her mental health was impacted by her time in the spotlight. Anyone who loved Little Mix knows the hate she endured about her appearance (it’s still crazy to me she got called ‘the fat one’), but that it was that bad… Apparently she tried to take her own life because of the scrutiny she was under.
The documentary first seemed to show a happy new start for Jesy, but ended up being very heavy.
The documentary also showed how sudden the split from Little Mix was and how Jesy tried to rebuild a career – and herself – afterwards. Initially the viewer sees a much happier Jesy, expecting and delivering twins. But unfortunately the babies turn out to have a very rare muscle disease, that puts their life at risk. The documentary first seemed to show a happy new start for Jesy, but ended up being very heavy. However, she decided to put the pain into something positive. She is now raising awareness for the rare disease her babies have and how to recognize it faster (which increases life expectancy).
When it comes to Jesy’s struggles with her self-esteem, it’s clear the internet and even fans of Little Mix played a huge part in how everything rolled out. Even now, I see posts on social media looking back on the group’s success deliberately leaving out Jesy, even though she was there in the prime years.
Even now, I see posts on social media looking back on the group’s success deliberately leaving out Jesy.
At the same time there are also fans of Jesy who spread hate about the other members. In the documentary Jesy said that one of her bandmates was mean to her when she confided in them about her problems. And sadly that’s led to the internet speculating about who exactly said this. I’ve seen many comments saying that it must have been Leigh-Anne ‘because she has mean girl vibes’. Now, I can’t help but think this stems from the prejudices about Black women. Because there’s literally no evidence that it would be her. It might as well have been Perrie or Jade, and it doesn’t even matter. But still, the internet looks for someone to blame and to blame the Black woman seems easiest. I don’t think those people took the right conclusions from Jesy’s documentary…
2. Criticism on the Wuthering Heights movie
Then there was the long-awaited movie adaption of Wuthering Heights, starring Margot Robbie and Jacob Elordi. It’s the casting of the latter that has sparked debate. And rightfully so. In the book his character is described as ‘dark-skinned’, which is not just a detail but is context for how he gets treated. The fact that a white man plays this role, is – to say the least – remarkable. The producer defended her choices by saying it’s her interpretation when she read the book when she was younger.
But to me it shows this production was missing diverse perspectives. Especially knowing the few roles that were kept for people of color, had some weird elements in it. Different online creators have made great explainers about this. I encourage you to watch the videos made by Jananie (@thisstoryaintover) on Instagram. She was invited to the premiere of the movie, but still expressed her critical thoughts, which is admirable in a world where a lot of influencers put their values on the side when it’s convenient.
3. A documentary on femicide
On Flemish television, the first episode of a new docu series about femicide aired. This is the first time the stories of women murdered by their (ex-)partners were told in this way. Usually, in the news, the focus lies on the perpetrator and what he did. But this time the families of victims are given a voice. Each episode contains the story of one femicide victim in Flanders. It’s an incredibly important – and long overdue – docu series.
At this moment we don’t have official numbers of femicide in Belgium, but on average every two weeks a woman gets killed. More numbers are now being kept. So, in some time we should have a better view. But for now, I’m glad a documentary like this finally got made. Because yes, it’s a growing problem. And it’s about time the victims aren’t just referred to as women who ended up in terrible situations, but are seen as human beings with rich lives who lost so much because a man wanted to own her.
You can watch the documentary in Belgium on VRT MAX or every Monday on VRT CANVAS.
What to expect in March?
Let’s end this post on a lighter and more positive note. We ended February with the BRIT Awards, where Olivia Dean – winning four awards – was the big winner. PinkPantheress took home the award for Producer of the Year, as the first woman to do so (and she’s only 24!).
In March we can expect the iHeartRadio Music Awards and JUNO Awards. And: yes, my second book comes out (in Dutch)! ‘Tijd om te bloeien’ (translated as ‘Time to blossom’) is a feminist feelgood and I’m incredibly excited to set it free into the world.
Written by Nikita
Nikita – founder of Nikita’s World – is a Belgian author of feminist feelgood & a journalist specialized in pop culture and the creative industry.