WELCOME TO THE B-LIST, YOUR WEEKLY ROUNDUP OF CELEBRITY MESS AND POP CULTURE. THIS WEEK: Brat Remix Album, Met Gala theme, tennis in China, the Chicago Marathon, and Simu Liu.
*music out*
Huge weekend for gay people: pop princess Charli xcx released the remix counterpart to her acclaimed album “Brat” this past Friday, featuring notable names including Ariana Grande, Caroline Polacheck, and Tinashe on the remixed tracks. The album, titled “Brat and It’s Completely Different but Also Still Brat,” and its release coincided with xcx and fellow gay icon Troye Sivan’s ongoing co-headlining Sweat tour, which is currently set to conclude on Oct. 23 in Seattle, Washington.
In fashion news, the 2025 Met Gala theme was announced this past week. Coinciding with the Metropolitan Museum of Art Costume Institute’s spring 2025 exhibition, the theme will be “Superfine: Tailoring Black Style,” drawing inspiration from Monica L. Miller’s 2009 book “Slaves to Fashion: Black Dandyism and the Styling of Black Diasporic Identity.” Colman Domingo, Lewis Hamilton, A$AP Rocky, Pharrell Williams, and Anna Wintour will co-chair next year’s edition of the Gala, alongside honorary chair LeBron James.
In sports news, two major Chinese tennis tournaments wrapped up this weekend, with Italy’s number one ranked Jannik Sinner defeating seasoned veteran Novak Đoković at the Shanghai Masters, and Belarus’s Aryna Sabalenka taking down China’s own Qinwen Zheng at the Wuhan Open. Both players notably took home the top singles titles at the US Open earlier this year, toppling American players Taylor Fritz and Jessica Pegula in the finals, respectively.
In other sports news, the Chicago Marathon took place yesterday, with this year’s race serving as the 46th edition since it began in 1977. Drawing a field of around 50,000 racers, Kenya’s Ruth Chepngetich won the women’s race by breaking the current world record by nearly two minutes, finishing in two hours, nine minutes, and 56 seconds. On the men’s side, the race was won by fellow countryman John Korir, who finished in two hours, two minutes, and 43 seconds, the second-fastest time ever run in Chicago.
Finally, in celebrity news, Canadian actor Simu Liu put a pair of Quebec entrepreneurs on blast last week, criticizing their boba tea company over concerns of cultural appropriation. The pair, who were featured on Canada’s version of “Shark Tank” to pitch their bottled popping boba and alcoholic bubble tea brand, received backlash after some, including Liu himself, took issue with the appropriation and commercialization of traditional foods without regard for their cultural significance.
*music in*
THAT’S ALL FOR THE B-LIST THIS WEEK. CHECK IN NEXT MONDAY TO HEAR ABOUT WHAT HAPPENS THIS WEEK IN POP CULTURE. FOR WNUR NEWS, I’M BAZIL FRUEH.
