CATCHING FIRE: NeeDohs, Substack salary drama and Sienna Spiro
Do keep up!
Hello! In today’s letter we’re taking the temperature of Clavicular’s next move, the heels stylists are fighting over, the big time TikToker who can’t pay her rent, Harry Styles’ puddle-deep lyrics, war memes, branded bat mitzvahs, the writers making millions, one model’s 14-step daily wellness regime, yet another 90s trend, Harper Beckham’s make-up mogul plans, Oscars drama and so much more.
So hot right now
NeeDohs… Tweens, teens and stressed-out adults are going wild for a squishy sensory toy that looks set to be as massive as the fidget spinner craze of 2017.
NeeDoh balls and blocks have become so popular they’re peaking on Google search, American TikTokers are “hunting” them down from sold-out retailers and they’ve become as ubiquitous as Stanley cups in schools…
All I want to know is what happened to all those Labubus?
Sienna Spiro… who’s being talked about in the same breath as Adele and Amy Winehouse thanks to her powerhouse vocals and raw lyrics.
The 20-year-old from London dropped her new ballad, The Visitor, today, as a follow to her slow burn smash Die on This Hill, which has been streamed on Spotify more than 300 million times since October.
The buzz around the singer-songwriter is intense, with some tipping her to emulate, or even surpass, the success of fellow British female stars Olivia Dean, PinkPanthress, Lola Young and Raye.
Chanel… The release of Matthieu Blazy’s first collection for the storied brand has created wild scenes that have been compared to “The Hunger Games” as fashionistas battled to get their hands on his shoes and bags.
According to The New York Times’ chief fashion critic, Vanessa Friedman, these $1,260/£950 black pumps with mint green toe caps and these $1,330/£1,000 burgundy slingbacks caused a near riot.
“Editors, stylists and influencers were literally fighting with each other for the last pairs,” according to Friedman. “I’ve never seen anything like it.” While super stylist Gabriella Karefa-Johnson described the scene in the Rue Cambon store in Paris as “mayhem”.
Harry Styles… and his new album Kiss All the Time. Disco, Occasionally. have been everywhere this month.
Between the Netflix concert special, a joy-filled BRIT Awards performance, interviews with Runner’s World, a sit down with Apple Music’s Zane Lowe, a star turn on Brittany Broski’s Royal Court and a forthcoming presenting and performing slot on Saturday Night Live, Styles has put his back into promo.
Despite all that exposure, and 12 self-written new tracks, we’re no closer to knowing anything about who Styles really is. Indeed the vague, puddle-deep lyrics of Kiss All the Time. Disco, Occasionally. seem to prove that he’s either unwilling to share his inner life with us or doesn’t have much to say. That’s not affecting sales though. Styles’ fourth LP is Spotify‘s biggest album debut of 2026 so far.
Trends, trends and even more trends
90s nostalgia (again)… Another week means yet another trend that takes a misty-eyed look at life from three decades ago. This time it’s celebrities who are taking us back to the height of their fame by posting slideshows of their biggest moments alongside the The Goo Goo Dolls’ track Iris.
Andre Agassi’s gave me goosebumps…
While Reese Witherspoon reminded us all that she was the ultimate 90s girl (those eyebrows)…
And I forgot just how smoking hot Halle Berry was back then…
RELATED 90s supermodel Cindy Crawford dropped her 6am to 8.30am routine on TikTok and her 14-step process, that involves walking bare foot on grass not once, but twice, sets a new bar for wellnessmaxxing…
Everyone’s talking about
Money… And it’s all New York magazine’s fault after they revealed the pay of 60 people and in the process unleashed some big feelings.
Substackers got bent out of shape when they found out someone was getting six figures to ghostwrite a celebrity’s newsletter…
And this anonymous fashion writer was the subject of a man/woman hunt after their salary was laid bare…
I understand why writers get pressed over someone making so much cash on Substack when many make so little, but I fear they’re misplacing their frustration/anger/jealousy/insert your own emotion, because this anonymous writer is nowhere near the summit of the high-earning fashion Substack pile. If they really want to wind themselves up then look no further than the two publications that sit at the top of the fashion category.
