AN ATH RESET

Hi there.
Happy Wednesday.

I started a version of this newsletter over three years ago when I wasn’t working at 10 Summer St. Its original purpose was just to keep clients up to date on what was happening on social - what’s trending, what’s cool, what’s everyone talking about. It’s grown considerably since then and nothing brings me more joy than writing to you each week.

But And This Happened… is not a news source (in the traditional sense), and I am not a journalist. There have been over 27 mass shootings in the United States this year alone. And now Texas, where 19 children were killed. That’s a weighty thing. Heavier than I feel comfortable holding for you with any type of meaningful reflection or cogent thought. This newsletter has taken a particular shape over the last five months, and I’m not sure it’s the right direction. That’s okay! Sometimes we have to take a step back and look at the work we’ve done, and ask “is this really how this should look?” I like doing that. Normally after a hideous eyeliner application… but sometimes in my professional life, too!

We all have different beliefs and opinions.

We come from different backgrounds. We carry different traumas. We look different, sound different, and act differently from one another. And that’s an amazing thing. That’s what makes a community so wonderful. I’m incredibly proud to be a part of the Havas community and even more proud of this newsletter so many of you seem to enjoy.

But I am only one voice. I’m Juliet. I am NOT representative of our entire Havas community. I didn’t go to school to learn how to report on things like abortion, police brutality, and gun control objectively; and yet, this is what is littering our American culture. This is what is shaping us. These things fundamentally affect culture and “what’s hot” online. Sharing THOSE things with you IS part of my job here. So what happens when the lines blur? When I can no longer ignore my personal beliefs on abortion, BLM, gay rights, and gun control?

To be very brutally honest with you, sometimes I just want to LEARN and to LAUGH (like my favorite TikTok once declared). Sometimes I just want to come here and forget the news exists. I want to regale you with stories of my bad dating history, my anxiety, my fiancé’s devastating obsession with Phish, the new influencer I have a crush on, and how much I f-ing love TikTok. I want to talk about Jiggle Jiggle and why it popped off so hard. I want to interview my coworkers about their favorite pop stars. I want you to feel how much joy there still is when we think about the word “culture.” Because right now “American Culture” seems like such a dirty phrase.

It’s difficult when you want to share the good, and the weight of the bad is so heavy.

I don’t want to miss something. I don’t want to misrepresent a cultural event that was impactful for some but maybe didn’t make it to my timeline. I don’t want to skip over something that devastated someone and have them ask themselves, “does she even care?” I absolutely, without a shadow of a doubt, from the bottom of my heart promise you, I care. I care so much that writing this has become agonizing some weeks. It’s become the thing “I need to do” rather than the thing “I love to do.”

Starting today,
you will not be reading about the headlines you see in the news in
And This Happened…

 

We won’t be covering some of the more crippling topics on which our country disagrees. You have The New York Times and NPR and The Washington Post for that. This is not a cop-out — it’s because I’m a human, and I can’t hide how I feel anymore. I shouldn’t have to.

And This Happened
is to keep you relevant.

It’s to make you laugh. It’s for a good party trick when you’re running out of things to say to the awkward guy who just engaged you when your friend went to the bathroom. It’s to inspire your creative teams. It’s to help you mine for insights. It’s not for me to come here and make us all feel sad and bad about the state of our world. You have the news and journalists for that. I’m Juliet. I’m going to do what I do best - beg you to love me via a newsletter by self-deprecating and bringing you the tea.

Sound good? K good.

SO HERE’S WHAT I KNOW:

NEW MUSIC WEEKLY

 

Harry Styles released his third studio album on Friday!

Electropop sensation Rina Sawayama dropped single "This Hell" on Wednesday!

Isabel Pless posted a clip of her single "Twenty-Two" on TikTok back in 2021 and video blew up, getting over 735K views. It took six months of waiting, but "Twenty-Two" is now officially out!


That’s more than enough for this week. It was a tough one.

KLOVEYOUBYE

JT