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April 18, 2025 15 mins

It landed safely... but did it land the PR? No. Forced girl boss branding, Oscar de la Renta suits, and a lot of unrelatability. PLUS: You are the company you keep.

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Episode Transcript

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Speaker 1 (00:12):
Let's discuss the space Odyssey, the female Space Odyssey, because
so many people are talking about it. I'm not sure
if it's as mainstream as I think it is, because
social media is on fuego about it, lit about it,
and to me that is mainstream. But the mainstream media

(00:32):
is just reporting the news like these women got off
this spaceship and this is what happened. And also like
that is a monumental thing, like going to space. You know,
I think it's a big deal to go to Australia,
So I'm going to say it's a big deal to
go to space. Someone someone asks you if you want
to go to space, you're considering it. Someone did mention
the trip to me, and it was something in my
mind as a concept I thought of, and it's certainly

(00:53):
something you're thinking about. But like I do remember being
like the why. You know, with everything I do, for
I'm an experience, from a travel from an appearance standpoint,
there's usually a why. And for me, for me personally
doing something like that, I don't have the why. I'm
a mother and my daughter really depends on me, and

(01:15):
I have a normal rational amount of fear. But overall
it's like what's the why that I'm going to do
something When I get on a plane and sitting coach
and go into Guatemala and it's like not safe, and
I'm a little scared. I'm not bringing my daughter because
it's not safe, and I'm going and there is a risk,
even though I'm a mother. But there's such a reward
in doing relief work and trying to help people, and

(01:38):
so that is where I weigh it for me. I
guess if I were taking a spaceship to save people's lives,
would I do it? Probably? But not? I don't know.
I mean, I got into some gnarly territory with the
pandemic and with the PPE, and I almost ruined my
career in the sense that, like, I was taking a
lot of risks. I was sending thirteen million dollars of

(02:00):
Haasmat suits to the government, and like it was scary
because we were dealing with counterfeit people and just like
I've dealt with some gnarly shit in my life. So
I don't know the why of going to space. Now
there's a battle going on online about was it really
like a woman kind step or was it just an
advertisement for space? Tourism, which is also like valid too,

(02:22):
like space tourism, maybe a thing one day we would
have never thought you could be on a plane to
begin with. Or you know, everything is about evolution, so
things that seem crazy now will one day make sense.
But whatever it is, this did not land from a
pr standpoint, and there are so many things about it,
comical and otherwise to get into. So number one, it's

(02:44):
a group of six women, strong, successful women that are
wealthy and famous and privileged, and they went on a trip.
Now they're entitled, not unlike going on a private jet
or a yacht to go to the south of France, like,
they can do what they want. They wanted to go,
they were each invited. It was an experience. You know,
people defended their own homes in Malibu with private firefighters.

(03:09):
It wasn't looked highly upon by other people because it
didn't seem that community. But nevertheless they protected their own
homes and that's presumably why they made money to protect
their own homes. So we can all sit in, you know,
on the outside, looking into something. But six women decided
collectively and individually to go to space, to have an experience,
to do something innovative. I don't think they did it

(03:30):
for the PR. I think they thought the PR would
be good because it sounds really like, you know, intense
and serious and like something groundbreaking, because it is they
went to space, and they decided to go to space,
so they went to space together. But here's where it
took a turn. It took a turn because I don't
know if this is true or fiction. Someone said Oscar

(03:51):
to lorent to design the outfits, and they had these
like tight outfits on, like I guess people were saying
as like lycra or spandex. So like I get the
idea of that. They were like where girl bosses and
we're wearing these outfits. But that didn't land. And I
get why that didn't land. It's like sort of focusing
on the wrong thing and almost like making a joke
out of it kind of. So there's that there were
no actual real astronauts, so it's like this is going

(04:13):
to be all this money spent and people going to
get to go to space, and so people who spent
their whole life studying or aspiring or dreaming to go
to space that actually are professionals in that field aren't going.
But like that's a touching story. A lot of archaeologists
or ourn't historians want to go to Egypt, and rich
people can go to Egypt, so like, okay, you know,

(04:35):
like everybody wants to turn it everything, but this is
not you know, this isn't a charity event they were doing.
They were going to space, but it was highly publicized
and they did marketing for it, so they are open
to the scrutiny that they're getting. Because the one thing
that I do understand and that I've talked about is
I don't like girl boss quote unquote mentality. I don't

(04:56):
like performative girl boss language act like we're bad bitches,
we're a girl But like, I understand that there are
people in the world, myself being one of them, that
are bad bitch girl bosses, like Martha Stewart's a bad
bitch girl boss, so is Oprah Winfrey, so is on
a win tour. But the people that really are aren't
putting forth the boss bitch mentality, the narrative, and so

(05:21):
these women there was an essence to this whole thing
that it's giving like forced girl boss, and it turned
people off and it also really alienated the base of
women and moms, because there was language which the women
spoke with, which provided like a faux spirituality aspect, like,
you know, we're connected and we're all together and it's

(05:42):
the world. And I understand where they were coming from
and saying that they're allowed to have a perspective. Just
because you're rich doesn't mean you don't have a perspective.
They were in a spaceship, they saw the earth, they
felt something, they felt connected. This can all be real.
It's all not the content, it's the delivery. It was
the packaging, the wrapping, the messaging. It did not land
no matter what. So the average American woman, who is

(06:17):
the base, the purchasers of products, the loudest voice in
the country, an important vote, a woman who really matters.
I know this more than anyone. I understand these people. Okay,
I love these people. I you know, have been broke
and been rich, and so I feel like I kind
of understand. I can't say that I'm not privileged. I

(06:38):
can't say that I you know, I am not closer
to the group that went on the spaceship than the
woman in America who intimately understands the price of eggs.
I'm not gonna costplay something I'm not just because I
go to Tjmax and Dollar Store. I'm not going to
costplay understanding the plight of a woman who is working
two jobs and trying to make ends meet. But I

(07:00):
understand the problem with this. I understand why that woman is, like,
why are you publicly acting like this mission makes you
connected to me and we're the same. You had to
go to Space to realize something that isn't even true
because we're not the same, because we're not dealing with
the same issues. Because you went to Space in an
oscar to lorent to outfit and you know, also the
women were kind of in glam and I feel like

(07:21):
that didn't totally land. It doesn't mean it's wrong. It
was their Space trip, not unlike them going to Morocco
or a housewives trip or the millions of bullshitarians on
TikTok that are criticizing this, that also watch content of
people that are billionaires at open air mes boxes like
you can't pick and choose, but they are picking and

(07:42):
choosing because this is the thing that they just didn't like.
Now you had Chris and Chloe on the tarmac, the
Space tarmac or whatever you call the launching pad and Oprah,
and it's just adding to the privilege that people just
don't want to see but they know exist. It just
is one of these things that was like spoon fed,
force fed to them and it's not landing. They didn't

(08:04):
like it, and I again understand why it's not landing.
And then you have celebrities on the ground. Amy Schumer
made fun of it. Em Rada, a gorgeous, wealthy supermodel
in a Mercedes Sprinter full disclosure of car that I
had guilty as charged in a Mercedes Sprinter, discussing the

(08:24):
privilege and waste of resources. Now it's twenty eight million dollars,
that's a lot of money, but that is wasted every
day by different rich people everywhere. Okay, people adore and
love Taylor Swift, but you know people have called her
out for her private jet usage, and Kylie's up on
that list, like and Leonardo DiCaprio is flying private but
then talking about the earth, like, you know, unless you're

(08:47):
gonna be Fred and Wilma Flintstone billionaires that are gonna
start the car at the bottom of your feet, you're
gonna contribute. I'm not the best recycler. I'm trying to
eliminate plastic. I just went through my entire attic to
get rid of a bunch of shit, and there's all
this wasted fucking Halloween costumes in Eastern It's like, get
rid of it, you can buy it again. Right then,
I'm gonna buy this crap again and contribute more to

(09:09):
the landfill, garbage, crap, fast fashion. So like, we all
do our part, and you can't decide to cherry pick
what's right and what's wrong. It's twenty eight million dollars.
That's a lot of money, but there are ten people
at the top of my head I can think of,
you know, flying private planes to Coachella that literally added
up to twenty eight million dollars or twenty five people.

(09:30):
And so people aren you know, spending ten thousand dollars
on tenths to listen to music and play like their
bohem and fly in on Gulf Streams, which you know
cost one hundred and fifty thousand dollars each flight, and
then the fuel. So I'm just saying Devil's advocate Emorda
is in a Mercedes Sprinter talking about privilege and waste
of resources, and I can't fucking wait for Saturday Night Live,

(09:53):
like I need to play Amorda in the car. It's
just and I like Amorta, and she made a point,
but it's just funny also when it's like, these people
don't live the life of the woman who you know
intimately understands the price of eggs and milk. So the
whole thing, as I said in a TikTok, it's a
circular reference of satire. The whole Space Odyssey is a

(10:13):
complete bag of bullshit from head to toe, and everyone
commenting on it, like you just have to say, people
did what the fuck they want and that's why they
went to space, and you wanted to go or you
didn't want to go, And it's being publicized because it
doesn't feel like something that happens every day. And now
people aren't having it. They just don't like the way
it's been fed to them. So sorry, you're welcome. I've

(10:39):
been thinking about the Space Odyssey and Oprah and Chris
Jenner and Chloe Kardashian being on this Space tarmac, and
it's reminding me of something that I've thought for a while,
which is that in many cases, the sum is greater
than its parts, meaning boats rise with the tide. So
like you get Kim Kardashian and Kanye together as celebrities,

(11:01):
but together they were stratospheric George Clooney and Amal, Victoria
Beckham and David Beckham, Like there are situations where two
people get together Jay Z and Beyonce and the combination
is explosive, And then there are examples of combinations that
trigger people. So when you get together a certain type

(11:23):
and level of privilege, it triggers people. So when you
get Megan Markle and Oprah and Ellen together in Montecito,
while they're all smart, successful, strong, beautiful women, it bothers
people because it's sort of like a rich person's club.
When you get Elon Musk and Mark Zuckerberg and Trump together,

(11:44):
it bothers people, like it turns people off about the
individuals where it's not a sum is greater than its parts. Okay,
you got Lauren Sanchez and Jeff Bezos together and that
was a sum is greater than its parts. Like he
seemed like a nerdy Amazon guy married to like a
normal intellectual a woman and she was not really known
at all, but the combination was like Bam and she's

(12:05):
lying helicopters, and it's like, okay, they're on the map.
But when you put Lauren Sanchez together with the Kardashians,
it reaches a point of diminishing return. Now it feels
like the Kardashians are hanging out with Lauren Sanchez because
she's marrying a billionaire. And now it seems like Lauren
Sanchez is hanging out with the Kardashians because it's like,
now we're all rich and famous together and we hang

(12:27):
out on the back of boats. So Lauren Sanchez and
Jeff Bezos elevates both of them, Lauren Sanchez and the
Kardashians takes it all down. And I know you agree
because I know it's true because I hear people like
ugh and it's like why, uh, you may like them individually, like,
you can't disrespect what the Kardashians have built as entrepreneurs,
as business people, as you know, influencers. You can like them,

(12:50):
you can hate them, but you can't knock it. Megan
Markle moves product has influence. Is a beautiful woman bagged
and landed a prince in her own right as a
successful actress, and he feels lucky to be with two
of them in ways elevated each other, like he was
sort of the other son. She was an unknown actress
by most people, and together they became relevant and they

(13:12):
became a unit. So it's just an interesting concept how
we are the company we keep and people judge it differently.
Sometimes you get with someone and it's like a power
couple or a power combat. Okay, Gigi Hadid and Taylor Swift,
that's like elevated. It used to be Blake Lively in
that group sort of, but and now Blake Lively is
a drag on the ticket. But like you get these

(13:34):
like young supermodels together, you're like, oh my god, we
caught Gig and Bella and this one out to dinner
like bam, we like it. But then you have other
ones added to the mixture, like, eh, drag on the ticket.
So I just find it to be an interesting concept,
Like people do judge us by who we associate with,
and sometimes we think it's good for us. I've thought

(13:56):
it was Wow, I can't believe I'm invited to this,
And then people around me and like, eh, I don't
know if I like that. Look for you. Now I
choose who I'm hanging out with. And sometimes I think
someone's more elevated than people around me think like they're like, ugh,
that is not the best look for you right now.
Even if it's someone who's well known that looks trashy
for you, I don't think that's the right look for
you, you know. Like, so, if you are trying to build

(14:17):
an image, this has nothing to do with who you're
actually good friends with. Okay, I don't count brand new
friends in the entertainment industry as friends like my friends
I've had since high school. Those are the people that
if there was a body in a dumpster or in
the trunk of my car, they wouldn't I wouldn't even
have to say, don't say anything, Okay, where's the shovel?
But like anybody new in the land of Hollywood, you know,

(14:39):
that's all fair game. And basically, people need to understand
that there is an association and a connotation to people
that we associate with the most, to the consort, to

(15:10):
the conser
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Bethenny Frankel

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