PRETTY CURIOUS | Did TikTok Make Me Buy It? With Jill Dunn & Carlene Hggins

This episode of Getting Curious, we’ve got one of the HBICs of Betches Media - Sami Sage! As we anxiously countdown to the U.S. Presidential Election this November, we know we’re going to need to laugh a little along the way…enter Betches: Betches Media has been giving us the intel we need with an extra few dashes of humor for years, and as online momentum grows for the Harris/Walz campaign we wanted to know from Sami - an original meme queen - can memes pave the road to Presidential victory? Sami Sage is the Co-Founder and Chief Brand Officer of Betches Media, one of the earliest digitally native media and entertainment companies founded and led by women, and the most influential female-focused humor brand in the market today. Since 2011, the Betches founders have earned spots on The New York Times Bestseller List and Forbes 30 Under 30, and today, Betches offers entertainment, information, and a sense of community to millions of passionate millennial and Gen Z fans. In 2015, Sami helmed the creation of the company’s award-winning news and activism vertical Betches News, and in 2021 she debuted her award-winning daily news podcast the Morning Announcements. Recently, Sami co-authored the New York Times Bestseller Democracy in Retrograde ahead of a historic US presidential election. Alongside her co-founders, Sami also co-hosts the weekly pop culture podcast @Betches. You can follow Sami Sage on Instagram @sami and Betches on Instagram @betches. You can follow Betches News on Instagram @betches_news Follow us on Instagram @CuriousWithJVN to join the conversation. Jonathan is on Instagram @JVN. Our senior producer is Chris McClure. Our editor & engineer is Nathanael McClure. Production support from Julie Carrillo, Anne Currie, and Chad Hall. Our theme music is “Freak” by QUIÑ; for more, head to TheQuinCat.com. Curious about bringing your brand to life on the show? Email podcastadsales@sonymusic.com. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

If you’ve ever picked up a National Geographic and skimmed across the gorgeous images that cover those pages - you’ve probably come across the work of our guest experts. This week, we’re coming to you with a LIVE! Getting Curious episode with THE preeminent nature photographers in the game about the risk and reward of their art, their conservation efforts, and how they support each other in the process like the power couple they are! Cristina "Mitty" Mittermeier, a visionary photographer, marine biologist, and avid conservationist, stands as a formidable force in the realm of environmental advocacy. In 2014 she, alongside her partner Paul Nicklen, co-founded SeaLegacy, a non-profit organization dedicated to creating a healthy and abundant ocean through powerful storytelling and impactful visual media. Through her lens, she conveys the delicate balance of natural ecosystems and the urgency to preserve these habitats that sustain a myriad of life. Her art, driven by a desire to make a difference, serves as a compelling call to action, illustrating the transformative power of photography in raising awareness and inspiring change. Paul Nicklen is a Canadian photographer, filmmaker, and marine biologist who has documented the beauty and plight of our planet for more than thirty years. Through the power of the image and, just as importantly, emotion and raw power, his work has been singled out for creating a unique connection between image and viewer by featuring wild subjects in some of the most extreme conditions known on Earth. Nicklen is a Sony Artisan of Imagery and aligns with Rolex’s Perpetual Planet initiative on collaborative efforts to preserve the natural World. Nicklen has won more than 30 of conservation and photography’s most prestigious awards, including the BBC’s Wildlife Photographer of the Year and the World Press Photo for Photojournalism. In 2019, Mr Nicklen became the youngest person inducted into the International Photography Hall of Fame (IPHF). You can follow Cristina Mittermeier on Instagram @mitty and Paul Nicklen on Instagram @paulnicklen. For more information on SeaLegacy- check out their Instagram @SeaLegacy. Follow us on Instagram @CuriousWithJVN to join the conversation. Jonathan is on Instagram @JVN. Our senior producer is Chris McClure. Our editor & engineer is Nathanael McClure. Production support from Julie Carrillo, Anne Currie, and Chad Hall. Our theme music is “Freak” by QUIÑ; for more, head to TheQuinCat.com. Curious about bringing your brand to life on the show? Email podcastadsales@sonymusic.com. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Think Gilded Age hair is super 19th century? Uhhh - think again! The hairstyling practices and salon culture that we’ve come to know today draw major inspiration from the American salons of the Gilded Age (which of course drew inspiration from the French salons across the pond…vive la France)! What mysteries are hiding underneath the pompadour poofs of Gilded Age hair? Well wonder no more, because we’ve got a brilliant guest for you today to break it all down - Elizabeth Block! It’s giving history of hairdressing, Encyclopedia Beau-tannica vibes. Elizabeth Block, is an art historian and a Senior Editor in the Publications and Editorial Department at The Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York. She holds a PhD in art history from The Graduate Center at the City University of New York, and a Masters in American Studies from Columbia University. She is the author of “Dressing Up: The Women Who Influenced French Fashion” and her new book “Beyond Vanity: The History and Power of Hairdressing” came out September 10th! Elizabeth Block is on Instagram @elizabethlblock and on TikTok at @elizabethlblock_author Follow us on Instagram @CuriousWithJVN to learn more about the products from this episode, or head to JonathanVanNess.com for the transcript. Jonathan is on Instagram @JVN. Find books from Getting Curious and Pretty Curious guests at bookshop.org/shop/curiouswithjvn. Our senior producers are Chris McClure. Our editor & engineer is Nathanael McClure. Our theme music is also composed by Nathanael McClure. Production support from Julie Carrillo, Anne Currie, and Chad Hall. Curious about bringing your brand to life on the show? Email podcastadsales@sonymusic.com. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

The Destiny’s Child of constitutional law (aka Strict Scrutiny) is back on Getting Curious to help us digest and dissect all the wack-a-doodle nonsense that is: Project 2025. Leah Litman & Kate Shaw from the hit podcast Strict Scrutiny sat down with JVN to really parse out the MAGA manifesto. We’re talking all about Project 2025’s hallmark proposals, the key players involved, as well as tossing in some Supreme Court, Alito/Thomas updates for good measure. Leah Litman is an assistant professor of law at the University of Michigan Law School. She clerked for Judge Sutton on the Sixth Circuit and Justice Kennedy on the Supreme Court. Leah researches and writes about constitutional law and federal courts. She also maintains an active pro bono practice (and she loves reality television). Kate Shaw is a Professor of Law at the Benjamin N. Cardozo School of Law in NYC. She teaches Constitutional Law, Legislation, Administrative Law, and a seminar on the Supreme Court, and writes about executive power, the law of democracy, and reproductive rights and justice. Before becoming a law professor she worked in the Obama White House Counsel’s Office, and before that was a clerk to Justice Stevens and Judge Posner. You can follow Strict Scrutiny on Twitter @StrictScrutiny_ and on Instagram @strictscrutinypodcast. For more information, check out crooked.com. Leah is on Twitter @LeahLitman and Instagram @profleahlitman. Kate is on Twitter @Kateashaw1 and Instagram @kateashaw. Follow us on Instagram @CuriousWithJVN to join the conversation. Jonathan is on Instagram @JVN. Our senior producer is Chris McClure. Our editor & engineer is Nathanael McClure. Production support from Julie Carrillo, Anne Currie, and Chad Hall. Our theme music is “Freak” by QUIÑ; for more, head to TheQuinCat.com. Curious about bringing your brand to life on the show? Email podcastadsales@sonymusic.com. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Caroline Hirons, arguably the most important figure in British beauty, stopped by this week’s Pretty Curious and is holding serious court, babes. Caroline gives the best skin in the biz, and she’s breaking down all the goodness she’s got going on over at her skincare brand, Skin Rocks. Plus! We’re talking Gen Alpha skincare, English breakfasts, and just exactly how the “Caroline effect” has taken over the British beauty space. Caroline grew up around the beauty industry, as both her mother and grandmother worked in the industry. From her first day on the counter in Harvey Nichols, Knightsbridge, Caroline fell in love with skincare in particular and went on to qualify in beauty therapy, leaving the shop floor for more senior roles in 2001. After gaining a wealth of experience across all departments in the previous 10 years, Caroline moved to consulting for brands and retailers in 2008, working with and advising some of the top names in the industry. Launching her blog back in 2010, she quickly amassed the eyes and ears of millions. She's utilized all her knowledge to launch her own brand, which includes her Limited-Edition Kits of recommended products which sell out in hours as well as the Skin Rocks brand, which consists of the award winning skincare line and app. She’s also the host of the new beauty podcast, Glad We Had This Chat - which just wrapped up its first season! Caroline Hirons is on Instagram @carolinehirons and you can follow Skin Rocks @skinrocks Follow us on Instagram @CuriousWithJVN to learn more about the products from this episode, or head to JonathanVanNess.com for the transcript. Jonathan is on Instagram @JVN. Find books from Getting Curious and Pretty Curious guests at bookshop.org/shop/curiouswithjvn. Our Senior Producer is Chris McClure. Our editor & engineer is Nathanael McClure. Our theme music is also composed by Nathanael McClure. Production support from Julie  Carrillo, Anne Currie, and Chad Hall. Curious about bringing your brand to life on the show? Email podcastadsales@sonymusic.com. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices