Culture Apothecary with Alex Clark - “Ye, Balenciaga, Blogging In 2020 & Being Black Conservatives.” - With @RuthieRidley + @RachMoon

Episode Date: December 9, 2022

Ruthie Ridley and Rach Moon are two Instagram fashion influencers who are black… AND conservative. On top of that, Rach is Jewish and Ruthie is a Christian married to a white police officer. It's safe to say that they break every single IG influencer stereotype but with style. In an industry that exists at the whim of cancel culture, Alex Clark wanted to know what it's like to scroll in their shoes. In this vulnerable conversation, Rach and Ruthie get real about topical cultural issues of the...

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That's AM Fest. Code poplittics before it's too late. Fashion influencers and bloggers on Instagram fascinate so many of us because it's like watching reality TV 24-7. They're high points, their drama. We feel like we know them personally because they share so much. And in the past few years, it's been especially interesting to overanalyze each post for political leanings and undertones. There have been high profile cancellation mob sent after influencers who don't appear to lean left. But we've really only seen that weaponized against white bloggers.

So what happens if an influencer with a large following is black and conservative? What about black and Jewish? or black and married to a white cop. Does that affect how other influencers treat them? What about brands? In this juicy conversation today, two black and conservative Instagram famous influencers will join me to discuss all of the above

and just how out of pocket other influencers have acted towards them as they put their white liberal savior complexes to the test. Please welcome Instagrammers, Rach Moon and Ruthie Ridley to the spillover. You know, my team today said, oh, well, we can tell you're interviewing fashion influencers because you're wearing real clothes for this interview and not sweatshirt and sweatpants this time. You always look so good, though. Thank you. Well, I just did kind of an introduction for both of you.

And I'm going to have you explain your stories in detail about your specific brands, how you met, all that kind of stuff in a few minutes. But I do want to start off. I just want to jump right into topical news because I just thought that would be fun. and that's the juicy part that everybody wants to hear from you. So we're just going to get into the spicy topics now, if that's good with you. Let's go.

All right. So as fashion influencers with large followings, what exactly is being said in the influencer space about Belenciaga? Like, I know you guys are in group chats and stuff like that also, like behind the scenes. Is everyone waiting for the backlash to blow over with this? Or do you feel like influencers are never going to be seen in Balenciaga again? Like, Ruthie, I'll start with you.

You know, I hope they're never seen in Valencia again. But based on what I have seen, I think a lot of people are sort of waiting and just kind of seeing, is this real? Did this really happen? I am, I have to be honest, really encouraged by what I have seen with some of the responses that, especially even on TikTok, not so much on Instagram. And maybe it's just that I don't watch like a million stories every day. But the response has been, I'm getting rid of every day. everything mixed with, give this a couple years and they're going to have a comeback. Really? Do you think that they're going to have a comeback or do you think that it's over for the brand? Well, if you look at history like Dolce and Gabana and a few other big brands, they have come back because of people like the Kardashians. So it depends on who they have kind of promoting them. Hopefully people's eyes are being open to even people like the Kardashians and the darkness there. But yeah, I hope it's over for the brand,

but I think it would take a complete overhaul. I don't know. Rich, what do you think? Yeah, I think that they probably will come back at some point. Those of us that don't have amnesia, which is a small percentage of Americans. We'll remember. But like Ruthie said, you know,

Dior had its share of things. years ago and they were able to come back from it. This is a lot deeper and darker of an issue because it does involve children. So it's going to be really interesting to see. I think in terms of like the influencer space, I have not seen a lot of influencers talking about it or speaking out against it unless they are an influencer that already is talking about these like hot Well, I saw Rach Parcell did condemn the Balenciaga ads, right? Yeah. Yeah, I thought I saw her do that.

Do you feel like the same amount of pressure has been put on influencers to speak about the Balenciaga stuff as George Floyd when that happened? Unfortunately, no. Why do you think that is? I think because it was such a race issue and people felt directly affected, they felt like they needed to speak out. And I think with the George Floyd issue, it was, it's years of hurt. It goes back to, you know, slavery and just the effects of that have happened on black people and all that.

And so I think everybody felt so affected with this. I think it's difficult and it's a shame, actually. Some people that don't have children, you know, there's not that deep connection always if you don't have kids. Some people, even before I had kids, I was like really messed up by stuff like this. But that doesn't go for everybody else. And I don't see the same pressure. In fact, when I did speak up about it, I had the people, all my, you know, community said I'm seeing nobody really that I follow talk about this. I'm seeing it, you know, on TikTok or I'm seeing it in the news.

But as far as like influencers, I think also we could be a little bit burnt out from 2020. Yeah. I think people are also afraid because in 2020 so many people spoke out and did things that maybe they weren't comfortable doing or wouldn't. have if the pressure wasn't on. And so now people are more careful about what they speak up about. I also think part of the problem is that trafficking and child trafficking has been deemed sort of a conspiracy over the years. And it's only up until recently that people are acknowledging and realizing that it's not a conspiracy. It's actually a real problem. It's an epidemic. Well, the New York Times last week said that all of this

stuff with the Belenciaga ads is all a conservative conspiracy. And I'm like, what are you talking about? You know, they tried, they tried to explain everything. The court case that categorized child pornography as free speech being in the, in the advertisement. Oh, well, that was just, you know, leftover paper that accidentally got placed there because it was used in a like a law and order episode or something like that, like a television drama.

And they just needed like office papers. But I'm like, okay, so then if that was the case and they just wanted papers laying around in an office. Why did they zoom in on that and, you know, have that displayed in the ad? Like, everything has a reason in advertisements. But I also think this is interesting. Rachel, you're Jewish, you're conservative, you're black. So I'm curious what your reaction to Kanye's anti-Semitic comments have been. Because I think that isn't a unique hurdle that Jewish people in America have to go through. It's like nobody ever wants to talk about anti-Semitism. Now of a sudden it's Kanye and now everybody wants to talk.

about it. So obviously his comments are disgusting, but also because you're conservative. I'm curious what you think because is there a larger conversation to be had about this being a free speech issue? Well, when he first started making these comments, I was a little bit shocked, especially being a conservative. I think there are a lot of us that were hopeful that his, you know, conservatism was actually real. And so, I was just like really surprised by it. And I had some conversations with some conservative, um, influencers. And they were so hung up on free speech.

And it became very clear to me that, um, a lot of people think that anti-Semitism is a political issue instead of a hate issue. Right. And, um, there, The point has just been missed. And so for myself, I've been really disappointed in the conservative community just being completely silent, like so silent on this issue. And it's sad because, you know, I'm seeing a lot of liberal influencers speak up about this. Now, I kind of feel bad or I felt bad at the beginning because I'm like, oh, kind of.

Kanye is the scapegoat because it's easy. A lot of people don't like him already. And so it's easy when someone that you don't like says something shocking. You can kind of piggyback on it and be like, okay, well, now we can really get rid of him because now he's taken it too far. Yeah. And I wonder if it had been anybody else, if it would have been carried on. I also am tired of hearing about him. I know.

Let's just stop. Like, I didn't go on Instagram for almost a week because every post was a bit. about Kanye and I'm like, okay, like let's talk about the bigger picture here and let's talk about the real problem because it's not just him. You know, I don't condone what he's saying. I think he's crazy. But there's a bigger picture. And I started to kind of think about it a little bit differently after listening to your podcast with Daryl. Oh, with Daryl Davis. Yes. Yeah. Yeah. When he talked about that you don't want to completely silence people like this because then they go into the darkest places,

which become echo chambers. Well, and that's what he did because he's canceled and nobody wants anything to do with. And then who does Kanye go to hang out with? Frickin' Nick Fuentes and Milo Yanopoulos. Right. Like the trashest, like the most fringe of the far right because they're the only extremists who would talk to him

because everybody else said you're out. Yeah, yeah. So, I mean, I was like, man, exactly what Daryl said would happen is what happened. Exactly. What are your all's takes on Elon Musk taking over Twitter? Do you feel like as influencers, the transparency that he's implementing there, the changes, those are things that would be beneficial to see also on other platforms like Instagram. Do you not like the changes that have been implemented?

I've never been a huge Twitter person. I go to Twitter when Instagram shuts down to see if it shut down. To see what people are saying about Instagram being used. I have gone on sometimes when you know how you see people will screenshot a tweet and then reshare it. I'm a huge fact checker. And so I'm like, there's no way that person said that. So I like to go to Twitter to go and see for sure.

And nine times uptown, yes, they did say that. Yeah. I don't, I don't know. I don't know. I think it's too soon to tell. I personally am not an Elon fan for a million. reasons, but, you know, I am for free speech, but I think the problem is when the speech incites violence. And I think that's the difference between giving your political opinion

or your stance on something versus something that can affect a total entire, like, population or racial group. I do have like a statistic that I do want to share. Share it. Okay, I want to make sure I get my numbers right, but there are only 0.2% of the population that are Jewish. So it's a very small percentage of Jews in the world. But the reason why something like what Kanye is doing and saying is so dangerous, there are 15.2 million Jews in the entire world. Kanye has 18.5 million followers on Instagram and 32.2 million on Twitter. just to give it a little bit of perspective. And hate speech can incite violence.

And I think we're living in a perfect storm type of atmosphere. So I do think it's something that has to be called out. And sometimes people do need a pause, a pause button. Okay. I do want to talk a little bit about the two of you. Now, rumor has it making friends in the influencer space is difficult. Is that true or not true? Absolutely.

Really? Why can it be difficult? I think it's really hard to find authentic people in our space. And to me, and I know to Rachel, it's everything to be able to have friends and do what we do for a living and be real and authentic and not just have this show that you have on Instagram or TikTok and then be a completely different person, you know, behind the screen or even in person. And so, yeah, I have a handful of good friends on social media, and it's a God thing because we all really see eye to eye on just about everything and things that we don't see eye to eye on. In fact, Rachel has taught me so much over the past two years about anti-Semitism, about the Jewish community. And I've learned so much from her being a woman of color who is Christian and really lived in a bubble. my whole life. It's been so awesome to have a friend like her. But yeah, it is hard because we care about, even though we love fashion and we love the luxury things and we love working with brands and all that stuff, what we care about more is people and being real and we're also believers and we care about family. And so those are like priorities. And so to have people that kind of care about those same things is really hard to come by.

How did you guys meet in particular? Oh, through hell. What do you mean? Hell. Hell. We were like already kind of like what you call engaging on each other's posts and stuff. Okay. Giving support.

But we kind of really connected in 2020 because everything went down. And the influencer space was very, very difficult at that time. you had just a microscope on you. And I think that microscope has never lifted since then. You have to be careful about what you say, what you do. But Ruthie and I were in a very unique situation because we both are women of color. And we have biracial children very mixed. And also our husbands are or were in law enforcement.

So my husband was a police officer for 16 years. and Ruthie's husband had just gotten into law enforcement. And here we are in a very... He was two years in when this went down. Oh, my gosh. So we really relied on each other a lot. We just talked every single day, FaceTime, talked through things,

posts that we saw, how to approach things. And we just, like, from the get-go, we're like, we're just going to be our authentic selves. And we had a lot of really hard conversations with people behind the scenes. What do you mean? that by that hard conversations behind the scenes. With other influencers, with brands, with our communities, with our followers.

I found myself doing a lot of voice messaging back to strangers on the internet because they didn't like what I said or they wanted to know what I meant by this or why am I following this person and why am I liking this? I still get that sometimes like, oh, I noticed you liked this post or whatever. Now it's just like, okay, bye. But that's always the most interesting part to me of the whole Instagram influencer space are the followers who feel like you owe them explanations for everything you like or who you follow. Like, why can't we all do what we want to do?

If you're choosing to follow me, then okay. And if not, then no, but they want answers. Like you owe them an explanation for why you do X, Y, and Z. How annoying did that get during 2020? It was awful. It was awful. That's how we got close because it got to the point where I was like, hey, Rachel, what do you think about this? Should I respond to this?

How should I respond to this? Because I actually really don't love confrontation. I don't either. I can be good at it when it's time. You know, Rachel laughs. She goes, nobody knows. Nobody has seen her side. Everyone's like, oh, Rachel's scary.

But Ruthie's so sweet and cute. I'm like, police. Like, you have not seen her. Yep, yep. And so when it's time to pop off, it's time to pop off. But it was really hard for me because, and I lost a lot of followers, but I also gained a lot. How many did you lose? Do you remember?

No, but I'll tell you what happened. I started this whole thing, you know, before everything happened with George with 75,000 followers. I was there for five years. It was great. And I came out. And I spoke pro-law enforcement, pro-Jesus, pro not everyone is bad, even though they have a certain profession. And people started sharing my posts because they couldn't, they felt what they said is they couldn't find a voice in the situation. Like they felt like they couldn't say what I could say because I was a woman of color.

So what they did was they would share it with their audience. And I grew from that. Really, it was the worst time of my career because it was so uncomfortable. And I got, even though I grew by however many, I got so many hurtful DMs, so many people that said, you have changed ever since you Ben became a cop. Like, yeah, your coon or, you know, whatever, sellout, whatever. I'm not really black, whatever. She got a lot of. It was really harsh.

I mean, what did these people expect you to do, Ruthie? Did they just expect you to divorce your husband because he was a white cop or what? Absolutely not. And then I really, then I got angry and I would, you know, do these videos. And I posted one in my feed, just saying the amount of hypocrisy, you know, when everything happened at the Capitol and that whole thing happened. I just saw so much hypocrisy. And I literally watched my town burn down. I watched Sacramento burn down.

And then they want to be mad about, you know, obviously the Capitol was a mess. But I just, I was just so over it. Yeah. It was a hard season for me. was really tough. I felt like during that time, the Lord was just really strengthening me and showing me how to speak up and not be afraid because a lot of people are just not going to agree with you, but there are a ton of people who can't or don't want to speak up that do agree with you. Do you remember, Rachel, what you talked about or posted during 2020 that was controversial

with your followers? It was really less what I said. People were just watching what I do. And I still, to this day, every post that I like or every account I follow, I always am like, hmm, like it doesn't keep me from liking or anything. But I got a lot of really nice messages, to be honest. I still, to this day, if I share one of your podcasts or whatever, I will get a message from someone that says, like, I don't agree with, but I appreciate following you because you give another perspective. And the way you do it is not offensive. Yeah. And there's kindness. Yeah.

Which goes so far. Yeah. I think the most I got was just like, why are you following this person or that as if we have to only follow accounts that we agree with, you know? Well, what was Jarl's take on the black square stuff when that happened? Were you like, this is really great? This is positive for people of color. Were you like, this is so stupid? I liked it in the moment.

Yeah, I think in the moment we were so desperate for unity and like wanting people to understand that there is an issue here and there is a problem. And we didn't realize that there were a lot of people at the time, especially influencers, that didn't want to do it and that did it just to be performative. For show, we saw at the end people. true colors. And we took a very hard stance in our platforms with our communities that we, Black Lives Matter, but we do not support the Black Lives Matter organization. And from the get up. I would say most of my conversations in DMs was explaining to people that I obviously support Black lives. Half of my family is Black, my kids, you know, like obviously that's a no-brainer. And my dad grew up during the civil rights. You know, he worked a job working for a guy who was KKK at night. Like, we just have like a long history story as do so many people that like obviously. And I wanted to come together with my community and say, you know, Black Lives Matter. But I'm not saying that I support the organization. And I think once,

I had those conversations and explain that to people, then they were like, oh, okay, like, now I get it. So that's an issue where yet again, something really important gets turned into a political thing. And then everyone's like fighting about it. So it's the same kind of thing with anti-Semitism. I feel like people just don't want to be in that 2020 space again. Yeah. You know who the hardest person to buy a gift for is men. Men can be so frustratingly difficult.

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or shall I say, the Meets de la Meats. Good Ranchers, American Meat delivered. I want to talk about each of your brands, the fun part, okay? So what makes each of your brands you? Like, people go to Ruthie for what? People go to Rachel for what? Ruthie, we'll start with you. Okay.

You don't want me to tell you why her people go to her? Sure. You can do however you guys want. I'd love to hear. Yeah. Okay. Okay. People go to Ruthie because I hear all the time.

Ruthie has that glow. What's that glow? She shares from her heart. It's Jesus. Yes. Jesus. Yes. See, look at that.

She shares from her heart. Her family is gorgeous. Her content is amazing. And I just think. like she just has like a soothing, comforting presence about her that people just want to see. Like I told her, I said, make sure you show your face and your stories all the time. People want to see that. They want to hear from you.

And I just like, stop now that I'm going to cry, I'm supposed to share about you. I mean, both of you guys would say that you're, but your fashion influencers, right? Like that's your main thing. It's not home decor or something like that is fashion. She does a little home. I do a little bit. Yeah. And you too, right?

I don't do any home. No. Okay. So what are you? She'll do good. Fashion and beauty. Yeah. And like beautiful jewelry.

Ooh. A lot of accessories. And I mean, I talk a lot about TV with my followers. Like my high- Pop Culture stuff. Yes. My highest views are when I am talking about all the shows, Netflix, this, that, pop culture, that kind of stuff.

That's when the views are through the roof and I have too many DMs to handle. Okay. So Ruthie, how would you describe what? What is unique about Rach Moon for her followers? Why do people follow Rachel? They follow her because she's absolutely beautiful. No, that's number one. That's part of it.

If you see me in stories, it's not always. No, first of all, I'm always, I told her from the beginning, like, I have loved following her from day one because of how much I've learned from her. And although her main thing is fashion and it's beauty and she can put on makeup like nobody else and teach you about jewelry, she is real and does it. ignore facts and points and life that matter in the moment, whereas someone like me, I might tend to shy away from current events in the moment. I need time to digest, think, pray. Rachel's like, we are going to address this right now and people are going to know right now. And I'm also going to give them 17 resources where they can learn more about what I'm talking about. So you're a little bit like how to a little bit, like educational when it comes to fashion and beauty. No, no, no. These are on

hot topic. So fashion. beauty, yes, that's her main thread. But I love following her. Like, this goes back to that real thing, that, like, what are people want in life? Like, yes, I feel like God has given both of us our vehicles, which are fashion and beauty, but the engine is Jesus and truth and life and things that matter in this world. And I love that about Rachel because she's fearless and she doesn't have fear of man. Like, she's not afraid of people and, like, what they're going to? I think that can come across in post, too. And that's, probably what people find likable about you.

Because you're fierce, just the confidence. She's very fierce. She also, so her people will also go to her for excellent styling. So when we travel, usually I have her help me style. Yes. Because also I might be a fashion influencer. Yeah. But I'm getting a lot of help.

From Rach. From Rach. So, yeah, I just like the truth that she gives in love. And it's always about people. It's always about a people group or, you know, things that absolutely matter. Yeah, the Louis Vuitton is nice and so is the Dior. But what really matters in life? What is going to last beyond here? And she goes after that stuff. And I think that's powerful. A lot of people can't do it like you, Alex.

Oh, gosh. I just do what I can. Listen. Honey, you're doing a lot more. If you're doing a lot more than you can, trust me. Thank you. I mean, the best DM that I got recently, and I think I took a screenshot and shared it, with Ruthie, it was after I shared your podcast. You guys were the only ones that were talking about Kanye before everyone thought that this was like a problem to talk about Kanye. Oh, you're talking about the Poplittics episode where I talked about how, okay, all these celebrities and all these influencers who are now all of a sudden saying anti-semitism is a huge

problem. How dare he. We love the Jews. How we were all like, Kay, you are so full of it because this happened, this happened, this happened. You never said anything. You yourself posted this, this, and this. Now all of a sudden you want to care about anti-Semitism.

And I just said, this is fake. Yeah, like Gigi Hadid, like all of a sudden talking about Kanye because of his anti-Semitism. Like, that was the biggest joke ever. But the best, the best DM I got was from someone that said, I've always gotten conservative vibes from you. Which I love. Okay, good. I need a shirt that says conservative vibes. Really?

That's a good one. It would be good much. Yeah. I've always got conservative vibes from you. I'm an hardcore liberal, but I really enjoy following you to see like just another perspective. And I enjoyed this episode. And I was really shocked. I remember that.

That was cool. I may or may not have had a couple drinks that night while I was out. And then I watched the podcast and the Uber on the way home and was like fired up and shared it. And then I woke up at 5 a.m. And I'm like, did I share that? And I looked and I'm like, oh, dang, I did share it. And then I had all these DMs. And that was the first one that I saw.

And I was like, okay. Because the Jewish community leans pretty left typically, right? Yeah. Okay. Yeah. So I bet they were like, what is this? So that's cool, though. What's she doing?

Yeah. I kind of like that. I like that you're not like, look, this is not an echo chamber bubble for the Jewish community on my page. Like, I'm going to tell you what I think. Exactly. And I happen to lean more conservative. And I was telling Ruthie, I said one of the things that I really like about Megan McCain while I don't agree with everything that she says. I mean, you shouldn't agree with everything

that everyone does and says. And I think that's where we get it wrong. But I really like the fact that she has been a true champion speaking out against anti-Semitism while still being a conservative. And she's greatly loved and accepted by a lot of Jewish liberals because at the end of the day, we all want to come together on the left and the right on this issue. And I think if you are, smart than you know that like no party is perfect. And I just really like I'm inspired by people like that. Yeah. What does a good day look like as an influencer for each of you? Like this is a great day of influencing. Like is it a post going viral? Is it just that you were able to get a bunch done and banking posts for the future? Ruthie, what about you? There's two types of good days.

One good day for me is when I do work hard on my content and get seen on Instagram. and it wasn't for nothing. That's always nice. But another kind of good day is what happened last week when I got really upset about the Belensiaga issue. And I couldn't sleep for a couple days. And I was able to come to my community and just share what has been going on and some resources they needed to check out. And that there was a positive response there within my community. That's a really good day for me because then I feel like,

yes, the fashion, like I was saying, is so much fun, but I'm here for much more than that. And when I'm able to be a voice for something negative to bring a light to or positive and it gets seen and there's a response, that's an awesome day for me. What about you, Rachel? What's a good influencer day for you? First thing that came to mine and Ruthielle laughed. A day that I don't want to quit. Yeah.

What makes you want to quit as an influencer? or like what's the most frustrating aspects of it? Because people are like, there's nothing hard about this. Like, you all, you just post cute outfits. They don't, and I know the truth about what all goes on behind the scenes. And it is, I'm not even. I suck at posting. I think I've posted like twice in the last five months.

I'm nowhere near like an actual real influencer where I'm posting and doing everything I'm supposed to do because I know how hard that is the work that goes into. It's like, dude, that is a 12-hour day to sit there and film all those outfits and reels and all that. So what's good for you? So a good day for me is getting everything on my list done, which is very rare, but I'm a list person. So when I can cross things off my list, I'm happy. And then connecting with my community, like if we're talking in DMs and talking about real issues, which nine times out of 10, we're talking about, like, heavy issues, not just like what size are you wearing in that top. You're influencing for good.

Yeah, that's a good day. And that makes me feel fulfilled because I love fashion and I love all that. But it does get to me after a while. Like I always told Ruthie, I have one foot out the door because there is a superficial aspect to it, which I feel like I can do better than that. Like I'm not made to just do this. So a good day is when like all of those boxes are being checked for me. How does motherhood affect how you guys translate yourselves online? Oh, wow. I think how I am online is how I am at home. And our kids are actually both pretty a part of our brands to some extent. Do your kids ever complain about, oh, we have to take another video or another picture or they good about it? It's normal. I think both of us don't really overwork our kids. Yeah. It's very rare that I... They're like, I prep, prep, prep. I don't know about you, right? Yeah. Like, I'll tell them, oh, you got an ad with such and such and we'll film on this. day. But I really, I don't, they're not on the internet. They don't have apps or anything like that. So

sometimes they may be in a story or whatever, but it's very rare. I think motherhood has affected me where things like Valencia and things like that. Any social issue, I feel really compelled to speak up about and get loud because I'm not always going to be here to protect my kids and advocate for them. So I am trying to make this space better for them. Do you like the idea that some influencers have done like the Lebrantz when their babies are being born, Savannah and Colabrant, they make an Instagram for each child. So it starts getting millions of followers and they have that, I guess, for the rest of their lives with their name on it. Do you like that idea or do you think, no, if your kids want to do influencing, let them do it when they're an adult and start it themselves? or do you think as influencers now as parents, let's start that for our kids?

Yeah. I have one who would love to do that right now. Yeah. But I know that there's just such a, it becomes an obsession. And so until, you know, I feel like she can kind of manage herself maybe further on in life, whether that's in high school, this is my middle daughter, Savannah. She's begging us to start a YouTube channel. I mean, she's just full of personality.

But I think there are things that are more important right now. And no, I don't I don't like the idea of starting one. So you're saying that they're doing it so that they're like like when they announce, when they post the announcement picture in the hospital announcing, you know, whatever, posy, whatever their kids names are. But they, you know, the newborn photo. Yeah, yeah. It's their name is tagged to their Instagram. Okay. And then followers know, oh, now there's a new Instagram to go follow and it's the baby.

Okay. So the psychology behind it, I guess, would be kind of like a modern day savings account. Yes, that's what I'm talking about. Yeah. So they're like setting them up for the future. Yeah. Success. My thing is I, as much as I love this job and I love doing what I do, I would hope my kids would not do this.

Like I think I'm meant to do this, but I wouldn't want them to do it just because of how hard and heavy it is now. I just can't even imagine when the time comes. Like, surely we can just set up the savings account and make sure that they can get an email address with their name on it. Right. They don't have to have a social media account. And also, what will social media look like then? So I guess they're taking a chance, but I don't know. I think for Savannah, because I could totally see her doing it.

And I like the idea of someone like Sab doing it only because she doesn't have that fear of man. She's like you. Like if someone's going to come for her, she's like, And like, are we going to take this outside? Like, you know, like, you have to, I have to like take her down. Like, okay. Yeah. You know.

But it's a timing thing for me, I think. Okay. So to circle back to all of the 2020 posts and the George Floyd and the race stuff and everything, how did your relationships with white bloggers shift in the aftermath of George Floyd? I love this question. Okay. So, Rachel, we'll start with you. Well, remember how I said, like, a lot of people put up the black boxes.

I got a lot of followers, and a lot of the followers were other bloggers. And I think white bloggers were under scrutiny of your people, an accounts that you follow are not diverse. So all of a sudden, it wasn't just brands scrambling to make sure that they had diverse ambassadors or whatever, it was other influencers making sure that they follow diverse accounts and engage with other diverse bloggers. So I got a lot of followers. And I think it was a wake up call for me once the desk settled that they all unfollowed.

They unfollowed you after that. So it was completely fake. Yeah. Did that happen to you, Ruthie? I got a lot of followers. I don't know if everyone unfollowed me, but I did have unfollowes for sure. So were these white bloggers doing things like messaging like, hey, let's plan an influencer trip together so we can get posts together?

Like, did you feel like you were being used in those ways by white bloggers? I don't know if it was used or if it was like I feel like I need to do something. But Rachel and I were both invited to be in quite a few giveaways at the time. Was that a red flag immediately or not? It didn't take it didn't immediately strike you as this as suss. I go the other direction of I think these people are trying, you know. And I'm very suspicious. Yeah.

I think the worst always. So she's like, I'm like, no, this is so great. And I'm like, this is fake. Yeah. Yeah. I'm like, well, Rachel, please do it with me. I don't know. So yeah.

And, you know, at the end of the day, we don't know everybody's hearts. What you do know is when you see that unfollow. Then you know. No. Okay, this was not, you know. Did you also suddenly have a bunch of brands out of nowhere saying, we want to be in business with you? Yes. And unfortunately, would you say that it was only because you were black? Yes, because brands that didn't have a budget before suddenly had a budget.

Oh, yeah, now we have the funds. Let's just put it this way. In 2020, I was able to leave my nursing career and do this full time. So you were like, sure, if you're going to offer the money and you just want to use me, then I'll take your money. Yeah, it was crazy. I probably would have, too. I did. I was like,

I made the most money. Middle finger, delete, and I would like screenshot and send it to her. Can you believe these people? Did you respond to the brands and say like, how dare you? Like, I know what you're doing.

No. I think I was so tired and burnt out that they didn't, it didn't deserve a response. I just ghosted. People, I think, don't understand that the amount of money

that can be made through influencing, I think. Well, for perspective, I was a nurse for 17 years and, you know, for a long time, the main breadwinner, you know, and carried the benefits and all of that. And I did both for five years. So it wasn't an overnight thing. It's not just like overnight. You know, I did both influencing and the nursing thing for five years. And there was a significant increase. But of course, I was afraid to jump out of the boat because, The problem with influencing is it's unpredictable. Yeah. And you have first quarters of the year. Yeah. You just don't know what's going to happen.

Does that scare you about the future? Like what happens? Like what happens? Like everybody's old? You know what I mean? Like who? Like us? Like influencers.

Like when everybody is older, you know, think about yourself as an older woman. People think, and this is your main source of income. When you're a retirement age, like normal people would be in the workforce. Do other influencers talk about that with each other? Like, what does influencing look like? when the median age is 50 to 60. Totally. We do.

And I say that Rachel will be my manager. She'll manage me. And I plan on being an influencer till I die. I love dressing up. I love it. Because we haven't seen that yet. You know what I'm saying? So for our generation, everybody now were millennials anyway, like we're getting into our 30s and 40s.

And we were the start of influencing. And so then we've never had a generation of old people that have social media like that. You know what I mean? Right. So, like, what, we, you know, what does that look like? I wonder that. I don't know. I mean, I always say I'm doing this now.

This is not forever. Like, I just have different goals and aspirations. Like, I told Ruthie, like, I don't know. I'll give myself, like, another year or so on this. And then I'm- Only a year? I'm tapping out. I don't know.

No, I love you. My followers, I do love my community. She will always do your stuff. It just may look different. But it will be interesting to see. I think like Instagram is going to change before people age out. I think it's going to look different. And I think that everybody should have some type of backup plan in life in general. I think for anyone thinking about doing influencing and getting started, I mean, for a little perspective, I did it for like three years and didn't make any money. Yeah. So, and now I might make more money than some of my friends that graduated college and got a master's degree. I never graduated college. So what is the trick to starting and just posting pictures and not making any money to suddenly having it your sole source of income? Like is it the type of content you post?

I think content. Content definitely matters. You have to. Consistency, especially in the beginning. Yep. You have to have consistency, good content. And I think niching down. Like you can't be all over the place.

I cook. I do. You know, why are people following you? Yeah. And just being consistent showing up. Yeah. And also like. Like, if someone DMs me, like, what do I do? Find something that is different than what everyone's doing.

Because I think when we started, there were a lot of influencers, but nowhere near the amount now. I feel like if I were thinking about getting into it now, I might not even do it. It's overwhelming. Every niche is taken. Yeah, there's just so many. So you have to figure out what you bring to the table that nobody else does. So, Ruthie, I have to ask you, I mean, were there time? in the last couple years where you feared for your husband's safety as a white cop?

Oh my gosh, yes. What was that like behind the scenes in your house, those conversations that you had with him? You know what? I cannot begin. I'll tell you this, the way I felt, especially during 2020, was crazy. I felt really disheveled. And the problem is because there was so much unrest, so many riots. I'm in the Sacramento area.

Oh, my gosh. Yes. We watched the city burn down. Were you telling him you got to quit? Or were you like, no, stick this out? As a wife. As a wife, no. I felt like I, we felt as a family from the very beginning that he was called to this.

This is his calling. Ask Rachel, he's a peacemaker. He enters the room and you automatically feel peace. You feel safe. And so every situation he walks into, even out there in the community, I know that he is shifting the atmosphere. it's just that I had to really believe that in that time. I mean, he was getting bricks thrown at him. They were getting urine thrown at them.

They were getting spit on. They were just. And then I think the hardest thing for me, the bricks, whatever. It's the words. It was what they were saying to him, knowing who he is as a person. And he's had some fun breakthrough being on calls and women, you know, black women just fighting each other and, you know, getting in, and him getting in the middle. And they're like, you white da-da-da.

He's like, guys, I'm with you. My wife is a woman of color. No, are you kidding me? And then they like freak out and they're like, yo, and they're dancing with them. And he's all, you know. And he's showing him pictures of his stuff. They're like, what? She's a queen.

Oh, yeah. They're like dead, you know, and all of a sudden they don't want to talk to anybody else on the team. Oh, uh-uh. I only want Officer Ridley. So I had peace, but it was scary. And the worst part was because of the amount of unrest, he was gone all the time. They had mandatory overtime for the entire year. I mean, just like during that summertime especially.

And what was it like for you knowing that because your husband wasn't currently in law enforcement during 2020, right? But he could have easily been. He could have that the circumstances were different. So, I mean, you just look back on every little thing and you're like, wow, that was a blessing. And he was grateful, you know, talking to all of our friends that were still in it or, getting ready to get out or whatever. He was just like, I wouldn't want to be an officer in this like climate, but like so many things have changed. And I was just grateful and thankful because I told Ruthie, I said it was a different time. So when he was working, you know,

the midnight shift, I wasn't worried at all. I never thought twice about it. I never had a worry. And our area that we live in was so pro-law enforcement back then. Like, what part of the country do you live again? So I'm in Maryland. So I'm like 20 minutes outside of D.C. I'm in Montgomery County. And Montgomery County, like, back when my husband was an officer, like, the cops got treated so well. Like, we would go out and, like, he would get stuff for free or, you know.

And obviously things have just completely changed. And it's sad. It's really sad. The department has changed. My husband told me not to get into this. So I'm not going to. Okay. I'm just grateful that he's not doing it anymore.

And I was able to be a support to my friends. Yeah. That's so true. Yeah. Yeah. It is, it was like I'm saying, we were saying it was those things that brought us together. Right. Yes.

Because influencing in general and having a job solely online is very lonely. And so to have someone that can kind of understand you in every kind of aspect religiously, you know, family-wise, work-wise is just a big deal. And then to also be in fashion. She could have been in home or, I don't know, you know. And then we were able to travel together and all that kind of stuff. Well, it's interesting to me to hear you say, Ruthie, that influencing can be lonely because I think people think, well, you've got hundreds of thousands of followers. You must always feel like I've everyone in the world. to talk to you and all of these friends.

It is lonely. You know, you're almost, I almost, you can almost look at it like a TV show. People watch your stories every day. They kind of check in. But unless, like Richard was saying, you're discussing a hot topic or saying something, you know, controversial, it's very rare that people, your DMs are going to be really popping off and they're talking to you. Maybe asking you for a link or something like that.

But having conversations that are meaningful, it's, it doesn't happen often. So it is, it is lonely. Yeah. If you're someone that like, Ruthie is very like relational and like she loves people. Not that I don't love people. But I am a loner. I'm, you know, I think a lot of influencers are introverts and do good in small groups one on one. I do not like large groups. I am happy at home watching my Netflix. If I'm going to go out, it better be like really good or I'm saying no. See, this is what's funny about the two of you is that people can listen to both of you guys as friends being like, I'm a Ruthie or I'm a Rachel. Yeah.

Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. So I think I really enjoy not having to be around people all the time. I am very much like that. I really like it. And like that's why I tell Ruthie, I'm like, you're never going to see me at a blogger conference or like anything like that. Yeah, that's my worst nightmare.

It does. Yes. I have to do that stuff because of work. I have to do that too. And I am so drained after a couple hours. Because you have to be on. Yes. You have to be on.

That's the thing. I feel like I'm entertaining. Yes. Really? Yes. And it's really energy sucking for me. It is. I love it.

When we get back from a trip, I go dark for days. Yeah. I'm in recovery mode. Exactly. Dude, so like we have America Fest coming up here, which is our huge. It's our biggest turning point conference of the year. And afterwards, I have it. scheduled already a massage for right after because I'm like I'm going to need it to decompress.

Yes. To decompress. Uh-huh. Okay. So Rachel, here's a deep question for you. Would you say that your experience as a black woman is different than your experience as a Jewish woman? And if so, in what ways? Um, yes. Um, I think my experience has been not necessarily currently. I think like, people have evolved, I've grown and learned a lot. But my experience growing up was I've always felt really accepted by the Jewish community and my family and just Jewish people. Like, if you hang out with Jewish people or like, I told Ruthie, I'm like, you could go to a synagogue and people be like, come on in. And like, they're just like a very welcoming group of people. not to say that black people are not, but in my personal experience, I was not always accepted among black peers. And I had a hard time with that growing up. And so I naturally gravitated more towards whoever is going to, you know, accept me. Because when you're young, you just, you want to be accepted. And it has changed. I feel like my group of friends

is very diverse in ethnicity and political beliefs and faith beliefs. Like, it's just very diverse and I really do like that. I like having my friends that are like-minded, but I also like having kind of like a mixed bag just to kind of see what's going on out there. And I feel like it makes you well-rounded. But, yeah, my experience growing up was, you know, very, very different. You took that in a little bit of a different place than I thought you were because to be honest, I kind of figured you would say, well, as a Jewish person, I get told, well, you're Jewish, you're privileged. You know, you have the stereotype is you have all of this, you know, extra privileges or whatever. And then as a black person in America, you're told you're oppressed. You took that in a little bit of different direction than I thought you kind of would. Do you both, how do you guys both feel about people telling you're black in America so you're oppressed? How do you take that? I don't like it because, well, Yeah, first of all, I'm Jamaican. I wasn't even born here. And so they tend to like push that in my face and say, well, she doesn't understand anything about Black America because, you know, her ancestors didn't have to deal with slavery, which is incorrect because there was slavery in Jamaica as well. And, you know, it's tough. I don't like it at all. And I think that people assume you are a certain thing because of the color of your skin, not realizing.

Like of a certain ideology. Ideology. Yep. Exactly. Alex or ethnicity or whatever. And my parents are Jamaican. I was born in Jamaica and I was raised in a Jamaican home. And so there's a lot of differences there.

Yeah. I wasn't raised that way with that kind of mentality. My dad grew up in the segregated South. He went to college. He graduated at the top of his class. He was told by his guidance counselor that the best thing, that he could do was join the military when he could have been anything with his grades. So he did that. He joined the Air Force and moved on up all the way up. And we traveled around

the world and lived in different places. And I never had an experience, a negative racial experience until we were like back here in the United States. And similar to what Daryl was talking about, you know, I had to find a group of people that were going to accept me. And it was different. But my parents never raised any of us with like a mentality that we are less than or are being treated less than. I think my dad was a good example of like you work your butt off and there'll be a pay off. Yeah. And that's it.

So what I'm not going to do is be one of the conservatives who pretends to be better than everyone else by saying I've never been on a dating app. I have used every dating app you can imagine. They haven't worked great for me, clearly, but I have found relationships from them. I've gone on crazy cool adventures because of them. One guy I matched with years ago, he lived in New York City, and at the time, I had never been there before. I flew in on Valentine's Day, and I met him on top of the Empire State Building. And before you ask, yes, sleepless in Seattle is one of my favorite movies. I know as a conservative dating apps can be difficult, but it doesn't have to be.

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Does the fashion vlogger community seem to be dominated by the left or is it equal left and right? It's just that not everybody on the right is outspoken about their beliefs. I think it's equal. I would say equal. Why do you think so many influencers that are conservative don't share their conservative? Do you believe that they do care about the money more than their beliefs? And so they just keep them secret?

You know, I could speak to that a little bit because I'm one to not really talk about my political views a lot on social media. Because although I am fully conservative, I think it's more important to lead people to Jesus than a party. if that makes sense. Can we just pause? That is the frickin' truth, Ruthie. That is so true. Conservatives, that is a huge bone I have to pick with conservatives lately. Seems like everybody's putting party above eternity.

Yeah. So although I think it's pretty obvious where we lie as far as what we believe. Conservatives. Me coming out saying, yeah, conservative vibes, exactly. I'm conservative. Right, right, right. What is that going to do to my community when I know for a fact that it's right down the middle? I did a poll during the election.

Just curious. Ooh, juicy. Yes. And so your followers were equal split? 50-50. That is interesting. And so I felt like the Lord showed me right then and there. What is the point and you tell them what you – I mean, you know what you stand for and I'm very vocal about my beliefs religiously.

But as far as saying, this is my party, I think my identity is more in Christ than anything else. And that's my reason for not going crazy about politics. Yeah. Does it bug you, Rachel? Does it aggravating to you that people that you know are conservative in real life, they refuse to say anything online? Not really. I also kind of try and stay in my bubble.

I feel like that's the way to survive in this industry is to not really pay much attention to what people are doing. So, like, whatever you're comfortable with, like, that's on you. I've always been someone that's pretty outspoken. And it's hard for me to, like my mom always says, you'd be a terrible poker player. Like, it just shows on my face. But like Ruthie said, like, I have kind of a mixed community as well. And while I will share my beliefs and thoughts on things, I never want to be polarizing.

I want to be a space where everybody is welcomed regardless of where you stand. And, you know, I grew up being, like, hardcore, like, I'm a Republican and, like, so proud of it. And that's just how I grew up. And when I was able to vote, I was so proud and happy. And I will say, as I have grown and, like, really gotten into politics, especially living where I live, I really just consider myself a conservative. And I don't really want to get into parties and all of that. It's more about, like, conservative values and morals for me. and I have no problem sharing that on my platform.

I think... Well, not every Republican, I would say, is a conservative either. I believe those are very different. That's why I'm saying you can't even, yeah, get into the party thing. It's so true. Okay, so I want to get into a few technical questions about Instagram and influencing that. People will either really like if they're trying to be an influencer or people who are influencers, like your friends that are listening to this.

They're just going to like your perspective on this. So in what ways has blogging on Instagram change that you like and what ways has it changed that you dislike? Oh, gosh. The liking part. I don't know what I like about. We really don't like the app. Okay, like in what way? Like elaborate on that.

What's hard about the Instagram app? It's hard to grow. It's really hard to grow. Unless a huge controversy comes up, unless you are on the Bachelor or the Bachelor or the Blatchel. Seriously. I don't know how you're going to grow. Yeah. We need a TV show or something.

literally unless you're on a TV show, or you're doing what everyone else is doing. For our space, it's those fashion reels, which they show the Amazon outfits, which is fine. It's what you want to do. For me and for Rachel, we're creatives. Like, we are super creative. So putting the outfit together and getting that killer bomb photo is like everything to us. So it's frustrating to you that the emphasis has been put on reels and video above regular. photo go. Yes, 100%. I hate video content. Like, Ruby is so good and like we'll kind of go with

the flow because it's a necessary evil, but I am very stubborn. I don't want to do it. I'm not going to do it. And I've watched so many people grow way past me and I'm like, I'm not going to do it. I don't want to do it. I love my photos. I've asked my community, do you want me to start doing videos. Do you want to see reels? Do you like photos? Do you like photos? And it's like 90% want to see the photos. So, and I think people do still want Instagram to be a photo sharing app. It's not TikTok. It's not.

Can I tell you something? The way that Instagram has implemented these changes in the algorithm and with the reels, these are the ways really to only, this is really the only way they've given us to grow our accounts now. I feel like the followers that you gain from reels versus how we used to gain followers, which was kind of courting them for a little bit. Do you understand to get them invested in you, your content, your brand? I almost feel like this fast way of gaining all these followers. Like they're not even as invested as the other followers.

Does that make any sense what I'm saying to you? Oh, one million percent. They're like very passive followers. They only like your video content. Those people don't watch my stories. They're not engaging in my photos or whatever. And you can tell because the numbers just don't add up, right? So the people that do tons of videos, they've got great views.

and they're growing, but then if you look at the engagement, it's terrible. It's terrible. Everybody wants like that quick fit. Yes. What are the best tips right now for growing a following with the current Instagram algorithm? I mean, we just said real. So do you just feel like it's only reals? That's what I'm seeing, unfortunately.

And like I said, it's like you got to do a specific, at least for fashion, type of video. It has to be educational. It has to be entertainment. or it has to be, I don't know, just those fashion rails I'm telling you about. And then here's the thing. You could get that down pat and like kill it. And then Instagram could change the algorithm and be like, oh, we want to show more photos. And then all your videos start sucking.

So I think, and I say, do what you're passionate about and what you love. If you love photos, do the photos. If you love the video, do the video. That's my two sides. Does it matter to be aesthetic on your Instagram feed? For me, absolutely. For me, it is. Okay.

Absolutely. If I see someone, like, your feet is beautiful. You guys have done a beautiful job. Oh, you're talking about, let me just tell you. I already know she's talking about Poplittics, not my personal. Yours as well. No. I love it.

My personal. I love it. My personal is no aesthetic. It does have an aesthetic because you are an aesthetic. You are a vibe, Alex. Oh. Stop playing, honey. Thank you.

Put that on a shirt. When you're so bummed, it's just, it is what it is. Thank you. You can't, it's undeniable. Well, we've tried to really do the color aesthetic and everything matching and stuff on politics. I just have sex for me. But it's a goal.

It's a goal of mine to focus more on my personal Instagram and try to get it into a better place and grow my following on there a little bit in 2020. That is a goal for myself because I've really, because for a while, I didn't have, turning point had not given me. like a social media manager. You guys both know Erica and love Erica and are friends with her. So I didn't have an Erica until a few months ago. It was me and one other person doing everything for filming my show, editing my show, answering my DMs and everything.

So in order to get all that done, I had to put all of my extra time in my life when I wasn't filming or doing interviews or whatever into handling my social media for the show. And so all of my personal just was totally in the back burner because I didn't care about growing my personal. It wasn't about me. about growing this conservative community for young women, that's where my focus went. And so then all of my stuff suffered. So now that I have help, which turning point is now we've grown the show. And this is why, like, leaving five-star reviews on podcast, commenting on episodes, thumbsing them up on YouTube.

And all that helps because my company sees that you guys support it and that you're there. And so then I get things that we need to grow the community and make it a better place for you, which is giving you staff. So then I have the help. So now I'm like, okay, now I can start doing things on my personal again. But anyway, that's like whatever. Okay, so we talked about aesthetic. Can I just say I'm really glad that you said that because all of your podcasts, I'm always laughing because you're like, make sure that you like it.

And I'm always like, it's a threat. When I say, make sure you subscribe and leave a five sure of you. Imagine me holding a little knife waving it up and a dad. That's really, like my career, my livelihood, it depends on this, y'all. Like, if you don't do that, you know what I mean? So it does matter for all of us, though. Not just me. That's every person that has social media is our main job.

If you're not liking our photos, if you're not following, if you're not subscribing, if you're not commenting. And then you're like, well, I don't understand. Where have you gone? Exactly. Well, you didn't show up. So therefore, there was no reason for anyone to pay me to show up. Yeah.

The thing is, it's like we know that people love the content, right? But it's just like you. Like, you have a boss and people that are looking at that. We have brands. Exactly. And they're looking at the numbers. and, you know, it's sad, but like if people aren't liking it and they're seeing those numbers, then it's like, why would they want to, like, invest their money into that when they can't see the proof?

Well, when I see favorite, and by the way, I've used that feature, the little star where you can favorite your favorite accounts. So for the influencers that I really, really like their content, I've done that. And then I always know, like when they do post an ad or something, I try to like it or comment or something because I know that matters. I'm like, hey, I care about their other non-ad content. But in order for them to exist, I need to be interacting with their ad content. And that's what I tell my followers because I know they really want the TV chats. That's what they want. But guess what?

Netflix isn't paying me. And I want to have the TV chat. So let's keep this going. So like, I got to make some money here. Finley veiled threats from Alex, Rachel, and Ruthie. All right. So a little rapid fire round, like three more questions. what do white people get right and wrong about conversations around racism?

That's a good one. I think wrong is that conversations around racism or hate of any form is political. Because it shouldn't be. It should be a non-political issue. Yeah, one thing that I began to realize kind of scrolling through TikTok during 2020 as well in 2021, one, it's not just white people that are racist, black people are racist too. Every race is racist and kind of educating yourself about what that means and how to be better and do better. That's spicy. It's very spicy, Ruthie. It's true. I mean, like I said. It's like,

how are you getting away with saying that white girl shouldn't be dancing like that or that white girl looks stupid in that? But if a white girl said that black girl looks terrible, like they would get murdered. It's just, it needs to be, the hypocrisy needs to just stop. What do black people get right and wrong about conversations around racism and privilege? I think there's a little bit of a wall up with black people because of the hurt and the history. And so I think that automatically there, a lot of people put white people in a box without kind of getting to know people individually. And, you know, I think, you know, it just, it's going beyond that and saying, okay, so maybe that person is safe and they aren't racist.

And I don't know if that makes sense. Like, I just feel like people kind of just group people together. Mm-hmm. Kind of stereotype. I think people are just, it's that fast, quick fix and they see something and keep scrolling or they see something and they automatically make a judgment. And we really don't take the time to sit down and talk to people that we don't have. agree with. Have a conversation. Have a conversation. Get to the intent. Get to why they think the way that they do. And maybe you'll give them a different perspective or you can agree to disagree. Like,

that's a concept. Yeah. Like no one takes the time anymore to have those conversations. And I think that's why I really treasure my community because we do have those conversations and those, you know, hard conversations and I've had people be like, well, I just can't follow you or I just can't support you. And that's totally fine. Like, I'm not for everybody. Not everyone's going to like me. It's fine. I don't care. But to have the conversation instead of just being like, oh, they're like this or they're like that. Right. Because they're white or because they're black. What's harder in America today being a conservative woman or being a black woman? I haven't had a lot of problems being a woman of color, black women.

I think conservative as a black woman is hard because people don't understand, you know, how could you be black and conservative? There's not a ton of us. How do you answer that question? It's morals for me. It's moral values for me more than anything else. Yeah. And there's stuff on the liberal side that I'm like, oh, yeah, I could learn from that.

I don't think it's as black and white as we think. But it is harder, I think, being conservative than it is being black. Yeah. For me especially, I mean, I live in a very liberal area. It's predominantly liberal. And it doesn't bother me. It's never bothered me. But I would say since 2020, it is more of something that,

makes it a little bit hard because people will just ask you or, you know, we, like I tell Ruthie all the time, like in our area, we talk about politics all the time. So it comes up. Like, you're not going to like a party or whatever and it's not like, it's going to come up. Yeah. You know, even my kids like their classmates talk about it. Like even in elementary school, like senators would come and speak to the kids. And like, like, It's just a part of our lives. So being conservative and being like the minority in our area is tough. I feel like it's not tough for me.

I think it's tough for me as a mom. Yeah. Because it's hard. We have to have a lot of conversations with our kids about that because they're a minority. Okay. So for the people that really tend to DM you and misunderstand your brand or comment on your all's posts and misunderstand you as influencers, what would you like them to know about you? That I'm just a person.

There's a real person behind the screen. And I think people that know me know that and that you don't have to agree on everything. Like, it's okay. Like you do you, Bill. Like, I'm going to do me. We can be friends. Like, that's it. Absolutely.

And just remembering that you're only. seeing a fraction of a person when you see what they share online. And hopefully that's, that fraction you're seeing is authentic and it's real, but there's so much more to me that it could be hard to misunderstand and not fully get the full picture. Jeez, this is like a really great conversation just to have. And just not only about influencing, but the nuances to influencing and all this stuff that you guys have to deal with day to day behind the scenes. And I hope that for people that follow you guys already. They got a really well-rounded, you know, picture of what life is like for you guys.

And then for people that don't already follow you, could you remind everyone of what your Instagram handles are so they can follow you, Ruthie? At Ruthie Wood, Ridley. Okay. And I'm at Rach Moon. Pretty simple, pretty easy. Guys, thank you so much for coming on the spillover. Thanks for having us.

Thank you for having us. This is so much fun. If you follow Rach or Ruthie on Instagram, then, like, you, know just from their pictures and their videos and everything how gorgeous they are. And let me tell you in person, it's like that times 100, like the clearest skin you've ever seen just the best sweetest people that radiates from the inside out, just, oh my gosh, you guys, in person, they are just as lovely, if not more so, than what you see online. If the fashion blogger and influencer space fascinates you, then go back and listen to Season 1, Episode 18, with lipstick heels and a baby

blogger, Jess Faye. She was canceled as a conservative influencer for going to a Trump event when he was president. Very juicy stuff. So I know if you like this episode, you will really like that one. The spillover is always back with new episodes Thursdays at 9 p.m. Pacific, midnight Eastern, anywhere you get your podcast, but especially Apple and Spotify, subscribe, leave a five-star review like I talked about. Imagine every time I'm saying that I'm wielding a little knife. A plastic one, okay, I'm not that crazy. But, you know, it does help us. So I really, really do appreciate and read your reviews every week that you leave for us. So thank you. And the team reads them too. It means so much. Follow Poplittics on YouTube so that you can watch the episodes. If you want to see

Rachel Ruthie in action, you can watch this interview on the Poplittics YouTube channel. I will see you next week. And next week, we're going to circle back to the conversation. I ended up promoting the week before last, but then we ended up doing Rach and Ruthie this week. So we switched things up. I was going to release the episode that comes out next week this week. But then last minute, we changed your minds. We wanted to do Rachel and Ruthie this week so that we could have, you know, a conversation about Balenciaga Gate and all that stuff going on. That was more timely. So next week, I am talking to a woman who found out after 30 years of marriage that her husband was a pedophile. You will not want to miss that.

I'm Alex Clark and this is the spillover. Love you mean it. Bye.