TL;DR
- Revolve Festival at Coachella was “an absolute dumpster fire,” according to influencers
- Two years after Taco Bell discontinued its Mexican Pizza, fans have successfully brought it back
- Books including The Seven Husbands of Everyln Hugo are being snatched up in the U.K. as #BookTok reaches young people’s FYPs
Influencers Aren’t Happy About How Revolve Festival Went Down During Their Coachella Weekend
ICYMI: Coachella returned to La Quinta, California, last weekend. It’s been two years since the last Coachella, so the music fest, which is one of the biggest in the U.S., was highly anticipated by music fans and influencers. One of the biggest events during Coachella is Revolve Festival, where influencers and fashion bloggers are invited to the brand’s pop-up experience three miles north of the Coachella grounds. But after quickly realizing that the transportation to get to Revolve Festival did not budget for the hundreds of influencers who were invited to the event, influencers started taking to TikTok to show their frustration. Dallas-based content creator Averie Bishop documented clips of the poorly planned transportation services from Coachella to Revolve Festival in a TikTok video that has amassed 3M views, dubbing it “absolute chaos.” After waiting in the hot desert sun in line for two hours, Bishop didn’t even make it to the event explaining, “Sorry, Revolve, but I really hope you take into consideration everyone’s safety and security next year,” as her friend shouted, “this is Fyre Fest 2.0.” Another influencer, Lauren Ashley Beck, who was lucky enough to make it to Revolve Festival shared clips of the exclusive event once she got in, which was complete with floral photo ops, swing rides, a concert performance from Jack Harlow, and more, but said she waited in line for three hours before finally arriving. Several more influencers documented their less than satisfactory experience trying to make it to the exclusive event: #RevolveFestival counts more than 200M views on TikTok. Revolve has responded to the “disastrous” event, saying, “We sincerely apologize to all the guests who were impacted. We always strive to provide a great experience and we promise to do better.” The brand also mentioned that city regulations required them to host the event off-site and maintain a safe occupancy, which is likely what resulted in such a chaotic transportation service to and from the event. Still, influencers were not happy—and not afraid to share their thoughts. Revolve Festival signals how powerful influencers are due to their massive online audiences—for both better and worse. Clearly, Revolve Festival attendees will be awaiting a much better experience come 2023.
Taco Bell’s Fan-Loved Mexican Pizza Is Back, Thanks to Doja Cat
The fast food chain’s Mexican Pizza has long been one of the most-loved menu items offered at Taco Bell, which consists of a tortilla with beans or ground beef and pizza sauce, topped with another tortilla layered in cheese, chopped tomatoes, and more pizza sauce. Fans (plus Doja Cat) have been begging the restaurant to bring it back since it was eliminated from its menu in 2020—one fan even created a change.org petition to bring it back. After nearly two years, Taco Bell is (finally) listening, and announced this week that it’s bringing back the beloved menu item May 19. But before that, Doja Cat—who has been asking Taco Bell to bring back the Mexican Pizza and even created a song about the item—first announced the news during her set at Coachella this past weekend. Taco Bell responded to Doja Cat’s announcement in an Instagram post reading, “You know we had to give @DojaCat the news first. The #MexicanPizza is finally coming back 5/19!” With Taco Bell coming in at No. 3 on the list of Gen Z and Millennials’ favorite fast food restaurants, the return of its Mexican Pizza could boost young people’s views of the restaurant even more.
#BookTok Is Taking Off In The U.K.
YPulse told you how #BookTok is influencing sales in the U.S.—and this subculture is taking off in the U.K., too. Four out of five of the top young adult bestsellers in 2021 have been driven by BookTok within the U.K., according to the Publishers Association. Hits such as They Both Die at the End, The Song of Achilles, and Tender Is The Flesh are just a few titles that have helped rack up 49.6B views on #BookTok. Book sales experienced a new high last year, accounting for £6.7bn, and the Publishers Association notes viral videos from platforms like TikTok and YouTube are aiding the growth of book sales as it encourages young readers to discover new titles books—whether it’s a sappy romance or a gripping who-did-it narrative.@bookmarkd and @amyjordanj are two TikTok influences enticing the British public to turn the next page, giving ratings and recommendations on the books they’ve read that month, while @booksandpiecesuk offers sustainable tips for book shopping with pre-loved mystery packages for book lovers that are struggling with too many book options to choose from. Online book retailer Waterstones has also taken the input of TikTok into mind too – creating a “Tik-Talking” section where the viral books are available for someone to grab without having to go through a neverending search for the new romance book popping up on one’s FYP. The drive for reading will continue to grow within the U.K. – and worldwide – as the influence of BookTok continues taking over young people’s social media feeds.
Links We’re Passing
Speaking of Coachella, fans can’t get enough of Shania Twain’s surprise performance during Harry Styles’ set.
A TikToker’s hip injury inspired a platform-wide duet.
Duolingo’s TikTok famous owl and Scrub Daddy’s sponge (reportedly) had babies—and yes, this is by far the weirdest brand collab of late.
Singer-songwriter Janelle Monáe has come out as nonbinary.
Taylor Swift’s influence has hit a new level: a newly discovered species of millipede will officially be named after the musician.
Hulu’s The Kardashians is officially the platform’s most-watched premiere in America.
The trailer for Thor: Love and Thunder racked up more than 200M views within 24 hours of dropping.
The Tinder Swindler is officially Netflix’s most-watched documentary.
