Image by Efkanakbiyik from WikiMedia Commons

If you’ve hopped onto TikTok, Instagram or YouTube recently, then chances are you have already seen the viral Vogue video that’s challenging celebrity culture.

Of course, we are talking about, Hailey Bieber’s “What’s in my Bag” video, and why this wasn’t the typical clip that we were all expecting.

Here’s a breakdown of how this satirical video was pure genius.

From the moment Hailey opened her Saint Laurent handbag and pulled out an “Eau d’Nepo” perfume, it became clear that this wasn’t your average haul.

Paired with her sarcastic commentary, Hailey seemed to mock the “nepo baby” allegations that she relentlessly battles.

The star added: “This is my favourite perfume. I’ve basically been wearing this all my life.”

In this snide remark to the haters who claim that her successful career tags off of the back of her father Stephen Baldwin’s stardom, she continued: “It really does all the work for you without you having to do anything, very effortless.”

Hailey went on to ridicule the supposed ‘perfectly curated authenticity’ that clogs our feeds.  

Pulling a handful of books out of her luxury leather bag, Hailey said “It’s probably my fourth or fifth time reading it” with a copy of Nietzsche in hand.

This exaggeration was a dig at the rise in influencers that performatively pose with books and attempt to appear like intellectual it-girls.

Hailey did not stop there, next in line was an obnoxiously large collection of Rhode lip treatments. Giggling as she dumped the pile down on the table, this was of course a shameless plug.

Up next, an empty journal.

This potentially pokes fun at her empty-headed stereotype as she says “this is where I put all my thoughts” while a blank page stares back at her.

On a similarly satirical note, this is also perhaps a dig at the “journal, matcha, skincare, wellness” aesthetic that Hailey is no stranger to.

In a culture obsessed with mindfulness, ginger shots and 6am Pilates classes, the untouched journal is the perfect prop as she critiques the societal pressure to be (or at least appear to be) productive online.

Hailey then pulls out not one, not two, but six phones.

Committed to the satirical commentary, she added: “I really use them for a lot of the simple stuff like surfing anonymously, commenting, stalking, viewing girls’ pages, making multiple accounts, you know, that kind of thing.”

This tongue-in-cheek comment references the internet’s conspiracy theories about her using burner phones.

Likewise, the reference to viewing other girls’ pages, is a nod to the speculation that her relationship with Justin Bieber is threatened by his ex, Selena Gomez.

Addressing the rumours without naming any names was undoubtedly iconic from Mrs Hailey Bieber.

For those who hadn’t already figured out that the entire video was of course, pure and unfiltered satire, Hailey next pulled out ‘a witch’s potion’.

Holding the little black bottle in hand, she claimed that she received the potion at the age of 12 when her dad flew her out to meet a witch in the mountains.

She continued with her fairytale story: “She told me that it would make a young Canadian pop star fall in love with me.”

This “young Canadian pop star” is of course the ‘Baby’ singing 15-year-old that the music industry fell in love with – her husband Justin Bieber.

Whilst the mythical ‘witches’ and ‘potions’ potentially reference how their relationship was once viewed as a fairytale romance, it also pokes fun at the idea that she somehow used magic to make Justin fall in love with her.

What seemed like a playful joke, calls out the scrutiny that women in the spotlight face during public relationships.

In this hilarious take on the popular, celebrity-filled trend, Hailey didn’t just unpack her bag, but rather unpacked celebrity culture and performative posting.

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