Several years later, E! network has relaunched their True Hollywood Story series. The second episode of the series, gives insight into Kim Kardashian West. If you’re a fan, you might remember an episode being done on The Kardashians, as a family, back in 2008.
A decade later, lots has changed for Kim but the fundamentals remain the same.
Here is a question answered by Kim during the special- the answer might be common knowledge in Pop Culture but somehow, some people find it impossible to reach a respectable answer.
Q: What is KKW’s talent?
A: Marketing. Marketing. Marketing.
Up to nearly a decade ago, Instagram wasn’t around, and being an influencer wasn’t a profession- much less a way to make steady income. Being great at social media marketing surely wasn’t considered a talent nor were beauty guru or reality star associated with the word celebrity. Being a talented celebrity meant you were one of these: singer, model, actor. Although KKW has made a couple of cameos in movies, she is not an actress. She doesn’t sing, and has been quite vocal about her lack of abilities in the dancing department. That leads to many questioning her success, fame, and overall value. What does she actually bring to the table? Why is she famous?
Well, the answer, simply put, is herself.
KKW had been good friends with Paris Hilton for years before paving her own way to stardom but through her hangouts with Hilton, paparazzi started to give her some of the spotlight, too. KKW was stunning to the paparazzi, and she marketed herself as well as she could to make the situation benefitable to her. KKW and her sisters, Khloe and Kourtney, already managed their clothing store- DASH. However, KKW’s solo career as an entrepreneur began through endorsing products; perfumes, vitamins, you name it, she was on it.
In the episode, one revolutionary moment is spoken: Kim asked her twitter followers for some advice on what color her perfume bottle should be. Thousands replied. BOOM! Free focus group. In that moment, Kim (and brands watching) realized how badly followers wanted to be part of the process. Hence, the selfies. The sharing of intimate moments. The sky-rocketing success of her family’s reality TV show- now nearing their 18th season and 12th year anniversary. Followers wanted to be part of her life.
One of Kim’s goals in her career was to be the face of a any magazine cover but a higher-up told her to dream smaller. They told her to be realistic. A decade later, Kim has been on the cover of “Vogue”, “Glamour”, “Elle”, “Cosmopolitan”, “GQ”, “Allure”, and countless other magazines- whether it be as a business woman, contour queen, wife, or defying what is considered sexy in Hollywood by embracing her curves.
Kim Kardashian West’s talent and power unexpectedly made its way to the White House, as she vouched for the freedom of Alice Marie Johnson- a first-time non-violent offender mother of five who was serving for 20 years a life sentence without parole. From Twitter to the White House, along with a team of attorneys, and a bit of help from friend Ivanka Trump, KKW was able to speak to President Trump and obtain Johnson’s clemency.
Photo: Saul Loeb/ Getty Images
A few months later, KKW spoke at the White House, sharing the efforts being made to give former prisoners better opportunities at finding employment.
In true KKW fashion, she chose a “Vogue” cover interview as the moment to share with the world that she has decided to become a lawyer. Kim is currently taking part in reading the law, an apprenticeship program in California that allows people with at least 60 college credits (KWK had 75) to take the bar exam without attending law school. Instead, participants complete a four-year apprenticeship with practicing lawyers.
The news came with some ridicule and backlash from those who thought it was privilege that allowed KKW to pursue a legal career without attending law school or a college degree. The dealing-with-negativity pro set the record straight through an Instagram post, having already been mentally prepared for eye rolls.
Support was also expressed from people like Jennifer Wright, political editor for Harper’s Bazaar:
“A lot of these jokes about Kim Kardashian becoming a lawyer are just revealing that you don’t think a woman with a public sexual identity can be smart or care about justice. Do we need a ‘Legally Blonde’ remake already?”
Maybe we do. Although remakes usually aren’t as good as the original, but one thing is certain: Kim Kardashian West will continue to use and nurture her talents, with or without the eyerolls. In a decade, the concept of celebrity has been redefined. You no longer have to be a model, actress, or singer. By the same token, we now live in a world where Miranda Hobbes from Sex and the City runs for New York governor and reality tv show host Donald Trump from The Celebrity Apprentice is the President of the United States.
What’s next for Kim Kardashian? The possibilities are endless.
Sources:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=u_CRXBG5PfI
https://www.cnn.com/2018/12/18/politics/criminal-justice-overhaul/index.html
https://www.instagram.com/p/BwSBRu5nmST/?utm_source=ig_embed