what happens when you comment on a kim kardashian pic in 2024
an unsurprising experience unfolded ughhhhhh
I spend so much time refreshing my Instagram feed at times that I didn’t even realize I had commented on a Kim Kardashian post within 30 seconds of her posting it. It was a photo from her winter SKIMS collection, where she was rocking a tiny faux fur bikini, and I casually wrote, “Idc what anyone says she’s an icon.”
The comment didn’t go viral, but being one of the first to comment on a Kardashian post earned me a little bit of attention. Notifications started rolling in here and there, more than my usual IG activity that caters to the girlies ever gets.
Some die hard, earnest Kim fans hopped into the replies agreeing with me. But, as expected, the other side of the coin showed up. Vulgar comments, ugh remarks about her past, and casual misogyny. Le sigh.
This isn’t a new experience, or even a surprising one. She’s not the first or last celeb to deal with haters, but the experience still stuck with me. One person called her a “whore.” Another replied that she only got famous because of her sex tape. Others said she didn’t work for her wealth. I looked into some of these profiles and wasn’t surprised to find that most of them were from the United States. Shoutout freedom of speech! What did surprise me was that the comments weren’t just coming from men, they were also coming from women. So much for women supporting women… Real people (NOT BOTS!) took time out of their day to reply to my comment, dropping demeaning replies they probably thought were clever or edgy. What really got to me was how casually it all came across. These weren’t heated debates or even well thought out critiques. They were tossed out the same way I’d reply “neeeed” to a friend’s IG story about their little treat.
The comments weren’t directed at me, but the misogyny in orbit was just gross. I was simply praising a woman’s success in a super simple way, and it led to a flood of disgusting replies. I’m not even famous, just someone who happened to comment on a Kardashian post, and yet I found myself scrolling through notifications filled with ugly takes. A less than decimal percentage of the ruthlessness they receive from the public on a daily basis. I couldn’t help but laugh at the absurdity. But it also made me think about Miley Cyrus, who said she wished Chappell Roan didn’t have to face so much online negativity. Miley also doesn’t deal with it herself, since she has proudly stated she doesn’t even know her Instagram password. Iconic behavior.
The Kim Kardashian post itself was a carousel featuring three photos. Two of them showcased more modest pieces from the SKIMS Winter Collection, but the first image was clearly the most risqué. It was designed to grab attention and play perfectly into the Instagram algorithm for performance. Slay. The product description on skims.com even leans into it as it reads “Embrace your wildest winter fantasy in this ultra-sexy set. Made with the softest faux fur, this fuzzy triangle bralette and thong is the perfect set to turn up the heat.”
One of the comments on the post said, “She still got it,” stood out to me. We’re living in a moment where celebrity women who were once told to cover up as they age are now reclaiming their presence, their confidence, and their sexuality. Demi Moore’s vulnerable and provocative return in The Substance. Nicole Kidman’s proud and erotic performance in Babygirl. Pamela Anderson showing up natural and stunning, owning her past and her present. Women who have been labeled as “past their prime” are proving they’re far away from that, if ever that.
Kim Kardashian is still a couple of decades away from entering her so called golden years, but she’s been building the foundation to be a symbol of timeless confidence since she entered the zeitgeist. On top of that, she’s been breaking down outdated expectations of what a public woman should be, and as of late, not giving anyone an explanation about her y2k leaked tape. Amen.
I haven’t written anything new, none of this is a revelation. It is all known. But commenting on a Kim Kardashian post unknowingly made me consciously aware of the fact that woman who choose to live on her own terms will never escape critical energy. And sometimes those reminders are sobering…
After receiving all of the replies, to me, the SKIMS faux fur triangle bralette and thong set isn’t just a set, it’s an invitation for women ranging from XXS to 4XL to show themselves unapologetically. The online world is always ready to reduce and objectify women and their bodies into something insignificant and offensive. But at least we can rock some shape wear and flaunt what we’ve got online, no matter what the haters say. <3