In 2014, Kim Kardashian popped in a faux septum piercing and felt inspired to upload a photo of herself onto Instagram. She captioned this image with the phrase “💀 gothic keeks 💀.” Kim would, I imagine, baulk at the lifestyle requirements of being a dyed-in-the-wool goth: listening to Sigue Sigue Sputnik and owning pet rats, but that is beside the point. That one of the most mainstream celebrities should align themselves with the aesthetics of a nihilistic subculture is a bit fun.
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It’s worth noting that Kim posted this to social media at a time when her look (greige stretch dresses and perspex heels) was fast becoming the fashion template. It makes me think of Kourtney Kardashian’s well-documented transition into “hot goth wife,” which has seen her abandon all those Balmain dresses and Jacquemus bags for Rick Owens pants and Raf Simons sweaters and The Cure merch. Can she name the 10 songs required (it’s a Very Official Rule) to pull off a band T-shirt? Who cares!
