I love a good parasocial relationship. I am always invested in a couple at a time. Some are long-term, some are short. I study these strangers’ lives (stalk them) in a curious and intellectually-fulfilling way and definitely not in a “fan behavior” way.
In my experience, parasocial relationships usually end because the fan loses interest or the influencer gets canceled. The latter is always the worst because it not only comes as a shock but it is just embarrassing.
Obviously, cancellations are layered and not all comparable. For example, I still love Tana Mongeau despite her countless cancellations. On the other hand, I’m taunted everytime I open my bathroom drawer back home and see my Shane Dawson X Jeffree Star Conspiracy pallet. This is a safe space, please don’t come for me.
Tana has done bad things, but I do not think that she is a bad person, and I thoroughly enjoy her content and social media presence. Shane Dawson was a lapse in my judgment, I admit, but if you weren’t watching his conspiracy videos, what were you doing? Probably something more productive and fulfilling, but I am chronically online.
A recent cancellation that took the internet by surprise was that of Lunden and Olivia Stallings. Although fairly new to TikTok, they garnered a lot of support on their couple channel, @lundenandolivia. Their content matched their simple TikTok handle, simple content of Lunden and Olivia existing and being cute together.
They seemed to be two clean-cut and sweet southern gals. There was never any drama or controversy surrounding or targeted at their content. The type of videos they made were #southern #preppy #wlw.
Honestly, I wasn’t following them, but their videos would often pop up on my For You page, and I would be happy to see it. This type of parasocial relationship might be my favorite — the casual and aesthetic content that I don’t need context for.
I know who these women are, but I don’t need to follow them, because their videos are dependent on each other and simply to portray the aesthetic of their relationship. This casual Pinterest relationship realm of the internet is necessary for my mental health. It provides my incessant need to scroll on Pinterest a rest and replaces it with more content. I swear I will also go outside and touch grass.
Lunden and Olivia provided representation to an underrepresented sector of the lesbian community. They are probably the only well known southern preppy lesbian couple on TikTok and everyone loved their content.
That particular aesthetic is not normally associated with the LGBTQIA+ community, but holds more of a sorority-rush association. Lunden and Olivia broke that mold and became not only famous for their cute couple content, but since their account focused on their relationship they became a voice of the lesbian community on TikTok and began acquiring pride campaign brand deals.
The couple garnered almost three quarters of a million followers during their time on TikTok. Their viewers all waited in anticipation of their wedding on Sept. 30 in Georgia. Shortly after the wedding, tweets Lunden had made as a teenager using the N-word and casually saying other racist comments resurfaced the internet.
I’m not going to quote any of them, but they are online, and there is a large variety of gross comments made by both Lunden and Olivia for insight into how these poised and polished southern ladies spoke in their adolescence.
This was a dramatic shift from their expected content. The couple seemed perfect. But luckily, as with any cancellation, an apology video followed. Lunden and Olivia filmed a 10-minute-long apology for their TikTok story, which automatically deleted 24 hours later.
Even without watching it, I’m sure there are elements you’re expecting: faces of distress, claims of “that was a long time ago,” something along the lines of “I’m not that person anymore,” and perhaps even a sincere apology, although those are not as customary for apology videos as you would expect.
All of those elements were in fact in the video! Needless to say Lunden and Olivia have disappointed their following on TikTok and many more users.
Lunden also never explicitly said what she had tweeted in the apology video, only that she was sorry and felt bad. Olivia attested to the fact that Lunden has changed. Later that week, tweets of Olivia also being racist resurfaced. Both women were able to legally drive when they were consistently tweeting these offensive and racist comments.
Although I do not think they will lose their platform or influencer status, it is evident this freshly married couple will likely be working on their “something new” (respect) before they get their “something blue” (verified check on Instagram).
