If you are active on TikTok and Instagram, there is a high chance that you’ve come across Nara Smith, a twenty-two-year-old South African/German model who has also earned the title of a ‘’momfluencer’’, ‘’trad wife’’ and a queen of ‘’making everything from scratch’’. Smith has gained rapid fame in the last few months and has 8.8 million followers on TikTok. You will recognize her as a beautifully put-up young woman – her nails, hair, and makeup done to perfection, cooking everything from scratch without spilling a single drop on her high-end fashion clothing.
@naraazizasmith. ”perfection 🫶🏽”. 19 July 2024. Tikok.
How did Nara Smith become so popular?
Smith became a model at fourteen and met her now husband, Lucky Blue Smith who was already a well-known high fashion model starring in Lady Gaga music video I Want Your Love created for Tom Ford SS19 Fashion Show. The couple started dating in 2019 (controversially Nara was seventeen and Lucky Blue twenty-one) and married in 2020. Six months later, they had their first child, Rumble Honey Smith. By 2024, the Smiths had three children, with one more from Lucky Blue Smith’s previous marriage.
@naraaziza. Instagram. 2021. https://www.instagram.com/p/CLR2RrSLrnY/.
They portray an idyllic, harmonious, and traditional family lifestyle on social media. Even their outfits look like they materialized from the 1950s.
@naraaziza. Instagram. 2020. https://www.instagram.com/p/CEIscxUAP0U/.
@naraazizasmith. ”still not over this dress”. 2 August 2023. TikTok.
The ”trad wife” girl era
The inspiration for this blog came from my flooded TikTok For You page with Nara Smith’s videos, memes, and Instagram reels referencing her content. This drew my attention to the increasing popularity of #tradwife (traditional wife) content as a lifestyle.
It can be pointed out that people like Paris Hilton and the Kardashians are queens of selling lifestyle in mainstream media. However, their type of content significantly differs from Smith’s. Hilton and the Kardashians came to fame in the early 2000s (amidst third-wave feminism) where a lot of importance was placed on women’s focus on independence, chasing a career, and having fun.
From popular girl media tropes such as the 2000s party girl, Tumblr sad core 2010s girl, and nowadays Charli XCX’s ‘’brat girl’’, the last thing I expected to be in fashion was being a Stepford wife girl. And before you come for me for being a bad feminist, I will explain why Nara Smith is anti-feminist later on.
Main issues
1. The portrayal of motherhood is unrealistic. Unless you have a team of nannies and millions of dollars, your life will not look like Nara Smith’s life.
I previously mentioned Smith’s and the Kardashians’ contents differ. However, I would argue that they differ in aesthetics but not in their core. Essentially, they are both polished to perfection intending to sell you a perfect kind of life partnered with companies and products that can get you there. This can be proven by Smith’s collaboration videos with fashion giants such as Marc Jacobs and Calvin Klein.
Smith’s house is always impeccably clean, her toddlers do not interrupt her while filming, and she always looks like every hair on her head is in its place. Furthermore, her husband takes her on glamorous dates in vintage convertible cars to expensive restaurants. If I were watching this content at eighteen, being a mom would also seem like a pretty good deal to me.
@marcjacobs. ”The Tote Bag, made from scratch by @Nara Smith”. 22 July 2024. TikTok.
2. Nara Smith’s fans say you shouldn’t compare your life to hers.
Social media’s negative impacts include FOMO and comparisons to others, which can, create immense pressure for many moms.
Even though there is a plethora of information accessible that proves that Nara Smith’s social media alter-ego is a character and that her life is unattainable to a normal person with three children under the age of three in their home, the Nara Smith fans are prepared to die on the hill that acting to be the perfect housewife for your audience is none of Smith’s responsibility.
3. The claim that people must understand social media as entertainment.
The main problem regarding this argument is the lack of social media literacy education in schools and the lack of critical thinking to be detached. Even if you are educated, the online algorithm is designed to make you addicted and apply it to real life and yourself in some way.
It can be argued that the fans excuse Smith’s performance as ‘’she never claimed that her life is real”, but that is proven false. In the video below, Smith states that she did not know that ‘’her joy in cooking for her husband and kids would get her accused of slaving in the kitchen and having a whole production team’’.
She admits that she is a working mom who cooks from scratch due to health issues but does not explain how a working mom with three toddlers manages to produce hours and hours of such lavish content and what luxuries she has in her life to be able to do that, which makes it even more ridiculous and unrealistic.
@naraazizasmith. ”🤍”. 23 July 2024. TikTok.
Not only do some believe this lifestyle is real, proven by comments such as ‘’When I grow up, I want to be Nara Smith’’ or ‘’Never understood the hate on her, I actually wanna be like her someday’’, others are also actively blaming you if you criticize her content or if it negatively impacts you because you should surely understand that Nara Smith’s TikTok character is fabricated.
4. Calling people who criticize Nara Smith ”bad feminists”.
Women who criticize Smith are often told that they have internalized misogyny. They are reminded that being a housewife is a valid choice and Nara Smith is free to choose it.
I fully agree that feminism should be all about choice, but the ironic thing is Nara Smith did not choose this lifestyle and even she does not live it because it is not real.
The primary issue with content created by wealthy and privileged individuals, aimed at the general public, is systematic. This content often portrays an unrealistic lifestyle that makes it difficult for people to spend adequate time with their children or prioritize healthy eating, as these activities require time and money. When individuals see someone like Nara Smith effortlessly creating healthy meals from scratch, looking flawless, and spending extensive quality time with her beautiful family, it can be harmful because it sets unattainable standards for those who are not as privileged.
@naraaziza. 2024. Instagram. https://www.instagram.com/p/C9DCw5nplNh/.
Lastly, the comment underneath Smith’s Instagram post that I have included above is perfect for driving my point home:
”Nara at her 20’s : Got handsome husband, look like an angel, have 3 beautiful kids, make things from scratch ! Meanwhile me at my 20’s : 24/7 depressed, cannot get out from bed to eat, broke, single af🤦♀️”
Ana Višić
Philosophy, Art and Media Studies graduate, particularly interested in exploring how digital platforms shape public discourse and cultural expression, aiming to provide insightful analysis and foster meaningful conversations in the digital age.
