Dez Reads. The Cult of Labubu.

Welcome to the dog days of summer, August, when DC slows down and everyone gets a few weeks to relax; or so I’m told. It’s certainly not a sleepy time at Dez.

This week we welcome recent hire Katie Runkle, who leads this week with a look at these weird stuffed animals my kids won’t shut up about. I have heard the word “Labubu” 300 times in the past three weeks, but now I actually know what that is. Thanks, Katie, and welcome to the firm.

Will Kim: legitimate early adopter of matcha tea, or Gen Z hipster? He reports, you decide.

Our music and culture correspondent Anne Marie Malecha reports on the future of Oasis, after seeing them live at Wembley last week (jealous), while I share a long read that taught me a lot about gaps in America’s ability to produce nuclear power.

And Diane Chaaban brings us home with some moral clarity amidst the great WNBA sex toy controversy.

Thanks, as always, for reading along with us.

Here we go.

Grown-Up Toys, Literally

The Atlantic. What’s Really Behind the Cult of Labubu – The Atlantic

We all know Disney adults. But now another emerging hyper fixation is giving them a run for their money as the most inappropriate adult hobby: the Cult of Labubu.

These fanatics have latched on to a fuzzy doll with rabbit ears and canine teeth. It won’t bite you, but it will be on stage twerking with Lizzo and partnering with Uniqlo in a brand deal. While you’re thinking that you could never fall prey to such ludicrous toys, Pop star idol Rihanna has been toting Labubu accessories, and Kim K has featured the dolls in social media posts. They’ve even made it into raves you couldn’t dream of getting invited to, along with more mundane events, like KFC work shifts, attached to belt loops.

Valerie Trapp, Assistant editor at The Atlantic, describes this phenomenon as “kidulthood” and compares it to the Hello Kitty popularity in Japan, but I remain a skeptic. If we want to keep a sense of child-like wonder in our adult lives, why don’t we try having a popsicle or running through a sprinkler instead?

– Katie Runkle

TikTok Made Me Buy It

WaPo. Supplies of matcha are dwindling, thanks to lattes and TikTok videos

I am probably the slowest Gen Z when it comes to catching up to trends, but I am actually early to one ongoing social media trend – matcha. As someone who cannot handle coffee’s caffeine spike and crash, matcha was a natural alternative for me since college, since it releases caffeine much slower than coffee.

But never mind its health benefits, matcha is all about being fashionable nowadays. As this Washington Post story reports, TikTok influencers are raving about its unique flavors and its “aesthetic” appearance, putting this Japanese green tea powder in everything from lattes, ice cream, cocktails, and even pastas. Just a couple of years ago, social media influencers couldn’t post enough pictures of themselves holding oat milk lattes on Instagram. Today, you will find most of them posing with a cup of matcha latte, with its bright green color capturing people’s attention, whether it be on the streets or on our phone screens.

And thanks to this matcha madness, supplies of high-quality matcha are running out in Japan, and in cafes where they are available, the prices are higher nowadays than they have ever been. Hopefully, TikTokers latch onto the next food trend sooner than later because I would much rather see the price of my favorite matcha latte coming down than being able to say I am trendy.

– Will Kim

Live Music Worth the Hangover

VICE. Oasis in ‘Negotiations’ to Expand Their 2025 Reunion Tour

Oasis Live ’25, the British rockers reunion tour, kicked off in the UK recently and Oasis fans – including yours truly – cannot get enough. If you’re not an Oasis fan, the band helmed by brothers Gallagher – Liam and Noel – famously broke up when they got in a fight before a show in Paris circa 2009.

Supposedly Live ‘25 is the band’s last hoorah with shows in Ireland, Canada, the U.S., Mexico, Australia, Argentina, Chile, and Brazil throughout the end of the year. Major locales not on the current tour schedule are having major FOMO (fear of missing out, popular phrase of the 2010s) and clamoring to be added so they too can hear Cigarettes & Alcohol, Live Forever and Rock ‘n’ Roll Star live.

And rightly so.

I had the honor and privilege of seeing Live ‘25 at Wembley Stadium in London last week, along with 89,999 other Oasis fans, and it did not disappoint. While it was clear the Gallagher boys were not that fond of one another, they managed to put on a proper show that married the edge and nostalgia of their music with an immersive modern concert experience.

There are few things more enjoyable, at least to me, than live music. My hope is this VICE headline is true, so all mad for it (“madferit” in the Gallagher’s signature Mancunian accent) Oasis fans can be transported back to the late 90s and early aughts for a night. If not, Don’t Look Back in Anger, as at least there will be an Eras style tour documentary in the end, produced by Peaky Blinders visionary Steven Knight.

10/10 would see again, D’You Know What I Mean?

– Anne Marie Malecha

How to Keep the Lights On for AI

Pirate Wires. American Power

This one is a long read, but a really good one from Mike Solana.

Energy demands continue to skyrocket with the compute requirements of our AI future, and nuclear (specifically site-specific microreactors) will potentially play a critical role in solving that problem. But two entrepreneurs recently came to a scary realization: The United States had lost its ability to enrich uranium, and no one seemed to care.

Their startup, General Matter, is stepping up, breathing new life into a mothballed enrichment facility in Paducah, Kentucky. The story of how they came to realize this critical gap in our energy supply chain and worked with state and federal governments to bring Paducah back to life is well worth a read.

– Josh Culling

Sports Gone Wild

AP. How does the WNBA deal with sex-toy throwers? What to know about arrests and security

In possibly the most unhinged MadLibs scenario, weaknesses in security measures at WNBA games have been exposed as a number of male attendees have been sneaking in sex toys and throwing them on the court.

You read that right.

Phalluses causing a delay of game.

Over the last week and a half there has been a string of “hits” at WNBA games in Atlanta, Chicago, Los Angeles, Phoenix, and New York where a series of men have thrown their literal toy dicks around, striking both unsuspecting fans and, in one unfortunate instance, Indiana Fever guard Sophie Cunningham. Arena security says the problem is that these anatomical novelties aren’t made of metal and can be, ahem, tricky to detect in a pat down. Several perpetrators have been arrested and revealed that the misconduct was supposed to be a prank inspired by a social media trend…how original.

The WNBA has announced a minimum one-year ban and possible prosecution for anyone caught throwing objects onto the court. I humbly submit that they should also squirm through an explanation of why this was supposed to be funny – preferably on the phone with their mom. After all, enduring tired sex jokes is something women have been dealing with since forever. About time someone else sweated it out.

– Diane Chaaban

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