#WCW | Leighton Meester

It's time for another hashtag! Since #TBT last week was fun, I've decided to post another "hashtag"-inspired post! #WCW, also know as Woman Crush Wednesday, is not something I regularly instagram, but I am taking advantage of its premise to talk about my girl Leighton Meester. Leighton is most well known for her role as Blair Waldorf on Gossip Girl - which we all know I am a superfan of. She is an actress (both on screen and off) and singer - go ahead and click play to hear the audio stream of Leighton's new, intoxicating single "Heartstrings" as you read along. 

Well, of course, I love Leighton because she brought to life my favorite character in the Gossip Girl novels. She is poised, beautiful, and perfect for the role and then some. Though the show was meant to be more centered on Serena (Blake Lively), Leighton's portrayal of Blair made her the breakout star of the series, which I was rooting for wholeheartedly. But other than her role in GG, she was in a few films: The Roommate, Date Night, That's My Boy, and Country Strong. That last one listed, Country Song, is probably her best film work and she is the only reason I saw that movie (I later discovered how yummy Garrett Hedlund is, too)... she plays the sweet Chiles Stanton perfectly and she sings some great country (and I loathe country). That wasn't the first time we heard her voice, she had done some singles with people like Robin Thicke and Cobra Starship, but this was better. Which leads us to this new single from the promising new album that comes out on October 28th. I think she sounds better in a more sweet, ethereal way, rather than a poppy, Kiss FM sense, ya know? Especially since it really seems like that persona wasn't her, it was what would sell when she was on GG. I am glad she is doing it how she wants to do it this time around. I really, really love "Heartstrings" and can't wait for her album to come out - I mean... that high voice is so different and it sucks me in!

Aside from her resume in "Hollywood" and all the rather shallow reasons I adore Ms. Meester, there is more. She just finished up her Broadway run in Of Mice and Men, opposite James Franco and Chris O'Dowd. I think it is awesome when people in movies/TV go to the stage - that is what I loved about acting... there is nothing like the stage and live theater. She played Curley's Wife (yes, her character does not merit its own name, an important insight into the plot), which is a somewhat controversial character - constantly referred to as a tramp, tart, bitch, and you get the point. This is not a new character or topic of discussion, John Steinbeck's Of Mice and Men has been around on stage, in classrooms, and on coffee tables for decades. But I was most intrigued when Leighton raised her voice on her character on an interesting platform: The Huntington Post.

Leighton wrote a really thought-provoking article, which I highly recommend reading. She discusses how her character is hated, but as she has been immersed in Steinbeck's text for months, she realizes there is really no reason - she is kind, she isn't a floozy. I do not want to reveal too much, as to not spoil anything for anyone who hasn't read or seen the work. She comments on how the work was a commentary on the social climate at the time and how it shockingly still very much applies - sexism and our "rape culture". The audience coming to see James Franco is obviously younger and different from most Broadway play audiences, giving new reactions to some of the things said, such as laughter when she is spit at or berated from men in the play. With this, she provides the perspective of the actress playing such a character; she can be shocked night after night when the young audience reacts with laughter or sneers - it makes her feel the loneliness of her character, which might be good for her acting, but it seems like it would take a toll on a actress. Her words really made me think, as a former actress and as a woman. Why does the audience laugh? Is it because they are more immature, enamored by the cast? Is it because these words like tramp, slut, bitch are viewed as funny by millennials? "Slut-shaming" is unfortunately a reality in 2014 and works like Steinbeck's shows us how far we haven't come in matters of sexism and equality.

I'll stop there, but this is one of the very reasons I admire Leighton Meester - not only is she the star of my favorite television series, but she is a public figure that also writes things like that in the Huffington Post. I wonder what she would say about Blair Waldorf in terms of feminism and in relation to Curley's Wife... There are certainly parallel conversations to be had there. She is inspiring in her early life, as she was born into a family where both parents were in jail (yes, her mom literally left prison to have Leighton and nurse her in a halfway house before going back to finish her sentence). It takes a lot of will power to become successful, especially in Hollywood, let alone when you are literally born into adversity. For these reasons, I admire Ms. Meester... (or should I say Mrs. Meester-Brody? PS: She married Adam Brody, how adorable!)

Who's your #WCW?

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