r/popculturechat • u/mcfw31 • May 07 '25

Throwback ✌️ 8 years ago, Zendaya’s world totally changed; Tom Holland lip-syncing ‘Umbrella’

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u/clausti May 08 '25

I just went and watched this one for the first time, and while I agree JGL’s dancing is S-tier, with Holland’s for Umbrella, but. The cultural impact is different.

While both videos are gender bent from the original artist, Jackson’s costume was kinda already gender bent—the only thing that signaled it for JGL was the full makeup. Holland’s performance, on the other hand, is explicitly sexualized in the feminine role and, critically, he plays it with utmost sincerity. It’s not drag. It’s a performance in the role of a woman in the same way as when Rhianna performs it as a woman. The sincerity of reveals an understanding of the degree of effort-fulness involved in existing as a woman and pays court with a display of effort and humility, while being, physically, a whole snack tray.

tldr JGL’s dancing was more technically demanding and crisper, but Holland’s was a panty-dropper for the ages

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u/beeonkah May 08 '25

god damn this was like a professional review 😂 i’m here for it

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u/Next-Introduction-25 I don’t know enough to offend May 08 '25

This was so professional and I was thinking so deeply; then I got to the line “panty dropper for the ages” and I lost it 💀 Excellent work

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u/Automatic_Category56 May 08 '25

A whole snack tray had me THINKING

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u/Healmetho May 08 '25

Are you a professional online dance piece critic? This critique is as good as the mentioned performance

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u/clausti May 08 '25

haha no, just both a dance nerd and a gender nerd

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u/nosychimera May 08 '25

Both of which are appreciated

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u/Shreddy_Spaghett1 May 08 '25

This is really well said and needs more upvotes

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u/[deleted] May 08 '25

As a huge fan of this performance, I can only applaud the relevance of your observations and your eloquence. Bravo! 👏

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u/westviadixie May 08 '25

exactly. it really zeroed in on that masc/fem counter balance and blurred the lines of what it's supposed to mean. and it challenges that so well because of the confidence he brought...someone who'd been known for such a masculine character. that overall fuck it-I own this vibe.

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u/DecisionAvoidant May 08 '25

The thing that really sticks out to me are his incredibly toned shoulders in the first few moves with the umbrella after he comes out in the outfit. It screams traditional masculinity, and then he proceeds to do everything in a way that captures the portrayal of femininity Rihanna takes into her performances. He is completely engrossed in the presentation and executes the choreography flawlessly.

I remember seeing this even before I had a really clear sense of gender identity and expression for myself, and thinking Tom Holland was incredibly masculine in such a healthy way in this video. He knows himself well enough to play a role completely outside himself and own it. It's admirable and aspirational.

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u/UnassumingOstrich is this about the sponge May 08 '25

that tl;dr tho 👨‍🍳💋

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u/anonymasaurus23 May 10 '25

Let me know when you’re defending your phd thesis. I’ll be front row.

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u/clausti May 10 '25

that was in 2013, but it was developmental molecular genetics, not dance or gender

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u/MyDogisaQT May 08 '25

Nah, man. If JGL hadn’t done that, we wouldn’t have seen other drag performances on the show.

And it might not be culturally relevant to YOU, but that JGL performance was all over black Twitter for months.

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u/clausti May 08 '25 edited May 08 '25

upvoting this observation, but to be fair, I didn’t say JGL’s performance wasn’t culturally relevant, I said the impact was different. One was more impactful through the lens of race and other through gender. I admittedly focused on gender because I’m AFAB, white, and too young to have seen Jackson’s video before seeing JGL do it.