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Jill Demling started as Anna Wintour's assistant in 1998, around the same time as Lauren Weisberger, who went on to write The Devil Wears Prada. Anna promoted Jill to entertainment editor, and she spent the next 18 and a half years deciding who got the cover of Vogue. She reveals which cover Anna wouldn't let her forget, how Beyoncé got her first Vogue cover, and why Angelina Jolie raided Gwyneth Paltrow's rack. Jill now hosts the Going Rogue podcast. Check it out on Apple: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/going-rogue/id1814440700 YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@UCifqLV2sQB7b9WufQimRyqw And Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/7CIDU8Gib1FRvscacNw4SR CHAPTERS 00:00 Introduction 02:30 Anna's "next September" test 08:00 Egg sandwiches, voicemails & Burger Heaven milkshakes 12:45 Lauren Weisberger & the real Emily 18:30 What The Devil Wears Prada gets wrong 22:30 Why celebrities replaced models on covers 33:30 How Beyoncé landed her first Vogue cover 41:00 Photo approval & Beyoncé's no-interview cover 📷 Follow Back Row on Instagram: @backrow 📷 Follow Amy on Instagram: @instamyodell Follow Jill Demling 📷 Follow Jill on Instagram: @jilldemling Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Jill Demling, who booked Vogue's covers for 18 and a half years, says brands are like the new editors-in-chief. She explains how ad deals decide which star gets which cover, reads out the brand restrictions in a real talent contract, and asks what editorial even means in 2026? Plus: what Jill learned about how Demna works after she walked in his Spring 2027 Gucci show. CHAPTERS 00:00 Introduction 00:30 How brands are like editors-in-chief today 06:30 Inside a star's brand restrictions 11:45 Angelina raids Gwyneth's rack 15:15 Lightning round: best & worst behaved stars 19:00 Walking Demna's Gucci show Listen to Going Rogue on Apple: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/going-rogue/id1814440700 · Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/7CIDU8Gib1FRvscacNw4SR Follow Back Row: @backrow · Follow Amy: @instamyodell · Follow Jill: @jilldemling Edited by Chrissi Harris.

Amy recently joined The Sam Sanders Show to talk about the rise of AI slop in fashion. Thank you to Sam and his team for allowing Back Row to republish the interview here! ------- Even the fashion industry can’t escape AI slop. Fast fashion brands are using AI to pump out new looks and trends, and speed up production at unsustainable rates. It’s a business model that relies much more on algorithmic data than human design. Chances are you’ve even seen plenty of these products in your social media feeds. Sam chats with fashion journalist Amy Odell, host of the ‘Back Row’ podcast, about AI’s influence in the industry and how we can all be better consumers. Plus, is high fashion on life support? Amy also breaks down the perils of luxury shopping today. The Sam Sanders Show is a production of KCRW and Sam Sanders Productions. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Jonathan Van Meter spent five years inside Kim Kardashian's world for his new biography, Citizen Kim: The Woman Who Created the Future. He talks about what her rarefied world of fame and wealth is really like, her childhood front-row seat to the O.J. Simpson trial, and how Kanye West got her into the Met Gala. Plus: what Jonathan could and couldn't learn about how the sex tape was released, and whether Kim is laying the groundwork to run for political office. CHAPTERS 00:00 Introduction 02:00 How Jonathan Got Five Years of Access 05:30 Inside Kim Kardashian's House (and Her 24 Staffers) 12:00 Kim Air: Kim's Private Jet 30:30 Kim and the O.J. Simpson Trial 40:30 The Kim Kardashian Sex Tape 45:30 The Paris Robbery 48:00 Kanye, Anna Wintour & the Met Gala 55:00 Will Kim Run for Office? Subscribe to the Back Row newsletter: https://www.backrow.net/subscribe Buy Citizen Kim: The Woman Who Created the Future: https://link.amazon/B0cKsNzKY Follow Back Row: @backrow · Follow Amy: @instamyodell · Follow Jonathan: @jonathanvanmeter Edited by Chrissi Harris. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

*SUBSCRIBE to the Back Row newsletter for more coverage like this: https://www.backrow.net/subscribe. Go Premium and save three months on an annual subscription.* Referenced in this episode: Facelift confessions, part 1: https://www.backrow.net/p/facelift-confessions-part-1-the-brutal-realities-of-getting-work-done Facelift confessions, part 2: https://www.backrow.net/p/facelift-confessions-part-2-expect-an-emotional-toll In 2004, Fox turned plastic surgery into primetime entertainment. The Swan reality show gave contestants about $200,000 worth of surgery each, put them on crash diets, banned mirrors for three months, and then put them in a beauty pageant. Nine million people watched. Erin Lee Carr, director of 'Mommy Dead and Dearest' and 'Britney vs Spears,' goes back to the women 20 years later in her hit Hulu documentary, The Swan: Behind the Mirror — and tells Amy what the documentary couldn't. CHAPTERS 00:00 Introduction 04:45 Getting the Swans to talk again 10:00 "I almost died for reality television" 19:30 How much choice did they have? "1%" 22:45 Starvation diets and spoonfuls of peanut butter 26:00 The nude photos Dr. Haworth kept 28:50 The $5 million contract 36:50 "Would you do it again?" 40:00 A classic Anna Wintour story Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

SUBSCRIBE to the Back Row newsletter for the FULL Fashion Month Awards podcast and get more coverage like this: https://www.backrow.net/subscribe. Save three months on an annual subscription. For pod ONLY, sign up in Apple Podcasts (https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/back-row-with-amy-odell/id1843400835) or Spotify (https://open.spotify.com/show/0wpDOgcuWKjpH9WxklNqI4). The spring 2027 shows just wrapped in Paris, a year after the "Great Reset" brought new creative directors to Chanel, Dior, and many more. Amy is joined by Dana Thomas, New York Times bestselling author of Deluxe, Gods and Kings and Fashionopolis, to hand out Fashion Month Awards. They get into John Galliano's PR rehab after the canceled Met show, who's having the biggest sophomore slump, and more. The full episode for Premium subscribers includes awards for Best Runway Stunt and Best Overall, plus analysis of John Galliano's weak Zara launch and Virginie Viard's explosive book. CHAPTERS 00:00 Introduction 04:30 Biggest sophomore slump 10:45 Best show nobody talked about Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The spring 2027 shows just wrapped in Paris, a year after the "Great Reset" brought new creative directors to 15 brands, including Chanel and Dior. Dana Thomas, New York Times bestselling author of Deluxe, Gods and Kings and Fashionopolis, joins Amy to hand out Fashion Month Awards: biggest sophomore slump, best runway stunt, best runway troll, most tech money coded, best overall and more. Plus: thoughts on John Galliano for Zara and Virginie Viard's book. CHAPTERS 00:00 Introduction 04:30 Biggest sophomore slump 10:45 Best show nobody talked about 16:30 The models are thinner than ever 20:00 Most unwalkable shoes 23:30 Best runway stunt 30:30 Vaccarello's Saint Laurent finale 34:30 Best troll 40:30 Most tech money coded 44:00 Best overall 49:00 John Galliano for Zara 1:02:00 Virginie Viard's book Subscribe to the Back Row newsletter: https://www.backrow.net/subscribe Follow Back Row: @backrow · Follow Amy: @instamyodell · Follow Dana: @danathomasparis Edited by Chrissi Harris.

Mrs. Dow Jones (Haley Sacks) on how to stop impulse buying and why fashion month keeps you broke. Part One of two. For part two — about Birkins and fashion's play to woo the wealthiest shoppers — get a Premium subscription to Back Row: https://www.backrow.net/subscribe. Save three months on an annual subscription. Or sign up in Apple Podcasts (https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/back-row-with-amy-odell/id1843400835) or Spotify (https://open.spotify.com/show/0wpDOgcuWKjpH9WxklNqI4) Haley Sacks, aka @MrsDowJones, joins Amy to break down how fashion month keeps us stuck in a cycle of broke. Every season the same trend gets planted on the runway, in your feed, and on influencers, and within two weeks a cheaper version shows up at Zara. Haley talks about how to stop impulse buying, why luxury goods are so expensive, and what it was like to grow up in one of the world's wealthiest neighborhoods. CHAPTERS 00:00 Introduction 01:30 How fashion month keeps us in a cycle of broke 04:00 From the runway to Zara in two weeks 08:00 Buy fewer, better things 10:00 How to stop impulse buying 16:00 The luxury pyramid and the $690 keychain 20:00 Is any luxury actually worth it? 22:00 Hunting a sold-out clutch with an AI agent 25:30 Haley's years as an Upper East Side nanny 📺 SUBSCRIBE to the Back Row Newsletter: https://www.backrow.net/subscribe 📷 Follow Back Row on Instagram: @backrow 📷 Follow Amy on Instagram: @instamyodell Follow Haley Sacks 📷 Follow Haley on Instagram: @mrsdowjones 📖 Buy Haley's book, Future Rich Person: https://link.amazon/B07xqeKEx🎙️ 🎙️Follow Haley's Financial Tea podcast on Apple: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/financial-tea-with-mrs-dow-jones/id1860939850 🎙️ Follow Haley's Financial Tea podcast on Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/58anKIbkGzd5MkI3v0BjY2 Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Part Two of Amy's conversation with Haley Sacks, aka Mrs. Dow Jones. Haley weighs in on the state of the Birkin and if it's really an "investment." Haley also gives her thoughts on luxury brands' VIC programs and how AI will change our relationship to shopping and personal finance. CHAPTERS 00:00 The Birkin is in trouble 03:00 Is a Birkin an investment? 04:30 Haley's $7,000 Birkin 08:00 Inside luxury VIC programs 13:00 The risk of leaving aspirational shoppers behind 17:30 Haley's worst fashion purchase 20:00 How AI will change shopping 26:00 Finding your own style Subscribe to the Back Row newsletter: https://www.backrow.net/subscribe Follow Back Row: @backrow · Follow Amy: @instamyodell · Follow Haley: @mrsdowjones Edited by Chrissi Harris.

Harry and Meghan are back in the UK, six years after leaving the royal family. In the first part of Back Row's deep dive into Meghan Markle, Amy and former Us Weekly and Hello! editor Justin Ravitz — who has interviewed Prince Harry and worked with the couple's team — trace Meghan's story from her Los Angeles childhood to the night she met Harry. Part two is available to Back Row Premium subscribers. CHAPTERS 00:00 Introduction 09:00 Meghan's Los Angeles childhood 12:30 Age 11: taking on Procter & Gamble 16:15 Briefcase No. 24 on Deal or No Deal 22:45 Landing Suits 30:00 The Tig blog and Meghan's Goop dream 35:30 Social climbing and Soho House 43:30 Humanitarian ambitions and meeting Harry Subscribe to the Back Row newsletter: https://www.backrow.net/subscribe Buy The Palace Papers by Tina Brown: https://link.amazon/B02EAsx6X Follow Back Row: @backrow · Follow Amy: @instamyodell · Follow Justin: @jaydubargh Edited by Chrissi Harris. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Part two of Back Row's Meghan Markle deep dive picks up the night she met Prince Harry. We discuss the glamping trip in Botswana; the tabloid coverage that upset Meghan; the storied alleged spat over the Queen Mary Bandeau tiara; the flower-girl-tights standoff with Kate; and why the palace and Meghan never understood each other. Also, leaving the firm, the $100 million Netflix deal, "Duchess Difficult" headlines, Justin's own experience working with their team and interviewing Prince Harry behind the bleachers at the Invictus Games — and why they've moved back to the UK. Thank you for supporting independent media with your Back Row Premium subscription. CHAPTERS 00:00 Introduction 02:30 Botswana and falling for Harry 11:00 The tabloids turn 28:00 Tiara wars and flower girl fights 38:30 Royal life and the Commonwealth tour 42:30 Leaving the firm 56:30 Netflix, podcasts and Hollywood flops 1:05:00 Justin's inside look and the Harry interview 1:12:45 Why they're back in the UK Subscribe to the Back Row newsletter: https://www.backrow.net/subscribe Buy The Palace Papers by Tina Brown: https://link.amazon/B02EAsx6X Follow Back Row: @backrow · Follow Amy: @instamyodell · Follow Justin: @jaydubargh Edited by Chrissi Harris.

PJ Smith, director of fashion policy for Humane World for Animals (formerly the Humane Society), has spent almost 20 years getting companies from Gucci to Net-a-Porter to go fur-free. Now that most top fashion brands have sworn off fur, is wool the next big target for animal welfare activists? PJ talks about why, thanks to LVMH, the fur fight isn't quite over, how he got brands to change their mind about fur, and what's next. CHAPTERS 00:00 Introduction 02:30 Why fur-free NYFW is historic 08:00 How Humane World actually changes brands' minds 18:30 Fur farming down 85% — the numbers 22:30 PETA vs. H&M: the wool protests 25:30 Is wool humane? Mulesing explained 46:30 Exotic skins: the next target 52:00 PJ's biggest lesson after 20 years Subscribe to the Back Row newsletter: https://www.backrow.net/subscribe Follow Back Row: @backrow · Follow Amy: @instamyodell Edited by Chrissi Harris. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Superfakes have never been better and counterfeiters have never been smarter — so how can consumers buy secondhand luxury with confidence? Sarah Davis started Fashionphile on eBay in 1999, while she was in law school. Resale has exploded since: Her company now employs more than 350 people and authenticates roughly 1,500 luxury bags a day. Sarah reveals how she turned luxury authentication into an almost CIA-like operation, what gives away a fake Birkin bag, and how a $35,000 machine can tell if a Cartier Love bracelet is real or not. CHAPTERS 00:00 Introduction 02:00 Law school, eBay, and the Fashionphile origin story 15:00 A real Chanel, a fake one — can you tell? 21:00 Fake bags bought at real stores 23:30 "Your dupe isn't cute" 26:30 The $75 fee that killed the counterfeits 29:30 The $35,000 machine that catches fake Birkins 44:30 Where resale goes next Subscribe to the Back Row newsletter: https://www.backrow.net/subscribe Follow Back Row: @backrow · Follow Amy: @instamyodell · Follow Sarah: @justsarahdavis · Shop Fashionphile: @fashionphile Edited by Chrissi Harris. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Amy's husband Rick is back as the voice of Retail Confessions! Back Row's most popular series, in which luxury retail workers talk about what selling the world's most expensive fashion is really like. This installment from the archive talks about the aspirational shopping boom that occurred during the pandemic, which trend forecaster Sean Monahan discussed in this week's episode. Also discussed: the men who lie about their shoe size; the sugar daddies getting swindled by their mistresses; and the worst customer behavior this source ever experienced. Get a Premium subscription to Back Row through BackRow.net and you'll get access to all paywalled podcasts plus the newsletter: https://www.backrow.net/subscribe

*SUBSCRIBE to the Back Row newsletter for more coverage like this: https://www.backrow.net/subscribe. Go Premium and save three months on an annual subscription.* Trend forecaster Sean Monahan coined the "vibe shift" five years ago to describe the unease millennials felt coming out of the pandemic. Of all the terms Monahan has coined — from "normcore" to the "boom boom aesthetic" — the vibe shift may have been the stickiest. He and Amy revisited his predictions from five years ago and discuss what he got right and wrong. Monahan offers predictions on whether smart glasses will take; where rage bait is heading; the future of "flexing"; where the Met Gala goes from here; and what luxury fashion has to do to recover. CHAPTERS 00:00 Introduction 03:00 The boom boom aesthetic and the '80s that weren't 06:00 Why crypto killed streetwear 08:30 Normcore, and the anxiety behind it 19:00 Did tackiness give way to taste? 24:00 Smart glasses, glassholes and surveillance 38:00 Rage bait and the clipping economy 47:30 'The Devil Wears Prada 2' and Jeff Bezos 1:04:30 How does luxury fashion recover? 📩SUBSCRIBE to the Back Row Newsletter: https://www.backrow.net/subscribe Back Row on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@amy_odell 📷 Follow Back Row on Instagram: @backrow 📷 Follow Amy on Instagram: @instamyodell Follow Sean Monahan 📷 Follow Sean on Instagram: @8ghtb4ll 📩 Read 8Ball: https://www.8ball.report/ Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices