Nepo Babies is the 2022 phrase that made so many celebrities mad. If you somehow missed the trend, a "nepo baby" is someone who was able to kick start their success due to having incredibly famous parents. Examples include Zoe Kravitz (daughter of Lenny Kravitz), Nic Cage (nephew of Francis Ford Coppola), and Jack Quaid (son of Dennis Quaid and Meg Ryan).
However, has the phrase gone too far? What started as a fun turn of phrase to mock Hollywood and the entertainment industry's somewhat incestuous hiring practices, the phrase inevitably mutated. Soon it became a label meaning "anyone whose parents are famous and have subsequently found success in the same industry." A much debated Vulture article that "explained" the "nepo-verse" often becomes undone with weak examples. For example, Daniel Day-Lewis' son, whose only notable acting role is The Daily Wire-funded Terror On The Prairie. Now, the multi-talented Teyana Taylor is pushing back against the label in that regard.
Taylor Asks "Tell Me Who My Famous Parents Are"
Taylor sat down with Interview Magazine as part of their Spring/Summer Issue. During the interview, she was asked to give her thoughts about the Nepo Baby phenomenon. "I’ve seen all these tweets like, “That’s crazy. I never knew Teyana was a nepo baby,” and I’m like, “Tell me who my celebrity parents are?” Taylor said. Taylor, whose mother Nikki works in the fashion industry, went into more detail about her big break, reality show My Sweet 16. "Let’s be clear. My mom was literally a workaholic, she worked her ass off to make sure I had everything that I needed. So by the time we got to my sweet 16, I had just signed my first contract with Star Trak, Pharrell Williams’s label, and me, my mom and Pharrell, and the label, we came together."
Additionally, Taylor spoke more about what her mother meant to her growing up. "My mom worked in corporate America. Those hours are really crazy. So I had everything that I needed, but at certain times, I would feel like, “I want you. I’d rather have nothing and you than to have it all and have you overworking yourself.” That’s at a young age, not understanding the importance of her building this life for me." So is Teyana Taylor a "nepo baby"? Not really, but she does make some good points about why the phrase got out of hand.
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