Investigating the Mob Wife Aesthetic. Original new it-look or marketing masterpiece? 

What kind of a ‘girl’ are you? Are you a ‘Clean Girl’ or a ‘Cold Girl’? Maybe a ‘Latte’ or ‘Tomato’ girl? Or are you a fed-up girl? 

It seems ever since the rise of the Clean Girl – a label for those who proudly don their slicked back buns, minimalist makeup, beige jackets and dainty hoop earrings- the internet has been on a desperate search to crown the next big ‘girl’ trend. Gina! I hear you screaming from the other side of the screen, “Isn’t it kind of reductive that we’ve quartered women’s fashion down to ‘girl’ archetypes?” Well, my response is: maybe. Yet, that does not change the fact that beauty related google searches including the word ‘girl’ hit an all-time high in 2023. As we discovered last year, the year of the great barbie summer of ‘23, many see this title of ‘girl’ as a way to reclaim the femininity they felt they had to conceal during childhood as a result of internalised misogyny. I can certainly relate; I had my phase of pretending I hated pink too. Isabel Cistro from ‘The Cut’ puts it like this: 

“Perhaps part of what’s going on is that, while there are countless ways to be a woman, girlhood just feels more universal, full of legible markers (…) Maybe, in 2024, we might be able to find some joy in growing up as well.” 

And, just as predicted, we seem to be heading into a year where we shed both the ‘clean’ and the ‘girl’. Every trend on TikTok seems to have its five minutes of fame, and fashion is no exception to the rule. This January alone we have seen the rise of multiple trends that embrace more mature roles… channelling boozy 2010’s partygoers with ‘Indie Sleaze’ and popping the lenses out of our mother’s old glasses to become ‘Office Sirens’. 

Yet, from the ashes, one trend has risen, knocking all girls, sleazes and sirens out of the way with her pleathered elbows. Introducing: The Mob Wife, the latest fashion supernova that’s got even the cleanest of girls slipping out of her Lulu leggings and into something a little more uncomfortable. In these newfound times of condemning the clean girl aesthetic, it seems becoming a ‘Mob Wife’ instead is the path of choice. Yet is it a choice…or the result of an extremely purposive marketing tactic that injected this particular vibe into the TikTok algorithm? Welcome to the Gen Z version of an advertorial. 

Chunky gold jewellery, animal print in abundance, a messy updo, pleather and dark nails sharp enough to cut a b**ch… if I weren’t describing everyone and their cousin’s cousin on TikTok right now, I would of course be describing the iconic Adriana La Cerva of the hit TV show ‘The Sopranos’ which just so happens to be celebrating its 25th anniversary this year. 

The Soprano’s Adrianna La Cerva 

While ‘The Sopranos’ has been a long time TV staple, it has been going through somewhat of a renaissance in its silver jubilee year. I personally have found myself listening to Micheal Imperioli and Steve Schirripa’s podcast ‘Talking Sopranos’, which is an award-winning recount of the show where the two series actors interview the many others who made the show special. It was recently announced that the show would be having a huge 25th birthday party, including a special podcast episode with two more actors telling stories from the show’s TV reign, alongside five (!) hours’ worth of never-seen-before footage dropping on HBO Max, as well as a Sopranos inspired dinner in partnership with Little Italy’s Da Nico’s for any New Yorker looking to fill themselves up with some authentic mobster grub. What’s more, there’s a new official ‘The Sopranos’ TikTok account that was launched on January eleventh, which posts videos summarising each episode using only quintessential clips. And it would seem that ‘The Sopranos’ marketing team has not only adapted to our extremely short internet age attention spans, but also our extremely short internet age trend cycles. With all this brand spanking new ‘Sopranos’ content dropping, it’s safe to assume that the ‘Mob Wife’ trend may not be as out of the blue as originally assumed, but instead a genius invention of a gen Z intern at HBO who understands their age group’s willingness to ride the wave of any new, intriguing trend.  

While, if this is true, it is one of the first undercover crossovers between media and fashion marketing under such a heavily quilted blanket of disguise on the platform, it may not be the OG. Last year the biggest trend on TikTok was ‘The Roman Empire’. The trend- which originated from girlfriends worldwide finding out their boyfriend thought about the Roman Empire at least once a day – has now amassed 1.3 billion views. It soon became the biggest meme of the summer, with many users claiming their Roman Empire frequent thoughts with hilarious statements such as “Sex in The City is my Roman Empire” (same) or “The Lizzie McGuire Movie is My Roman Empire”. Well, my Roman Empire is the fact that word on the street is this whole trend may have been propelled as a means to advertise the October 2023 film ‘Boudica’. If this is true, it seems ‘The Sopranos’ may have ripped a page out of ‘Boudica’s notebook, this time quenching our thirst for a trend to combat the Clean Girl and all her girl-protégées instead of a hot new meme. 

While the ‘Mob Wife’ trend has been embraced by many, it has not come without its controversies (as per any trend on TikTok) 

“UGH, I’m tired of the “aesthetics’…trends are fun and refreshing from time to time but please just get your own personality this is getting out of hand.” 

-Instagram User, 2024. 

Another commented that they found the ‘Mob Wife’ trend trivialised aspects of Italian and Mafia culture… 

“Stop calling this ‘Mob Wife’ style – it paints Italian woman of means as all being ‘Mob Wifes’ and is a racist Hollywood stereotype.” 

-Instagram User, 2024. 

And this would seem to be a popular take. Real life mob wife Drita D’avanzo from the reality series ‘Mob Wifes’ has claimed 

“This is not just a look. It’s a lifestyle.” 

-The infamous Nomi Malone from Showgirls, 1995

Any way we look at it, the ‘Mob Wife’ look has certainly split the online fashion sphere into two separate hemispheres and could be a huge glimpse into the ways the worlds of fashion, marketing and media could all intertwine to advertise to the upcoming generation. When the online and the real seem to blur into one another more and more every day, is this a danger, or an opportunity? And is the ‘Mob Wife trend itself a flash in the pan or a lasting look? A simple clean girl scapegoat or freestanding fashion trend? Marketing ploy or original idea? It seems despite its frivolous and fun exterior; the trend does not escape from its own burdens and constant questioning from consumers. Either way, I will be wrapping warm in a fur coat this winter and enjoying some gabagool while I’m at it!

Chiao, Loves!  

What do you think about the Mob Wife trend? Let me know what you think, and who knows… I may publish your opinion! 


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