It’s been a big year for the internet and the people who use it - and Melburnians certainly didn’t miss out on any of the action.
There were penguins and there were popstars. There were kangaroo dances. The plethora of superstars that made a mark on the year of 2024 were the heroes we needed, the heroes we didn’t, and the ones we didn’t know we did.
The pop culture news cycles exploded this year with story after story, meme after meme, icon after icon. Many of which, hilariously, have some kind of roots in Naarm. Whether tangentially or foundationally, born and bred or visited just the once, we’ve compiled the five best pop culture moments of the year that have links to Melbourne.
1. Pesto the Penguin
The first month of 2024 brought with it all the optimism the beginning of another year does. New start, new year, new hopes and dreams. New Naarm heroes.
On January 30, none other than Pesto the penguin hatched. Quietly waddling away at SEA LIFE Melbourne Aquarium for most of the year, eating himself silly and doing all the things that chick penguins do, it wasn’t until September that Pesto gained status as a cultural icon.
Legends aren’t born – they’re made. Pesto became a global internet phenomenon because of his unusually large size as a penguin in infancy, which captivated audiences worldwide. Pesto was so big as a chick that he even towered over some of the adult king penguins in his enclosure at the aquarium.
Visiting international stars made sure to pop by to see the local star at his home. Katy Perry got friendly with Pesto when she was in town in September, while Olivia Rodrigo met the king penguin in October. If all the attention and fame hadn’t gotten to Pesto’s head by then, it surely would have when a mural of the penguin was unveiled in Naarm’s CBD in October.
2. Jacob Elordi’s Bath Water
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Saltburn may have been released in late 2023, but once it made its way to Prime in 2024, a second wave of hysteria swept over those who caught it on the streaming platform.
A black comedy set in the mid noughties, Emerald Fennell’s sophomore swing at directing may have been a divisive watch amongst audiences, but it was nothing short of a goldmine for the internet.
Images and scenes from Saltburn surpassed the film itself in iconography. There was Barry Keoghan’s last dance and Rosamund Pike’s hilarious quips. There was, of course, also Naarm local Jacob Elordi’s distractingly gorgeous eyebrow piercing. Perhaps though, the slice of cinematic masterpiece that will long out live the reputation of the film is the world-stopping scene that involves Mr. Elordi and his bath water.
In January, the scene everyone was talking about – whether they had seen Saltburn or not – was immortalised into a candle. Dubbed ‘Jacob Elordi’s Bathwater’, the candle hit Etsy and Amazon, drawing massive attention after becoming meme-ified online.
3. Olympics
There were Olympic winners, and then there was Raygun.
The Paris Summer Olympics this year saw Australia fly back home with a slew of gold weighing down their check-in baggage. Coming in at fourth place on the final medal tally, out of the 18 shining gold medals the athletes secured, a few of those even came from Naarm locals.
Born and bred Melburnian Kelland O’Brien was one of them. Part of the men’s team pursuit cycling squad that won gold for Australia, he and his team even set a new Olympic and World record in the First Round Qualifying race on August 6.
Amongst all the Aussie athletes – medal winners and otherwise – that proved themselves worth their weight in gold, there was one Australian contender at the Games that seemed to outshine all the rest when it comes to cultural impact.
Rachael Gunn, AKA Raygun, may have lost her Breakdancing battle at the Olympics in August, but she certainly won an onslaught of media attention. Between the PE teacher-esque green tracksuit getup and the now iconic kangaroo dance, love her or not, Raygun certainly made a mark on 2024.
4. The Year of the Brat
Brat this, Brat that.
Charli XCX’s sixth studio album didn’t just change the shape of the world this year, it changed the shape of music. Or at least, the colour of it. When the British popstar’s album dropped on June 7, the Northern Hemisphere seemed to collectively storm the sunshine-filled streets donning skinny cigarettes and the Nickelodeon-esque slime green that the musician single-handedly brought back into fashion.
Meanwhile, Brat-obsessed Angels in Naarm braced through an Antarctic winter, daydreaming about our long-awaited Brat summer coming up ahead. As spring eventually reared its head in October, so too did the slime green. Billboards in the iconic colour baring just one word – laneway – popped up all over Australia, Naarm included. Wishes were granted and Laneway Festival’s lineup dropped just a few days later, boasting Charli XCX as the exclusive headliner.
While 2024 was the year of the brat, Melburnians get to hang onto the phenomenon just that little bit longer until February when Charli is bringing her club classics down under for Laneway. For all the brats that will be missing out on seeing the album played out live, you can still get in on the action with streamed videos of Charli XCX’s performances – including her Boiler Room set – online.
5. Katy Perry: It’s A Footy World
When the AFL announced Katy Perry in July as the headliner for the grand final’s pre-game entertainment, scepticism rippled through the nation’s footy-watching population. Katy’s attempt at a comeback just two weeks before with the lead single from her seventh studio album, Woman’s World, missed the mark for many by the length of a couple of footy ovals.
Naysayers arguably had reason to question the AFL’s choice to book the popstar, reportedly paying her $5 million, for one of Australia’s biggest sporting events during what many are calling Katy’s flop era. Delightfully, she proved them wrong.
Saturday September 28 came around and Naarm brought out the sunshine especially for the occasion. It didn’t need to, though. Fireworks were abound. Katy lit up the MCG with all the classic hits that has cemented her status as an icon in pop music, leaving Woman’s World thankfully at home.
It was a spectacle for the ages, one that would have almost been unpatriotic to miss – footy follower or otherwise. Overseas Aussies and foreign footy fanatics were even able to get in on the action, following along coverage of the show in real time with a VPN.
