Rax King Knows Who the Real Mall Shoplifters Are

Thanks to COVID-19, comedians are trapped at home like the rest of us, so we decided we would do something a little different from our usual “Follow Friday� column while we’re all isolating. Instead of interviewing up-and-coming comedians we love on Twitter, we’re going live on Instagram every week to check in with some of our favorite people in comedy to get a firsthand look at how they’re handling the pandemic. So welcome to our new version of the column, now titled “Follow (From a Safe Distance) Friday.�

This week, I explored the depths of my lower-middle-class upbringing for a virtual chat with Rax King (Tacky, Low Culture Boil, unofficial writer-in-residence at the Cheesecake Factory) about how she’s doing post-pub day in a pandemic. She detailed all the crucial qualities that make a compelling cult, explained her cutting-edge concept for a new chain restaurant that only serves food prepared tableside, and gave some excellent mall-gift advice that boils down to buying three different products in the same scent from Bath & Body Works. She also got nostalgic (and a little confused) about a well-known, very shitty, recently shuttered club-clothing outlet: “They didn’t even bother decorating at Wet Seal, it was just, like, fluorescent flickering lights and piles of thongs on the floor — like, did anyone even work there? I don’t know that I ever spoke to an employee at Wet Seal.�

You can find Rax on Twitter and Instagram at @RaxKingIsDead.