Troye Sivan Uses Las Culturistas Appearance to Reframe Pop Stardom Around Cultural Impact
Photo Credit: Las Culturistas
by Chris Tremblay Aug 28
4 MIN READ
Troye Sivan’s appearance on Las Culturistas with Matt Rogers and Bowen Yang became one of the podcast’s most widely discussed recent episodes after its release on August 26, 2026.
The episode, titled “Correctamundo, Tro,” features Sivan in conversation with hosts Matt Rogers and Bowen Yang about pop music, celebrity, performance, internet culture and the creative process behind his upcoming fourth studio album, She’s the Best.
The interview arrived less than two weeks after Sivan announced the album and released its title track on August 14. She’s the Best is scheduled for release on October 9, 2026.
The central theme of the discussion was Sivan’s stated disinterest in judging the new record primarily through its opening-week sales figures.
“I honest to God could not tell you what my first-week sales ,” Sivan said, according to Billboard. “I’ve just never really been numbers-minded when it comes to music stuff.”
Sivan instead identified cultural longevity as the outcome he most wants from the project.
“The heartbreaking thing, like rather than it only however many thousand or whatever, would be if it went by without any sort of cultural impact,” he said. “I would be devastated.”
The comments place the album’s ambitions beyond conventional chart performance, although Sivan did not reject commercial success or provide a prediction for how the album will perform.
He described the project as a record he hopes will remain meaningful to him decades from now, saying he wanted to look back on the work of “31-year-old Troye” with pride.
Sivan characterized She’s the Best as a concentrated expression of the musical references that shaped him.
He cited Janet Jackson’s “Together Again,” late-1990s grunge-pop associated with Marcy Playground, and Fatboy Slim as influences on the album’s sound.
Sivan contrasted the new material with the stated goal of his previous album, Something to Give Each Other, which he described as an attempt to make “perfect pop.”
For the new project, he said the creative process moved toward something more chaotic, layered and expressive.
He also said he made much of the album at home with his younger brother.
The title track was released on August 14 as the album’s lead single.
Its music video stars Nicole Kidman and was directed by Gordon von Steiner.
The video marks another collaboration between Sivan and von Steiner, who previously worked together on the videos for “Rush” and “One of Your Girls.”
Apple Music lists She’s the Best as a 13-song pop album scheduled for October 9 and identifies Interscope Records as the project’s label through an exclusive license.
Sivan said the album’s rollout would be relatively quick because he wants listeners to experience the full project rather than spend an extended period dissecting individual songs before the record is available.
He said the album is best heard “top to bottom” and described it as “a journey.”
That approach sets the project apart from release strategies built around long campaigns of successive singles, teasers and promotional announcements, although Sivan did not provide a complete schedule for the remaining rollout.
The album is Sivan’s first full-length release since 2023’s Something to Give Each Other.
That earlier album reached No. 20 on the all-genre Billboard 200 and No. 1 on Billboard’s Dance/Electronic Albums chart, while “Rush” and “One of Your Girls” appeared on the Billboard Hot 100.
The conversation also turned to the online phrase “Khia Asylum,” a meme-like expression used in some corners of stan culture to describe pop artists regarded by internet users as unsuccessful, uncool or no longer culturally relevant.
Sivan argued that the rhetoric is applied unevenly, particularly when comparing women in pop music with male artists.
“Pop girls have it really bad,” Sivan said while discussing what he viewed as a gendered double standard in online pop commentary.
Coverage of the interview described Sivan’s point as a criticism of the way female artists can be subjected to intensified scrutiny over chart results, public image and perceived relevance.
The phrase itself is not a formal music-industry category, and reporting identified it as internet shorthand rather than an actual institution or place.
Sivan’s comments connected that online debate to the larger question of how pop success is measured and who is permitted to make mistakes without being declared culturally finished.
The Las Culturistas episode is significant because it combines promotion for a major forthcoming album with a broader discussion of cultural memory, gendered criticism and the speed of online judgment.
Sivan’s stated priority is not simply to reproduce the commercial performance of his previous era, but to create work that listeners remember and revisit.
The album’s first public stage is therefore a podcast conversation in which the artist discussed both the mechanics of pop promotion and the cultural standards applied to pop performers.
She’s the Best will be released October 9, with its title track and accompanying Kidman-starring video already available.
Until the album is released, Sivan’s intended measure of success remains clear: whether the music creates a lasting impression rather than merely producing a notable opening-week number.
The interview arrived less than two weeks after Sivan announced the album and released its title track on August 14. She’s the Best is scheduled for release on October 9, 2026.
Cultural Impact Over First-Week Sales
The central theme of the discussion was Sivan’s stated disinterest in judging the new record primarily through its opening-week sales figures.
“I honest to God could not tell you what my first-week sales ,” Sivan said, according to Billboard. “I’ve just never really been numbers-minded when it comes to music stuff.”
Sivan instead identified cultural longevity as the outcome he most wants from the project.
“The heartbreaking thing, like rather than it only however many thousand or whatever, would be if it went by without any sort of cultural impact,” he said. “I would be devastated.”
The comments place the album’s ambitions beyond conventional chart performance, although Sivan did not reject commercial success or provide a prediction for how the album will perform.
He described the project as a record he hopes will remain meaningful to him decades from now, saying he wanted to look back on the work of “31-year-old Troye” with pride.
The Sound of She’s the Best
Sivan characterized She’s the Best as a concentrated expression of the musical references that shaped him.
He cited Janet Jackson’s “Together Again,” late-1990s grunge-pop associated with Marcy Playground, and Fatboy Slim as influences on the album’s sound.
Sivan contrasted the new material with the stated goal of his previous album, Something to Give Each Other, which he described as an attempt to make “perfect pop.”
For the new project, he said the creative process moved toward something more chaotic, layered and expressive.
He also said he made much of the album at home with his younger brother.
The title track was released on August 14 as the album’s lead single.
Its music video stars Nicole Kidman and was directed by Gordon von Steiner.
The video marks another collaboration between Sivan and von Steiner, who previously worked together on the videos for “Rush” and “One of Your Girls.”
Apple Music lists She’s the Best as a 13-song pop album scheduled for October 9 and identifies Interscope Records as the project’s label through an exclusive license.
A Deliberately Short Rollout
Sivan said the album’s rollout would be relatively quick because he wants listeners to experience the full project rather than spend an extended period dissecting individual songs before the record is available.
He said the album is best heard “top to bottom” and described it as “a journey.”
That approach sets the project apart from release strategies built around long campaigns of successive singles, teasers and promotional announcements, although Sivan did not provide a complete schedule for the remaining rollout.
The album is Sivan’s first full-length release since 2023’s Something to Give Each Other.
That earlier album reached No. 20 on the all-genre Billboard 200 and No. 1 on Billboard’s Dance/Electronic Albums chart, while “Rush” and “One of Your Girls” appeared on the Billboard Hot 100.
Gender, Internet Discourse and the “Khia Asylum”
The conversation also turned to the online phrase “Khia Asylum,” a meme-like expression used in some corners of stan culture to describe pop artists regarded by internet users as unsuccessful, uncool or no longer culturally relevant.
Sivan argued that the rhetoric is applied unevenly, particularly when comparing women in pop music with male artists.
“Pop girls have it really bad,” Sivan said while discussing what he viewed as a gendered double standard in online pop commentary.
Coverage of the interview described Sivan’s point as a criticism of the way female artists can be subjected to intensified scrutiny over chart results, public image and perceived relevance.
The phrase itself is not a formal music-industry category, and reporting identified it as internet shorthand rather than an actual institution or place.
Sivan’s comments connected that online debate to the larger question of how pop success is measured and who is permitted to make mistakes without being declared culturally finished.
Why the Appearance Matters
The Las Culturistas episode is significant because it combines promotion for a major forthcoming album with a broader discussion of cultural memory, gendered criticism and the speed of online judgment.
Sivan’s stated priority is not simply to reproduce the commercial performance of his previous era, but to create work that listeners remember and revisit.
The album’s first public stage is therefore a podcast conversation in which the artist discussed both the mechanics of pop promotion and the cultural standards applied to pop performers.
She’s the Best will be released October 9, with its title track and accompanying Kidman-starring video already available.
Until the album is released, Sivan’s intended measure of success remains clear: whether the music creates a lasting impression rather than merely producing a notable opening-week number.
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