Meat, IRL Meetings and GLP-1s Are So Trendy

But pop-ups are mid. Remember that

Nicotine is safe for work again, though it’s not Mad Men Redux. And The Most Interesting Man in the World has returned. Who said January was a dead month? Oscar nominations drop on Thursday, so maybe we haven’t hit peak Chalamet after all. And an app in China called Are You Dead? is all the rage.

Based on the NFL matchups this past weekend, it doesn’t take a professional oddsmaker to figure that the upcoming conference championships and Super Bowl 60 should blow previous ratings records out of the water. Again, go Rams! But that’s not the only game in town.

Check out some non-football-related trends in the media, marketing and pop cultureverse here:

Manning Up

The weight loss discussion—it’s not just for gals anymore. Charles Barkley unveiled his trimmed-down physique on ESPN, aided by his partnership with Ro, and an amateur soccer club called Man v Fat has expanded its self-deprecating play to four U.S. states from its U.K. home. Last week, Tom Brady became the chief wellness officer for telehealth startup eMed, being dubbed “the newest face of GLP-1s,” though he hasn’t commented on any personal use. During football playoff games, Eli Lilly is airing a commercial with an actor delivering an anti-fat-shaming message. (Viewers have thoughts). The current male-centric wave isn’t completely without precedent—Rob Lowe has been shilling for Atkins since 2018, the same year DJ Khaled launched a high-profile Weight Watchers campaign. As the American weight-loss market climbs to an estimated $100 billion, propelled by skyrocketing demand for GLP-1s, expect to see more diversity in the formerly female-skewing domain.

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Pop-ups Are So Mid

IRL is now de rigueur in marketing circles, but the tactic is morphing in some distinctly 2026 ways. Don’t be surprised by last-minute invites that make the event feel spontaneous, no matter how carefully it’s been planned, with bonus points for unique venues and roving magicians. Parties for consumers, influencers and media will involve less gawking and more participating. Think flower arranging, cooking classes, music bingo and other competitions and hobbies elevated with a brand stamp. Having DIY workshops at the center means less pressure and more “soft socializing,” per Eventbrite’s new “Reset to Real” study. It also identifies building community, thinking local and layering concepts as hot trends in the experiential space. Consumers are demanding more human-coded, off-script and offline—bonus points for ditching the phone and not posting, a la camouflage culture. Scrolling and commenting are out, creating and connecting, in person, are in.

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It’s What’s For Dinner

The food pyramid is in its MAHA era, flip-flopped to put meat on top as a recommended choice for red-blooded Americans. That’s another kick in the gut to the plant-based protein industry, especially those in the alt meat space who can’t shake the “ultra processed” stigma. As those brands continue to slump, there are other signs of shifting popular opinion, with meat sales in the U.S. hitting a record high of $104.6 billion in 2024. Formerly hot veggie-forward restaurants are closing in New York, Portland and L.A., following a move last fall by the Michelin-starred Eleven Madison Park to drop its plants-only policy and put meat back on the menu. A recent feature in Grub Street examines “How Veganism Got Cooked.” The faux meat category—beset by product, price and marketing problems—was due for a shakeout. How, when or if it can recover is an open question.

Plant-based eating was supposed to be the future, then meat came roaring back. Rachel Sugar reports on how veganism fizzled out. https://t.co/1mk0oE4a9b

— Grub Street (@grubstreet) January 13, 2026