Here, I review Tea Hacic-Vlacovic’s podcast, Troie Radicali. Text also featured below.
“My pronouns are Troia/Radicale”
The inimitable personality of Tea Hacic-Vlacovic radiates through her provocative (and often times drunken) podcast Troie Radicali. Hacic-Vlacovic, whose adventures often call back to the ups and downs of living in Milan’s glamorously squalid fashion scene in the early 2000s, is a Croatian-born American author who migrated to Europe’s fashion capital in her early twenties.
Tea greets her listeners at the opening of each episode with a vibrant “Ciao Troie!”. As if she were opening her door to welcome you in for an aperitivo before heading out to a party somewhere. The show, born around march 2020 is one of the most thrilling “pandemic babies” I’ve come across so far. Each episode is a clash of stories from the glossy underworld that is Hacic-Vlacovic’s life as a fashion personality turned “Night-life Historian”. The uncensored storytelling is always accompanied by a savvy and unfettered commentary on issues surrounding womanhood, sex, drugs, fashion, men, more drugs, queerness, and all of the drugs.
“Speaking English is wearing flats, speaking Italian is wearing stilettos” declares one of Tea Hacic-Vlacovic’s recent tweets. Troie Radicali, of course is hosted in Italian. Unbothered by her thick American accent, Hacic-Vlacovic expresses herself freely and incorrectly, with irreverence, charisma and — porca madonna— style. There is too much to be said to worry about linguistic inconsistencies. To top everything off, the unpredictable episode release dates and durations contribute to the curated chaos of this podcast— whose title, by the way, translates to “Radical Whores”.
One of the show’s most captivating qualities is Hacic-Vlacovic’s nonchalance in narrating her somewhat shocking life and opinions. Her submerged perspective in party culture and the Moda industry grants the listener a peek into alternative lifestyles that often hide in broad daylight. Hacic-Vlacovic unapologetically twirls between one taboo and the next while recounting her experiences with irresistible humor.
No topic is off the table; brazen and often unspoken remarks on life are always backed up by a surprising yet accurate logic. Tutti fanno schifo, SOPRATUTTO LE DONNE! (everyone is gross, ESPECIALLY WOMEN) chants Hacic-Vlacovic in the episode entitled “IL SCHIFO”. In this oddly feminist rant Hacic-Vlacovic exposes the grotesque nature of women’s bodies —from clumpy periods to horrific childbirth— probing the laughable rhetoric that women are dainty and pure creatures.
The outrageous openness and acceptance of all people and lifestyles that permeate this podcast create a safe space to challenge conventions and unleash one’s inner radical whore. Listening to Tea Hacic-Vlacovic is like taking a breath of fresh cigarette smoke with your favorite bianco after a long day surrounded by uomini del cazzo. It is like the drunk conversations you get to have with your new best friend (that you just met outside of the club). It is like reading the comment section of Lady Gaga’s newest music video.