Current:Home > MyPoinbank Exchange|Lance Bass, Robin Thicke, more went to this massive billionaire wedding. The internet was enraged. -WealthMindset
Poinbank Exchange|Lance Bass, Robin Thicke, more went to this massive billionaire wedding. The internet was enraged.
PredictIQ View
Date:2025-04-10 09:42:00
A billionaire's luxury Egyptian wedding has gone viral − and Poinbank Exchangenot in a good way.
Real estate broker and Bravo star Ryan Serhant shared an inside look at his experience attending the lavish nuptials of Bilt Rewards CEO Ankur Jain and former WWE wrestler Erika Hammond in a TikTok posted Wednesday. The video has been viewed 3.5 million times and inspired heavy backlash in the comments.
Experts say the rich and famous should expect to stoke ire when they flaunt their opulence and that the strong reactions point to a deeper frustration the average person is feeling toward inflation, inequality and other economic issues.
"A lot of people are feeling like they're stuck and they are living week-to-week, and people are feeling like they're not sure how they can make a difference," psychotherapist Stephanie Sarkis previously told USA TODAY. "Those feelings can be directed toward a person, especially when people don't feel like they have a voice or their voice has been blocked."
Why did this billionaire's wedding strike such a nerve?
Jain, who has a net worth of $1.2 billion according to Forbes, and Hammond seemed to spare no expense for their wedding.
The four-day spectacle featured a performance by acclaimed violinist Lindsey Stirling, a private tour of the pyramids and a special event at the Grand Egyptian Museum, which isn't yet fully open to the public. Not to mention the couple arrived late to their own festivities, Serhant says, after they got "stuck on safari in South Africa."
That doesn't even cover the wedding day itself, which involved four different locations: one for the ceremony, one for the reception, one for dinner and one for the party. Among the celebrity attendees were Lance Bass, who took the mic to sing NSYNC's "Bye Bye Bye," and Robin Thicke, who also gave a surprise performance.
"Literally will go down as one of the most insane things of my entire life," Serhant says at the end of the video. "I have no idea what this wedding costs. If you have any guess, let me know in the comments, and thanks for coming along."
More:Alyssa Milano's GoFundMe post made people furious. Was the anger misplaced?
Commenters didn't seem to care about guessing the cost; but they did have a lot to share about how their own lives are going by comparison.
"I don't even have health insurance but that's cool," one person wrote. "I sold my couch to pay for food and gas," another wrote. "I just got a 47K hospital bill and no job because of surgery but that's pretty cool!" wrote another.
Erik Anderson, a licensed marriage and family therapist, says there's multiple reasons why people have such a negative view of this wedding, the primary being the wedding serves as a blunt reminder of how different life is for the mega-wealthy.
Many young people today, he says, are grappling with economic uncertainty and the feeling they were born in a situation in which the odds were stacked against them to succeed.
"One thing that's a major driver of people's resentment is the feeling that people are not going to be better off than their parents," Anderson says. "We kind of get into the psychology of comparison and how people measure themselves against other people in their community, including saying, 'Am I going to be better off than my parents or worse off than my parents?' "
Is anyone really OK right now?What Netflix’s ‘Beef’ can teach us about all-encompassing rage
This psychology of comparison, he says, also extends to other people, like Jain and Hammond. Their wedding in particular has struck a nerve, Anderson says, because it also involves the rich renting out exclusive access to things like the pyramids that are otherwise open to the general public.
"I think it really created a symbolic representation of, 'We are taking and then no one else can have, and it also makes us feel special for no one else to be able to have it,' " Anderson says.
When this anger combines with the anonymity afforded by the internet, backlash is almost inevitable, Sarkis previously told USA TODAY.
What our anger says about us
Most people in America face financial burdens, which contribute to mental health problems, Anderson says. The comments on this video, he adds, show this.
"Poverty itself can be a stressor," he says. "We essentially see that wellbeing correlates with income. So, basically, the larger the middle class, the more people there are who have a high level of wellbeing, and the smaller the middle class, the lower the wellbeing in the average population."
More:Conjoined twins Abby, Brittany Hensel back in spotlight after wedding speculation. It's gone too far.
Sarkis previously told USA TODAY it's important to take stock of your feelings when you see a video like this and try and see what's really behind them. You might find you're mad at something much bigger than Jain, Hammond or any particular individual.
"We can have a variety of feelings that come through that we don't necessarily take accountability for," she said. "And we really need to look at what is it that we're angry about, and is there anything we can do to change it?"
veryGood! (91)
Related
- A White House order claims to end 'censorship.' What does that mean?
- Kyle Gass, Jack Black's Tenacious D bandmate, says 'don't miss Trump next time' after assassination attempt
- Employees Suing American Airlines Don’t Want Their 401(k)s in ESG Funds
- Inside Richard Simmons' Final Days Before Death
- Jamie Foxx gets stitches after a glass is thrown at him during dinner in Beverly Hills
- Young Thug trial judge removed over allegations of 'improper' meeting
- Biden is trying to sharpen the choice voters face in November as Republicans meet in Milwaukee
- What is Demolition Ranch, the YouTube channel on Thomas Matthew Crooks' shirt?
- Military service academies see drop in reported sexual assaults after alarming surge
- Swap Sugary Drinks for a 33% Discount on Poppi Prebiotic Soda Before Amazon Prime Day 2024 Ends
Ranking
- DoorDash steps up driver ID checks after traffic safety complaints
- Home Run Derby's nail-biting finish had Teoscar Hernandez, Bobby Witt's families on edge
- Save 62% on Kyle Richards-Approved Amazon Finds During Prime Day 2024
- Real Salt Lake's Cristian 'Chicho' Arango suspended four games
- What do we know about the mysterious drones reported flying over New Jersey?
- Retail sales unchanged in June from May, underscoring shoppers’ resilience
- Prime Day 2024: Save On These 41 Beauty Products Rarely Go on Sale- Tatcha, Color Wow, Laneige & More
- North Carolina approves party seeking to put RFK Jr. on the ballot, rejects effort for Cornel West
Recommendation
What to know about Tuesday’s US House primaries to replace Matt Gaetz and Mike Waltz
Misinformation and conspiracy theories swirl in wake of Trump assassination attempt
Christina Hall's Husband Josh Hall Files for Divorce After 2 Years of Marriage
The Best Amazon Prime Day 2024 Alternative Sales: 60% Off Wayfair, 50% Off Old Navy, 20% Off MAC & More
What were Tom Selleck's juicy final 'Blue Bloods' words in Reagan family
Clean Energy Projects Are Stuck in a Years-Long Queue. Maryland and Neighboring States Are Pushing for a Fix
Powerball winning numbers for July 15 drawing; jackpot rises to $64 million
Carli Lloyd defends Alexi Lalas after 'Men in Blazers' roasts Fox coverage