Today, Gemma Styles unveils her latest project, a new podcast called Good Influence. With a focus on mental health, sustainability and feminism, the project - which launches next Monday - aims to inform and educate Gemma's legions of fans, with the help of guests including poet Charly Cox and life coach Michelle Elman. On the day of the launch, Gemma ran Grazia through the amazing Instagram accounts that inspire, inform and educate her...
When we go scrolling through social media, what are we looking for? Inspiration? Or maybe it’s reality, or escapism? As our second national lockdown looms and we stare down the barrel of a month at home, it seems inevitable that our collective screen time is about to peak once more, and so it seems like as good a time as any to be thinking about what we’re feeding ourselves through the medium of Instagram. Remember what you want to get out of your time online. It doesn’t always have to be that deep, if you want to switch your brain off for a while then there’s really nothing wrong with that, but think about mixing in a decent helping of accounts that make you feel a bit better, a bit more connected, and a little bit inspired.
Mona Chalabi
I find something so inspiring in the way that Mona is able to communicate huge amounts of data into understandable, impactful images. There’s so much that goes on in our world that we might have information about, but just isn’t packaged to be accessible to a wide audience - I think it’s such an important form of communication and helps people to understand more about important issues and what the hard facts are telling us.
Earthrise Studio
Optimism isn’t a word we often hear connected to our climate - and understandably so - but it’s optimism and imagination that drive the storytelling at Earthrise. They aim to humanise the climate crisis, focus on the people and amplify BIPOC and youth activist voices, inspiring action and a deeper level of care for our planet.
Lou Northcote
I find acne positivity accounts really helpful on Instagram when my skin is acting the fool and all I can see is miles and miles of poreless flesh. Lou shares her own journey with acne and the thing I like most about her story is that, it isn’t a one of a model who cleared up her acne and everything was happy forever. She asked why it’s so rare we see varied skin textures in media at all, created @freethepimple_ and has since appeared in magazines again, with no retouching. Whether acne is your issue or not, I think it’s a great example.
Max La Manna
Inspiration doesn’t always have to be about your one true purpose in life - sometimes it’s as good as what to have for dinner tonight, or a great idea on how to use up what’s in your fridge. Max is a low-waste chef who posts lots of recipe videos showing us how to eat with more plants… and less waste. Especially during times like this where we’re trying to limit our trips to the shops and are conscious that we’re lucky to have the food we do, it feels comforting to know you’re making the most of what you’ve got.
Morgan Harper Nichols
I’d be surprised if you’ve never seen work by Morgan Harper Nichols shared or reposted before. But if you haven’t, or if all those reposts you’ve seen never tagged her properly (more likely), it’s such a gentle, warm place to visit. Her poetry and accompanying artwork feel so universal, it’s really a skill to make things that connect with so many people, and the messages in my feed often seem to pop up at just the right time. Check the highlights and stories for a very generous offering of perfect phone backgrounds, for when you’re doing something more useful with your phone, but still want to carry those messages with you.
Everett Williams
When sometimes it feels like using Instagram is just scrolling through people wearing the same outfits, taking the same photos, recreating the same reels - I always find something different in Everett’s content. If the kind of inspiration you’re looking for is creative photography, styling and… something a bit refreshing, hard recommend. Also, very sweet cat.
Shout
If you follow me on Instagram you’ll have seen me talk about Shout before - they’re a crisis text line in the UK, who you can text 24/7 for free support whenever you need it. On Instagram they share lots of information including how to start conversations around mental health, breathing exercises and tips for self care. Good reminders to inspire us to keep looking after ourselves right now, and if it all gets a bit much, a reminder that they’re there to text any time too.
Good Influence is available wherever you get your podcasts from November 9th, and every Monday thereafter.
