On Sept. 19, Instagram model Sumner Stroh posted a TikTok video showcasing sext messages between herself and Maroon 5 frontman Adam Levine.
Levine made comments about wanting to “rub one out” and how unreal Stroh’s “hotness” was, though the real astonishment was Levine asking Stroh if he could name his on-the-way child Sumner.
The Internet exploded with criticism—and hilarious memes—after hearing the news of Levine’s unfaithfulness to his pregnant wife, Behati Prinsloo. Within the following days, multiple women have stepped forwards with allegations of Levine’s flirtation and further infidelity.
I guess she really will beloved—‘she’ is just not his wife.
Following the release of the cheating scandal, Levine took to social media to address the situation, stating that he was “naïve” and “stupid” to flirt with anyone who wasn’t his wife as he was risking the “only thing that truly matters” to him.
Yeah, I think asking the mistress if you can name your future child after her is pretty damn stupid, Adam. While Levine’s reckless stupidity is shocking, it isn’t surprising for two reasons.
Reason number one: we’re used to celebrities acting like this, and we’re used to absolving them of blame.
Whenever you hear about a scandal like this, you’re shocked for maybe 10 minutes. It’s a “did you hear about…” situation. You gasp and are at a loss, but once those 10 minutes , you’re not surprised anymore.
It’s like going into a lake in mid-November and being shocked the water’s cold. If you know it’s cold outside, and the water will be freezing, it’s ridiculous to be surprised when you go in and freeze. Nonetheless, when you jump in, you still feel a visceral shock.
Who would’ve thought Adam Levine, an evident narcissist who looks like a jerk, is a jerk?
We hold celebrities on a pedestal. Regardless of Levine’s actions, he will continue to have a platform, a career, and a prestigious image. He won’t face the repercussions that other people would in his circumstances.
By normalizing celebrities’ immoral behaviour, we normalize the immoral behaviour itself.
This normalization is detrimental to the way we treat our significant others, which brings me to my second point: our society has normalized cheating.
How many people do you know who’ve been cheated on by their significant other? Personally, I know more people whose relationships have ended because their partner cheated than just about any other reason.
We have normalized relationships to be casual, relaxed, and unloyal, to the point of not being surprised when someone cheats. People are hesitant to enter relationships, moreover, in fear their partner won’t connect emotionally and/or will be unfaithful at the first chance they get.
The reality is that standards have changed. The perspective people have going into relationships has devolved into something much more distrustful, and for some, uncommittable.
While Levine’s situation speaks to the regularity of infidelity, it also acts as a reminder for those who have been cheated on that it’s not their fault.
Adam Levine is married to a Victoria Secret supermodel, and yet he still jumped at the chance of being with another woman—he compromised his marriage for a flirtation.
For those who have had a partner be selfish enough to cheat, please it’s not your fault. You can be the most perfect human being, but if you’re with someone who lacks a moral com, nothing will stop them from being unfaithful. It has absolutely nothing to do with your character, and everything to do with theirs.
Adam Levine represents the normalization of unloyalty in our relationships today. All I have to say is, if this is what lovers do, I don’t want it.
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