California is becoming unlivable. Under Greasy Gavin Newsom, California has transformed from a playground to the stars and a highly sought-after tourist destination to a crumbling, dangerous shell of its former self. Between the high taxes with seemingly nothing to show for it and the spiraling crime and drug use, California is all but gone.
Whether or not it can be saved is up for debate, but in the meantime, businesses and people are moving from California at a staggering pace. The state lost more than 130,000 residents last year to places like Nevada, Florida, and Tennessee.
On the business side, in order to avoid high taxes and regulations, California has lost more than 260 business headquarters since 2018. That doesn’t take into account the companies like Walgreens, CVS, Nordstrom, and others that have shuttered locations in San Francisco and Los Angeles due to theft and lost profits.
The migration hasn’t been limited to middle-class folks, either, though the gulf is widening between the super-rich and the poor in California. Numerous celebrities have opened their eyes and taken note of what is happening around them. In 2023, movies and television aren’t just made in Hollywood anymore, so Tennessee and Nevda have become popular locales for actors, comedians, and musicians.
The list is long: Joe Rogan, Mark Wahlberg, Elon Musk, Kelly Clarkson, 50 Cent, Hillary Swank, and James Hetfield of Metallica are just a few of the actors, singers, and celebs to pack up and go. Now, another singer and actor is talking about how much she loved spending the Summer in a red state.
Jessica Simpson moved to Nashville for the Summer with her husband, Eric Johnson, and their three kids, aged 11, 10, and 4. She recently spoke about what a good experience it has been: “Being in Nashville, even my kids are like, ‘You laugh the whole time. You’re so happy.’”
For Simpson, living in Nashville was likely a good chance to live life like a regular person. The city is vibrant and alive but still has a small-town feel, allowing the 43-year-old pop singer the opportunity to blend in and live a normal life. She continued: “It’s because I’m not on guard. I’m with a lot of like-minded people. It’s not about the celebrities—it’s really about the music and the heart and the conversation.”
It isn’t uncommon in Music City to see celebrities on the street. Nashville is a blue-collar city at heart, and many in the country music industry live and work downtown. Seeing artists on the street is so commonplace that people accept it as normal.
While this doesn’t appear to be a permanent move yet, Simpson and her husband rented a house; the experience could lead to full-time residence. The “Dukes of Hazard” star continued: “I used thumb tacks to hang these $40 curtains up so I wouldn’t wake up with the sun. I put together a TV with a butter knife. I was looking for a screwdriver, but I went to the wrong place. I went to Walgreens, I got lip gloss instead.”
Simpson has been away from music for a couple of years and, after exploring life in Music City, may be mulling a comeback. She concluded: “I’m not nervous at all, but if you were to ask me two years ago when I was talking about coming back to music, I was frightened. But now, I know exactly what I want. I’m building my own platform. I’m doing it for the first time—the way I would—without a label telling me I need to do this song or use this producer. It’s all me.”
Jessica Simpson, like many others, has discovered that it is much easier to find happiness away from Gavin Newsom’s failed California. She eventually may join the long list to take a permanent vacation from the Golden Coast in favor of life in a red state.
Featured image screen grab from embedded YouTube video
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