Morning Brew - 📭 Open invite

Hello, and welcome back. It’s Ted Lasso Eve. Who’s planning a midnight watch party for the new season (raises hand)? Today’s edition of Sidekick features more than just our love for Ted’s positivity. What’s ahead: Clubhouse is no longer a club, five-star hiking meals, and where to buy affordable wall art. 

— Rachel Cantor 

Clubhouse now has a $4 billion valuation and is backed by the illustrious VC fund Andreessen Horowitz, but here’s the catch...no one cares. The startup used to be like Soho House—exclusive and therefore mysteriously cool—but as of yesterday, it’s more like an open house. The social-audio app officially ditched its invite-only system and revealed a new logo (the font looks strikingly similar to that of Chobani Coffee Creamer, btw). 

Since February, downloads of the app have dropped from 9.6 million to a measly 719,000 in May, and Twitter and Spotify have recently launched Spaces and Greenroom. What initially made the app so successful was its community, not its product, but now the community has gone elsewhere. I, for one, haven’t opened the app since January. 

Early adopters may have a reason to stay onboard—they’ve built a following, a reputation, and a network—while noobs will have a more difficult time. It’s like showing up to an empty room, literally. I’m left wondering: Did Clubhouse open up the app because they were ready to scale and they finally solved their content moderation issues, or was it a desperate plea to retain users, new and old? Most likely the latter. 

Time will tell if they can pivot to join the ranks of TikTok and IG, or fall to the pits like Vine and Yik Yak. 

• Turn your back yard (or windowsill!) into a farm stand with tips from our newest Sidekick Special on gardening like a pro. 
• Editorial intern Ashritha here, blessing your inboxes with this summer squash and basil pasta recipe. As a cheese-in-moderation lover, I go easy on parmesan and heavy on Aleppo pepper flakes. 
• A searchable directory of salaries up and down companies like Google, Goldman, and more, so you can get paid what you’re worth.
• Level up your al fresco lunches with this TikToker’s extravagant hiking recipes, including her mac ’n cheese Hot Cheeto egg rolls. 

Finding wall art for your new abode is intimidating. Sometimes we don’t even know what we like, but either way we assume it’ll be $$$. If you’re ready to breathe life into your blank walls but you have no idea where to start, four designers shared their tips on where to find affordable, cool-looking art.

In addition to your local flea market, designer Gina Gutierrez suggests Spacey Studios, a site with limited edition, museum quality pieces from emerging artists, but at a fraction of the price. Or there’s Chairish, where you can actually bid on original or vintage pieces (and that’s half the fun). 

It takes a lot to run a budding media biz.

And for our rockstar cofounder Alex Lieberman, there’s one particularly important ingredient he depends on to bring you the Brew: his fitness regime.  

We’ve chronicled his rise and grind routine, proving that “rise and grind” is more than just a catchy slogan on a Morning Brew mug. It’s Alex’s lifestyle, which also includes scenic weekday runs, picturesque weekend hikes, and exploring Jersey in a sweet pair of HOKA ONE ONE shoes. 

Learn how HOKA helps Alex grind before work and unwind in his free time. Spoiler alert: There are awesome photos and a delightful dog involved. 

And if that’s not enough to get you to click here, we’re convinced you might be a bot. 

• Laura, the Brew’s director of social media, recommends starting with a spider plant and heading to your local nursery to find one. They prefer indirect light and thrive in small pots. Bonus: They grow little spider plant babies, which you can root to create new plants, which make for fun gifts. 
• The Sill offers a few chic planter styles (my fave: Acadia), and all their plants come in A+ condition, so no need to worry about saving a raggedy one. Their ZZ plant is my most reliable plant friend. She’s low maintenance, requiring minimal water and light, and she’s smol enough to sit on a desk or windowsill. 
• Elyssa, VP and head of the Brew’s Creative Studio, dropping by to recommend this Crate & Barrel plant pot. It holds my Monstera, which I got at Natty Garden in Brooklyn, where they gave me tips on how to plant it. I layered the pot with one inch of river stones and horticultural charcoal, and then I potted my new beauty.