Many events and moments have shaped this year into what it is at its end. From celebrity scandals to new album releases many pop culture events have taken place in 2022. These events have made a mark on 2022 and the people who have lived through it. As we look back on this year, there are a few defining events that are unforgettable. 

This year celebrity couples have taken over the media with millions of adoring fans watching the love and drama play out while they root for the couple or are bitter with envy. One couple that certainly took everyone by surprise was Kim Kardashian and Pete Davidson. This duo first did a Saturday Night Live comedy skit together in October 2021 as Jasmine and Aladdin and not long after became official. Fans stayed on their toes with this relationship as Pete continued to get tattoos relating to Kim. The relationship became very serious so quickly and they were the most loved and hated couple of the year. Drama followed them as Kanye continued to make concerning Instagram posts about “Skete” and went on a rampage online, even going so far as he portrayed someone dead and buried in his music video and the grave read “Skete”. The famous couple’s time in the spotlight eventually came to an end and they split on August 5 2022 after 9 months of dating. It was mutual and saddened many people who enjoyed seeing the unexpected couple seem to last. Kim and Pete was a huge moment in 2022 and a couple no one will forget.

Celebrity scandals also took their toll this year, though one scandal had the media consistently at the edge of their seats, the Johnny Depp trial. In 2016 the couple officially split and Amber started to claim that Johnny was verbally and physically abusive, but police did not press charges against Johnny as he denied attacking her. Later, in 2018, Amber wrote an op-ed for The Washington Post speaking about her experience with abuse leading from her childhood to adulthood, but not mentioning Johnny Depp’s name. In the article, she also attempts to sympathize with women who have also experienced domestic violence writing, “We have an opening now to bolster and build institutions protective of women. For starters, Congress can reauthorize and strengthen the Violence Against Women Act.” This brought back the accusations of Johnny being abusive in their marriage to the surface. In 2019, Johnny sues Amber for defamation, seeking $50 million in damages,  claiming that her article was only used to get positive press for herself and denied Amber being a victim of domestic abuse and that she is the abusive one. Then in 2020 action started being taken as Johnny was in a libel trial in the United Kingdom because of “The Sun”, a British newspaper, calling him a “wife-beater”. He sues the executive editors of the paper and Johnny begins to speak out on Amber’s violent and shocking actions that were made in their marriage, including being physically violent towards him. A judge then sides with The Sun and Amber received all of the praise and was thanked for “her courage in giving evidence to the court” – The Sun. Heard then countersued for $100 million in 2021 and on April 11, 2022, the trial that went on seemingly forever to the media began. After weeks of both sides fighting for their side on June 1, 2022, the jury finds Amber guilty of defaming Johnny and he is rewarded overall with $15 million, $5 million in punitive damages, and $10 million in compensatory damages. Amber is also given $2 million in compensatory damages in her counterclaim but nothing for her punitive claims. The world had finally been put at ease and Johnny Depp fans celebrated the long-awaited victory. This trial has taken over social media like no other celebrity scandal this year and will remain a moment that millions remember. 

Last but not least New releases made 2022 what it is today as it comes to its end, New movies, albums, Television series, and singles. Fans all over have gotten excited to see their favorite celebrity release something new and fresh. One release got the attention of millions of fans and made 2022 a year to never forget for the Swifties, the new Taylor Swift album, Midnights. Taylor Swift is a world-renowned singer who has accumulated the adoration of millions through her 18 years as a singer, starting at just the young age of 14. Taylor shocked millions when she appeared at the 2022 Video Music Awards wearing a dress covered in jewels, seemingly similar to a scene in her “Look What You Made Me Do” music video in 2017 where she was in a jewel-filled bathtub. The dress alone has fans thrilled because they knew something big was about to come, and fans were proven right as she announced that her new album, Midnights, would be released on October 21, 2022. As soon as Swifties waited until midnight to hear the album Midnights, the charts boomed with success, and Midnights quickly became one of the most successful albums of 2022 by taking all of the 10 top spots on the Billboard Hot 100. The album has been her biggest success yet and her throwback to pop song ways, instead of indie-folk, seemingly revived her career resulting in social media raving over her once again. The album Midnights was a huge success that won’t let any Swifty forget the year 2022. 

Many moments have molded 2022 into what it is today, which has been filled with new experiences that many will remember for years to come.