Genevieve Musci and Arlene Cody Bashnett – known also as “Gramma and Ginga” – are two forever-bickering sisters famous for their videos, social media antics, and talk show appearances. At 105 and 100, respectively, the West Virginia sisters still have more than a million fans.
According to the Facebook page, their fame is simply a fluke but the Internet can’t get enough of them so their “15 minutes” have lasted more than 3 years!
“Their grandchildren Frank ‘Alan’ and Sheila ‘Lynn’ began filming their hilarious arguments and antics and sharing among their family. But then one day Frank put up on his personal Facebook page and things began to blow up. So he created their own Facebook page to share their hilarity (and ‘off color’ language”) and well, the rest is history.”
One particularly popular video was posted back in 2017 and has drawn over 1.7 million views since then. It begins with the women headed to church – a good 45 minutes early so they can get that coveted handicapped parking spot.
They decide to sit in the car and chat for a bit after pulling into their spot – the lights are still off in the church, so there’s not much else to do.
This gives the women the opportunity to offer some snarky commentary and “sage advice” on the “proper” way to dress for a house of worship. Clearly, they don’t like what they see when Gramma’s granddaughter – who has driven them there – asks about her skirt.
Then again, at over 100 years old, it’s safe to say their standards might be a little old-fashioned.
“When you go into the house of God, you don’t go looking like a hussy,” is the “wisdom” imparted on the younger generation.
Of course, that’s according to the more serious Gramma who, according to their YouTube bio (clearly not penned by either sister) “was married to one man for 50+ years until he passed 20+ years ago…more serious, usually in a bad mood and grouchy, INSANELY particular about everything, clean freak, and not so touchy-feely.” She “has never worked, has never sat in the driver’s seat of a car, and still thinks she’s always right and knows best.”
We think we’ll pass on her advice, though there’s something to be said about dressing for the occasion.
Meanwhile, Ginga is in the backseat and a bit more feisty. She’s “been married 4 times and is considered to be the happy go lucky, cheerful, always smiling, messier, and happy sister eager to chat with anyone anytime.”
Unfortunately, we can’t hear much of what she’s saying.
It’s clear the women are being egged on by their granddaughter, but Gramma’s insistence that many of the “girls” at her church are a “disgrace” in the wardrobe department is the kind of Internet fodder that one only appreciates if they like to criticize other women. Then again, this is what passes for entertainment on YouTube – and some people live for it.
The allure of Gramma & Ginga is simply that they’re old and they have some nasty things to say. But at over 393k subscribers on YouTube, over 65 MILLION views of their videos, and a social media empire that consists of over 1 million Facebook followers and more than 95k Instagram fans (there are only a couple thousand on Twitter, which requires the invective to be a bit more clever), it’s safe to say that there are plenty of people who find the antics hilarious.
So are “savage” grannies really all that funny? Are their families exploiting them for celebrity? Maybe the answer to both is “yes” – that seems to be the new model of social media fame.
Alas, with Ginga now homebound and out of commission, their glory days appear to be over.
Scroll down below to see Gramma & Ginga’s trip to church, which is (oddly) one of their most-watched YouTube videos.
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