I had a talk with my aunt last October that has stuck with me. It was about how I feel like Generation Z is living in a period where the trendy culture right now has very futuristic themes, but with a mixture and extension of the 90s culture?
Photo by @endka_1 (Katsiaryna Endruszkiewicz on Unsplash), Lollipop outfit, cherry image by @isiparente (Isi Parente on Unsplash)
It feels as if the 90s ended and a few years ago “came back” around the time of the Tumblr blogging era. I think us 20 year olds now are liking picturing us all in a world pre social media, while also being on social media. Similarly, in the early 2000s the Internet was a fun place for us millennials before social media because it felt freeing. It was at times dangerous with what we were exposed to, but it was fun and new. It’s funny, but I do understand the attraction to all of it. The late 90s to 2000s made a lot of us realize that we don’t have to succumb to the thought that the “online world” will consume us. And that you can be totally outrageous, flamboyant, and not have to adjust to whatever current trend mainstream society is pushing.
The 90s era also changed a lot (with teens in that era rejecting toxic ideals) and influenced who I became partly IMO. I read an article on Bustle where a doctor talks about our generation wanting to relive a time that we experienced at a period where we didn’t have many life obligations. While that may be true, to me the era of 90s California young adult films helped shape my aesthetic interests, to free my creative thoughts, to have my own mind, the future art I would create, and push the world to be more outside of the box.
Photo by @marceloraangeel (Marcelo Rangel on Unsplash)
I see the times of the 90s as when darker and edgier things came more to light, and caused more push back. It was inspiring to me. I sense that a lot of others around my age feel the same. It’s not the only generation that produces nostalgia, but I think it’s bigger than we know. And still affects us.
WHAT. 