Culturally, we’re at an interesting time. Every trend is focused on pre-existing trends of the past. The world seems to desire a reversal in time, rather than a progression in time. Over the last several years, the 1990s, 2000s, and now 2010s have come back as desirable trends to emulate. Why does it seem that nobody wants to live in 2026, but rather 2016?Â
The 1990s came back into trend several years ago, and its momentum has all but slowed down. A major hallmark of pop culture trendiness is the hit show Sex and the City. The show premiered in 1998 on HBO and was a zeitgeist at the time with a hold that has barely let up in the 28 years since premiering. Despite having moments that aged poorly, the show is many Gen Zers’ idealized versions of adulthood. The core four characters are career driven and strong willed women who live a lot of life in their 30s, an age group not always viewed in this way.Â
Sex and the City, and other 1990s and 2000s media (CW shows like One Tree Hill and The O.C.) have given Gen Z an idealized version of coming-of-age that seems desirable. Growing up in a level of unpluggedness that can only come from flip phones and family computers — a notion that is impossible now. For Gen Z, the easiest way to try and be this “unplugged” is to consume media from that time — or to engage with content that reminds them of simpler eras of their life, like their childhoods.Â
So, why is it that there is such a hyperfixation on living in the past? Why is no one eager to look forward to the future? The most obvious answer would be that the entire world is accessible to us at our fingertips. Our phones give us information at a level of access we probably shouldn’t have. But this is not without benefits, of course.Â
Social media allows for firsthand accounts of all events to be accessible to the entire world, which limits censorship in countries where internet access is independent and free from control. Social media also allows people to connect across physical limitations and diverse media becomes increasingly accessible because of social media. However, the scope at which we access this information is slowly deteriorating a sense of hope that was easier to retain when this information was not as easily accessible. Before mobile news, news was most accessible through appointment viewing or by reading the daily paper. Now, you open any social media or news app on your phone and you’re instantly dialed into the greater world, which comes with a cost of mental health, overexposure, and an overall sense of security in the world.
Nostalgia is a slippery slope that works best by reminding you of only the positives of any given time. Even as a Sex and the City fan, the show has some dated beliefs and tropes that don’t work today. 2016 was more than just California summertime vibes — does anyone remember the Killer Clowns? And the early 2000s were plagued by tabloids exploiting young women, hyperthinness, and the romanticization of drug use, just to name a few.Â
Yes, nostalgia is a beautiful thing, but so is the future. And don’t forget the corny saying: “the present is a gift.” Yes, the past had some really cool parts. But there’s nothing stopping you from bringing the elements you love from the past into your life in today’s world. The lessons learned from the ladies in Sex and the City, the fashion from the early 2000s, or the music from 2016 can all be part of what makes you you, but this time in the year 2026.