As I slowly get older each year, I realize Gen Z aren’t the free thinkers they believe they are, but just empty vessels that fill up with whatever trendy slop enters and never leaves.
No More Casual Posting
Back when social media became popular. It was common for Millennials to post anything that came to them, like an idea or a simple picture of a hot yoga pose they learned. This was known as casual posting. Take a photo of whatever happened in the moment, add a random filter on it, then hit post. During this time, they didn’t care who viewed it or how many likes it got. This is how social media is truly supposed to be.
Nowadays, it is an art or a job to post anything. For one, various factors go into social media. Such as the time to post, which will determine how many views, likes the post will receive and if you get paid well. Another factor is whether the content follows an aesthetic or color palette on a profile page. The more you please the audience, the more retention you’ll get on your page. This began during the early days of Tumblr, when many Tumblr users’ pages were to fit an aesthetic. It worked from the pastel goths all the way to the indie sleazes. They were the OGs; they didn’t get paid, it was more for the love of the game.
Pretty Culture
The result of following trends has led to a new coined term, Pretty Humor. Pretty Humor is when an individual is deemed as pretty by society, but doesn’t require a sense of personality since beauty is seen more. This coined term first appeared when a trend on TikTok featured an audio saying, “You need to nerd out.” Many people were highlighting the niche fandom they were a part of or items they liked. The goal was to “prove” that pretty people can also have their own personality. However, some of the more viral posts that blew up on the TikTok platform were of some participants who were just showing everyday popular things they deemed as “weird”, such as Taco Bell, Lululemon and Roblox.
Hailey Bieber, wife of Justin Bieber, is the definition of pretty culture. Over the last couple of years, she has created trends by stealing from different cultures and rebranding them as her own. One example of this was in the fall of 2022, Hailey Bieber posted a video of herself applying a lip combo of brown lip liner and clear lip gloss over the liner and lips. She then said that this is her everyday look, and called it “Brownie Glazed Lips”. Bieber received backlash from the viewers because for decades, the Hispanic and black communities have done this every day and never got recognition for the style.
Micro-Trend Death
Every couple of months, a new craze takes over the internet. These trends will start simple, but then become too many streams. One trend that was simple at first but became massive was the clean girl aesthetic. This aesthetic is very simple to follow: the look, its slick-back hair, no-makeup makeup, and very neutral-colored clothes. This aesthetic was seen as normal until creators and influencers were trying to promote items to achieve this look.
Many trendy items today are not for aesthetic purposes or to make oneself stand out. It is a way for big companies and content creators to make money off people who just follow every new trend that becomes popular.
I blame TikTok Shop!
Before the shop was added to the app. The shop is where users can purchase anything from fake freckle pens to hidden vibrators. When a shop ad appears on the For You Page, this isn’t an ad from the company. No, it is the company paying people to review this item, even if it is shit. The shop allows any creator to receive a discount on a product, or offers the creator a commission for each link click or for the user’s purchase of the product. Half the products being marketed on TikTok are from creators who don’t care about the actual product but want the commission money and views.
Originality is gone, but consumerism is at an all-time high, and won’t stop unless this generation stops being followers.