Anyone who was alive between 1997 and 2012 knows that there was a special kind of chaos in the air. Of course, the trends didn’t always make sense, but everyone was doing them. A lot of them wouldn’t make sense to Gen Alpha, and some they won’t even know existed. Here are eleven of those trends.
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Flash mobs
Flash mobs feel like a fever dream. They involved people planning entire choreographed dances to Beyoncé or the Black Eyed Peas, then meeting up in a train station to bust out these moves. It wasn’t for money, and it was more something to do. Try explaining that to a 12-year-old, and they’ll ask what was in it for you, which was pretty much nothing.
Scene kid aesthetic
Scene kids practically lived in a Hot Topic stockroom and got dressed in the dark. They had hair dyed every color of highlighter & twelve bracelets per arm, as well as some extra-thick eyeliner. However, Gen Alpha missed this phase and would likely confuse scene kids with emos. But the latter was so much louder. Their Rawr XD energy levels were off the charts.
Planking in random places
One minute, nobody’d ever heard of planking, but the next, everyone lay face down on picnic tables or grocery carts. It didn’t even mean anything, though. It was just funny to do it, so people took photos and shared them on Facebook like they were comedians. Really, what was this era of humor?
Wearing ties over t-shirts like Avril Lavigne
There was a very specific window of time when putting a skinny necktie over a band tee was the height of personal style. Maybe because it was punk, maybe because it was edgy. But either way, it made no sense outside the 2003 Avril Lavigne cinematic universe. Really, you’d struggle to find a 10-year-old today who’d wear a tie to school on purpose.
Talking in “leetspeak” or Alt Caps online
Going on the internet involved typing messages like “OMG u r so kewl lolz,” and people used alt caps LiKe ThIs all the time. They swapped letters for numbers and added far too many exclamation marks. However, Gen Alpha has emojis and GIFs, so they don’t need to turn every message into a puzzle.
Wearing livestrong bracelets for social cred
Not having one of those bright yellow Livestrong bands in 2004 was a huge social mistake. Of course, they started as a fundraiser for cancer research, but they quickly turned into something for social approval. Every kid had one. Really, Gen Alpha would rather their social approval come from something online instead of something physical.
Mall glamour photoshoots with feather boas
Yeah, you could go to the mall and pay $25 to sit on a fuzzy stool in a leather jacket, holding a prop rose with your name printed in cursive underneath. These studios were almost always next to Claire’s and sold plenty of 8x10s. However, the photos had zero context. The closest thing Gen Alpha has to this is Snapchat filters.
Making an “I hate [whatever]” Facebook group
In the days before passive-aggressive subtweets and vague Instagram stories, people made Facebook groups. They’d call them “I Hate Homework” or “Why Does Mr. Sanders Breathe So Loud,” and people joined them. These days, kids just DM each other about their issues. Honestly, it’s probably a lot safer.
Doing “random” humor as a personality
There was an era where people walked around saying random stuff on purpose, and calling it comedy. For example, stuff like “I’m a taco” or “Rawr means I love you in dinosaur” was everywhere. Nobody asked questions. Try pulling that now, and Gen Alpha will call you cringe, and honestly, they’re not wrong.
The peace sign and duck face
Pictures with people doing peace signs and duck faces were the norm. It didn’t matter if you were at a birthday party or in the back of algebra class because every photo had the same pose. Then one day it stopped. It’d be weird for Gen Alpha, as they take 50 photos with 50 poses, then edit just one of them.
YouTube parody songs about literally anything
Anyone with a webcam and Windows Movie Maker in 2009 probably tried to make a parody song at some point. For example, everyone knew someone who made a parody of a Katy Perry song about math class. Yes, it was low-budget and off-key. But people, aside from Gen Alpha, ate it up.
Disclaimer: This list is solely the author’s opinion based on research and publicly available information.
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