Sometimes not much happens. This week, youth culture turns out to be hibernating, but it’s a good opportunity to take a look at the kind of little microtrends you might otherwise overlook. Maybe those little things that no one thinks about reveal more than the revolutionary things that everyone notices. Probably not, but you never know.
I’m sure you’ve noticed the video of John Cena presenting the Oscar for Best Costume Design at the Academy Awards on March 10. After being broadcast live and posted online, the wrestler-turned-actor’s nude appearance was viewed by millions. Array It’s a rare moment of cultural relevance among young people for the “no one cares” film industry. People were moved enough by anything at the Oscars to record reaction videos and make jokes and memes. In fact, this moment will go down in history as one of the most memorable moments of an Oscar presentation, and it touched even the most fringe of conspiracy theorists, the remnants of Q-Anon. Q-Anon doesn’t see anything funny about Cena’s appearance. “This isn’t just a humiliation ritual: Hollywood pedophiles, rapists and perverts really enjoy it. I’m sure Jimmy Kimmel is too! Liz Krokin reported on Twitter: “Kimmel aired another comic strip at his exhibit that featured an FBI-identified pedophile symbol and a pizza. “Pizza is pedophile code that has been proven through the FBI, Department of Justice records, and local authorities,” they continued. “Absolutely disgusting. . . Nobody needs to see John Cena naked on TV. ” Twitter user American Mama expressed her opinion, taking the pulse of popular culture. It’s appealing how Q-Anon sees Cena as a victim in all of this, as if Jimmy Kimmel forced him to strip against his will.
Austin, Texas, hosts the South By Southwest festival each spring to “celebrate the convergence of technology, film, music, education, and culture. “This year, one of the highlights of the festival is a new cup holder.
On Saturday, a standing panel, Stanley 1913, the company behind the immortal flame-retardant coffee mug, announced a new hands-free cup holder and convenient mini-fridge, to the collective excitement of its usually young fans.
Stanley’s story is desirable if you are the type of user who is interested in the main points of vanquished capitalism. They have been around since 1913, when William Stanley Jr. invented the vacuum seal and generated boxes containing temperature consistent with the nature of liquids. Stanley, the company, was best known for making thermos flasks to keep coffee warm while camping or on a job site, so it was more of a type company, a manufacturer of anything to get you through fishing. But recently, the company has made the decision to focus on women, especially young women on TikTok, and has gone from an annual profit of around $70 million per year in 2019 to around $750 million per year in 2024. The company’s flagship product, the 40-ounce Stanley Quencher, has become a must-have for Gen Z and Millennials, both because of its multiple colors and the fact that it really is a very pretty mug.
Sometimes I like to delve into the trivia of youth culture, and this week I discovered Satana’s microtrend, which I bet you’ve never believed. Satana is from the Balkans, where TikToker @stafon71 posted a video of himself scratching the floor under his table with his heel, to the tune “Satana Eto Ona. “The video has been viewed nearly 36 million times. Variations on the theme temporarily appeared, adding this impressive semicircle, this video of a user in black shoes making a scratch and erasing it through someone in white shoes, or this video showing the reaction of the user who has to clear the school grounds. What does this all mean? Probably nothing, but it’s impressive how much a schoolboy who scrapes the ground with his shoe can attract the attention of foreigners.
The simple photo you see above is from iStock and is in the middle of a small debate about the loneliness crisis among young men. Titled “Real Young Man” and posted on iStock in 2011, the symbol was revealed when it was posted on Twitter via @orbitves with the caption “The ‘male loneliness crisis’ is a smart thing to do, because why would I need to date a guy who looks like that?
Reactions have been mixed. Many have posted comments like “ha, that’s funny and kind of true. “Some pointed out the hypocrisy of the message, such as @TheStrxggler, who tweeted, “The frame positivity crowd once again put bodies to shame. Or they expressed sympathy” for the model, as @WheelchairUser8, who tweeted, “Imagine being that flawed guy who’s just looking to make a few greenbacks off a photo shoot and out of nowhere, all the radfem on Twitter blow up your face saying no one deserves to do it. “ever do. ” Hanging out with you. “
The “looksmaxx” audience took a more constructive view of the matter and pointed out a number of ways that the style of the photo could affect her appearance, for example, if she lost 30 pounds and got a better haircut, she might end up looking for something like that. this:
The final brake on my adventure through this week’s youth culture hotspots is the word “green fn. “People have been spamming every TikTok comment lately, and here’s what it means: “fn green” is an interjection you could shout. When you’ve done something amazing or cool, it’s also what you might say when you’ve done it. Anything clumsy or inept.
Its origin is so hard to understand that it’s a bet that most people who use it don’t know where it comes from, but here’s the story: the “green” component is a reference to the NBA 2K video game series, where the quality of a basketball shot is measured using color and green is as smart as possible.
The “fn” component is short for “fuck nigga. ” This comes from this video, where “Green fn” is used to comment on a missed basket. From there, she appears in tongue-in-cheek and heartfelt memes, as well as appearing in many, many TikTok comment sections. Like any young slang, it’s vital not to use it. Stick to “boo-YAH!”on the other hand, the “Green FN” of his youth.
Stephen Johnson is a contributor to Lifehacker, where he covers pop culture and adds two weekly columns, “The Disconnected Adult’s Guide to Children’s Culture” and “What People Get Wrong This Week. “She graduated from Emerson College with a bachelor’s degree in Writing, Literature, and Publishing.
Previously, Stephen was editor-in-chief at NBC/Universal’s G4TV. At G4, he won a Telly Award for writing and was nominated for a Webby Award. Stephen has also written for Blumhouse, FearNET, Performing Songwriter magazine, NewEgg, AVN, GameFly, Art Connoisseur International Magazine, Fender Musical Instruments, Hustler Magazine, and other outlets. His paintings have aired on Comedy Central and screened at the Sundance International Film Festival, the Palm Springs International Film Festival, and the Chicago Horror Film Festival. He lives in Los Angeles, California.