In 2003, Apple released its third-generation iPod with a TV advert of various, anonymous silhouettes dancing like no one was watching against a colourful background. When I asked in the Vogue Business office if people remember the ads — which ran throughout the 2000s — it was met with a resounding yes from my millennial colleagues. They were wildly successful, helping to catapult songs like Feist’s ‘1234’ and the Ting Tings’s ‘Shut Up and Let Me Go’ to the charts, as well as selling hundreds of thousands of iPods. But today, their carefree vibe may be classed as ‘millennial cringe’, Gen Z’s term for the raw earnestness of the late 2000s and early 2010s, which has been seeping back into popular culture in recent months.
Just this week, GQ called out Supreme for resurrecting “another cringe 2000s trend”, after the brand re-issued its brimmed beanie, once beloved of Fall Out Boy bassist Pete Wentz. Wired headphones (like those in the iPod ad) continue to be an It-item, beloved by stars like Addison Rae. Meanwhile, Taylor Swift — who’s made a career out of her sincerity — announced her engagement with a series of twee, floral photographs that easily could have been posted in 2009, if only she’d added the Juno filter.