The internet is not happy with the aesthetics, music, and fashion of the late 2020s, and social media users are making that clear through TikTok’s first big trend this year: “2026 is the new 2016.”
Each of these videos or photos is covered in the 2016 filter on TikTok or Instagram’s “Rio de Janeiro.” Throwback songs like “3 Strikes” by Terror Jr, “Lean On” by Major Lazer and DJ Snake, and various Chainsmokers songs play in the background of every video.
Some celebrities have embraced this new trend. Loren Gray, who was a big name in social media in 2016, has posted newer TikToks that resemble the 2016 format of Musical.ly, a social media site that was merged with TikTok in 2018.
Zara Larsson’s music career has rebounded exponentially: First, because of the dolphin meme with her 2017 hit “Symphony” and how her marketing team handled her rebranding, and second, because of her carefully placed summer nostalgia bait.
Companies have also used this nostalgia fever for marketing. Hollister is beginning to bring back its vintage styles. However, many critics believe that they should also bring back the quality of the olden days rather than renew everything with cheap fabrics. Furthermore, Hollister’s new arrivals lean towards the late 2000s and early 2010s rather than 2016.
This is a growing pattern, with many of the “2016 videos” including references from all across the 2010s. One example is the millennial mustache, which was considered dated by the time 2016 arrived. Also, some of the songs being used came out up to two years after 2016.
Rather than romanticizing the specific year of 2016, it seems as though people are collecting everything they’re nostalgic about and branding it as “2016-core.”
Some people who experienced this era as teenagers or young adults take offense to this, saying that the people partaking in this trend don’t know what they are talking about and that most of the participants were toddlers during 2016.
Still, this throwback trend has brought happiness for many others, from older Millennials, who miss the old days, to younger Gen-Z, who had envied the 2010s teenage experience.
