Bananas, Bell-Bottoms, and Britney Spears, Oh My! A Cultural Shift Since COVID

My 5’4” self was getting trampled by the crowd of people at Austin City Limits (ACL) music festival. The sun was beating down, but we didn’t care. The only sound I could make out among the crowd was some twenty-something guy yelling “Do you want a banana?!” 

I was so taken by how random of an occurrence it was – he was pulling bright green bananas out of his backpack and offering them to all the sweaty fans waiting to see Stephen Sanchez take the stage. This guy was funky, with his cowboy boots and cut-off “jorts,” or jean shorts, no shirt, and a cowboy hat. Yet, he was the most popular person in the crowd, offering everyone sustenance when we needed it most.

I overheard another guy yell, “Why is this guy passing out unripe bananas? This thing probably has negative potassium at this point!” Then, he proceeded to peel it anyway and eat it. 

Passing out non-ripe bananas was out-of-the-ordinary, but at ACL, it’s cool to be different. And, today, it’s cool to be different in our everyday lives too, much like the hippie movement of the ‘60s and the rise of grunge and punk in the ‘90s. We are experiencing a cultural shift in this post-pandemic era that is all about challenging the norm. 

During pandemic, we were not only plagued with COVID-19, but also with a trend of being basic. We were suddenly saving TikToks of influencers talking about living the “clean girl” lifestyle. Before we knew it, we were all sitting in front of our Zoom calls in loungewear, and beige basics. 

This societal shift is evident as well in the shift in the shift in celebrities young people are following. You might say Taylor Swift is “basic,” but she is quite the opposite. Despite fitting the tall blonde, dating a football player trope, she goes against the grain by embodying what it means to be a female superstar entrepreneur. She is unapologetically herself, and is a genius when it comes to building her brand. Young women all over the world are inspired by her determination and passion. 

Look also at influencer Ashtin Earle, whom Nylon Magazine considers a “cool girl.” You know what I mean – the girl who goes slightly against the grain, wearing leather boots, with jet-black hair, winged eyeliner, and the perfect shade of cranberry-colored lipstick. She is the girl you would run into at a music festival dressed in an over-sized Arctic Monkeys tee, lacy bloomers, and Dr. Martens, while still looking stunning. And finally, it is considered “cool” to cultivate your own style, wearing what you truly want to wear, even if it is not exactly “on trend.” For example, clothing brands such as Anthrologie and Free People are marketing accessories such as “bag charms” to the public as a way to style your bag and tailor it to your personality. 

Fashion is just one of the lenses we have to see cultural shifts in our society. These shifts show themselves in the ways we express ourselves through the things we create, whether that is art, design, fashion, decor, language, music, etc. 

Trends like these provide a glimpse into how our culture is feeling about the world at large. We certainly saw that in the art, music and fashion that the Vietnam War protests spawned. And, in the ‘90s, the lyrics of bands such as Nirvana, raised awareness about the mental health of teenagers.

Today, being “cool and different” is evident in the artists young people are listening to and the clothing we are wearing. Consider Tate McRae. She has been called the new Britney Spears because of her exotic form of dress and her over-sexualized music videos and dancing on stage. She embodies what it means to be a strong, independent woman, who does what she wants when she wants. 

Our style as young people has changed as well. Instead of beige sweat sets and bodysuits being featured on the front of every clothing store’s website, now it's cheetah print, and bell-bottoms. The eras or excess and expression are coming back! 

I can’t wait to buy even more leather belts and bell-bottoms. I’ve already been stalking up on boots, platform shoes, and chunky jewelry. And, don’t even get me started on my leather jacket collection.