In the Instagram feed of Tora Northman, 23, who reads through it numerous times a day, she often sees a photo of Gwyneth Paltrow attending the 1996 MTV Video Music Awards in a burgundy velvet Gucci trouser suit, as she did in 1996. In certain cases, it will have been published by a friend of mine. It has also originated from one of the several 1990s- and Y2K-themed sites that have sprung up on the internet, such as those run by @90sanxiety, @90smilk, @early2000sbabes, and @literally.iconic, whose owner claims to have been “raised by paris and britney” in his or her account profile.
The preoccupation with the 1990s and 2000s in terms of fashion among Generation Z has been extensively documented. See Olivia Rodrigo visiting the White House in a Chanel outfit reminiscent of the film “Clueless” from 1995, or Bella Hadid enjoying her birthday in the first piece from Gucci’s spring 1998 collection, all of which are seen here. Surveillance of youngsters will reveal “vintage” camouflage pants, platform shoes, strappy tops, belly chains, slogan T-shirts (“Boys Lie! “), hibiscus-print skirts, and butterfly jewellery, among other things.
According to the firm, there were 290,000 unique searches for the term “Y2K” on the resale site Depop in the months of September, October, and November. The search is one of the most popular on the network, according to a platform spokeswoman. During the same time period, there were 92,561 searches for “low rise jeans” and 150,133 searches for “Ed Hardy,” among other terms.
Photographs taken by paparazzi and film stills from the era are being sold on the internet as mementos of an apparently simpler but more luxurious time: Sarah Jessica Parker as Carrie Bradshaw, Princess Diana, and Britney Spears, among others. Paris Hilton wears a “Don’t be Jealous” T-shirt while walking the catwalk for Chanel, Gaultier, and Versace; showy Victoria Beckham in her previous life as a pop singer; and youthful Naomi Campbell on the runway for Chanel, Gaultier, and Versace.
For those of us who grew up listening to Prince’s “1999” at midnight while wearing glittery plastic sunglasses that said “2000,” the idea of wishing for the cultural (and fashion) icons of a period marked by financial and technical instability may seem absurd.
Many of those who followed after, however, believe that the appeal is based on much more than the simple pleasure of donning the clothes of another age or the beginning of a new 20-year fashion cycle.
Ms. Russell said that she enjoys channelling the “persona” of Paris Hilton’s “rich girl.”
” She adores the “sunglasses in the club” style, as well as the “expensive purse with a huge logo” and the flesh that is on display. She describes such clothing as “liberating,” and she believes it is. “We need and want the ability to be carefree.”
To be sure, she is no longer the Paris Hilton of her youth (she is now 40), but she has transformed into an unexpected hero to those half her age who were previously enthralled by her lighthearted nihilism. When asked about Ms. Hilton, Nicole Stark, a 19-year-old whose Depop business, GlowNic, promises “Y2K x 90s garmz Black owned,” she acknowledged that if she had been famous today, she would have been cancelled because of her character, which is predicated on blindness to her own privilege. Ms. Stark, on the other hand, adores her, praising her for being a “strong woman” who defied expectations.
Among those interviewed by Ms. Stark are female superstars like Paris Hilton, who grew up in a male-dominated entertainment business and were role models not just for their outlandishness as a form of rebellion but also for their savviness, which many people did not recognise at the time.
As shown in the film “The Simple Life,” Paris Hilton, with her sparkling costumes, unfettered confidence, and pouty unwillingness to work a day job or bow to social conventions, embodies what it means to be free in this day and age: the comedy, ease, and flippancy.
