u/Ok_Act_3769

Phase One (2001-2007): The Edgy phase

Overview: Middle Class youth move from the suburbs into cheap urban neighborhoods after the White Flight of the midcentury. A cultural revival emerges of 60’s retro met with 90’s cynicism/acerbicity and post-modern irreverence and clash of styles while amidst a DIY/tech optimism.  

Key Locations: Manhattan, Brooklyn, San Francisco, Silicon Valley, London

Key Events: iPod released (2001), iPhone released (2007), Third Wave Coffee movement, social media beginnings: Myspace(2003), Facebook (2004)
Return of analog: (vinyl records, fixed gear bicycles, polaroid cameras)

Key Figures: 
Julian Casablancas/The Strokes, Wes Anderson, Joe Swanberg, Noah Baumbach, Duplass Brothers, Richard Linklater, Karen O, Greta Gerwig, Michael Cera, Jack White, Will Butler/Arcade Fire, James Murphy, Jim James/My Morning Jacket, Lilly Allen 

Key Works: The Strokes - Is This It (2001), Royal Tenenbaums (2001), Arrested Development (2003–2006), Before Sunset (2004), Juno (2007),  Arcade Fire- Funeral (2004) Feist-The Reminder (2007), Flight of the Concords (2007-2009)

Key Institutions:
 \\-Pitchfork/AV Club/The Onion: sardonic, detached, snobbish/elitist, irreverent, satiric
\\-IFC/Sundance: independent films and later original TV show productions shown on cable TV
\\-Vice: Hipster culture and lifestyle news
\\-Other: used record stores, independent coffee shops, DIY music venues, Brooklyn Vegan, Glasslands music venue, The Smell music venue

Key Fashion: “ironic fashion” such as t-shirts with advertisements or trucker hats, hodge podge/mismatched outfits, denim jackets, business shirts/jackets/neckties with jeans

Key Websites: Myspace, Facebook, Pitchfork, Vice, Stereogum, Gorilla Vs Bear, Brooklyn Vegan, \[Last.FM\](http://last.fm/), various music blogs

Phase Two (2008-2012): The Aesthetic phase

Overview: Bringing blue collar/outdoorsman sensibilities to urban living.
A focus on authenticity and a return to folksy/rustic type minimalism with work clothes worn as leisureware, exposed/raw building materials, handcrafted objects, while at the same time approaching a more European ornateness/decadence such as  gallery hopping, Yelp/foodie culture, tasteful tattoos/sleeves, and a holistic approach to all aesthetic aspects of culture from word fonts to facial hair to house plants. There is a noticeable move from the rawness/sleaze of the first Hipster phase to more composed, lush, and artsy elements as exemplified by the “Tumblr aesthetic.” Folk/Acoustic inspired music sits comfortably side by side with new movements in EDM, alternative hip-hop, emo revival, and garage/lo-fi rock in a burgeoning and diversifying Indie festival scene.

Key Locations:  Los Angeles, Brooklyn, Austin, San Francisco

Key Events: Bandcamp founded (2008), Obama inauguration (2009), Spotify comes to U.S. (2011), Entering the mainstream: Mumford and Sons/Indie folk movement, (2009-2011), Arcade Fire Grammy Win (2011),  Bon Iver Grammy Win (2012), Gotye - Somebody That I Used to Know(2012)  Facebook buys Instagram (2012)

Key Figures: Justin Vernon/Bon Iver, Great Gerwig, Noah Baumbach, Lena Dunham, James Murphy, Will Butler/Arcade Fire, Mumford and Sons, Ryan Gosling, Michelle Williams, Jess Wexler, Mark Duplass

Key Works: Vampire Weekend -S/T (2008) Fleet Foxes -S/T (2008) The Middle East – The Recordings Of The Middle East( 2008) Animal Collective- Merriweather Post Pavilion (2009), Where the Wild Things Are (2009), Scott Pilgrim vs the World, movie (2010),  Of Monsters and Men - My Head is An Animal (2011), Drive (2011) film and soundtrack, Girls, HBO show (2012-2017), Frances Ha (2012)

Key Institutions: Pitchfork, South by Southwest, Coachella, Vice, American Apparel, Indie Film/Music Festivals, Craft Breweries 

Key Fashion: Skinny jeans, plaid flannel, Converse chuck shoes, scarves/beanies in warm weather

Key Websites: Twitter, Tumblr, Bandcamp, Pitchfork

Third Phase- 2013-2018: Mainstream

Overview: Hipsterdom was mainly absorbed into the overall cultural zeitgeist of social media brands, influencers, conspicuous consumption, and virtue signalling. There is a more of a focus on sustainability, local consumption, wellness (organic/natural, nonGMO, yoga). Music sites become more inclusive of pop and hip hop. The social media aesthetic becomes something that can be monetized with branding/influencing. 

Key Locations: Los Angeles/Palm Springs, Nashville, Silicon Valley 

Key events: Yahoo buys Tumblr (2013): Arcade Fire goes dance pop (2013), Arcade Fire - Her film soundtrack (2013)  M83 - Oblivion film soundtrack (2013) Pitchfork goes pop (2016ish), Trump inauguration 2017, Whole Foods bought by Amazon (2017) Beyonce at Coachella (2018)

Key Works: The Big Ask (2013), Drinking Buddies (2013), Vice News HBO (2013-) Arctic Monkeys- AM (2013), Tame Impala Currents (2015), Easy Netflix TV show (2016-2019), Ladybird (2017), Under the Silver Lake (2018), High Maintenance Web series and HBO show (2012-2020)

Key People: Greta Gerwig, Shane Smith, Joe Swanberg, Mac DeMarco, Kevin Parker, Adam Driver, Will Butler/Arcade Fire, Sky Ferreira, Lorde, Melanie Lynskey, Jason Ritter, Gillian Jacobs

Key Institutions: Pitchfork, Silicon Valley, Sweetgreen, Shake Shack, Indie Festival Circuit

Key Fashion: band merch, floral/polka dot men’s shirts, denim cutoffs, round frame glasses, high rise jeans, white shoes/white socks

Key Websites: Instagram, Twitter, Snapchat

Conclusion
Conspicuous consumption is a defining feature of hipsterdom. It is about bringing the underground/retro/forgotten to the forefront. Vinyl collections, antiques,  tattoos, groomed facial hair all become signifiers of a manicured and deliberate lifestyle. By tying conspicuous consumption to social media, we are able to see how the term “Hipster” has been able to be applied to so many aspects of culture: music/fashion/food/art/photography/film, even values/personality. It's the embodiment of a cohesive capitalist value system with a focus on local/authentic production and consumption, tastemaking and curation, lifestyle and virtue signaling, spread through the technological innovations of the 21st century. 

A key element in both the life and death of hipsterdom is the smart phone. The explosion of social media apps directly correlates with the rise in hipster influence and saturation. The smart phone allowed every aspect of the curated life to be recorded and shared. Conversely, the improvement to the smart phone camera meant the masses could also take professional looking photographs and no longer needed to have an actual camera, which was an important aspect of the Hipster experience: taking photos on actual film. Eventually technology was able to replicate all the retro, analog features the Hipster embraced for example: Instagram filters, t-shirt screen prints, retro music instruments, etc.

Hipsterdom is defined by being a visible lifestyle if not a lifestyle of visibility. It removed the stigma from tattoos and facial hair,  it was embodied by an egalitarianism with with unisex clothing and a unisex aesthetic as a whole. Women with tattoos, male grooming/doing yoga, etc. It took social media from personal and familial to curated and global. Another important aspect is that it is apolitical and focused more on specific issues of consumption and lifestyle such as sustainability, walkability, fair trade etc,. it is a non-confrontational and aspirational cultural movement. 

Another key factor to defining hipsterdom is an urban revival by suburban, mainly white, youth moving back to abandoned/rundown neighborhoods in major cities. They then get jobs in visible and public facing occupations such as film/music industry, media/journalism, restaurant/retail, bartending/barista, not to mention new media such as blogging, online journalism, social media manager etc. which led to the appearance of a widespread and commercial counter-culture at the forefront of art and culture when in reality it was a small, yet highly visible segment of the Millennial generation.
These millennials were the first to embrace social media such as Twitter/Tumblr/Instagram as means of self expression and a curated brand, not just a way to share updates with friends and family. What separates the hipster era from other youth cultures of the past is the novelty of social media, which gave normally underground culture a visibility and marketability that led to the blending of the counter culture and the mainstream into an indistinguishable of society aesthetic and virtue-conscious consumption. Hipsterdom is the cohesion/universality of the hipster aesthetics/ideals brought about by social media and the global reach of online content/publications on the Internet.

\*\*Author’s Note\*\*: This was an attempt at a short, comprehensive, yet not complete, account of the Hipster era. There is mainly a U.S. focus with some UK inclusions. There are, I admit, some personal blind spots especially regarding fashion, literature, the arts, interior decorating, crafts and culinary, etc. in addition to the non-Anglo zeitgeist. I tried to give a broad sampling but no doubt important examples will have been omitted/overlooked. I purposely omitted some artworks that felt more like an outsider’s take on Hipsterdom rather than coming from within the Hipster ecosystem itself, for example, Garden State, 500 (Days of Summer), New Girl, Portlandia, etc. Overall, my selections are based mainly on my own feelings of what best reflect the “Hipster Ideal.” Additionally my use of “virtue signalling” should be read as neutral and  as objective as possible as this is a behavior that is a part of all human kind and not solely a political/left-wing act. (Additional Note: I used AI to get ideas/refresh my memory but all the writing/formatting is mine, for better or worse.)

Phase One (2001-2007): The Edgy phase

Overview: Middle Class youth move from the suburbs into cheap urban neighborhoods after the White Flight of the midcentury. A cultural revival emerges of 60’s retro met with 90’s cynicism/acerbicity and post-modern irreverence and clash of styles while amidst a DIY/tech optimism.  

Key Locations: Manhattan, Brooklyn, San Francisco, Silicon Valley, London

Key Events: iPod released (2001), iPhone released (2007), Third Wave Coffee movement, social media beginnings: Myspace(2003), Facebook (2004)
Return of analog: (vinyl records, fixed gear bicycles, polaroid cameras)

Key Figures: 
Julian Casablancas/The Strokes, Wes Anderson, Joe Swanberg, Noah Baumbach, Duplass Brothers, Richard Linklater, Karen O, Greta Gerwig, Michael Cera, Jack White, Will Butler/Arcade Fire, James Murphy, Jim James/My Morning Jacket, Lilly Allen 

Key Works: The Strokes - Is This It (2001), Royal Tenenbaums (2001), Arrested Development (2003–2006), Before Sunset (2004), Juno (2007),  Arcade Fire- Funeral (2004) Feist-The Reminder (2007), Flight of the Concords (2007-2009)

Key Institutions:
 \-Pitchfork/AV Club/The Onion: sardonic, detached, snobbish/elitist, irreverent, satiric
\-IFC/Sundance: independent films and later original TV show productions shown on cable TV
\-Vice: Hipster culture and lifestyle news
\-Other: used record stores, independent coffee shops, DIY music venues, Brooklyn Vegan, Glasslands music venue, The Smell music venue

Key Fashion: “ironic fashion” such as t-shirts with advertisements or trucker hats, hodge podge/mismatched outfits, denim jackets, business shirts/jackets/neckties with jeans

Key Websites: Myspace, Facebook, Pitchfork, Vice, Stereogum, Gorilla Vs Bear, Brooklyn Vegan, [Last.FM](http://last.fm/), various music blogs

Phase Two (2008-2012): The Aesthetic phase

Overview: Bringing blue collar/outdoorsman sensibilities to urban living.
A focus on authenticity and a return to folksy/rustic type minimalism with work clothes worn as leisureware, exposed/raw building materials, handcrafted objects, while at the same time approaching a more European ornateness/decadence such as  gallery hopping, Yelp/foodie culture, tasteful tattoos/sleeves, and a holistic approach to all aesthetic aspects of culture from word fonts to facial hair to house plants. There is a noticeable move from the rawness/sleaze of the first Hipster phase to more composed, lush, and artsy elements as exemplified by the “Tumblr aesthetic.” Folk/Acoustic inspired music sits comfortably side by side with new movements in EDM, alternative hip-hop, emo revival, and garage/lo-fi rock in a burgeoning and diversifying Indie festival scene.

Key Locations:  Los Angeles, Brooklyn, Austin, San Francisco

Key Events: Bandcamp founded (2008), Obama inauguration (2009), Spotify comes to U.S. (2011), Entering the mainstream: Mumford and Sons/Indie folk movement, (2009-2011), Arcade Fire Grammy Win (2011),  Bon Iver Grammy Win (2012), Gotye - Somebody That I Used to Know(2012)  Facebook buys Instagram (2012)

Key Figures: Justin Vernon/Bon Iver, Great Gerwig, Noah Baumbach, Lena Dunham, James Murphy, Will Butler/Arcade Fire, Mumford and Sons, Ryan Gosling, Michelle Williams, Jess Wexler, Mark Duplass

Key Works: Vampire Weekend -S/T (2008) Fleet Foxes -S/T (2008) The Middle East – The Recordings Of The Middle East( 2008) Animal Collective- Merriweather Post Pavilion (2009), Where the Wild Things Are (2009), Scott Pilgrim vs the World, movie (2010),  Of Monsters and Men - My Head is An Animal (2011), Drive (2011) film and soundtrack, Girls, HBO show (2012-2017), Frances Ha (2012)

Key Institutions: Pitchfork, South by Southwest, Coachella, Vice, American Apparel, Indie Film/Music Festivals, Craft Breweries 

Key Fashion: Skinny jeans, plaid flannel, Converse chuck shoes, scarves/beanies in warm weather

Key Websites: Twitter, Tumblr, Bandcamp, Pitchfork

Third Phase- 2013-2018: Mainstream

Overview: Hipsterdom was mainly absorbed into the overall cultural zeitgeist of social media brands, influencers, conspicuous consumption, and virtue signalling. There is a more of a focus on sustainability, local consumption, wellness (organic/natural, nonGMO, yoga). Music sites become more inclusive of pop and hip hop. The social media aesthetic becomes something that can be monetized with branding/influencing. 

Key Locations: Los Angeles/Palm Springs, Nashville, Silicon Valley 

Key events: Yahoo buys Tumblr (2013): Arcade Fire goes dance pop (2013), Arcade Fire - Her film soundtrack (2013)  M83 - Oblivion film soundtrack (2013) Pitchfork goes pop (2016ish), Trump inauguration 2017, Whole Foods bought by Amazon (2017) Beyonce at Coachella (2018)

Key Works: The Big Ask (2013), Drinking Buddies (2013), Vice News HBO (2013-) Arctic Monkeys- AM (2013), Tame Impala Currents (2015), Easy Netflix TV show (2016-2019), Ladybird (2017), Under the Silver Lake (2018), High Maintenance Web series and HBO show (2012-2020)

Key People: Greta Gerwig, Shane Smith, Joe Swanberg, Mac DeMarco, Kevin Parker, Adam Driver, Will Butler/Arcade Fire, Sky Ferreira, Lorde, Melanie Lynskey, Jason Ritter, Gillian Jacobs

Key Institutions: Pitchfork, Silicon Valley, Sweetgreen, Shake Shack, Indie Festival Circuit

Key Fashion: band merch, floral/polka dot men’s shirts, denim cutoffs, round frame glasses, high rise jeans, white shoes/white socks

Key Websites: Instagram, Twitter, Snapchat

Conclusion
Conspicuous consumption is a defining feature of hipsterdom. It is about bringing the underground/retro/forgotten to the forefront. Vinyl collections, antiques,  tattoos, groomed facial hair all become signifiers of a manicured and deliberate lifestyle. By tying conspicuous consumption to social media, we are able to see how the term “Hipster” has been able to be applied to so many aspects of culture: music/fashion/food/art/photography/film, even values/personality. It's the embodiment of a cohesive capitalist value system with a focus on local/authentic production and consumption, tastemaking and curation, lifestyle and virtue signaling, spread through the technological innovations of the 21st century. 

A key element in both the life and death of hipsterdom is the smart phone. The explosion of social media apps directly correlates with the rise in hipster influence and saturation. The smart phone allowed every aspect of the curated life to be recorded and shared. Conversely, the improvement to the smart phone camera meant the masses could also take professional looking photographs and no longer needed to have an actual camera, which was an important aspect of the Hipster experience: taking photos on actual film. Eventually technology was able to replicate all the retro, analog features the Hipster embraced for example: Instagram filters, t-shirt screen prints, retro music instruments, etc.

Hipsterdom is defined by being a visible lifestyle if not a lifestyle of visibility. It removed the stigma from tattoos and facial hair,  it was embodied by an egalitarianism with with unisex clothing and a unisex aesthetic as a whole. Women with tattoos, male grooming/doing yoga, etc. It took social media from personal and familial to curated and global. Another important aspect is that it is apolitical and focused more on specific issues of consumption and lifestyle such as sustainability, walkability, fair trade etc,. it is a non-confrontational and aspirational cultural movement. 

Another key factor to defining hipsterdom is an urban revival by suburban, mainly white, youth moving back to abandoned/rundown neighborhoods in major cities. They then get jobs in visible and public facing occupations such as film/music industry, media/journalism, restaurant/retail, bartending/barista, not to mention new media such as blogging, online journalism, social media manager etc. which led to the appearance of a widespread and commercial counter-culture at the forefront of art and culture when in reality it was a small, yet highly visible segment of the Millennial generation.
These millennials were the first to embrace social media such as Twitter/Tumblr/Instagram as means of self expression and a curated brand, not just a way to share updates with friends and family. What separates the hipster era from other youth cultures of the past is the novelty of social media, which gave normally underground culture a visibility and marketability that led to the blending of the counter culture and the mainstream into an indistinguishable of society aesthetic and virtue-conscious consumption. Hipsterdom is the cohesion/universality of the hipster aesthetics/ideals brought about by social media and the global reach of online content/publications on the Internet.

**Author’s Note**: This was an attempt at a short, comprehensive, yet not complete, account of the Hipster era. There is mainly a U.S. focus with some UK inclusions. There are, I admit, some personal blind spots especially regarding fashion, literature, the arts, interior decorating, crafts and culinary, etc. in addition to the non-Anglo zeitgeist. I tried to give a broad sampling but no doubt important examples will have been omitted/overlooked. I purposely omitted some artworks that felt more like an outsider’s take on Hipsterdom rather than coming from within the Hipster ecosystem itself, for example, Garden State, 500 (Days of Summer), New Girl, Portlandia, etc. Overall, my selections are based mainly on my own feelings of what best reflect the “Hipster Ideal.” Additionally my use of “virtue signalling” should be read as neutral and  as objective as possible as this is a behavior that is a part of all human kind and not solely a political/left-wing act. (Additional Note: I used AI to get ideas/refresh my memory but all the writing/formatting is mine, for better or worse.)

😮‍💨