THEY PARTY LIKE IT'S 1999

GEN Z IS FASCINATED BY ALL THINGS TURN OF THE MILLENNIUM. WHAT HAS PROMPTED THIS NOSTALGIC OBSESSION?

- ALYCE COLLINS

IT’S SOMETIMES HARD TO BELIEVE THAT the turn of the millennium was a quarter of a century ago. In many ways, life felt vastly different back then—the internet was still in its relative infancy, phones were used to make calls, and X was just a letter in the alphabet.

It was an age before smartphones and social media, the war on terror hadn’t begun, and global economies were yet to be impacted by the financial crash.

Those days feel worlds away and yet Y2K has made a resounding comeback among younger generations. Whether it’s fashion, movies, TV or music, many people from Generation Z (those born between 1997 and 2012) are returning to that era and making it au courant once again.

New installments of films like Happy Gilmore, Jurassic Park and Freaky Friday return this summer, as TV favorites like Friends and The O.C. attract younger viewers on streaming services.

Music from the era is seeping back into the mainstream as well, with Nirvana's You Know You're Right featuring in The Last of Us, British band Oasis playing reunion gigs to sold-out stadiums and American rock band Creed, whose hit “Higher” has become a favorite again at sporting events, headlining a Summer of ’99 and Beyond Cruise concert series next spring.

Fashion brands synonymous with the early 2000s—Von Dutch and Ed Hardy—have become staples again, butterfly hair clips and tiny sunglasses are must-haves, and colorful eyeshadow is back in. Even Tamagotchis—the pocket-sized digital pets of Y2K childhoods—are back, turning Gen Z backpacks and belt loops into nostalgic nods to the turn of the century. Riding the same wave, Britney Spears has found renewed popularity with Gen Z in recent years, culminating in May this year when The Singles Collection reached 200 weeks on the U.K. Albums Chart.