Music is blasting in your headphones, you’re feeling stress-free, and Instagram is up; guess what? It’s 2016.
2016 has been remembered as one of the most significant years for pop culture. Global trends stuck, music changed, and the vibes were good almost all of the time.
This year, people all over the world look back on their lives from ten years ago, and it’s only fair we take a walk down memory lane and see how the year is repeating itself.
Classic marks of the year include trends like clothing and music. But the social media of the year also had a significant impact on this generation.
Instagram’s “Rio De Janeiro” filter is now recognized as a symbol for photos taken that year. It was the most trending filter, and it was common for teens to apply it to nearly every post.
When you see that aesthetic today, it immediately brings you back to the time. This year, social media users have been adding the filter to old photos from that year or using it on new ones to create that same nostalgic feeling.
Another huge social media trend was the mannequin challenge. This was one of the biggest internet sensations in history: everyone froze in place, and the camera went around showing everyone’s pose.
Even Dallastown got involved in trend with sports teams and even the cafeteria study hall taking part.
The original trend started with the song “Black Beatles” by Rae Sremmurd, and the song will forever be remembered by that trend.
But it isn’t just that song. The entire music industry has taken a turn this year as 2016 songs are shooting up in streams.
Through social media, so many people have found themselves making playlists or listening to their favorite songs from that year. Even English teacher Ms. Kortney Williamson.
“I loved Beyoncé’s entire Lemonade album, One Dance by Drake, Me Myself and I by G-Eazy and Bebe Rexha, Gold by Kiiara, and Lost Boy by Ruth B,” she said.
It’s not only the songs but the artists. 2016 artist Zara Larsson peaked that year with her hit single “Lush Life” and her following album, which featured a few more radio hits.
After that, Larsson was nearly a forgotten artist with very few fans, until now.
Larsson opened for Tate McRae on her most recent tour, and her streams shot up as people remembered how much they loved her old trending songs. Ten years later, Larsson is a pop music icon again, with a new album out and performing at the iHeartRadio Jingle Ball last winter.
One of the most famous shows in history also made its first appearance in 2016: “Stranger Things.”
“Stranger Things” blew up worldwide, with the intro song and the fanbase becoming one of the most memorable ones ever. The very first episode aired in July of that year, and the show wrapped up with the finale on the very last day of 2025.
“I like the various 80s references and parts to the show. The best thing though is the relationship that is being built with each of the characters,” said Loganville Elementary teacher Kristin Cummings.
The ending caused much talk and controversy for weeks, carrying into early 2026. Fans felt it was a full-circle moment, as the show finally came to an end, ten years after it started.
The year was more than the media, but some trends students may be currently picking up again.
I’m sure you’ve seen people going crazy over the new hunt for squishies. Fidget toys held a big part of 2016, with fidget spinners taking the lead as the most wanted toy that year.
It wasn’t just the spinners, but many other fidgets were very popular. Squishies, in specific, were trending, and they’ve made a huge comeback with the company NeeDoh.
NeeDoh started with their original launch around 2016, and having been around for many years, it wasn’t until recently that they became extremely popular again and hard to find.
Fidget toys became a staple for toy companies with various trends through the years, but the rise of NeeDoh has brought back squishy memories from 2016.
Music, social media, and tangible things all shape the year into what it was, but the biggest of them all, is probably the clothing trends.
2016 is a remarkable year for fashion, categorized as the “Tumblr girl” aesthetic. From ultra skinny jeans and choker necklaces, to off-the-shoulder tops and big bomber jackets, just about anything was considered fashionable.
“I like a lot of the 2016-inspired outfits that are more hippie and colorful, and I feel like I’ve been participating in that recently,” said senior Abbey Reid.
If we saw some of the outfits today that we considered cool then, we might judge. But remember, there was a time when the ripped skinny jeans were the statement piece of the outfit.
“I am decrepit and was in 2016 so I still have all my clothes from then- waiting for skinny jeans to come around again or I’ll just cut them all into jorts, ” said DAMS Spanish teacher Señora Satzler.
Students embrace the change in style and the change in trends while also incorporating the full circle moments back into their lives.
2016 sure was a year for everyone, and though we can’t time-travel, it’s fun to reminisce.
We may not have the Starbucks Unicorn Frappuccino in our hands anymore, or the ability to use Music.ly, but we can still experience the nostalgia and mourn the breakup of One Direction today, a decade later.
