Top Ten Most Popular Trends of the 2010s
As a kid in the 2010s, and for you other kids of this decade, I think we all remember times when something was super popular in school, and kids wouldn't stop talking about it for months. Remember it? Yeah, me too.
As this list is made, we're still in the 2010s, but we are in 2019, and this decade has been full of different trends here and there. Which one was the absolute biggest? That's why I made this list.
This is a list of the most popular trends that caught people's interests the most, so with that being said, here's the list.
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Fortnite
Fortnite is definitely one of the more recent trends. You can't deny how much fame it gained over the past few years. This trend was basically the only thing most people talked about and cared about throughout 2018, despite the game being released in 2017.
Fortnite spawned tons of YouTubers and boosted the popularity of many, such as Ali-A, Ninja, and DanTDM (who was already relevant before Fortnite but still played it a lot).
Since the release of this game, it became more than viral, and it's gaining excessively but undeserving attention. But to put that aside, Fortnite is basically the new wave of gamers.
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Fidget Spinners
Fidget spinners. To be honest, this might be the most popular trend of the entire 2010s. Not gonna lie, but I have two of them myself - a gold one and a camouflage blue one.
This was a trend a lot of people knew about. It's almost impossible not to have heard of fidget spinners, especially if you were in school. Starting in early 2017, this trend lasted quite a while, with everyone bringing their spinners to school, showing them off, and comparing each other's spinners.
In the late 2010s, these were a big hit, and almost every kid had one. At school, my friends and I would always see who could keep their fidget spinner spinning the longest, and I usually won. I still have three at my house to this day.
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Internet Challenges
These have been cringeworthy at best. Most are just ridiculous, like the Tide Pod challenge, or just plain stupid, like the water bottle flip thing.
The worst trend ever. It's basically people doing stupid stuff just to get views, and a lot of them can hurt or even kill you. *cough* Tide Pod Challenge *cough*
The only good thing to come from this trend was the Ice Bucket Challenge. At least it did some good and spread awareness about a disease.
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Bottle Flipping
This trend was skill- or luck-based and involved throwing a bottle into the air, making it rotate, and hoping it would land on its base. It was one of the trends I cared the least about at the time because I was more into dabbing.
Looking back, though, bottle flipping seems much less cringeworthy than some of the other trends, if it was cringey at all.
I always tried to make my water bottle land on its base, but because I don't have the best luck, I usually failed.
Bottle flipping is way better than dabbing and other internet challenges. It was stupid but fun.
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Smartphones
Almost everyone, including me, has one these days. In today's generation, the majority of people can be seen with an iPhone or sometimes a Samsung. I like both Apple and Android equally, but each company has its own pros and cons.
Everyone uses them.
Edit: Most people do.
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Social Media
Most people older than the age of 10 have social media accounts nowadays, especially on platforms like Facebook, Twitter, Snapchat, Instagram, TikTok, and YouTube. I have Snapchat, Instagram, TikTok (though I only use it to watch videos), and YouTube (I don't post any videos on my channel).
Edit: I do post on TikTok whenever I feel like it, but I stick to what feels right for me, avoiding challenges that could potentially harm me.
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2010s Music
Adele is widely considered one of the most iconic artists of this decade, according to many critics and audiences. Bruno Mars is another critically acclaimed singer. Imagine Dragons had a different story - they faced a unique situation with critics, but they also attracted a fresh audience. Beyoncé is another example of a critically celebrated artist. David Bowie's final album Blackstar became iconic, especially since it was released just two days before his death.
Kendrick Lamar stands out as the most iconic rapper of this time and is highly praised by critics. Tame Impala also should have been mentioned among the top artists of the 2010s. And that is that.
Well yeah, almost all of us listened to mainstream music. I must admit that I have horrible taste in music (yes, I still listen to some of the most popular rock bands sometimes), but the mainstream pop and rap music they play on the radio all the time has always been my thing, even though I know some of it may be a little inappropriate.
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Dabbing
Dabbing was a 2016 trend, and one of the very few I followed and imitated. But that was because I was a pre-teen and didn't know any better.
Dabbing is a move where you look down and raise your arms sideways. Honestly, I'm terrible at explaining it - just look at a picture to see for yourself. It dominated social media in 2016.
This was so annoying and stupid. I admit I used to do it until I realized just how dumb it was. I was also in middle school at the time, so that explains a lot. It's such a middle school thing that shouldn't have been popular to begin with.
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Pokemon Go!
Everyone knows Pokémon GO, at least kids and young adults of the 2010s. Everyone either played this game or heard of it at least once. It dominated the world back in July 2016 when it was first released, and it even started to develop its own culture. I am one of the many millions of people who played this game, but one of the few who actually chose Team Instinct - the yellow team, which was the least picked of the three gym teams.
As time went by, the game received tons of updates and new Pokémon. However, the first major update is what made me stop playing the game because it made it unplayable for me.
I think I'm the only one who actually likes this game.
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Tiktok
TikTok, known in China as Douyin, is a short-form video hosting service owned by the Chinese company ByteDance.
It hosts a wide variety of user-generated videos in genres such as pranks, stunts, tricks, jokes, dance, and general entertainment. Videos range in duration from three seconds up to... read more
TikTok's okay in my opinion. I'd give it a 6.5/10. If you look for good content, it's not as bad as you think, but if you think this app is trash, I'll still respect your opinion.
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Five Nights at Freddy's
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MLG
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Vines
Vines. No, not the kind you find in the jungle. It's a completely different type of "vine." Vine was a platform where people uploaded short, humorous videos, typically a few seconds long, stitched together into one video meant to make people laugh. However, in my opinion, they were just silly, and I never understood the appeal.
It's not one of the more talked-about trends, but it was definitely a trend.
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Minecraft
It's the second best-selling video game of all time, behind Tetris, and an important part of many of our childhoods. Even today, you can still see it being talked about from time to time.
Minecraft? Wow, this video game rocks! Also, you must be 8 or older to play it. I like Minecraft because I'm old enough to play it.
A video game so popular that kids decided to mess around with it.
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Watch Me Whip - Nae Nae Song
I remember when this song was popular, and every kid, including me, would do the dance moves when it played.
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Anime
Anime will forever be trendy no matter how old you get or what age you are. Dattebayo!
Anime will always be relevant and trendy, no matter what age we live in.
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Marvel Cinematic Universe
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Anti Tik Tok
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Memes
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Netflix
Netflix is an American entertainment company founded by Reed Hastings and Marc Randolph on August 29, 1997, in Scotts Valley, California. It began as a DVD rental-by-mail service before shifting to online streaming. Today, Netflix is one of the largest streaming platforms in the world, known for producing... read more
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Undertale
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Gangnam Style
Lots of people don't remember Gangnam Style anymore, but when it was a trend, it was huge. People were crazy about it. It's a song released in late 2012 by the music artist PSY. I know this ties in with "2010s Music," but that category was mostly about average songs you'd hear on the radio. Gangnam Style, though, was something else.
Everyone was going crazy over this song.
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The Floss
At least it requires some skill compared to other trends. Still, super cringe.
I don't want to brag, but I was a pro at this dance. Looking back, it was a little cringeworthy.
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Live Action Fairy Tale Movies
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Twerking
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subscribing to pewdiepie
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Shrek
Shrek is a fictional ogre and the main character of the Shrek franchise. He debuted in the 2001 animated film Shrek, which is based on the 1990 fairy tale picture book by William Steig. Shrek is voiced by Mike Myers and is known for his gruff exterior and kind heart.... read more
Shrek has never been a trend. It has been a sacred entity for millennia and manifested itself in movie form in 2001. Now, it manifests itself through the people of Earth.