Cultural Signals

Last year, anti-tech activist and writer August Lamm predicted that abstention would be the next big thing. On X, she wrote: “I’m calling it right now, abstention is the new big thing; sobriety, celibacy, digital minimalism, dumb phones and religion. The age of hedonistic hyper-consumption is over. We are moving into a new peaceful age marked by mo... See more

TikTok, Depop, and Instagram have created a new kind of fashion influencer: the vintage micro-curator. Their power lies not in designing clothes, but in storytelling — spinning historical context, designer lore, and aesthetic moodboards into content gold. This type of content is coming along leaps and bounds, and there’s real value in this narrativ... See more

as TikTok users begin to flock back to an obsession with thinness, the message behind the so-called encouragement seems clear: it’s about making weight loss mean again.

Isra describes her former relationship with music as an addiction. To replace it, she now listens to audiobooks, something that supports her work as a writer. Shaz has made a similar shift, turning to podcasts, Islamic lectures, and the Quran as part of a deeper commitment to her faith. While these are still forms of audio input, they represent a m... See more

The emotional tension rises when we try to reconcile these free-to-use chatbots with the endless media hype around AI, the philosophical polarisation between doom and abundance, the thinly veiled shilling on X and tasteless slop almost everywhere else

It’s about] letting go of that character, letting go of the manufactured and serious image, wanting to just make tunes for the fun of it and not having to pretend to be someone you’re not.”

“Millennials were more nihilistic, but Gen Z prefers to be inane over straight bleakness,” Finessa continues. “If you want to wear black and be cool and macho, cool, go to a techno party. But, if you think that looks a bit ‘silly’, come to the silly party.”

“In the past, the club was a space for connection and emotionality, however synthetic those bonds were in reality,” Yalcinkaya explains. “It’s unsurprising that ketamine has taken over as the ‘drug of choice’ for young people, because of its disassociating effects, which allow you to be close to one another, while being isolated in your individual ... See more

Being online these days is a sensory overload of visual and sonic stimuli that flood our brains through incoherent phrases and soundbites. It’s no surprise that we’re seeing music reflect this chaotic landscape,” says internet expert and Dazed contributing editor Gunseli Yalcinkaya. “Combine this with remix culture, with young people accessing all ... See more