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Post by SharksFan99 on Apr 5, 2020 14:06:42 GMT 10
Genuinely curious to know if there is anyone else who feels the same as I do.
The overwhelming consensus seems to be that the early 2010s were an upbeat, positive era in which people have a lot of happy memories of. Don't get me wrong, I can understand the reasons for people being fond of them, but if i'm being perfectly honest, they still don't have any sentimental value for me personally, even with the era now being over a decade ago.
I largely see the early 2010s as the era in which the foundations for the issues that plague society today were set in stone. Smartphones became ubiquitous around 2011, which would indirectly result in a rise in lone-wolf terrorist attacks, body shaming and social anxiety among teens, cyber-bullying, and far-right extremism later on in the decade. Sure the emergence of smartphones has made accomplishing certain tasks even more convenient than ever; i'm not going to pretend that they haven't been beneficial for society. However, they have come at a huge cost. It still kind of saddens me to see people glued to their screens and forgetting how to be courteous when i'm out and about. This can be directly traced back to the early 2010s.
Also, I personally find the pop culture of the time to be overrated as well. The music charts were the least diverse that they had been in decades. The late 2000s at least had rock (post-grunge, indie and emo), r&b, snap-rap and pop to balance things out, but electropop truly had a stranglehold over everything that was popular during the early 2010s. There was very little else on the charts. People will point to "Game of Thrones" as being a prime example of how good television was in the early 2010s, however what people forget is that it didn't become the mega smash-hit that it was until about 2013. It didn't truly define the early 2010s to the extent that people claim it did.
To be fair, I don't think the pop culture of the early 2010s was lined up for someone my age. If I had of been born just a few years later, I still would have been in the middle of my childhood and early '10s pop culture staples such as Angry Birds, Gangnam Style, Adventure Time etc. would be items that I would have childhood nostalgia for. I had largely grown out of liking kids things by the start of the decade, so the most popular kids trends from the time don't have any sentimental value for me personally. Similarly, if I had of been in the middle of my teens or my early 20s during the era, electropop and the indie scene probably would have 'spoken' to me more than they did otherwise.
I was 11-14 during the early 2010s, so they were pretty much my awkward, puberty years. I just feel as though I experienced them at the wrong age.
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Post by Deleted on Apr 5, 2020 14:17:52 GMT 10
I like the early 2010s. They were the best era of my adult life and looking back on them, they seem almost like a magical time. The electropop was perfect for the mood that I was in at that point. There's plenty not to like though and I do see where you are coming from.
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Post by Cassie on Apr 5, 2020 14:19:00 GMT 10
I disagree, probably because I was a kid back then.
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Post by Captain Nemo on Apr 5, 2020 14:51:22 GMT 10
The positive consensus about the early 2010s within the GenDec community certainly wasn't the case four years ago, back then the consensus was that everything went downhill in around 2008, and therefore the consensus regarding the early '10s would've been subsequently negative as a result.
What I believed changed the consensus is 2000-2005 borns whom were still children in the early '10s with a more rosy viewpoint of the era joining the forums. This isn't the first time that a younger presence has shifted opinion on a specific era, 2004-2007 used to have a negative consensus on many '90s Kids related forums and YouTube videos until the mid-late '90s borns made their mark and shifted the opinion there.
Also, I believe there's the fact that the early '10s seems rather innocent and desirable compared to the world of political turmoil following Trump's election, and especially now with the whole COVID-19 epidemic.
While I do have nostalgia for an assortment of popular media from the early '10s, it was a horrible period in my life that I wouldn't ever want to go back to. Not so much 2012, as that year my life started to get better, but 2010 and 2011 were abysmal for me, although I was 12 and 13 those years, so that's expected. I honestly am more nostalgic for the mid '10s honestly, my high school years were a great time in my life that I'd go back to in a heartbeat.
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Post by Telso on Apr 5, 2020 19:37:43 GMT 10
I personally really enjoyed those years, particularly the 2009-2010 and 2011-2012 school years. Middle school and high school were rather radical changes in my life, going from a small rural neighborhood's school to a very urbanized area in the middle of the city. Add to that how volatile pop culture was back then, and you can imagine how my childhood and teenagerhood felt like two completely different worlds. And I didn't mind it a single bit. I actually did really like how exciting things felt. How new styles and technologies were entering the mix before they grew stale in the long run. Now that I think of it the early '10s had that fresh start vibe and was perfect for the new chapter in my life. And I'm just grateful for it. Unfortunately after that though, the mid-2010s turned definitely rougher for me and much more mixed in comparison. But no period is really perfect when you look into it more closely. At the end of the day, it's what you make of it. That's why 2020 sucks balls so bad because even people's freedom to enjoy life their own way has been taken away  .
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Post by Deleted on Apr 6, 2020 2:02:46 GMT 10
I personally really enjoyed those years, particularly the 2009-2010 and 2011-2012 school years. Middle school and high school were rather radical changes in my life, going from a small rural neighborhood's school to a very urbanized area in the middle of the city. Add to that how volatile pop culture was back then, and you can imagine how my childhood and teenagerhood felt like two completely different worlds. And I didn't mind it a single bit. I actually did really like how exciting things felt. How new styles and technologies were entering the mix before they grew stale in the long run. Now that I think of it the early '10s had that fresh start vibe and was perfect for the new chapter in my life. And I'm just grateful for it. Unfortunately after that though, the mid-2010s turned definitely rougher for me and much more mixed in comparison. But no period is really perfect when you look into it more closely. At the end of the day, it's what you make of it. That's why 2020 sucks balls so bad because even people's freedom to enjoy life their own way has been taken away  . I agree that no period is perfect. The mid 2010s were rough for me, though in hindsight there were aspects to them I can appreciate. I'd take them back in a heartbeat over 2020. For me, 2020 is almost as bad as it gets. At this point, I can name off any one of my worst fears and I wouldn't be surprised if it happens this year. As for the early 2010s, I came out back in 2009 and it was the perfect time because of how popular artists like Lady Gaga, Katy Perry, etc were. I also miss the guys' fashion of that era. I liked how being "metrosexual" really started to be destigmatized. I also liked that you could still sport the 2000s look (A&F tee, etc). Obama being in office gave our politics a more forward-thinking vibe as opposed the reactionary culture of today. I really liked the bar and club culture back then. It did seem a lot friendlier as well. Back then, I would go to the gay bars alone and it was rare that I didn't end up leaving with somebody, even if just new friends. That doesn't happen today. It may be partially my age but I think I've kept my looks. I think it has more to do with the fact that people don't meet people at bars anymore in the age of phone apps. People nowadays are more likely to just socialize within their group and not mix and mingle.
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Post by John Titor on Apr 6, 2020 2:14:47 GMT 10
Genuinely curious to know if there is anyone else who feels the same as I do. The overwhelming consensus seems to be that the early 2010s were an upbeat, positive era in which people have a lot of happy memories of. Don't get me wrong, I can understand the reasons for people being fond of them, but if i'm being perfectly honest, they still don't have any sentimental value for me personally, even with the era now being over a decade ago. I largely see the early 2010s as the era in which the foundations for the issues that plague society today were set in stone. Smartphones became ubiquitous around 2011, which would indirectly result in a rise in lone-wolf terrorist attacks, body shaming and social anxiety among teens, cyber-bullying, and far-right extremism later on in the decade. Sure the emergence of smartphones has made accomplishing certain tasks even more convenient than ever; i'm not going to pretend that they haven't been beneficial for society. However, they have come at a huge cost. It still kind of saddens me to see people glued to their screens and forgetting how to be courteous when i'm out and about. This can be directly traced back to the early 2010s. Also, I personally find the pop culture of the time to be overrated as well. The music charts were the least diverse that they had been in decades. The late 2000s at least had rock (post-grunge, indie and emo), r&b, snap-rap and pop to balance things out, but electropop truly had a stranglehold over everything that was popular during the early 2010s. There was very little else on the charts. People will point to "Game of Thrones" as being a prime example of how good television was in the early 2010s, however what people forget is that it didn't become the mega smash-hit that it was until about 2013. It didn't truly define the early 2010s to the extent that people claim it did. To be fair, I don't think the pop culture of the early 2010s was lined up for someone my age. If I had of been born just a few years later, I still would have been in the middle of my childhood and early '10s pop culture staples such as Angry Birds, Gangnam Style, Adventure Time etc. would be items that I would have childhood nostalgia for. I had largely grown out of liking kids things by the start of the decade, so the most popular kids trends from the time don't have any sentimental value for me personally. Similarly, if I had of been in the middle of my teens or my early 20s during the era, electropop and the indie scene probably would have 'spoken' to me more than they did otherwise. I was 11-14 during the early 2010s, so they were pretty much my awkward, puberty years. I just feel as though I experienced them at the wrong age. I will say this I do not miss the 2010s, but if there is any part of the 2010s that I am ok with it's the early 2010s 2010- up until early 2013. I did not like the mid 2010s at all so by default the early 2010s are decent I suppose. This is coming from someone born in the late 80s.
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Post by broadstreet223 on Apr 7, 2020 7:20:52 GMT 10
I disagree, probably because I was a kid back then. Agreed, I don't care if the early 2010s weren't the greatest era. It was my childhood and would do anything to go back.
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Post by sman12 on Apr 8, 2020 2:22:55 GMT 10
I disagree, probably because I was a kid back then. I also have to agree. Early 2010s kids like myself had tons of things to do to spend their time. Playing Angry Birds, watching popular kids' TV like Victorious, Big Time Rush, TUFF Puppy, Adventure Time, Regular Show, etc., go outside, play with 3Dses, PS3s. Wiis, and 360s, and doing other activities.
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Post by Cassie on Apr 8, 2020 3:49:24 GMT 10
I disagree, probably because I was a kid back then. I also have to agree. Early 2010s kids like myself had tons of things to do to spend their time. Playing Angry Birds, watching popular kids' TV like Victorious, Big Time Rush, TUFF Puppy, Adventure Time, Regular Show, etc., go outside, play with 3Dses, PS3s. Wiis, and 360s, and doing other activities. Yeah. It's much better than being a late 2010s or early 2020s kid because your childhood feels innocent and carefree. Late 2010s kids were in a time when school shootings and Trump ran rampant, and most late 2010s kids have to deal with the coronavirus too.
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Post by Early2010sGuy on Apr 8, 2020 5:13:40 GMT 10
I enjoyed the Early 2010s. Music wasnt just all about Electropop, you had some Alternative/Indie music from Adele, Hip-Hop R&B from Bruno Mars, Hipster music from FUN and Gotye, and some Pop-rap from Nicki Minaj and Kanye West, and Dubstep from Skrillex... People say that the Early 2010s had a lack of diversity, and I can tell you that it is false based on the genres I just mentioned. Love it or hate it, electropop will always be known as an upbeat happy genre that motivates people to party or do cardio/gym activities, and it even helped some people get through the 2008 recession, unlike the depressing music we have today...
As for smartphones, from a Generation Z's point of view, we see it as a good thing. Now, are we aware about the dangers of social media? Of course we do, we balance ourselves and try to stay alert. Smartphones are a cool thing that happened because texting is much more fluent, a camera is in one device instead of having to pull many things at once, and the games are fun. Yes, we also go out to our backyards, I still see a fair amount of people go outside and play basketball, and if that's the case now, it's also the case in 2011, people keep exaggerating that "Ohh smartphones are destroying children," not completely. Smartphones help us search for careers in 1 device, they help us with GPS signals, and much more... Without smartphones, everything would be harder, you have to write letters and wait a week to get a reply back, you have to go through textbooks in the library, have to go to places to find careers, just think about it. Now I agree that social media has disadvantages like cyberbullying, body-shaming, etc. But we need to learn how to cope with it and show our confidence, and ignore the hate. If it's only criticism, just listen...
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Post by Deleted on Apr 8, 2020 17:26:31 GMT 10
The early 2010s were my favourite. I spent most the 2000s being bullied and developed social anxiety disorder as a result. I had a minimal amount of friends and was a loner. But then I got treated for my SAD, and that combined with the culture becoming more socially accepting of misfits and nerdy types (it's really hard to overstate this, it felt like a revolution, al would back me up) it took me from rock bottom and shot me through the stratosphere. I was 16-19 then but it has the wonders of childhood years. I was doing a lot of things for the very first time. I was making friends, hanging out, being invited to places, being asked to hangout with people I barely knew, going on vacation with my friends instead of my parents, and just having the time of my life. This might all sound pretty banal and ordinary for most people, but when you've had no friends for the past 5 years to having hundreds of them all of a sudden and doing a lot of social activities for the first time it was mind-blowing. I had the time of my life. I literally had a bucket list of social goals I wanted to accomplish such as "Be invited ot go bar hopping", "Host a game at the Astronomy Club" etc. For me it all felt so new and exciting. If you gave me the choice, I would choose to relive 2009-2012 over 1999-2002 every single time. The early 2010s felt my like real childhood because of how many "firsts" I had  K-POP back then was its peak too. K-POP today is still decent but man I gotta feel bad for anyone who didn't grow up with the genius that was Girls' Generation, Super Junior, SHINee, T-ara, Kara, Brown Eyed Girls, BoA, 4Minute, PSY etc. Gangnam Style was my spirit animal.
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Post by smartboi on Apr 8, 2020 20:32:41 GMT 10
Very unpopular opinion here, but I also really liked the early 2010's. I was 9-12 during that era so it perfectly encapsulates my pre-teen years. While I wouldn't consider them to be the "peak" of my childhood, it was definitely the most wild and exciting part of it. Between those four years I went to four different schools and made tons of friends at all of them. Thinking back to the dumb adventures I had with my friends gives me da feels.  In fact, I would go as far to say that I am who I am today because of my experiences during that period of my life.
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Post by SharksFan99 on Apr 8, 2020 21:14:59 GMT 10
I enjoyed the Early 2010s. Music wasnt just all about Electropop, you had some Alternative/Indie music from Adele, Hip-Hop R&B from Bruno Mars, Hipster music from FUN and Gotye, and some Pop-rap from Nicki Minaj and Kanye West, and Dubstep from Skrillex... People say that the Early 2010s had a lack of diversity, and I can tell you that it is false based on the genres I just mentioned. Believe me, i'm not exaggerating by saying that it wasn't a diverse time for music. Electropop was such a juggernaut that many of the artists from other genres, such as the Black Eyed Peas, Usher and Snoop Dogg, had to resort to writing club/party lyrics and deploying synths in their sound in order to maintain cultural relevancy and keep up with the times. Even indie-pop and rock weren't immune from this. Listen to "Tongue Tied" by Grouplove. A generally run-of-the-mill indie-pop song from 2011, however it's bridge has a dance-tempo and synths. It's the perfect encapsulation of where music was at during the early 2010s. Bands such as Linkin Park, Maroon 5 and Coldplay also transitioned to a synth-driven sound around this time. Not every song charting within the Top-40 was an electropop song, but the genre was by and large the "in" thing of the time. It was the definitive genre of the early 2010s. While I do have nostalgia for an assortment of popular media from the early '10s, it was a horrible period in my life that I wouldn't ever want to go back to. I honestly am more nostalgic for the mid '10s honestly, I feel exactly the same way. 2012 was an absolutely awful year for me personally, it was the worst year of my life. During my first year of high school, I received nasty comments from kids in my grade about my voice, a girl in my class would repeatedly try to humiliate me in front of everyone by pretending that she had a crush on me and two of my "friends" would write notes about me behind my back. To top that off, my Nanna passed away from a stroke in October that year and my Uncle was diagnosed with a terminal brain tumor just three weeks later (thankfully he's still with us). I do have good memories from the early 2010s and like you said, nostalgia for some of the things that were popular, but I can't help but associate the era with the feelings of depression, isolation and self-consciousness that I had at the time.
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Post by John Titor on Apr 9, 2020 13:38:43 GMT 10
2010 and 2011 had a unique vibe
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. 
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In fact, I would go as far to say that I am who I am today because of my experiences during that period of my life.