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THE T R E N D E R A FILES Trendera THE FUTURE OF Volume 10, Issue 1, January 2019 Fox TV THE TRENDERA FILES: THE FUTURE OF 2019 CONTENTS 58 Entertainment INTRO 4 66 Technology 72 Politics 78 Gender, Race & Fluidity 86 Work 2018 IN REVIEW 7 8 2018 in Memes 10 Still Going Strong in 2018 THE FUTURE OF YOUR CONSUMER TRENDS FOR 2019 92 13 94 The Future of Your Consumer 14 Lifestyle 97 Your Consumer in 2019 22 Relationships 102 Values & Goals 28 Power, Influence & Celebrity 103 Love & Relationships 34 Social Media Trendera105 Entertainment & Social Media 40 Fashion / Beauty 111 Technology 46 Retail / Shopping 113 Retail 52 Marketing 114 Coastal Vs. National Fox2 TV TABLE OF CONTENTS NOW TRENDING 125 KNOW THE SLANG 156 126 Lifestyle 128 Entertainment 130 Fashion / Beauty STATISTICS 132 Marketing 159 134 Digital / Tech 136 Digital Download WHAT’S HOT 139 140 Trendera Incoming Class of 2019 147 Upper-Class / Heavy Hitters 150 Younger Gen Z (8-12) Trendera 152 Older Gen Z (13-23) 154 Millennials (24-38) Fox3 TV THE TRENDERA FILES: THE FUTURE OF 2019 Hello there! We’re so glad to be back in the swing of things and hope you are too. January is our favorite time of year—new beginnings, new resolutions, and a TON new trends. If this report seems extra heavy, it’s not because you need to hit the gym (though if that’s one of your resolutions, then consider it a sign). In fact, this is one of our largest reports ever! With so much changing in society right now, we just couldn’t help ourselves. Our most comprehensive report to date, the January issue of The Trendera Files is filled to the brim with the latest societal shifts, micro trends, innovative marketing campaigns, and curated roundups on who, what, and where is on the rise. And of course, these trends include accompanying insights and strategies on how to help your business achieve its fullest potential in 2019. As with previous years, we’re also comparing nationally representative respondents to those who live in coastal cities in our quantitativeTrendera research. We surveyed 1700 members of Gen X, Y, and Z to get the latest on their attitudes, behaviors, values, and goals for the upcoming year. We hope you enjoy and as always welcome any questions you may have. Cheers to a happy and healthy 2019! TRENDERA Fox4 TV INTRO Trendera Fox5 TV THE TRENDERA FILES: THE FUTURE OF 2019 Trendera Fox6 TV Trendera 2018 IN REVIEW Fox7 TV THE TRENDERA FILES: THE FUTURE OF 2019 JAN | SMUG CHEERLEADER FEB | SELFIE KID MARCH | TIRED SPONGEBOB APRIL | DISTRACTED BOYFRIEND Trendera MAY | THIS IS A PIGEON JUNE | FRUSTRATED LEBRON Fox8 TV JULY | MY MOMMA SAID (CARDI B) AUG | JOHNNY JOHNNY SEPT | COLIN KAEPERNICK NIKE AD OCT | LET’S GET THIS BREAD Trendera NOV | ELECTION DAY DEC | TURTLENECK SWEATER DOGS Fox9 TV THE TRENDERA FILES: THE FUTURE OF 2019 STILL GOING STRONG IN 2019: Sometimes we surprise even ourselves when it comes to predicting long- term trends. Below are a few we have discussed before that will remain relevant for the year ahead. WHY SO SERIOUS? THE IDEA: Entertainment has become so preoccupied with making a statement on social issues that it has forgotten how to let loose and have fun. THE EVIDENCE: CW’s Charmed reboot was praised for it’s modern spin, which included more diverse cast members and the addition of timely issues such as Trump and “Time’s Up.” However, the show was also met with a bit of backlash, with a recent Yahoo article arguing it was “so political, it forgot to be fun.” HYPE MACHINE & THE POWER OF NOW THE IDEA: If you’re not top of mind, you’re not relevant. And if you happen Trenderato be the best thing available right now, quality is secondary. THE EVIDENCE: Jeff Goldblum has become an iconic figure online for his zany, offbeat social media content, where he includes everything from fan art to self-made meme material. While no single post has significant staying power, the accumulation of content that cuts through the clutter—if only for a moment—has made collective hype around Goldblum all too real. Fox10 TV ATTACK OF THE FANS THE IDEA: As fandom continues to intensify, these groups are not only worshipping at the altar of their favorite personality or brand, they’re now taking the offensive and joining forces to take the competition down. THE EVIDENCE: Following the release of A Star is Born (2018), diehard members of Lady Gaga’s fanbase (called Little Monsters) took it upon themselves to not only post negative reviews of Venom (2018), a competing movie released at the same time, but to impersonate radio listeners’ core demos around the country and request songs from the movie to further drive its reach. GAMING THE SYSTEM THE IDEA: Recognizing their audience is now streaming rather than listening to the radio, savvy artists are optimizing their offerings to maximize both playtime and profit. THE EVIDENCE: Data scientist Mark Bannister analyzed decades of number one hits on the Billboard Hot 100 and found that recently pop songs have been steadily getting shorter. For artists who release entire albums on Spotify, shorter songs mean more songs played (and thus more revenue) in less time. MAY (A)I HELP YOU THE IDEA: AI is becoming so sophisticated that we’re no longer able to tell the difference between human- and AI-created content, creating an entirely Trenderanew tribe of content creators. THE EVIDENCE: A deep learning AI bot created by researchers at IBM Research Australia, the University of Melbourne, and the University of Toronto has been trained on 2600 Shakespearean sonnets and can now reflect the bard’s rhyming pattern and pentameter when writing its own. Fox11 TV THE TRENDERA FILES: THE FUTURE OF 2019 Trendera Fox12 TV Trendera TRENDS for 2019 Fox13 TV THE TRENDERA FILES: THE FUTURE OF 2019 ANXIETY 2.0 The Future of: Lifestyle We’ve documented how consumer culture has taken a turn for the tense. Whether it’s politics, appearance, health, or simply one’s own happiness, people today are feeling crushed by the weight of the world and have no clue how to cope. In 2019, this collective anxiety is coming to a head. We’re not only letting worry take the wheel, we’re also becoming hyper-sensitive to any perceived hardship in our own lives as well as those of people we care about. LAWNMOWER PARENTS: THE STRUGGLE (ISN’T) REAL Raised by uber-anxious “helicopter parents,” Millennials (and Xers) have Trenderacreated their own personal brand of dysfunctional childrearing: The Lawnmower Parent. As described by Mashable, Lawnmower Parents “don’t just hover over their kids to make sure they are safe, they obliterate any whiff of a struggle for their kids by curating every aspect of their childhoods. These parents tend to do extreme things, such as choose their child’s friends, practice ‘redshirting’ to ensure their child’s academic ease and success, and even jump into arguments on their child’s behalf to prevent their kid from having hurt feelings.” Not just looking to make them feel better, these lawnmower parents will simply plough down any potential problem before it gets in the way. Fox14 TV TRENDS FOR 2019 GEN Z: WORRIED ABOUT BEING WORRIED ANXIETY Pegged as the most anxious—and medicated—generation to date, Gen Z has a lot on its plate, but an increasing number of clinical psychologists are concerned that young people aren’t able to distinguish between normal levels of worry and emotional responses that require clinical attention. In the New 2.0 York Times, Dr. Richard A. Friedman suggests we’re amidst “a cultural shift toward pathologizing everyday level of distress.” An unfortunate side effect of their Lawnmower and Helicopter Parents, Gen Zs are being raised to view any type of hardship as a disorder. EPIGENETICS: INHERITED TRAUMA Anxiety isn’t just lurking around every corner, it’s in our bones, as well. A growing body of research is exploring how epigenetics—the ways in which one’s environment affects gene expression—can be impacted not only by one’s own experience, but also the experiences of his/her ancestors. A recent longevity study by the National Bureau of Economic Research found that the sons of Union Army soldiers who were tormented as prisoners of war were more likely to die young than the sons of soldiers who weren’t prisoners. In other words, we both “inherit” trauma from the stress, racism, malnutrition, etc. that our ancestors experienced and we pass on our own biological legacy to future generations. No pressure! TrenderaBOTTOM LINE: People are tense, exhausted, and looking for relief. Brands and entertainment should give consumers the tools they need to lighten up, whether it’s through distraction, self-care, self-expression, or a simple pick-me-up. Fox15 TV THE TRENDERA FILES: THE FUTURE OF 2019 DIGITAL DETOX TO DIGITAL DIETS The Future of: Lifestyle What even counts as a digital detox in 2019? We talk a big game about ditching our phones for the weekend, but the reality is that technology has become so ingrained in our lives that without it, we can no longer step away and still function in the modern world. As a result, consumers are shifting their relationship with technology and have begun to adopt “digital diets,” where instead of going cold turkey from tech, they’re making small, sustainable lifestyle changes—a break from social media for an afternoon, no texts or notifications after 11pm, less screen time today, etc.