Hipsters.
Not sure exactly when this term came out, but I didn't hear of it until like 2009-2010, so I'm gonna guess it became a popular term around that time?
What is a hipster, exactly? Let's ask the Urban Dictionary, shall we?
https://www.urbandictionary.com/define.php?term=Hipster
Quote:
"Hipsters are a subculture of American consumer for whom the idea behind the marketing holds more value than the product being marketed.
The attachment of certain words, phrases or ideas to a product (e.g.; counter-culture, independent or "indie", progressive, alternative or "alt", organic, holistic, "old-school", etc.) whether that product is music, fashion, technology, food, social media or real estate, is enough to connote to the hipster "authenticity" and value, regardless of whether there is any innate value to be found.
Ironically, the hipster perceives him/herself as the counterpoint to mass-culture and conformity when, in fact the ease with which hipster "culture" can be appropriated, repackaged and marketed makes them the ultimate conformists (e.g.; tattoos were once a sign of rebellion and a badge of one's outsider status, now over 40% of all Americans under 50 have a tattoo, essentially making them all members of the same tribe.)"
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So yeah, basically, when I think of the label "hipster" these images immediately come to my mind:
The irony of this is, hipsters are pretty mainstream by now. And liking less popular things shouldn't make you a "hipster", imo.
I notice hipsters tend to be really elitist and pretentious when it comes to music. As in, if you're over 20 years old don't you dare to rate classic rock bands such as The Rolling Stones and Led Zeppelin highly, because that means you listen to "dad rock" and thus are lame. Only indie rock bands are cool, guys! It's like a timewarp back in time to our HS days, where you had to dislike everything your parents liked in order to look cool.
But yeah, labels are labels and there's never a strict definition. That being said, people who tend to fit the hipster label the most tend to either be artists or work in IT... what's with hipsters and IT, anyway? It's like 4 out of 10 25-32 year old American/Canadian guys I run into online seem to work in IT and dress like the two guys above. And they all love all sorts of weird coffee I've never heard of.
Beards are cool, though. But hardly exclusive to hipsters.
But really, in a more lighthearted tone now, are you a hipster yourself? Do you know many? Do you think it's ironic how they've become too mainstream? Do you like their fashion sense? Do you find them pretentious?
Thoughts?