It’s Kinda Chic to Do Whatever You Want
Written by Daphne Bryant
Image courtesy of @paintedbyesther
Oh god: it’s yet another trend with random images and pale yellow text—spare me the irony of“ Kinda Chic.” This new viral social media movement is simple: all you have to do is share lighthearted, empowering, or so-called niche personal opinions starting with the phrase“ It’s kinda chic to…”, and then voilá! Wait for the Millennial likes to roll in.
The whole point of the trend, supposedly, is to redefine what“ chic” actually means by substituting more traditional ideas with things like“ being whimsy” or“ being an influencer by day, doctor by night”. You, the consumer, are supposed to see these carousels and think:“ Wow, yes! I too reject rigid societal expectations. This [insert brand, agency or creator here] actually is really chic! I should invest in them!” Before you know it, you’ve fallen into the quiet capitalist trap of faux contrarianism.
“You, the consumer, are supposed to see these carousels and think: ‘Wow, yes! I too reject rigid societal expectations. This [insert brand, agency or creator here] actually is really chic! I should invest in them!’ Before you know it, you’ve fallen into the quiet capitalist trap of faux contrarianism.”
I can’t help but be annoyed by Kinda Chic. Most of the things these brands claim are“ so revolutionary” just aren’t. Like being a bookworm, for example. Literature lovers have always been chic, long before the“ performative male” act of reading bell hooks took center stage on our timelines, long before bloggers were making how-to guides for those that want to be a“ wicked-sexy girly bookworm”—whatever TF that means. Bookish aesthetics like“ poet-core” romanticize intellect the same way the Kinda Chic trend does, so this is nothing new. These brands aren’t saying anything that Substack writers don’t already know.
My next issue? This trend looks like every other trend. I can get behind genuinely refreshing visuals, even if the message is a bit corny, but Kinda Chic is recycled goods. The original yellow text trend on Instagram and TikTok features large, simple, classic-font overlays on photos or reels that share vulnerable thoughts, emotional confessions, or scroll-stopping hooks. A prime example: one of Dreamworldgirl Zine’s biggest haters made a video using yellow text that read“ DWG is weird and exploitative.” That was their hot, controversial take, and they used the yellow text trend to convey the message. Kinda Chic is basically the same thing, just repackaged a little differently. Posting“ It’s kinda chic to…” may result in desired virality, but that doesn’t mean it isn’t cheap creativity, especially when it’s coming from the mouths of major companies and corporations who have full-time marketing teams that could try just a little harder.
Finally, I roll my eyes at the idea that, in this day and age, there is any legitimate marker for chic-ness. The Polyester Book of (Bad) Taste is a great read for anyone equally bothered by aforementioned implications. Edited by Ione Gamble, the anthology explores how to embrace personal taste and resist homogeneity in an era of algorithmic content suggestions and rapid trend cycles. As she would say,“ in a world constantly vying for our attention, having faith in your own (bad) taste is more than a small subversion. It’s a rallying cry to live our lives unapologetically.”
“I roll my eyes at the idea that, in this day and age, there is any legitimate marker for chic-ness. The Polyester Book of (Bad) Taste is a great read for anyone equally bothered by aforementioned implications. Edited by Ione Gamble, the anthology explores how to embrace personal taste and resist homogeneity in an era of algorithmic content suggestions and rapid trend cycles.”
So, for example, if you think it’s kinda chic to have only animated Barbie movies in your Letterboxd Top 4 or kinda chic to dance like no one’s watching at the cocktail bar, you should just like…do that. You don’t need to buy into some random social media trend or convince the Internet that your likes, hobbies and passions are highbrow. Hell, your interests don’t even have to be highbrow. What if you truly do like trashy reality TV, and choose to own the fact that it’s trashy? What if you really are a subtweeting addict, and just admit that you love a petty post? It’s kinda chic to do whatever you want. It’s kinda chic to be yourself.
