At the conclusion of each year and the rapid approach of the following year, I find myself immersed in the sincerest sense of catharsis. I am a big fan of new beginnings and tend to view my life in terms of various stages and chapters, which is assisted by the systematic organization of time in years. The concept of a clean slate with the beginning of each new year allows for both the pursuit of newfound ideas and ambitions, along with the bidding of farewell to poor habits and the unfavorable occurrences of the past 365 days. While there is much that I reflect fondly upon when regarding this past year, there are many things that I hope will gradually become a distant memory rather than persist in their relevance. Here are 16 topics and trends that I believe should most definitely stay in 2016.
1. “Closer” by the Chainsmokers and Halsey
As much we all admittedly loved it at one point or another, the catchy pop song went from the perfect driving jam or pre-game background music to far beyond overexposed before we even realized. Whether or not you still enjoy it, it’s time for the tune to retire from the Top 100 charts to the guilty pleasure playlists.
2. Harambe
May he rest in peace and so may this trend. Harambe’s fame escalated from a humorous internet meme to the adornment of t-shirts, hats, and wall decor. Although I do respect and pity the deceased gorilla, it seems as though sufficient homage was paid in 2016.
3. Dabs
The acceleration to fame of the simple arm movement is honestly impressive. Cam Newton's influence on the online world and pop culture with a rather effortless gesture is noteworthy, to say the least. However, I am personally a little more than exhausted with it.
4. "Juju On That Beat" by Zay Hilfigerrr & Zayion McCall
Maybe it’s because I’m a terrible dancer, but the “Juju” trend has become slightly tiresome for me. Although it's only recently begun to feel this way to me, I believe that the time has come for it to take a step back from the limelight ... if only for the next dance craze to emerge.
5. The Election Controversy
I think that I speak for most of the United States when I say that I have had more than enough of political debates. Regardless of your opinion on the election’s results, the election and all its questions have ended. It’s time for the drama to conclude as well.
6. Pokémon Go
Quite possibly the most striking escalation and decline of trends in 2016, the interactive Pokémon app was the global phenomenon of the summer. I think it’s pretty safe to say that, for the most part, the fad has peaked and plummeted.
7. Water Bottle Flipping
The simple task has transformed from just that to a display of athletic excellence. Up and down stairs, through basketball hoops, across various distances — people have defied odds and sparked amazement simply with their ability to land a plastic bottle on a surface. Despite my own awe of some tricks that I’ve witnessed, I’m sick and tired of the noise that it creates and that is why I hope it doesn’t persist into the upcoming year of trends.
8. Kanye West Drama
Regardless of the second party in the situation, West has found himself amidst debate and controversy more than ever this past year. Although his recently released album, The Life of Pablo is at the top of many of our best of 2016 playlists, the words that he's shared outside of his music have left many of us questioning his sanity. Stick to music in 2017, West.
9. "Lit," "Squad," "Fam," etc.
Although I am undeniably guilty of using every one of these words, I am not proud of it. Perhaps deleting these phrases from my vocabulary will be my New Year’s Resolution. It will be much more easily accomplished if society also follows through with my goal. Perhaps we could start using real words again.
10. Emoji Clothing and Accessories
I don't think that the emoji’s use was ever intentioned beyond the screens of Apple products. While it primarily exists amongst the younger generations, I can’t help my disturbance with the growing popularity of designs, including the various faces and symbols of the emoji keyboard.
11. The Mannequin Challenge
Originating as a few funny videos, the “Mannequin Challenge” quickly spread across social media platforms. While I never understood what made these videos all that funny in the first place, their overexposure has only made them worse.
12. Dog Snapchat Filter Selfies
Although I cannot deny my love for most of the past year's emergence of Snapchat filters, there’s something about their use on other forms of social media, primarily Instagram, that bothers me. The dog filter has become particularly overused. Keep the filters to Snapchat in 2017.
13. Kale
It’s time to stop lying to ourselves: kale is terrible. It boggles my mind how the popularity of a food so vile to me could rise so rapidly. There’s plenty of healthy food that tastes so much better; let’s stick with those in the upcoming year.
14. Rob and Chyna
Are they dating? Engaged? Broken up? How many kids do they have? I don't know and I honestly don't care. I’m not sure why everybody else does, but I would really enjoy if they took a leave of absence from the spotlight after a year of extreme overexposure.
15. Juice Cleanses
Why it’s become cute and trendy to starve ourselves is rather perturbing for me. I guess you can’t knock it until you try it, but there’s no way that people find some of those strange looking beverages to taste good. I’d much prefer the promotion of healthy dieting rather than the reliance on juice to provide days worth of energy.
16. Calvins
I have no judgment toward the brand or its products, but rather the social media advertisement that people have relentlessly shoved down our throats. Keep wearing your “Calvins," just stop feeling the need to advertise it each time you do!
