I don't want to talk or argue about the 2008 shift in this thread.  I want to focus solely on 2009.  Does it generally feel like we are in the same era as 2009 or does it seem like another world?  In some ways it seems like 2009 was another lifetime ago while in other ways it does have a lot of connections to today.  Much of what built the '10s really took off in 2009 more than it ever had before.  Things like social media, smartphones, the rise of EDM and electropop, the decline of rock, and the beginnings of the shift from emo to hipster were all with us in 2009.  I would say at least when it comes to fashion, the '00s lingered until about 2014, but 2009 was the year we really started seeing the fashion shift.  I would say movies also are still relatively similar today as they were in 2009.  For the most part, something from 2009 isn't dated today.  The exception to that is the young adult comedy.  Yes, they exist today but you don't have stuff like Superbad or Harold and Kumar anymore.  Those movies really showed the coming of age experience for '80s borns that is actually quite different for '90s borns in the '10s.  For me, I think the biggest difference between now and 2009 is that then we were shifting from a conservative to a more liberal culture.  Today we are backlashing against liberalism and headed in a more conservative direction.  The current political climate would have been unthinkable back in 2014 let alone in 2009.

So what would you say is still similar to 2009 and what would you say is different?

Yeah, in many ways 2009 felt like an introduction to the 2010s. The internet finally got its "King's place" among entertainment and way of communication, instead of an alternative one to Tv.
There was no doubt at that point Facebook wouldn't become a huge thing, and not a fad like MySpace was. The popularity of Apps skyrocketed and started to be seen as an interesting market. A lot of relatively new sites took off, like the likes of Tumblr, Twitter and Instagram. Streaming sites like Netflix and Spotify really came on the radar as a new way of consumption.
Youtube was the go-to site for music videos with the introduction of Vevo, replacing MTv.

This is just to show how TV started to feel treated after decades of entertainment dominance and suddenly lost grip. Undoubtly leading to the Tv Renaissance of the early 2010s after a noticeable dip in quality in the mid-to-late 2000s to keep viewers tuned-in.

It hasn't felt like 2009 since 2013. 2009-2012 was its own unique era. Starting in late 2017 felt different from the 2013-2016 era.

It hasn't felt like 2009 since 2013. 2009-2012 was its own unique era. Starting in late 2017 felt different from the 2013-2016 era.


I am also thinking that 2012/mid 13 is starting to somewhat dated now. One of the reasons being that back in 2012, trap was around, but wasn't really considered big then. Pop and EDM musics were dominating the charts then, with a little bit of trap occasionally. But now in 2018, trap is no.1 on the charts and is dominating what people think of the mid/late 2010s. Technology was getting big but not as advanced as now. Instagram was still new as well as Snapchat and Facebook was still mostly big. Smartphones were starting to become popular and digital cameras were still mostly used a lot.  In my opinion, I still believe that 2012/13 still had some 2000s influence and this all stopped by 2014, when social media activism began, when a new era of slang began and when trap started becoming more common. But now Instagram models and YouTube stars have replaced Reality TV stars and social media controls the world, than it did in 2012/mid 13.

I am also thinking that 2012/mid 13 is starting to somewhat dated now. One of the reasons being that back in 2012, trap was around, but wasn't really considered big then. Pop and EDM musics were dominating the charts then, with a little bit of trap occasionally. But now in 2018, trap is no.1 on the charts and is dominating what people think of the mid/late 2010s. Technology was getting big but not as advanced as now. Instagram was still new as well as Snapchat and Facebook was still mostly big. Smartphones were starting to become popular and digital cameras were still mostly used a lot.  In my opinion, I still believe that 2012/13 still had some 2000s influence and this all stopped by 2014, when social media activism began, when a new era of slang began and when trap started becoming more common. But now Instagram models and YouTube stars have replaced Reality TV stars and social media controls the world, than it did in 2012/mid 13.


The early trap from late 2012/early 2013 such as Future and DJ Khaled was a lot more tolerable and sounded a lot better than the trap of 2017. Overall that period can be characterized by EDM such as Lady Gaga, Ke$ha, LMFAO, David Guetta, and pop such as Katy Perry, Jesse J, Adele, Carly Rae Jepson. Instagram was around but not yet as popular as Facebook. It was also the hipster era and events such as OSW and Arab Spring. iPhones were still THE smartphone although various Android devices were available. I think Samsung Galaxys started to become popular around 2011. Overall it felt like a happy optimistic vibe despite the recession.

The early trap from late 2012/early 2013 such as Future and DJ Khaled was a lot more tolerable and sounded a lot better than the trap of 2017. Overall that period can be characterized by EDM such as Lady Gaga, Ke$ha, LMFAO, David Guetta, and pop such as Katy Perry, Jesse J, Adele, Carly Rae Jepson. Instagram was around but not yet as popular as Facebook. It was also the hipster era and events such as OSW and Arab Spring. iPhones were still THE smartphone although various Android devices were available. I think Samsung Galaxys started to become popular around 2011. Overall it felt like a happy optimistic vibe despite the recession.

I can't quite put my finger on it, but I do notice that trap from 2012 and 2013 do sound a bit different than trap from 2016 and 2017. I don't know, but I can't imagine something like "Plain Jane" by A$AP Ferg being released in 2012. It just sounds out of place to me IMO.

I was 5 in 2009 i remember graduating from day-care and getting a hair cut in 2009 also i had dreads at the time and i didn't like them because i thought i looked like a girl so my mom took me to get them cut them off. ;D

The fashion was completely different.

Looking at some videos from 2009, I will honestly have to admit it did give me more of an early 2010's vibe. I was actually watching a video from 2009 and I thought it my head "this is so early 2010's" only to find out the video was made in 2009. ;D

Looking at some videos from 2009, I will honestly have to admit it did give me more of an early 2010's vibe. I was actually watching a video from 2009 and I thought it my head "this is so early 2010's" only to find out the video was made in 2009. ;D


I also watched a video a few days ago, and there was a guy with a lot of tattoos, and there was another guy with a sort of undercut*, so I thought the video was recent enough, but the end of the video said it was filmed in 2009!

*It was spiked hair on the top with fades on the side, which WAS a popular hairstyle in 2009, although no one called it an undercut back then. It was a proto-undercut!

I also watched a video a few days ago, and there was a guy with a lot of tattoos, and there was another guy with a sort of undercut*, so I thought the video was recent enough, but the end of the video said it was filmed in 2009!

*It was spiked hair on the top with fades on the side, which WAS a popular hairstyle in 2009, although no one called it an undercut back then. It was a proto-undercut!

Now that I think about it, 2009 really did seem to have a lot more in common with the early 2010's than the 2000's.
Now I understand that there were still some 2000's influences left in that year, but the general vibe of it already seemed to be early 2010's. In my area, Facebook was already popular, electropop music was playing, the recession was at its worst, and hell I actually remember more people owning an iPhone in late 2009 despite many people still using Blackberry phones.
Not only that but sometimes I'll even get my 2009 memories mixed up with my 2010 memories. When I think back to moments I had from 2010, I'll sometimes be confused if it took place in 2009 or 2010 because those years really weren't that different, but 2009 felt quite different from 2008.
To me, the first half of 2008 (January-June) was the last time that seemed very 2000's.

2009 had Michael Jackson.  8)

2018 does not.  :\'(

2009 had Michael Jackson.  8)

2018 does not.  :\'(

Well technically most of 2009 didn't have Michael Jackson

Well technically most of 2009 didn't have Michael Jackson

Ok.

2009 had Prince.

2018 does not.

The more I see video footage, films and references from 2009, the more its starting to look like 1999. The music and atmosphere is definitely still different from the rest of the decade, but 09 looks old now.


and hell I actually remember more people owning an iPhone in late 2009 despite many people still using Blackberry phones.

Millions more people owned a Blackberry in 2009 than iPhones. I remember a video from CNET stating this at the time.

While I don't consider 2009 another world, at least not just yet, I definitely do feel that it's dated by now. Despite 2009 bringing us many early 2010's influences and culture, there were still some 2000's aspects left. The fashion back in 2009 was still primarily 2000's and the typical 2010's hipster wasn't a thing yet. In 2009, many people were using blackberry phones which would be considered odd to have by today's standards. Rock music was still popular, unlike today. Hell, even the early 2010's influences that 2009 brought us is already dated.

One of my favorite movies of all time, Bruno with Sacha Baron Cohen came out that year.  I watched it again a few weeks ago and for the first time, I can tell the movie is starting to become dated.  It's political jokes are definitely Obama-era.

The darkest year of my whole life. 2009 and 2018, next to each other, for me, is so different!

2009 was like a year in hell. And 2018 is like a breath of fresh air.

I remember graduating from pre school in 2009 and being 5.

Now I'm graduating from middle school  :o

That's pretty much i know.

2009 is starting to look like another world. Close to nothing from then looks normal today.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RR95Tfyo-gE
https://cnet2.cbsistatic.com/img/q-O6CD31oWrFBJk-3N4TcIMHMlc=/830x467/2010/08/03/172937b7-bb79-11e2-8a8e-0291187978f3/33665903-2-1333-OVR-1.jpg
https://crackberry.com/sites/crackberry.com/files/u7860/BlackBerry-Bold-97002.jpg
http://images.nadaguides.com/Models/400x200/2009-Toyota-Camry-LE.jpg
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=47Fbo4kU2AU
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8xg3vE8Ie_E&list=PLPLVzovKueuqtqVGtQ-eOb6NXTvOuQa_z&index=5
I would really like to be transported back to 2009 for a day cause I really miss it :\'(.