80s Nostalgia started in the 2000s and carried on well into the 2010s. Do you think it will continue? I personally think that the 80s revival is at its end. It's been in the spotlight for nearly 2 decades now. I think the 2020s will continue the 90s Nostalgia started in the 2010s (although it will be less about trashy pop culture, and more about things that are worth remembering, kind of like how the 80s revival in the 2000s was more or less pop culture nonsense, with the exception of GTA: Vice City, while in the 2010s the nostalgia was more refined). Replacing the 90s pop culture nostalgia will be the 2000s nostalgia that is growing bigger every year.

Well 1970s nostalgia was also around in the 2010s with the whole disco funk trends in music and videos made to look 1970s-style. So 20th century nostalgia in general will probably continue on for decades to come. But the main nostalgia that will be more fresh into peoples minds will be 1990s and 2000s.

I would be willing to bet that nostalgia for the 80s doesn't really die until the 2030s, if it even dies then. The reason I think this is that I asked some 12 year olds which decade they thought was the coolest, and they still said the 80s. I was expecting the younger generation to romanticize a different decade than my generation had romanticized, but it seems the 80s have pretty firmly lodged themselves into the hearts of the American people at least for the foreseeable future.

However, I do believe mainstream fashion designers and musical artists will lose interest in resurrecting the 80s by the mid-2020s. We've seen a lot of rehashed 80s culture in this decade, but I doubt that will remain a constant facet of the next one. There's lots of 90s culture that has yet to be unearthed in any real way.

Personally, I'd live in a San Junipero-style 80s fantasy for as long as I possibly could, so I'm not looking forward to the tides changing, but I know all good things must come to an end!

Personally, I'd live in a San Junipero-style 80s fantasy for as long as I possibly could, so I'm not looking forward to the tides changing, but I know all good things must come to an end!


Me too - honestly, that is my fantasy - time hopping through all eras but then spending most of my time in the 80s!

I kind of think that the 80s revival has certainly slowed down - although not gone completely. Lots more 90s/early 00s influences are trending at the minute. Everything is cyclical, though - right? It'll all come back eventually - reshaped, rehashed and tweaked.

There’s still Stranger Things 4 and Wonder Woman 84, both set in the 80s due to be coming out next year.
I think the 80s nostalgia didn’t officially set in for Gen z teenagers until 2017/2018, I think it’s gonna stay for the next few years. The whole 80s aesthetic is still very popular especially with artists like Clairo being influenced by 80s music. I’m still in high school myself and lots of my peers romanticize the 80s.

Y'all hear this yet?

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fHI8X4OXluQ&feature=youtu.be

Pure 80s. Released just last month. Been dancing around my house like the Breakfast Club for 2 weeks now!  ;D

Y'all hear this yet?

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fHI8X4OXluQ&feature=youtu.be

Pure 80s. Released just last month. Been dancing around my house like the Breakfast Club for 2 weeks now!  ;D


So wonderfully 80s - love it!

1980s stuff is still around and still popular today.

I think 80's will gain more momentum in 2020,especially with all the sequels to 80's classics such as Top Gun, Ghostbusters, and Bill and Ted.

I think 80's will gain more momentum in 2020,especially with all the sequels to 80's classics such as Top Gun, Ghostbusters, and Bill and Ted.


80's sequels is what people want to see these days, whether it be sitcoms or films.

On the internet, we're already on late 2000s-early 2010s nostalgia. Seems like the nostalgia cycle works different online than in real life.

I have a feeling that there'll be more 90s influence in music in the 2020s.

80's sequels is what people want to see these days, whether it be sitcoms or films.


Yep. The 2020s will becomes known as The Reboot Decade.

Yep. The 2020s will becomes known as The Reboot Decade.


I feel like the same could be said about the 2010's, like with Spider-Man and shows like Fuller House.

Yep. The 2020s will becomes known as The Reboot Decade.


I definitely agree with that one.

Peak '80s nostalgia was from around 2003 until 2016 IMO, when the NES Classic and first season of Stranger Things was released. It seems like once Trump took office, '90s nostalgia became all the rage, and I've noticed lately on YouTube that there's more appreciation for '90s commercial breaks than '80s ones, with some exceptions. It had a nice run and will continue to pop up now and then, but as time goes on, it will become increasingly repertoiric and academic as opposed to truly nostalgic as the criticism and enjoyment becomes the project of aficionados specializing on certain subjects, such as the nature of popular music genres, the politics of Reagan/Thatcher and their influence on later eras, late Bronze/Copper-era comic books, as well as the many fine artists who came of age and/or peaked in popularity then. Because of this, the context of surrounding decades will become increasingly important to connect the storylines. Just read chapters of a biography for example and understand the 1960s/70s portions that lead into the 1980s section of the book, which in turn would lead into the 1990s and beyond. 

Of course, there's still lot's of stuff from that decade that could be reaccessed. There's first of course LOTS of online newspaper archives, allowing anyone with access to it to get a glimpse at the "rough draft of history" about what was happening then, from comics to city festivals to disasters to criminal activity to lost businesses that can later become the focus of nonfiction publications. There's lots of fan club newsletters (pre-Internet) that could provide a look into entertainment happenings for your favorite movie, franchise, singer, actor, book series, and more. Then there's electronic media, from radio airchecks, TV recordings, and family movies that showcase unique content that people may see for the first time. But of course, this paragraph is more for the aficionado or the academically inclined.

I was nostalgic for the 80s in the 90s  :D. I think there's something about the era that will continue to be constantly shown in the media because of many reasons. So much television is being made that we are bound to see more period dramas set in the 80s. Those working in the media now grew up in the 80s and their nostalgia permeates through modern trends (Stranger things, for example). Music styles are cyclical and even though many genres of music are popular, many songs have a electro flair or even nods to the latter part of the decade (think Bruno Mars etc...)

I hope '80s/'90s nostalgia sticks around. The aesthetic is really nice.

Are you kidding me? I've not yet come out of my 1980s time warp! ;D ;D ;D ;D ;D ;D

I'm not looking forward to 00s nostalgia. Still seems way too recent to me, even though I know some things have changed a lot.

A few years ago my gf at the time's daughter (fashion queen) showed off a bunch of school clothes she just got.  Could hardly believe it, it was like seeing a picture of what my sister wore in the late 80s.

I don't listen to much new music but I'm enjoying the bits I hear that sound very 80s.

Nope. People are still posting Vaporwave aesthetic pictures on Instagram or VSCO.

Listen to Lizzo's Juice, it's a dance pop song that sounds like it was released in 1987, and Blinding Lights by The Weeknd is New Wave too. Dont start now by Dua Lipa, sounds like a washed-down version of Let's Groove from Earth, Wind & Fire. Lots of music videos are using 80s neon colors too, and if you think that the vaporwave grid aesthetic wasnt in the 80s, it was, a bit of research will help on this because there were lots of things in the 80s that used grids.

For movies and TV Shows, Stranger Things Season 4 is confirmed. I know this doesnt really count as '80s Nostalgia' but Mandalorian is set 5 years after the 1983 movie Return of the Jedi. Also, there is going to be Wonder Woman 1984, set in 1984. I know this is some 2018 stuff but Ready Player One, Bumblebee, and Ralph breaks the internet has those 80s vibes.

Also, Cyberpunk 2077.

I think right now we have been in 90’s nostalgia for the past 5-8 years. 80’s nostalgia was more of a 2000’s thing from what I remember. I mean there’s stranger things, but when it comes to 90’s nostalgia, it’s more prevalent. Even y2k nostalgia is becoming a thing now.

Nope. People are still posting Vaporwave aesthetic pictures on Instagram or VSCO.

Listen to Lizzo's Juice, it's a dance pop song that sounds like it was released in 1987, and Blinding Lights by The Weeknd is New Wave too. Dont start now by Dua Lipa, sounds like a washed-down version of Let's Groove from Earth, Wind & Fire. Lots of music videos are using 80s neon colors too, and if you think that the vaporwave grid aesthetic wasnt in the 80s, it was, a bit of research will help on this because there were lots of things in the 80s that used grids.

For movies and TV Shows, Stranger Things Season 4 is confirmed. I know this doesnt really count as '80s Nostalgia' but Mandalorian is set 5 years after the 1983 movie Return of the Jedi. Also, there is going to be Wonder Woman 1984, set in 1984. I know this is some 2018 stuff but Ready Player One, Bumblebee, and Ralph breaks the internet has those 80s vibes.

Also, Cyberpunk 2077.


Yeah, this is a different kind of nostalgia. Even people who were weren't alive in the 1980s are celebrating it. It's like the new 1950s (I don't mean that in a negative way).

Yeah, this is a different kind of nostalgia. Even people who were weren't alive in the 1980s are celebrating it. It's like the new 1950s (I don't mean that in a negative way).


That isn’t nostalgia though, it’s just people appreciating the aesthetic. You can’t have nostalgia for a decade you weren’t around to experience. I like a lot of the 80s-inspired fashion but I don’t really care about the 1980s as a decade.

I hope the fashion trends stick around for a while longer but I definitely think 80s nostalgia has been around for far too long now. In 20 years the only nostalgic aspect of the 2010s will be 1980s nostalgia, which is just sad. Do we really want to be the first generation that has no identity of its own and instead just rehashes what people did 30-odd years ago?

That isn’t nostalgia though, it’s just people appreciating the aesthetic. You can’t have nostalgia for a decade you weren’t around to experience. I like a lot of the 80s-inspired fashion but I don’t really care about the 1980s as a decade.

I hope the fashion trends stick around for a while longer but I definitely think 80s nostalgia has been around for far too long now. In 20 years the only nostalgic aspect of the 2010s will be 1980s nostalgia, which is just sad. Do we really want to be the first generation that has no identity of its own and instead just rehashes what people did 30-odd years ago?


I don't think that's how it works. '90s/early 2000s fashion had tons of '70s rehashes (jean jackets, curly hair, punk music, parachute pants etc.) but no one confuses the two.