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Ah yes, Emos. A subculture seemingly as old as the modern era herself. Seemingly is, of course, the key word to that sentence. What Emo is, on a very basic level, is a more modern, grungy take on what was once Goth.
Goth is actually yet another subculture that I will be delving into next week, but that’s not the important thing to focus on right now. Emo, much like cyber or Victorian goth styles, started out as nothing more than a subtle variable on a trend that has been around quite literally for centuries before taking on its own weight, especially in the early 2000s.
Now, most people have heard of Emos before. If you’re my English teacher reading this post to make sure it’s an adequate fulfillment of your blog project requirements, then you have definitely heard of them. Most people tend to be a part of this subculture during their teenage years, due to their own hormone-induced emotional instability, but nobody said that you couldn’t be an adult and a catalyst of depression and eyeliner! How does emotional instability correlate directly into being an emo, I pretend to hear you ask? Easy! The entire subculture is based out of being miserable, moody and angry like all the time. Rebelling against the law and the institution.
The music is often heavily influenced by punk and rock, the clothing is dark, and the goal is to be as edgy as physically possible.
I myself was actually an emo for a fairly long period of time, and still sort of am, though I prefer to branch out a little more these days. However- for the sake of diving into the subculture head first and also give y’all something cool to look at… let’s take a look at my emo phase, shall we?
aaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaand I don’t have to credit those because they’re all mine! Not that I would want that to be a representation of my photography or general style, that’s some grainy content right there.
However-! This should also not be taken as a general representation of Emos as an entire subculture either. I, obviously, was a little less expressive with my makeup and clothing choices than most, but I assure you I was absolutely dripping with depression and apathy. The eyeliner came later on.
The Look
To start dissecting a couple pieces of the Emo look, let’s work out way down from the very top. The hair! Emo hair comes in a chaotic and very probably endless variety of colors and styles, but there are a few trends that seem to have really made an impact on the stereotypical image of “Emo”.
Coon tails are, thankfully, easily achieved at home! And… actually normally free-handed, as you can see in the second image. Who started it, nobody knows exactly, but funky, unique hair with wild cuts, colors, and heavy bangs were a must have for the community.
Next up on the chopping block…the clothing. Obviously, dark colors and ripped pants are a must have, pretty much equally as much as the jewelry. The arm accessories, however, are what I have decided to focus on, as they tend to have the most impact on making your look identifiable as “Emo”.
Most unfortunately, this is a still that began with the hiding of self harm scars, something that the more angsty of us sadly have. The fashion trend itself has become more of a statement piece, allowing Emos worldwide to express their interests in specific bands, certain types of style and sometimes just the pursuit of warm forearms. Really, it gets cold sometimes, it’s good to be prepared.
The Modern Emo
Emo, in the traditional sense, is much less common than it used to be. Not because it is gone, or fading, but because the style itself is evolving into the world of E-boys and E-girls.
{for some stupid reason WordPress isn’t letting me put the credit in the photos so from Left to Right, then top to bottom here is your credit. TL TR BL BR}
They crawled out of the darkest, cringiest, most Emo corners of TikTok, and they’re here for the limelight; it’s the e…people. I’m not entirely sure what the gender neutral form of eboy/egirl is but ekids just felt condescending and epeople feels stupid so we just wont worry about it. This newer take on the classic style has leaned into the apathetic aesthetic a bit more than the angst and anger of it’s predecessor, creating a dark but soft look that people seem to obsess over. Oh- and you can’t forget the chains. Never forget the chains.
A lot of people on the internet, as it were with Emo, seem to think that this subculture is deeply “cringey” or annoying, but I’d just like to reiterate a point that I made earlier. Emo is relief. An expression of oneself by presenting in clothing, makeup, hair and jewelry that display publicly how you feel inside, in an effort of making yourself more heard.
When I was in middle school especially, expressing myself through Emo music, hair, clothing and art was amazing. It helped me feel both seen and heard, and the music and styles continue to do the same for people all over the world. Whether it be coon tails, bracelets, ripped tights or wallet chains- expressing your angst is just as valid and generally helpful as expressing anything else with your clothing, so go for it! See if you’re happier dressing like an eboy, or DIYing some coon tails in the bathroom. To keep in the spirit, who cares what anyone else thinks? Live your angsty life, kids.
The Globe Wardrobe 