Jetsetting Youth and TikTok Buskers

debt via croc

Emma Chamberlain is on the cover of Rolling Stone's Creators Issue as "Miss Internet"; HBO’s controversial The Weeknd-fronted series ‘The Idol’ finally gets its premiere date; and Gen Z’s indie pop princess Ethel Cain went full cheerleader in Givenchy at her first-ever Coachella performance.

AMERICANS SPEND $48 PER MONTH ON VIDEO STREAMING SERVICES — AND HALF OF THOSE SURVEYED SAY THAT’S TOO MUCH, variety
More than half (54%) of consumers surveyed — and nearly three-quarters of Gen Zs and millennials — said they often watch a TV show or movie on a streaming video service after hearing about it on social media, and 50% of Gen Zs and millennials surveyed said they consider online experiences to be “meaningful replacements” for in-person experiences.

THEY CAN’T EVEN: A GENERATION AVOIDS FACING ITS FINANCES, wsj
James Gay, 22, said he is reckoning with the effects of his financial avoidance since the pandemic. He ordered from DoorDash instead of cooking and shopped online to counter his uncertainty and boredom; he developed a particular affinity for Crocs, and now owns about 15 pairs.

GEN ZS DON'T HAVE A LOT OF MONEY, BUT THEY'RE TRAVELING ANYWAY, cnbc
Despite their youth and comparatively low income, more than half of American Gen Z adults are frequent travelers, having taken three or more leisure trips in the past year.

THE FAMILY BAND THAT PLAYS (AND PRAYS) TOGETHER THE DE LA MOTTES ARE BIG ON TIKTOK. BUT CAN THEY AFFORD RENT IN NEW YORK?, thecut
We talked about this family who went viral on TikTok for either being extremely musically inclined or stuffing eight young children into a tiny San Francisco apartment — I’m honestly not sure which! — way back when Gawker covered them, but this is excellent, if eye-popping, reporting c/o Kathryn Jezer-Morton.

The de la Mottes arrived in New York City last summer in an Airstream. (If imagining a road trip with ten kids in an Airstream makes your eyes water, well, consider this foreshadowing.) Their quixotic odyssey, which has taken shape as parents Amber and Marc have sought out ever more advanced training in classical music for their older kids, has exposed them to some of the less charitable sides of contemporary American life, but they’ve persisted this far, thanks to their abiding Christian faith and the provisional benediction of TikTok’s algorithm.

ARE CRUMBL COOKIES THE BEST OR THE WORST? IT DOESN’T MATTER., nyt
The Utah-based bakery turbocharged its own hype “by announcing weekly cookie flavors on TikTok as if they were limited-edition sneaker drops, with vaguely sensual, slow-motion videos reminiscent of Burger King commercials.” The corresponding hashtag, #crumbltasteweekly, has 480 million views. The company has nearly 7 million followers, more than Taco Bell and Starbucks combined.

WHY THIS PLAN B COMPETITOR IS MIMICKING YOUR MORNING AFTER GROUP CHAT, adweek
One-liner captions like “when crypto isn’t the only thing he failed to pull out of” are accompanied by a slew of content backed by a medical board that addresses common misconceptions around emergency contraception. “Young people cannot rely on the public school system for that type of information,” founder Julie Schott said. “Something we asked ourselves in the building stage is, ‘How can we show up online and make people feel safe?'”

One last thought: