Why Gen Z is desperately seeking the past
Lately, your social media feed might look like a digital time capsule. Across Instagram, a massive wave of young creators is romanticizing the year 2016—resurfacing grainy photos of a seemingly simpler era. But this backward glance isn't restricted to static images; it is dominating global charts. Recently, Katy Perry’s 2010 heartbreak anthem The One That Got Away was crowned TikTok’s global song of the summer, fueled by an astonishing 42 million videos and a staggering 55 billion total views. Right beside it, Mac Miller’s 2016 track Cinderella surged to #2 in the US, backed by over 13 million TikTok posts and top videos pulling in more than 2 million views each.
Despite the fast-paced, forward-marching nature of internet algorithms, the young generation is hitting reverse. Both of these massive viral tracks share a deeply melancholic core: they are poignant reflections on intense, youthful romance, capturing the sharp pain of romantic regret and the bittersweet desire to turn back the clock. Ultimately, they serve as emotional anthems of the what if, mourning golden moments and relationships that slipped away before they could be fully held onto.
Is this powerful wave of past-glorification paired with intense emotional longing just a coincidence?
Polycrises meets the algorithmic counter-reaction
The concept of the polycrisis refers to a state where multiple crises intertwine, their causes and processes inextricably bound together to create compounded effects. The word polycrisis was popularised by Columbia University academic Adam Tooze, and in early 2023 the World Economic Forum followed suit by warning in its annual Global Risks Report that the world was on the brink of a polycrisis in relation to ‘shortages in natural resources such as food, water, and metals and minerals.’.[1] According to the compensatory control theory[2], when people face a volatile present and a threatening future, they instinctively look for psychological anchors to restore order, predictability, and safety, turning the past into a safe harbor.
“‘The past becomes a safe harbor.’”
Simultaneously, communication and media studies highlight the psychological toll of modern digital spaces. Research into algorithmic fatigue demonstrates that hyper-curated, AI-optimized environments trigger alienation. Recent studies note that cutting-edge technology paradoxically sparks a surge in nostalgia, proving that people use it as a psychological coping mechanism to buffer against the skepticism and uncertainty bred by rapid, disruptive technological changes.[3]
Emotional nostalgia helps to cope with life stress
Science validates that turning to romance-laden, nostalgic music provides essential emotional security. Psychological research demonstrates that romantic nostalgia functions as a vital restorative resource, showing that engaging with it significantly boosts relationship closeness, commitment, and perceived emotional security, helping individuals cope with interpersonal or general life stress.[4] Furthermore, studies on music-induced emotions reveal that listening to melancholic or bittersweet songs triggers the release of hormones associated with comfort, consolation, and bonding. Psychologists note that sad music allows listeners to experience empathy without real-world threat, offering a safe container for emotional regulation and catharsis during stressful times.[5]
The Kate Perry and Mac Miller songs are not shallow or hyper-upbeat tracks; they deal with heavy romantic regret. For a generation navigating the polycrisis, these songs provide a socially sanctioned, communal outlet to cry, reflect, and grieve. They transform individual heartbreak into a shared, comforting collective experience.
Brand futurists thoughts
For brand experts, enthusiasts, and owners, this cultural shift offers a clear masterclass in modern consumer behavior. To resonate in a landscape shaped by AI fatigue and polycrisis anxiety, brands should focus on three key strategies:
Offer tactile authenticity
Brands must actively push back against the synthetic, hyper-curated digital world. Give consumers something real and grounded that they can physically connect with. Brand owners should focus on creating genuine, real-life experiences rather than heavily corporate or overly branded activations.
Provide emotional safe harbors
When consumers feel powerless against external political and economic anxieties, they instinctively seek out products and environments that offer psychological comfort and predictability. Position your brand as an anchor of stability, warmth, and familiarity, making your audience feel emotionally safe, understood, and grounded.
Leverage meta-nostalgia authentically
Nostalgia is no longer just for older generations; younger cohorts are intensely hungry for the cultural touchstones of their childhoods and early adolescence. Avoid simply slapping a retro filter on a product as a cheap gimmick. Instead, engage in authentic historical curation—such as partnering with the cultural icons of those specific eras—to make nostalgia a genuine emotional bridge rather than a surface-level trend piece.
Key Takeaways
“Gen Z is glorifying mid-2010s aesthetics and reviving classic melancholic tracks like Katy Perry’s and Mac Miller’s as a retreat from the modern world.”
“Driven by global polycrises and AI-induced digital fatigue, young people use meta-nostalgia as a compensatory control mechanism to find psychological safety and stability.”
“Smart brands must push past synthetic perfection, offering tactile authenticity and emotional safe harbors rather than relying on cheap nostalgic gimmicks.”
[1] Institute of Development Studies. (2023, October 31). Are we in the age of the polycrisis?. https://www.ids.ac.uk/opinions/are-we-in-the-age-of-the-polycrisis/
[2] Kay, A. C., Whitson, J. A., Gaucher, D., & Galinsky, A. D. (2009). Compensatory control: Achieving order through the mind, our institutions, and the heavens. Current Directions in Psychological Science, 18(5), 264–268. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1467-8721.2009.01649.x
[3] Dang, J., Sedikides, C., Wildschut, T., & Liu, L. (2025). Nostalgia encourages exploration and fosters uncertainty in response to AI technology. British Journal of Social Psychology, 64(1), e12843. https://doi.org/10.1111/bjso.12843
[4] Wildschut, T., Sedikides, C., & Robertson, S. (2018). Social-functional value of romantic nostalgia. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 115(2), 269–288.
[5] Eerola, T., Peltola, H.-R., & Vuoskoski, J. K. (2015). The role of affect and empathy in the appreciation of sad music. Music Perception, 33(2), 161–174.