In Japan, there’s a term for these people called “Emo-gaki” (エモガキ / kids chasing the trend) a slang word used to refer to “trend kids” who like to bring back stuff from the 2000s (such as low-quality anime screenshots, Windows XP aesthetics, old songs) and post them on TikTok or Reels because they think it feels “emo” (charming, mysterious, vintage), even though they never actually watched or truly cared about those works. They just use it as an aesthetic, that’s all.

Japan is catching on...