As a new semester begins, social media is flooded with posts suggesting that the best way to start the school year is with a total rebrand.
Whether it’s a new year or new semester, a new “you” is mandatory. Young people across short and long-form content platforms are constantly being sold a new kind of lifestyle that they simply need to adopt to be to be the version of themselves society demands.
These rebrands are typically attached to a specific aesthetic with a catchy name. Hailey Beiber’s slick back ponytail, manicure, and 2022 Rhode launch rocked the internet, and led to a legion of young women rebranding themselves as “clean girls,” which of course means substituting their coffee for matcha.
Other “aesthetics” had the same digital impact as the “clean girl.” Lana Del Rey birthed the Coquette look, full of pastel pinks, ballet flats, and hair bows.
One reference to Kylie Jenner’s “King Kylie” era had the entire world longing to return to 2016. Social media flooded with people reminiscing on their lives a decade ago, young people trying to recreate Jenner’s iconic thick brows and matte lipstick.
Celebrity lifestyles have always been aspirational, but social media makes their lives seem more attainable. Many seem to believe that living like Hailey Bieber should work for them too.
But it doesn’t. So much more than an expensive skin-care routine goes into celebrity aesthetics. They have the resources to appear flawless in public. It’s almost impossible to replicate, especially when many aren’t honest about how they achieved their looks or their confidence.
It’s harmful when the target audience for these celebrity brands and influencers is teenage girls and young women. Society is already unkind to women of all ages who don’t fit the standard. Women have been forced to fit into boxes for years, and these aesthetics have only contributed to restricting young women’s true sense of self.
These celebrity followers end up buying somebody’s entire wardrobe through an affiliated Instagram hyperlink and attempt to copy an influencer’s entire nighttime routine, hoping that change will suddenly transform their lives. But it takes much more than a “new era,” completely comprised by someone else, to change who you are.
Fresh starts are always helpful, especially when school or work gets to be too much. A new routine gives you something else to focus on and helps bring back a feeling of control.
However, how is that possible when the inspiration for the “new you” came directly from someone else? It voids the purpose of trying to become a new you if the person you want to become is someone else entirely.
If every milestone requires a new era and, consequently, a new version of yourself, it’s impossible to actually get to know who you are. Of course, learning who you are is a lifelong commitment, but the conclusion is only prolonged when you don’t take the time to discover yourself outside of social media’s influence.
Rebranding is not the same as making real change. A company can change their packaging, but ultimately, the product is the same. Changing your style and your makeup routine to fit into a mold won’t make a difference in the long run. Especially when that mold changes every few months to fit what’s trendy.
That’s not to say that rebrands are entirely useless. “Fake it until you make it” has proved to be a very successful method of self-improvement — when it’s paired with self-reflection. Changing your appearance and adhering to a new aesthetic can help you grow, but only if you know exactly why you’re making that change in the first place.
While a new semester can be the perfect opportunity to try something new, it doesn’t mean becoming an entirely different person. Instead of asking who we should replicate next, we should figure out what we already like about ourselves.
Tags
Aesthetic, celebrity, celebrity culture, Rebrand
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