An e-girl with typical fashion, makeup and gestures.

E-girls and e-boys, sometimes collectively known as e-kids,[1] are a youth subculture of Gen Z that emerged in the late 2010s,[2] notably popularized by the video-sharing application TikTok.[3] It is an evolution of emo, scene and mall goth fashion combined with Japanese street fashion (such as anime, cosplay, kawaii and lolita fashion) and Korean street fashion (such as K-pop).[4][5]

Videos by e-girls and e-boys tend to be flirtatious and, many times, overtly sexual.[6][7] Eye-rolling and protruding tongues (a facial expression known as ahegao, imitating climaxing) are common.[8]

According to Business Insider, the terms are not gender-specific, instead referring to two separate styles of fashion, stating that "While the e-boy is a vulnerable 'softboi' and embraces skate culture, the e-girl is cute and seemingly innocent".[9]

Origins

The terms "e-girl" and "e-boy" are derived from "electronic boy" and "electronic girl" due to their association with the internet.[10] "E-girl" was first used in the late-2000s as a pejorative against women perceived to be seeking out male attention online. According to an article by Business Insider, the earliest example of e-girls were found on Tumblr,[9] with Vice Media stating the subculture evolved out of the earlier emo and scene cultures.[11] Vox writer Rebecca Jennings instead referred to the Tumblr aesthetic as a precursor of the subculture, as it lacked the cutesy aspect that would come to define e-girl hair and makeup.[12]

Ruby Barry of Heatworld traces the origins of e-girl fashion to 2000s Japanese street fashion, including anime, kawaii and lolita fashion styles.[4] Kayla Marci of Edited described it as an evolution of emo, scene and mall goth fashion that was heavily influenced by Asian fashion styles such as anime, cosplay and K-pop.[5] i-D referred to Avril Lavigne as "the original e-girl" due to her polished take on alternative fashion, contrast to mainstream norms of the time and affinity for Japanese kawaii culture.[13] Additionally, fictional characters such as Ramona Flowers, Harley Quinn and Sailor Moon were influential on the development of the subculture.[14][15]

By the late-2010s, e-boys had split from this original all female culture, embracing elements of emo, mallgoth, and scene culture.[16] The popularity and eventual death of emo rapper Lil Peep also influenced the beginnings of the subculture,[17] with the New York Post describing him as "the patron musical saint of e-land".[18] E-boys also make use of "soft-boy aesthetics" through presenting themselves as sensitive and vulnerable. According to the Brown Daily Herald this is due to a transformation of ideal male attractiveness from being traditionally masculine to embracing introvertedness, shyness, emotional vulnerability and androgyny.[19]

Mainstream popularity

English musician Yungblud is a notable e-boy

The subculture began in 2018, following the worldwide release of TikTok. According to an article in i-D, the subculture's emergence on the app challenged the polished and edited photos of influencers and VSCO girls common on Instagram, due to TikTok lacking the features to do so.[20] An article by CNN stated that "If VSCO girls are the sunshine-basking hippies of 2020, e-girls are the opposite".[21] The subculture first began to gain mainstream attention in 2019.[9] MEL Magazine attributed the subculture's popularity to the increased interest of K-Pop groups like BTS, Exo and Got7 in the Western mainstream, due to the two's similar style of dress and hair.[22] A trend soon began on TikTok and other social media platforms, where people would upload videos "transforming" into an e-boy or e-girl, according to Vox Media, this is how the culture "entered the mainstream lexicon".[12][23] In the summer of 2019, Belle Delphine's emerging online prominence helped bring attention to the e-girl subculture; Business Insider described Delphine as "a symbol of the first wave of e-girl".[24] The July 2019 murder of Bianca Devins also brought attention to e-girls due to Devins' participation in the subculture.[25]

The subculture continued to grow in prominence through 2020, with Vogue publishing an article featuring Doja Cat discussing e-girl makeup,[26] and "e-girl style" being in the top 10 trending fashion terms on Google in the year.[27] Additionally, a number of mainstream celebrities began to adopt the bleached stripes hairstyle associated with e-girls, including American socialite Kylie Jenner[28] and Kosovar-English singer Dua Lipa.[29] In July, high fashion designer Hedi Slimane released a preview of a collection called "the Dancing Kid" for Celine, influenced by the fashion of e-boys. In a July 29 article from GQ, fashion critic Rachel Tashjian referenced this as a sign that "TikTok is now driving fashion".[30] Corpse Husband's song "E-Girls Are Ruining My Life!", which was released in September, gained large amounts of attention on TikTok,[31] eventually charting in the UK Singles Chart for three weeks.[32] In late 2020 and early 2021, a number of high fashion designers, namely Ludovic de Saint Sernin and Celine, began designing collections inspired by e-boy fashion.[33][34][35] Both InStyle and Paper magazine credited e-boys and e-girls as important to the rise in popularity and resurgence of pop punk in the 2020s.[36][37]

Fashion

The subculture's fashion is inspired by a number of prior subcultures, fashion trends and forms of entertainment, including mall goth,[38][39] 1990s–2000s fashion, skater culture, anime,[5] Japanese street fashion,[4] cosplay,[40] K-pop,[41] BDSM,[6] emo, scene,[10] hip hop,[42] and rave.[43] Dazed described the aesthetic as "A little bit bondage, a little bit baby".[15] Outfits commonly consist of baggy, thrifted clothes.[6] In particular, some e-girls wear mesh shirts,[6] plaid skirts, oversized t-shirts, crop tops, platform shoes, chokers and beanies,[44] while e-boys wear oversized sweaters[45] or monochrome clothes and band merchandise[46] layered over long sleeve striped shirts,[7] and polo necks.[47] Chain necklaces, wallet chains[42][46] and dangle earrings[48][49] are also frequently worn. E-boys often wear curtained hair,[50][51] whereas e-girls hair is dyed neon colors,[6][52] often pink or blue,[10] or is bleached blonde in the front.[44] Some tie their hair into pigtails.[10] Hair dyed two different colours down the centre (known as "split-dye hair") is common amongst both sexes.[9]

Both boys and girls may wear heavy makeup, in particular pink blush on the cheeks and nose, imitating anime.[53][8] Fake freckles[53] unkempt nail polish,[54] and winged eye liner[6] are common. YouTuber Jenna Marbles made a video imitating an e-girl's makeup style, calling it a mix between "Harajuku, emo, and igari makeup",[52] the latter of which is a Japanese makeup style imitative of a hangover.[55] Some e-girls draw over their philtrum using lipstick to make their lips look rounder.[56] One notable element of e-girl makeup is under-eye stamps, often in a heart shape,[43][57] a trend that has been influenced by Marina Diamandis.[58] Discussion of mental health is also common.[15]

Music

E-boys and e-girls are associated with "Sad Boy" music,[59][60] a broadly defined grouping of musicians, who similarly write music influenced by sadness and mental illness, that often overlaps with emo rap.[61] The term has been criticized by artists such as James Blake, due to its portrayal of mental illness, which he considers "unhealthy and problematic".[62]

In the 2020s, it became common for participants of the subculture to listen to artists associated with the 2020s pop punk revival.[37]

See also

References

  1. ↑ Madsen, Anders Christian (March 2021). "Dolce & Gabbana: Fall 2021 Ready-To-Wear". Vogue. Retrieved March 21, 2021.
  2. ↑ Uh, Kyung Jin (October 30, 2020). "Digital persona in E-girl and E-boy fashion images". The Research Journal of the Costume Culture. 28 (5): 692–704. doi:10.29049/rjcc.2020.28.5.692. ISSN 1226-0401. S2CID 229207298.
  3. ↑ Bassil, Ryan. "Introducing: The E-Boy". Vice. Retrieved April 4, 2020.
  4. 1 2 3 Barry, Ruby (May 27, 2021). "How to dress like an E-girl in 2021: your definitive guide". Heatworld. Retrieved December 15, 2021.
  5. 1 2 3 Marci, Kayla (February 17, 2020). "What is an E-Girl and E-Boy?". Edited. Archived from the original on January 26, 2021. Retrieved September 11, 2020.
  6. 1 2 3 4 5 6 Jennings, Rebecca (August 1, 2019). "E-girls and e-boys, the irony-laced subculture that doesn't exist in real life". Vox. Retrieved February 7, 2020.
  7. 1 2 Bain, Marc (December 13, 2019). "The year's top-trending fashion styles in the US only existed online". Quartz. Retrieved February 7, 2020.
  8. 1 2 "What's the Story Behind This Egirl Face? An Investigation". Jezebel. October 3, 2019. Retrieved February 7, 2020.
  9. 1 2 3 4 Leskin, Paige. "Everything you need to know about e-girls and e-boys, teen gamers who have emerged as the antithesis of Instagram influencers". Business Insider. Retrieved December 21, 2020.
  10. 1 2 3 4 Ritschel, Chelsea (November 25, 2019). "E-Girl: What is the Trend and How Do They Dress?". The Independent. Retrieved December 21, 2020.
  11. ↑ Bassil, Ryan. "Introducing: The E-Boy". Vice Media. Retrieved December 21, 2020.
  12. 1 2 Jennings, Rebecca (August 2019). "E-girls and e-boys, explained". Vox Media. Retrieved December 24, 2020.
  13. ↑ Kheraj, Alim (August 2, 2019). "avril lavigne was the original e-girl". i-D. Retrieved December 21, 2020.
  14. ↑ McIntosch, Cody (December 14, 2019). "E-Girls: 10 Pop Culture Characters Who Definitely Inspired The Trend". Screen Rant. Retrieved December 21, 2020.
  15. 1 2 3 Peters, Alex (September 16, 2020). "A Little Bit Bondage, A Little Bit Baby: E-Girl Make-Up and Hair Explained". Dazed. Retrieved December 21, 2020.
  16. ↑ Singh, Shubham (September 23, 2020). "How to dress up like an eboy— 'E' stands for embracing emotions". Retrieved December 24, 2020.
  17. ↑ Feng, Victoria (March 3, 2020). "What to Buy to Look Like: An E-Girl". Retrieved December 24, 2020.
  18. ↑ Weiss, Suzy (December 13, 2019). "Fashion E-boys and e-girls: The moody new trend spawned by Gen Z". New York Post. Retrieved December 21, 2020.
  19. ↑ Gupta, Gaya (February 14, 2020). "the era of e-boys". The Brown Daily Herald. Archived from the original on April 8, 2020. Retrieved December 24, 2020.
  20. ↑ Lanigan, Roisin (July 23, 2019). "How TikTok is changing beauty standards for Gen Z". i-D. Retrieved December 21, 2020.
  21. ↑ Thompson, Courtney (February 18, 2020). "What is an e-girl? The latest teen trend, explained". CNN. Retrieved December 21, 2020.
  22. ↑ Longo, Joseph (July 10, 2019). "Teens Are Bringing Back the Butt Cut. It's the EBoy Haircut Now". MEL Magazine.
  23. ↑ Strapagiel, Lauren (February 19, 2019). "TikTok Has Created A Whole New Kind Of Cool Girl". BuzzFeed News. Retrieved December 24, 2020.
  24. ↑ Leskin, Paige (March 9, 2020). "Everything you need to know about e-girls and e-boys, teen gamers who have emerged as the antithesis of Instagram influencers". Business Insider. Archived from the original on February 29, 2020. Retrieved March 23, 2020.
  25. ↑ Dickson, EJ (July 15, 2019). "A 17-Year-Old Girl Was Murdered. How Did Photos of Her Death Go Viral?". Rolling Stone.
  26. ↑ Massony, Theresa (December 16, 2020). "2020's Viral Internet Fashion Aesthetics & What They Reveal About You". Retrieved December 21, 2020.
  27. ↑ Yotka, Steff (December 10, 2020). "Google's Yearly Data Proves People Are Dressing More Radically Than You Think". Vogue.
  28. ↑ Dixon, Emily (April 27, 2020). "Kylie Jenner's Latest Hair Transformation Is 100 Percent E-Girl". Marie Claire.
  29. ↑ Baker, Scarlett (December 16, 2020). "Lil Nas X Has Got a Festive New Hairstyle Just in Time for Christmas". Dazed. Retrieved December 21, 2020.
  30. ↑ Tashjian, Rachel (July 29, 2020). "Celine Nails the Way TikTok Is Now Driving Fashion". GQ. Retrieved December 26, 2020.
  31. ↑ Salaun, Theo (December 21, 2020). "Fans are giddy as Halsey asks Corpse Husband to "teach" her Among Us". Retrieved December 21, 2020.
  32. ↑ "Corpse & Savage Gasp". UK Singles Chart. Retrieved December 21, 2020.
  33. ↑ Seward, Mahoro (November 3, 2020). "Ludovic de Saint Sernin SS21 is a love letter to TikTok's e-boys". i-D. Retrieved April 20, 2021.
  34. ↑ Abad, Mario (March 29, 2021). "Ludovic de Saint Sernin on E-Boys, OnlyFans and His NSFW Finsta". Paper.
  35. ↑ Abad, Mario (July 29, 2020). "TikTok Teens and E-Boys Have Taken Over Celine". Paper.
  36. ↑ Gillespie, Katherine (April 16, 2021). "Mod Sun Is Gen-Z's Pop Punk Consultant". Paper. Retrieved April 20, 2021.
  37. 1 2 Goldfine, Jael (March 22, 2021). "The Internet Has a New Boyfriend". InStyle. Retrieved April 20, 2021.
  38. ↑ Luecke, Andrew; Barnett, Donovan (May 4, 2022). "The Ten Most Influential Subcultures of the Decade". Highsnobiety. Archived from the original on January 1, 2024. Retrieved January 10, 2021.
  39. ↑ Ralph, Jessica (October 29, 2020). "The five most fashion forward cult horror films". Shift London. Archived from the original on January 10, 2022. Retrieved January 10, 2021.
  40. ↑ D'Anastasio, Cecilia (June 2, 2021). "Welcome to Planet Egirl". Wired. Retrieved December 15, 2021.
  41. ↑ Dupere, Katie (January 6, 2020). "E-boys are taking over TikTok and teen culture: Here's what that means". AOL. Retrieved July 8, 2020.
  42. 1 2 Jennings, Rebecca (January 13, 2020). "E-boys are the new teen heartthrobs — and they're poised to make serious money". Vox. Retrieved February 7, 2020.
  43. 1 2 Cortés, Michelle Santiago (October 29, 2019). "Why E-Girls Are The Moodier VSCO Girls, & How To Be One For Halloween". Refinery29. Retrieved February 7, 2020.
  44. 1 2 Roden, Arabella (June 16, 2020). "10 Cool E-Girl Hairstyles to Rock in 2020". Archived from the original on December 31, 2020. Retrieved December 21, 2020.
  45. ↑ GW, Charlotte (October 10, 2019). "Please Can Someone Tell Us What eBoy Hair Is? (New Gen Z Style Alert!)". Archived from the original on February 3, 2021. Retrieved December 22, 2020.
  46. 1 2 Luecke, Andrew (November 19, 2019). "What TikTok's EBoys & EGirls Tell us About Where Internet Style is At". Retrieved December 22, 2020.
  47. ↑ Patin, Heloise. "The wonderful world of TikTok fashion subcultures". Retrieved December 21, 2020.
  48. ↑ "E-boys are taking over TikTok and teen culture: Here's what that means". In The Know. January 7, 2020. Retrieved November 13, 2020.
  49. ↑ "What Are E-Boys, and Why Is TikTok Overrun With Them?". Study Breaks. September 10, 2019. Retrieved November 13, 2020.
  50. ↑ Jennings, Rebecca (January 13, 2020). "E-boys are the new teen heartthrobs — and they're poised to make serious money". Vox. Retrieved February 7, 2020.
  51. ↑ Lindsay, Kathryn (January 14, 2020). "E-Boys Are The Internet Boyfriends Of 2020". Refinery29. Retrieved February 7, 2020.
  52. 1 2 Spellings, Sarah (February 28, 2020). "What Is an E-Girl?". The Cut. Retrieved April 1, 2020.
  53. 1 2 Cortés, Michelle Santiago (October 29, 2019). "Why E-Girls Are The Moodier VSCO Girls, & How To Be One For Halloween". Refinery29. Retrieved February 7, 2020.
  54. ↑ Lindsay, Kathryn (January 14, 2020). "E-Boys Are The Internet Boyfriends Of 2020". Refinery29. Retrieved February 7, 2020.
  55. ↑ Abelman, Devon (December 13, 2017). "Makeup Artists Are Applying Blush in the Shape of Hearts". Allure. Retrieved May 29, 2020.
  56. ↑ Santiago CortÉs, Michelle (July 18, 2019). "Why E-Girls Are The Moodier VSCO Girls, & How To Be One For Halloween". Retrieved December 22, 2020.
  57. ↑ "TikTok Has Created A Whole New Kind Of Cool Girl". BuzzFeed News. February 19, 2019. Retrieved February 7, 2020.
  58. ↑ Weekman, Kelsey (May 7, 2020). "That E-Girl Heart Stamp Trend Has a Dark Past". Retrieved December 21, 2020.
  59. ↑ Dhatnubia, Ka'Dia (September 12, 2019). "Dissecting the eBoy". Retrieved December 22, 2020.
  60. ↑ Dupere, Katie. "E-boys are taking over TikTok and teen culture: Here's what that means". Retrieved December 22, 2020.
  61. ↑ Sommer, Liz (October 25, 2019). "What is a Sad Boi/Sad Boy?". Retrieved December 22, 2020.
  62. ↑ "Singer James Blake slams 'sad boy' label amid 'epidemic of male depression and suicide'". Sky News. Retrieved December 22, 2020.
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