As the year is quickly coming to an end, 2023 deserves to be reflected upon. What a crazy year it has been — one full of truly unforgettable moments that left an impact on the public.
Upon writing this, I asked my friends and housemates what were their favorite pop culture moments from 2023. After an hour of laughing back and forth, going over all of the utterly ridiculous things that happened in the past 365 days, together we compiled this list of the top pop culture moments and trends we deemed to be the best reflection of this last year.
Starting off strong with my personal favorite pop culture moment of 2023: Scandoval. Don’t even get me started — I could give an entire TED talk on Scandoval and Vanderpump Rules.
Scandoval is centered around the nine-year-long relationship between Ariana Madix and Tom Sandoval. After nine years, Sandoval started a secret seven-month-long affair with Madix’s best friend, Rachel Leviss. As expected, when the news broke, tempers were high, and these relationships turned volatile. Great television!
Rihanna at the Super Bowl – At the end of a stunning and amazing Super Bowl half-time show, she opened her red jacket revealing her pregnancy — shocking all of the unknowing viewers.
Barbenheimer – The Barbie movie and the Oppenheimer movie premiered on the same day. The internet went wild making memes and jokes about the two biggest movies of the year collabing.
Taylor Swift Eras World Tour – 10 albums sung in a three hour show by the most powerful woman on Earth. Enough said.
Girl Math Trend – This one is one of my favorites. And I know all the girlies have experienced this themselves: the theory of Girl Math. The principle is spending money while somehow negating you spent any money through theorizing you are saving in some other way. For example, and this is a real-life example for me personally: buying a bunch of clothes, returning them for store credit (so yes I did spend the money, and it’s now money I am not getting back), and then buying clothes from the same store using that credit. Since I did not spend any new money, it’s free! Makes sense right?
The Golden Bachelor – For the first time ever, the raunchy Bachelor franchise took a wholesome turn. 72-year-old Golden Bachelor Gerry Turner embarked on the quest for love, and stole all of America’s hearts.
The Little Mermaid – The remake of Disney’s original film, The Little Mermaid, broke box office records. Starring Halle Bailey, this film remake offered a new racial representation of the classic character, Ariel. This was huge for young girls and women elsewhere who now felt seen by a predominantly white washed franchise.
The Idol – This show was literally crazy. The shock value was insane. I only started watching it because it was all anyone and everyone was talking about! Starring Lily Rose Depp and the Weeknd, this HBO show got canceled before it even ended airing due to poor audience response. Centered around a whirlwind popstar lifestyle and the consequences that come with it, this show was a hard watch. The story and plot were crazy, the fictional relationship between the two characters was, quite frankly, gross and violating, and the only fun part of watching it was seeing the weekly responses to the episodes on TikTok. This show took the internet by storm, garnering such a large response online that it truly went viral despite it being a really horrible show.
The Roman Empire Trend – This viral TikTok trend evolved from girls asking the men in their lives how often they think about the Roman Empire. The answers were surprising. I haven’t thought about the Roman Empire since I learned about it in high school. Men everywhere are thinking about the Roman empire, like, almost all the time. Like, what?
Blue Ivy on Tour with Beyonce – During Beyonce’s Renaissance Tour, her first-born daughter, Blue Ivy Carter, joined her to dance on stage during the entirety of the tour. Video clips of Blue Ivy dancing from each show went viral on TikTok, exciting fans everywhere. Blue Ivy’s presence on tour with her mother was not only adorable, but nostalgic for all of the Beyonce fans out there who remember when she was just a little baby.
Britney Spears Memoir – After years of confusing and saddening news stories erupting about Britney Spears, she finally released a memoir telling her side of the story. And it was explosive.
Kim Kardashian on American Horror Story – After being labeled a “talentless celebrity” Kim Kardashian decided to prove everyone wrong. Starring alongside Emma Roberts in the latest season of American Horror Story, Delicate, was Kim Kardashian’s acting debut. Her presence in the already beloved franchise garnered new fans across the country, myself included.
Hailey Bieber Nails Trend – In 2023, commodifying descriptions of things became the thing to do. “Hailey Bieber nails” are exactly what they sound like. Everyone just wanted Hailey Bieber’s nails. I would even go to the nail salon and hear girls around me tell their technician they wanted “Hailey Bieber nails.” I wonder if Hailey Bieber knows she became a trend?
SAG AFTRA Strikes – If you don’t know what this is — you really should. This past year, television writers fought for higher wages and better working conditions, while effectively shutting down production across the globe. Many actors and directors took a stand with the writers, because in reality — nothing happens without writers.
Wow oh wow, a lot has happened in the past year — more iconic moments than I could ever count! While these are the highlights I thought of as a cumulative representation of 2023, there are so many more. I found that the best way to rehash the year was joking about it all with my friends, and I suggest you do it, too.