Adryan Corcione is featured on this week’s episode of Nicstalgia. Tri-State Area pop culture enthusiasts unite!!! We chat about how we met (spoiler alert: we are the only people talking about Xanga), Gerard Way working at Hot Topic in the Willowbrook Mall, Adryan’s journalistic work and forthcoming book about growing up online at the advent of social media, the themes of identity and connection, and parallels between the early internet and now. We have a show and tell of select pieces Adryan’s awesome physical media collection, featuring Lindsay Lohan covers from Cosmopolitan (2022), Playboy (2012), Nylon (2009), Maxim (2007), Fangoria (2007) featuring possibly the only favorable review of I Know Who Killed Me (2007), and Interview (2004). We talk about how Lindsay’s personal life overshadowed and informed the perception of IKWKM and the parallel between how her public struggles with substance abuse mirrors how society views drug and mental health crises. How we treat It Girls affects the treatment of girls everywhere. Ultimately, I pose the question – How can we as the general public, media, internet, and cultural critics do better going forward have more compassion for the people around us? We dive into the consumption of public figures, the price of pursuing fame, and the right to privacy. Even reality TV stars have boundaries! Despite what’s shown (and sold) to the public, celebrities are people and have nuance…but so does everyone else. Social media has democratized access to celebrities - we can contact them – AND celebrity – we can become them ourselves. We close out with a Britney Spears oracle card reading! Moral of the story: Pop culture matters! 💿 About our Guest Adryan is a pop culture essayist behind Adryan's POV. Over the years, their journalism has appeared in Teen Vogue, Vice, MTV News, SELF, them, Rolling Stone, and more. They also work in content marketing in the tech industry. 🛼 Connect with our Guest Substack 〰 Instagram 〰 LinkedIn 🍒 Connect with Nic Substack 〰 ⁠Instagram⁠ 🦋 Special Thanks Doll Artwork by @hmdraws_ Theme Music by @egmusicnyc Intro Video by @valentinareyes9

Kelli Williams is featured on this week’s episode of Nicstalgia. Kelli shares how Laguna Biotch came to life, and we explore the sense of freedom that comes with shamelessly leaning into the things you like – including but not limited to Backstreet Boys and Celine Dion. We explore the undoing of societal conditioning around being a fangirl, revisiting things you loved when you were younger, healing your inner teenager, and creating a world where you can be you. Why aren’t people willing to be silly anymore?? We wouldn’t know. Kelli and I talk about the wave of millennial nostalgia happening right now and how it’s not new, buying concert tickets instead of houses, Kelli’s experience of being in the crowd at TRL, and how in the 2000s, BSB had to do a whole media circuit with news vs. celebs’ Notes app posts today. Speaking of celebs, we dive deep into the democratization of access to celebrities through social media, blurring of lines with parasocial relationships, how social media has changed the concept of celebrity and whose legacies are impacted (Justin), and how this affects us as pop culture researchers and lifelong fans. We explore how different celebrities are positioned as actors (Jennifer Aniston), entrepreneurs (Gwyneth), and even products or objects of consumption themselves (Britney, Paris). Of course we talk about Laguna Beach!! Reality TV has evolved and is more produced, but there will always be conflicting stories about what’s “real”. Wanna know what 2000s fashion was REALLY like? Watch Laguna Beach and you’ll find out everything you need to know. We also explore who the best/worst One Tree Hill character is and our initial reactions to The OC vs. our reactions during the rewatch. California, here we come! 💿 About our Guest Kelli is the content creator behind Laguna Biotch and co host of the podcast Beyond the Blinds. 🛼 Connect with our Guest Instagram 〰 Twitter 〰 TikTok 🍒 Connect with Nic Newsletter 〰 ⁠Instagram⁠ 〰 ⁠Twitter⁠ 〰 ⁠TikTok⁠ 🦋 Special Thanks Doll Artwork by @hmdraws_ Theme Music by @egmusicnyc Intro Video by @valentinareyes9

In this episode, I explain how “nostalgia” is often used as a misnomer for “nowstalgia” when marketing an old cultural object to a new consumer demographic. Drawing inspiration from my article, “Nostalgia vs. Nowstalgia, and Why Both Matter in 2022”, and dig into six key considerations of how both affect connection, communication, and commerce: regenerative revenue, trend zeitgeists, context collapse, retro subversion, compensatory consumption, and projection bias. Get ready for a deep dive on the commodification – more specifically, the Etsyfication, Coachellafication, yassification, and tattooification – of licensed band t-shirts that capitalize off of existing, nowstalgic IP. Why does every youth culture fixture generation think they invented every style when it's really a recycled version of what came before? We’ll explore the context collapse of flannel shirts, The Cerulean Principle (inspired by the infamous The Devil Wears Prada monologue), and my personal favorite nowstalgic aesthetic: Groovival, a revival of 60s culture from the vantage point of the 90s. You will learn about how isolated cultural objects, like an olive green utilitarian jacket, gain context through composition and can therefore be dated like a time capsule. Millennials’ fear of being cheugy exemplifies their resistance to The Chasm™ – when you become old enough to witness the completion of a standard 20-year trend cycle and are no longer considered the fixture generation of youth culture. I explain how tie dye has been an enduring cultural symbol with different meanings over time, why hipsters annoy everyone, why Millennials are outraged by Gen Z reselling their 00s pink and black zebra print homecoming dresses, why I love nowstalgic content creators (shoutout to Merel, Nicole aka. Misss 2005, Sammiee, and Sarah), and why everyone for some reason thinks they can predict the future about what will “come back”. Even if a headline says the biggest trend for 2024 is nostalgia, it isn’t. That’s because nostalgia never goes out of style. 🍒 Connect with Nic Newsletter 〰 ⁠Instagram⁠ 〰 ⁠Twitter⁠ 〰 ⁠TikTok⁠ 🦋 Special Thanks Doll Artwork by @hmdraws_ Theme Music by @egmusicnyc Intro Video by @valentinareyes9

In this episode, I share the experience of my Physical Media Renaissance™ project that I’ve been working on for about a year. I dive into the physical media (CDs), 00s entertainment technology (icy blue Memorex CD boombox), and memorabilia (the iconic Geri poster) that I’ve acquired and six key considerations: consumption, media ephemerality, perceived value, circular economy, friction, and taste. I talk about what this project means to me on a personal and generational level, why 90s-00s nostalgia has become a thing, the nostalgic and nowstalgic resurgence of flip phones and digital cameras by Luddite teens and Millennial lifestyle editors avoiding doom scrolling, why Urban Outfitters can sell a first-gen iPod for $350, and why I’m buying $1 CDs when Boomers told us to stop eating avocado toast and drinking Starbucks to buy a house for $725k. Haters will have their questions answered: Is this project wasteful? Is it materialistic? I dig into themes of ownership, transience, and – of course – the Diffusion of Innovations model as it relates to physical media. We constantly switch from screen to screen with utmost ease and endless distractions, so is the friction of using physical media really worse than the feigned conversancy of Spotify Wrapped? If an algorithm wasn’t reinforcing confirmation bias and shaping your choices, would you be able to make them on your own? Wouldn’t it be fun to genuinely discover something? You’ll learn my Nicstalgia Consumption Rubric framework of how to know what to buy and what not to buy, the similarities and differences between modes of consumption – thrifting, resale, and fast fashion – and how to curate and refine your own taste by using my ‘Live Laugh Love Loathe’ Nicstalgia Curation Rubric. I share my favorite finds and takeaways from the project around mindfulness, non-attachment, value, memories, and sense of self. 🍒 Connect with Nic Newsletter 〰 ⁠Instagram⁠ 〰 ⁠Twitter⁠ 〰 ⁠TikTok⁠ 🦋 Special Thanks Doll Artwork by @hmdraws_ Theme Music by @egmusicnyc Intro Video by @valentinareyes9

Ruby Thelot is featured on this week’s episode of Nicstalgia. He shares how his love for studying and researching niche internet communities and cultures led him to writing his forthcoming book, A Cyberarchaeology of Checkpoints. We talk about how the concept of checkpoints originated in video game culture and took on a subversive new form as personal life status updates in a YouTube comments section. What happens when a community is formed by thousands of checkpoints in a YouTube comments section, and what happens when that YouTube video is deleted? We explore the shock of deletion, the jarring experience of no longer having access to a digital space you once frequented. (RIP MySpace.) In the words of internet archivist Rebane2001, “Forget what you lost, save what you can.” Is everything meant to be saved? We ponder the concept of media ephemerality and why we assume permanence of what’s on the internet when we expect real-life places to come and go. (RIP to my Midtown hair salon.) Digital media is full of paradox – abundance devalues digital media and makes access harder (i.e. trying to find one of the 7500 photos on my phone), preservation disrupts the content’s original environment (i.e. downloading my Xanga archives), and materiality affects relevance and value. We dive into the intricacies of memory and technology, my Buddhist internet philosophy, and how deletion of digital artifacts erases stories, memories, and ‘monuments of emotional history’, therefore impacting the future interpretation and legacy of our civilization. I ask Ruby what he’d leave in a digital time capsule, the ethics of digital life after death, the morality of AI when “we can only perceive the present once it is the distant past”, and how media literacy and astuteness will develop for young generations in a new digital age. 💿 About our Guest Ruby Justice Thelot is a designer, cyberethnographer and artist based in New York. He is an adjunct professor of Design and Media Theory at New York University. He is the founder of the award-winning creative research and design studio 13101401 inc. 🛼 Connect with our Guest Twitter 〰 Instagram 〰 TikTok 〰 YouTube 🍒 Connect with Nic Newsletter 〰 ⁠Instagram⁠ 〰 ⁠Twitter⁠ 〰 ⁠TikTok⁠ 🦋 Special Thanks Doll Artwork by @hmdraws_ Theme Music by @egmusicnyc Intro Video by @valentinareyes9

Merel from Ex-Girlfriend Shop is featured on this week’s episode of Nicstalgia. Your two favorite Aries Angels chat about what inspired her to start Ex-Girlfriend Shop, our love for Y2K fashion, my first designer handbag, and what it was like for Merel discovering fashion trends pre-internet in the Netherlands and ID’ing celeb outfits post-internet. I catch a glimpse of Merel’s skillfully curated, iconic non-clothing memorabilia collection, including a Claudia Schiffer Barbie and Anna Nicole Smith bobblehead. In the words of Sheryl Crow (and Merel), “If it makes you happy it cant be that bad.” We deep dive into Mariah Carey, Tomato Mozzarella, and the JLo “I don't know her” saga, Dollzmania, our shared Halloween costume as Dump Him- era Britney, and my profound emotional experience seeing Crossroads in theaters for the first time in 2002. 💿 About our Guest Merel is a self proclaimed "Aries angel" and a 2000s enthusiast. She owns an online store called Ex-Girlfriend Shop where she specializes in Y2K streetwear and designer gems. She has a deep love for Mariah Carey and is not afraid to tell the world! 🛼 Connect with our Guest Instagram 〰 TikTok 〰 Depop 🍒 Connect with Nic Newsletter 〰 ⁠Instagram⁠ 〰 ⁠Twitter⁠ 〰 ⁠⁠TikTok⁠ 🦋 Special Thanks Doll Artwork by @hmdraws_ Theme Music by @egmusicnyc Intro Video by @valentinareyes9

Nora Woods is featured on this week’s episode of Nicstalgia. Friends since we were 12, we reminisce about dancing in the living room to Beatles records, listening to Queen deep cuts and loving Freddie Mercury, dancing to “Get Low” at prom, going tanning, our fav Latin pop sensations Shakira and Enrique Iglesias, being in the middle school talent show, and being cheerleaders. **Please note that since the time of this recording, I DID locate our cheerleading mix songs!!!!!** We share our parallel experiences on September 11th, reflect on if Girls and Broad City accurately depicted of our lives as Millennial women in NYC in the 2010s, and recall watching Degrassi at my house (and seeing Toby at hers). We have always been ~very online~ individuals, as young early adopters of AIM, Xanga, and MySpace, and discuss our days on early social media. Nora shares her favorite and most obscure Disney Channel Original Movies and shows us her CD binder from the 2000s, mix CDs intact!!! Nic & Nora have always had a shared curiosity for pop culture ‘before our time’, a sense of nowstalgia for Queen, and how you never think trends you saw as kids are going to cycle back – until they do. 💿 About our Guest Nora Woods is a multitalented artist, musician and performer in Long Beach California. She is a singer/songwriter known as Plumbun, and produces music in her bedroom studio. Nic and Nora have been friends since middle school after bonding over their shared interest in art and pop culture. 🛼 Connect with our Guest Instagram 〰 Twitter 〰 TikTok 〰 Spotify 🍒 Connect with Nic ⁠Instagram⁠ 〰 ⁠Twitter⁠ 〰 ⁠Substack⁠ 〰 ⁠TikTok⁠ 🦋 Special Thanks Doll Artwork by @hmdraws_ Theme Music by @egmusicnyc Intro Video by @valentinareyes9

Tiffany Tarazi is featured on this week’s episode of Nicstalgia. She shares her journey from second-gen makeup artist to product developer to developing Nosta Beauty. We chat about home videos from the 90s vs. now, capturing both milestones and mundane aspects of day-to-day life for personal use vs. performative nature of social media (and how that changes once you become a parent yourself). What makeup trend is coming back? What 90s makeup trend was Tiffany’s favorite? How does she make makeup that’s glittery and nostalgic yet doesn’t make me break out into hives like i did with Bath and Body Works glitter? We dive into all of the above, plus how doing our makeup has evolved over time, the Laguna Beach/Hollister-era self tanner epidemic, our hair removal nightmares, and whose makeup Tiffany would love to do on their world tour. 💿 About our Guest Tiffany, a second-generation makeup artist turned beauty brand founder, is on a mission to evoke fuzzy feelings through her enchanting and nostalgic makeup products. With Nosta Beauty, she brings a unique touch to the world of cosmetics, sprinkling it with an iconic blend of 80s, 90s and 2000s charm! 🛼 Connect with Our Guest Website 〰 TikTok 〰 Instagram 🍒 Connect with Nic ⁠Instagram⁠ 〰 ⁠Twitter⁠ 〰 ⁠Substack⁠ 〰 ⁠TikTok⁠ 🦋 Special Thanks Doll Artwork by @hmdraws_ Theme Music by @egmusicnyc Intro Video by @valentinareyes9

Fabiola Larios is featured on this week's episode of Nicstalgia. We talk about Fabi’s Barbie exhibit at Yami-Ichi, subverting obsolescence and bringing new life to old and retro technology, AI-generated art on Fabi’s irreplaceable pink Disney Princess TV, the iconic 90s computer game Barbie Magic Hairstyler (y también Barbie Salón de Belleza). We deep dive into rituals, societal conditioning, misconceptions of Barbie, and the meaning adults (not children) assign to Barbie, and how she’s really a representation of our society, projected onto a 12” piece of plastic. We contrast not just the image, but the messaging behind Barbie vs. Bratz and agree that Barbie is an intellectual and a badass. We play a Dream Outfit and Dream Career game for AI-generated Fabi Barbie and tap into the imagination, play, levity, and joy that Barbie brought us as kids — and how we own that sentiment as adults. 💿 About our Guest Fabiola Larios is a Mexican Interdisciplinary artist that lives and works in Miami Beach, Florida. Her work explores the intersection of technology, identity, and representation in the digital age. Through machine learning, AI, net art, obsolescence programming, and e-waste, she seeks to challenge our understanding of the self and the impact of social media and the internet on our lives. 🛼 Connect with Our Guest Instagram 〰 Twitter 〰 Warpcast @fabiolaio 〰 Lens 🍒 Connect with Nic ⁠Instagram⁠ 〰 ⁠Twitter⁠ 〰 ⁠Substack⁠ 〰 ⁠TikTok⁠ 🦋 Special Thanks Doll Artwork by @hmdraws_ Theme Music by @egmusicnyc Intro Video by @valentinareyes9

Jocelyn and Alaina from Bijou Candles and the Candle Coven Podcast are featured on this week's episode of Nicstalgia. We talk about Rocky Horror Picture Show, Seinfeld, being a dELiA*s girl in a Hollister world, shared memory and collective consciousness, and how pop culture represents human connection and is a spiritual experience. The two biggest comedic geniuses: Larry David, who dissects the minutia of life and calls out the absurdity of humans, and Victoria Beckham, for obvious reasons. We talk about the two most important things essential to my life and well-being, Celine Dion and the Spice Girls, and delve into my physical media renaissance and the icy blue Memorex boombox that I DID end up rebuying. We answer the important questions: Are we Romy or Michele? Which Golden Girls are we a mix of? Which celebrities would we put on our Mount Rushmore for a dream candle collection? Mel C Heads™️, this one is for you. 💿 About our Guests Alaina and Jocelyn are married business partners who own and operate Bijou Candles – an e-commerce candle company that features premium soy candles inspired by their favorite women in pop-culture. They also host The Candle Coven Podcast where they break down current pop culture events, talk about their lives, and light candles while they discuss movies, tv shows & more. 🛼 Connect with Our Guests Bijou Candles 〰 Facebook 〰 Instagram 〰 YouTube 〰 TikTok 🍒 Connect with Nic ⁠Instagram⁠ 〰 ⁠Twitter⁠ 〰 ⁠Substack⁠ 〰 ⁠TikTok⁠ 〰 Flique Editorial Article 🦋 Special Thanks Doll Artwork by @hmdraws_ Theme Music by @egmusicnyc Intro Video by @valentinareyes9

BARTYDARTY is featured on this week's episode of Nicstalgia. We talk about Adam’s journey to becoming a DJ and producer: going on MySpace at the ripe age of 12, blogging in 5th grade, being influenced by Detroit's electronic and house music, and getting his brother’s hand-me-down trumpet. We touch on the EDM explosion of the end of the 2000s to 2010s, listening to “Clarity” on the prom party bus, the dichotomy between Avicii’s struggle with fame and Steve Aoki’s “I’ll sleep when I’m dead” ethos, and the inescapable “Closer” by The Chainsmokers. Adam shares about how not having health insurance inspired his first album, his rebrand to BARTYDARTY and the values behind it, staying in touch with your inner child, doing what your younger self would be proud of, embracing a sense of play while also accepting responsibility, and finding other people who share your values. We explore establishing and integrating IRL and URL identities to reflect who you want to be and remember: you are never too old to make your mark on the world. 💿 About our Guest BARTYDARTY is an electronic music producer/DJ based out of Detroit. Besides obsessively searching for the next best piano riff, BARTYDARTY is passionate about reading, writing, meditating, exercising, creating and manifesting. BARTYDARTY believes in pursuing the absurd, by setting lifelong goals and embracing the progress all along the way. 🛼 Connect with Our Guest ⁠⁠Twitter⁠ 〰 Instagram⁠  〰 ⁠Substack⁠ 🍒 Connect with Nic ⁠Instagram⁠ 〰 ⁠Twitter⁠ 〰 ⁠Substack⁠ 〰 ⁠TikTok⁠ 🦋 Special Thanks Doll Artwork by @hmdraws_ Theme Music by @egmusicnyc Intro Video by @valentinareyes9

Chris Payne is featured on this week's episode of Nicstalgia. We talk about his amazing new book, WHERE ARE YOUR BOYS TONIGHT?, how he got into music journalism, getting an email from Pete Wentz, My Chemical Romance nowstalgia, and finding out about Paramore before they made it big. Does liking emo music require alienation from, or frustration with, mainstream society? We explore how emo shares outsider themes with punk rock but ultimately focuses on the self, inner turmoil, and interpersonal relationships vs. DIY culture, progressive politics, and zines. We chat about being from New Jersey (Chris) and Connecticut (Me and Chris Carrabba), wearing Converse with band tees from Hot Topic and double popped collar polo shirts, picking out the perfect MySpace song, and so much more. 💿 About our Guest Chris Payne is a Brooklyn-based music journalist whose work has appeared in Billboard, Vulture, Stereogum, and other publications. WHERE ARE YOUR BOYS TONIGHT? is his first book. 🛼 Connect with Our Guest Instagram 〰 Twitter 〰 Substack 🍒 Connect with Nic Instagram 〰 Twitter 〰 Substack 〰 TikTok 🦋 Special Thanks Doll Artwork by @hmdraws_ Theme Music by @egmusicnyc Intro Video by @valentinareyes9

Ana from This Must Be Pop is featured on this week's episode of Nicstalgia. We discuss how the music of boy bands have been overlooked in music history, how This Must Be Pop was developed through a feminist lens, reframing the whole idea of what being a “fangirl” or “fanboy” means, and legitimizing the fandom space by not diminishing the viewpoint of primarily young girls and the LGBTQ+ community. When it comes to boy bands, there are soooo many dichotomies to unpack!! We dive deep on the reconciliation of being rich (well, depending on who your management is) and famous vs. exploitation and rejecting a a superficial, manufactured, crafted image with stifled individuality. Ana and I talk about BSB and *NSYNC musically, commercially, and how you can’t really compare them the way we did in the 90s-00s. We ponder important questions: Why can fandoms be resistant to change? What if Howie was in Menudo? What would have happened to JC Chasez’s solo career had he had the label support Justin did? Do we really need all of these reunions? What does the future of fandom look like? About our Guest Ana is a music journalist as well as the creator and host of "This Must Be Pop", a podcast that tries to shake us from the social stigma surrounding boybands by legitimizing the fan experience and showcasing the legitimately great music and talent of boybands. Connect with Our Guest Instagram Connect with Nic TikTok 〰 Instagram 〰 Twitter 〰 Substack Special Thanks 💖 Doll Artwork by @hmdraws_ Theme Music by @egmusicnyc Intro Video by @valentinareyes9 YouTube CC available in English and Español Episode Transcript

In this solo episode, we are doing whatever the opposite is of taking a walk down memory lane. I share with you my lifestyle, fashion/2010s revival, and tech trend predictions for 2023. We’re due for a 2020s version of wine/paint bars. Pickleball? Grandma stuff? Mushroom bags? I’m here for it. Will we see a resurgence of business casual, going out tops, or the perfect combination of the two: peplum tops?? Dare I mention…side parts? Giant Bakers-esque 6” platform stilettos? It’s time for a new generation to risk it all (namely, a sprained ankle) trying to leave the house. (Shoutout to the Diffusion of Innovations and my retail career for making this episode possible.) Do younger generations ultimately just end up turning into their parents’ generations? Is ChatGPT for Gen Alpha just Wikipedia for Millennials? Is the -verse coming for us? (Taco Bell-verse will have us at bay.) I talk about web3, the next iteration of the internet based on ownership, and dig into what the future looks like for content creators and influencers as the breakdown of social media as we know it begins to unfold. What does content production and distribution look like when we center creators rather than platforms? I share what I think is going to happen to influencers and creators of different sizes based on the current web2 (social media) landscape, the tools that can facilitate positive change so we’re not a bunch of burnt out robots, and advice for fellow nano influencers. (TLDR: don’t trust an algorithm lol.) Nicstalgia had 41 episodes in 2022 – thank you for coming along for the ride! Connect with Nic TikTok 〰 Instagram 〰 Twitter 〰 Substack Special Thanks 💖 Doll Artwork by @hmdraws_ Theme Music by @egmusicnyc Intro Video by @valentinareyes9 YouTube CC available in English and Español Episode Transcript

Andy Frye is featured on this week's episode of Nicstalgia. We chat about his book, Ninety Days In The 90s, the vibrant Chicago music scene, and how changes in popular culture are actually more gradual than we make them out to be in hindsight. Andy talk about what he was able to discover in the late 80s and early 90s, contrary to radio pop and hair metal dominating the airwaves at the time. We dive into the quintessential Gen X topics: mix tapes, zines, the emergence of college and independent radio, and the age-old idea of being a ‘sellout’. How can you avoid betraying your ideals while still growing as an artist? Are Gen X authentic to a fault? We explore the commodification of music, when concert tickets got super expensive, the best interviews Andy has conducted as a writer. About our Guest ANDY FRYE has written for Rolling Stone, ESPN, Chicago Tribune, and other publications. Currently, he writes about sports business for Forbes. Over his career, Andy has interviewed hundreds of professional athletes, rock stars and other celebrities. Among the bands and solo artists he has interviewed are Smashing Pumpkins, Oasis, Morrissey, Jimmy Eat World, Rage Against The Machine, and Alice In Chains. Connect with Our Guest Twitter 〰 Instagram Connect with Nic TikTok 〰 Instagram 〰 Twitter 〰 Substack Special Thanks 💖 Doll Artwork by @hmdraws_ Theme Music by @egmusicnyc Intro Video by @valentinareyes9 YouTube CC available in English and Español Episode Transcript

Nicole Randone from Misss2005 is featured on this week's episode of Nicstalgia. This episode goes to show that Millennials and Gen Z have more in common than the internet makes it out to be. We talk about collecting physical media from the 2000s, experiencing the motorola rzr for the first time, my unhinged Mercari emails, and creating “authentic” yet ‘nowstalgic’ 2000s content. Is getting Starbucks at Target the equivalent of going to the gas station in the 2000s? If you’re looking forward to ‘just cracking up’ (shoutout to Jake Thomas), you will love this episode. **Please note that Nicole has met Chad Michael Murray IRL since the time of this recording!!! We chat about One Tree Hill, A Cinderella Story, my Hilary Duff sighting, John Tucker Must Die, vintage Abercrombie & Fitch lace camis (my fashion degree comes out in full force lol), and blinged out Playboy bunny necklaces. We tap into the evolution of technology and content creation in the future, how we basically live in [the DCOM] Smart House, and if Nicole can really remember a time in life without technology. About our Guest Nicole is an early 2000s content creator and influencer, most commonly referred to online as Miss 2005! Nicole has dedicated herself to using the past to bring happiness to the present. Connect with Our Guest TikTok 〰 Instagram 〰 YouTube Connect with Nic TikTok 〰 Instagram 〰 Twitter 〰 Substack Special Thanks 💖 Doll Artwork by @hmdraws_ Theme Music by @egmusicnyc Intro Video by @valentinareyes9 YouTube CC available in English and Español Episode Transcript

Fabiola Larios, Gremlin, and Vivian Fu are featured on this week's episode of Nicstalgia. We talk about making a critical statement through subversive glitter art, Dollz, cute internet sounds (what glitter sounds like), and early digital technology. We dive deep on social media and identity, exploring how digital personas evolve, how social media became a romanticized performance, and the psyops behind manufactured illusions of vulnerability. Turns out, photo dumps, making songs in your bedroom, and crying on TikTok aren’t “authentic” after all. (Let it be known that Vivian started “dumpage theory”, dissecting performative ugliness online.) We get into the psychology of the internet and optics of surveillance capitalism, looking at people as statistics in order to sell to them, and the lengths creators, influencers, and people with public-facing personalities on the internet will go to in order to be seen. We think about how to approach being online heuristically, where critical thinking, research, and media literacy help people discern what they see. Whether you’re a creator or consumer of content, you’ll enjoy the candidness of our discourse around internalizing and rejecting the “influencer” moniker, having self-worth and acceptance as a creator, how to not care about algorithms, and dealing with the pressure of being ~always online~. Our heads are already in the future, thinking about how artificial intelligence (AI) impacts the creative process and how web3 will disrupt web2 economies of scale, aka. how musicians will make money from their work instead of the streaming/social platforms. About our Guests Fabiola defines herself as a Net Art AI Internet Glitter Artist, her work is about the representation of the self on the Internet, the vulnerability of personal data, and our digital footprint focusing on surveillance with digital and physical objects. Gremlin is a Los-Angeles based creator who specializes in digital audio art. She makes pop music under the name Boule Goes Boing and creates experimental generative audio as gremlin_bb. When she’s not making music, Gremlin interviews web3 creators for Rusty Rollers Radio on Twitter and acts as a Category Lead for the web3 networking group Friends with Benefits. She loves analog synthesizers and heavy 808s. Vivian is some girl who was once on tumblr but now works in tech. Connect with Our Guests Fabiola: Twitter 〰 Instagram Gremlin: Twitter 〰 Instagram Vivian: Twitter 〰 Instagram Connect with Nic TikTok 〰 Instagram 〰 Twitter 〰 Substack Special Thanks 💖 Doll Artwork by @hmdraws_ Theme Music by @egmusicnyc Intro Video by @valentinareyes9 YouTube CC available in English and Español Episode Transcript

Nikki Pebbles is featured on this week's episode of Nicstalgia. Can the conversation about thongs ever really end??? No. Talking ~in depth~ about hiding your bedazzled and embellished Mandee’s, Weathervane, Wet Seal, Rave, and Rave Girl thongs from your mom. Did Nikki have her first kiss at a Harry Potter movie, wearing Jessica Simpson’s edible dessert line? Yes, of course she did. (Lorraine just knew.) Shout out to Mike’s Hard Lemonade. We talk about AIM away message/bio drama, dating someone in 8th grade and not only not talking to them but actively avoiding them in the hallway, school locker anxiety, and dealing with being cyber-bullied as the first generation of kids on the internet. We play “Shake It Fast, Watch Yourself” (inspired by the Mystikal song, naturally), where Nikki picks between two songs from my Middle School Dance Spotify playlist. Nikki and I share our favorite high school prom songs and the synchronicities between our childhood selves. Middle School Dance Playlist on Spotify Middle School Dance Culture Nicstalgia episode with Nicole & Nikki on YouTube Connect with Nikki TikTok 〰 Instagram Connect with Nic TikTok 〰 Instagram 〰 Twitter 〰 Substack Special Thanks 💖 Doll Artwork by @hmdraws_ Theme Music by @egmusicnyc Intro Video by @valentinareyes9 YouTube CC available in English and Español Episode Transcript

Shaleena from Everything 90s podcast is featured on this week's episode of Nicstalgia. Yes we met at what was truly the event of the year – Spice Girls trivia!! We talk about some of our shared loves, from the iconic Spiceworld album that we both had on cassette tape to Oops! I Did It Again, the iconic album inspired the Nicstalgia theme song! You’ll hear about the Swedish girl band Play, who literally brings a tear to Shaleena’s eye because they are so legendary. What also brings a tear to the eye is the fact that Cinderella (1997) didn’t have a soundtrack. Canadian Nicstalgia listeners will love this episode, as we discuss some of my favorite Canadian exports: Céline Dion (obviously), Degrassi, Avril Lavigne, Nelly Furtado, and more. (Shania Twain is notably missing, oops!!!! Pretend we talk about her instead of Justin Bieber lol.) I also never miss an opportunity to tell anyone that I was Myspace friends with Aubrey Graham in 2005, before he dropped his first mixtapes as who we now know as Drake. We dive deep into arguably the most iconic Canadian TV show of all time: The Big Comfy Couch!!! (Starring Loonette and Molly, a clown and her dolly) and I share my top 3 favorite TV theme songs. About our Guest Shaleena is the creator and host of Everything 90s Podcast - a show where she invites fellow 90s kids, and lovers of that decade, to join her on nostalgic trips down 90s memory lane. Connect with Shaleena Instagram Connect with Nic TikTok 〰 Instagram 〰 Twitter 〰 Substack Special Thanks 💖 Doll Artwork by @hmdraws_ Theme Music by @egmusicnyc Intro Video by @valentinareyes9 YouTube CC available in English and Español Episode Transcript

Donny from I Am The Cute One podcast is featured on this week's episode of Nicstalgia. We discuss which housewives franchise he would be a part of, my inherent understanding of RHONJ, and educating your parents about pop culture that they will never watch. All I’m saying is that we predicted the return of Laguna Beach streaming on Netflix!!! Donny answers the question of what being the ‘final girl’ really means and which celebrities he loves to hate. We talk about how not liking Anne Hathaway or even Lea Michele isn’t funny anymore, (Glee is the real American Horror Story, isn’t it??) which musical show Donny would have competed on and likely won, and which pop band should have recruited him as their final member. Did I work at a corporate fashion company for three years so that I could meet the leader of 2000s bubblegum pop girl band No Secrets? Yes. Have we waited in line for book signings at Barnes & Noble in Union Square for hours? Yes. Do we just want Jessica Biel to be happy? Yes. Is Donny is literally Sabrina’s aunt’s muse? Yes. About our Guest Donny is a nostalgia-obsessed entertainment writer and podcaster with a passion for 90s horror and early 2000s reality competition shows. If he could teach a college course about TGIF, he would; but until then, he spends his days rewatching Big Brother 6 and trying to persuade anyone that will listen that the title character was the actual villain of Sabrina the Teenage Witch. Connect with Donny Instagram Connect with Nic TikTok 〰 Instagram 〰 Twitter 〰 Substack Special Thanks 💖 Doll Artwork by @hmdraws_ Theme Music by @egmusicnyc Intro Video by @valentinareyes9 YouTube CC available in English and Español Episode Transcript