McBling

## General Information

The McBling look gained popularity somewhere between 2000 and 2008. sharing similarities in aesthetics with Y2K, UrBling, Surf Crush, Frutiger Aero, 2K1, and 2K7. The term was first used on a Facebook page created in 2016 by Y2K Aesthetics Institute's Evan Collins. Though it did overlap with the real Y2K style, it is more commonly referred to on social media as "Y2K fashion," "Trashy Y2K," or just plain "Y2K."

### History

The McBling aesthetic initially emerged at the turn of the millennium. Around this time, the Y2K aesthetic started to fade and gave way to the transitional 2K1 aesthetic because of oversaturation, the dot-com crash, 9/11-related paranoia, and a general desire on the part of the American people to move on to other things. Britney Spears and Justin Timberlake's denim at the 2001 VMAs, "Get Low" by Lil Jon (2002), "Bling Bling" by B.G. (1999), and the music video for Madonna's 2000 song "Music" are among of the early examples of the McBling style. With the commencement of the Iraq War in 2003, McBling was beginning to get more notoriety.

With the release of Mean Girls, the popularization of Myspace, the popularization of emo through Green Day's American Idiot, the phasing-out of 2K1, the iPod becoming a huge status symbol through Apple's silhouette ad campaign, the premieres of Laguna Beach and Lost, and the beginning of Gwen Stefani's solo career, the Y2K era came to an abrupt end in late 2004 and gave rise to the McBling aesthetic. McBling coexisted or was overlapping with several other 2000s styles, including Frutiger Aero, Surf Crush, 2K7, UrBling, and more.

The Great Recession, Barack Obama's victory, and the ensuing reaction against 2000s society brought an end to the McBling period in late 2008. This ushered in the roughly 2008–2013 ElectroPop 08/Hipster/Jersey Shore Era. The McBling style has gained popularity on social media in recent years, despite the fact that there are some distinctions between the two. For example, McBling-era designs are sometimes wrongly referred to as "Y2K fashion" on TikTok and Depop. "Bubblegum Bling" is another term used to describe the McBling comeback.

### Appearance

The visual aesthetic of the 2000s, often referred to as McBling, featured distinct elements like 1970s-esque maximalism, the prominent use of the Candice font, and a culture of idolizing mainstream pop stars, including figures like Paris Hilton, Beyoncé, and Britney Spears. Iconic items such as bedazzled flip phones, trucker hats, large jeeps, and Hummers were emblematic of the era. Bling culture was further amplified through websites like MySpace and Blingee, with the color pink, particularly a vibrant hot pink, gaining popularity through Paris Hilton's influence. However, the McBling aesthetic also had a darker side, marked by numerous celebrity scandals. These included Britney Spears' public meltdown in 2007, Lindsay Lohan's repeated legal troubles, leaked celebrity sex tapes featuring individuals like Pamela Anderson, Paris Hilton, and Kim Kardashian, and the tumultuous personal struggles of stars like Amy Winehouse, who tragically passed away in 2011 at the age of 27. The era was also characterized by tabloid sensationalism, messy red carpet looks, and high-profile relationship dramas, such as Brad Pitt leaving Jennifer Aniston for Angelina Jolie in 2005 and Anna Nicole Smith's controversial marriage to 89-year-old Howard Marshall II.