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Professional baby namer lists the most popular '80s girls' names that did not age well'

Bad news for the Heathers and Ashleys of the world.

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Photo credit: Canva, @namingbebe, TikTok

There was a time when every other girl was named Ashley. That time has ended.

As we know, baby name trends are constantly changing. One generation’s Barbara is another generation’s Bethany. But it doesn’t make it any less odd when you suddenly realize that your very own name has suddenly made it into the “old and unhip” pile. And for many of us 80s babies…that time is now.

In a now-viral TikTok post, baby name consultant Colleen Slagen went through the top 100 girl names from 1986 to find which ones “did not age well” and were no longer ranked top 1,000 today. Such a descent from popularity would mark them as what she calls “timestamp names.” Spoiler alert: what might be even more surprising than the names now considered old school are the names that are still going strong.

The first name that Slagen says is “officially out” is Heather. That’s right, not even cult movie fame could help it keep its ranking.

heather, heathers, winona ryder, classic movies, actressWinona Ryder in Heathers.media3.giphy.com

Other extinct names include Erica, Courtney, Lindsay, Tara, Crystal, Shannon, Brandy and Dana. Tiffany, Brittany and Casey are also heading very much in that direction.

“My name is Brandy. The Gen Z hostess at Olive Garden told me that she’d never heard my name before and it was so unique,” one viewer wrote.

However, Andrea ranks “surprisingly high,” and Jessica, Ashley and Stephanie have survived…so far.

Gobsmacked, one person asked “How is Stephanie still in there? I don’t think I’ve met a Stephanie younger than myself at 34.”

But the biggest holdout still belongs to Jennifer. “She was a top 100 name all the way up until 2008. Round of applause for Jennifer,” Slagen says in the clip.

@namingbebe

Sorry Lindsay, Heather, and Courtney. #babynames #nametok #nameconsultant #girlnames #80skid #1986 #nametrend


If your name has found its way into relic of a bygone era status, fret not. Slagen, whose name also ranks out of the top 1000, assures it just means “we are creatures of the 80's.”Of course, while we still have baby names that become incredibly common for extended periods of time (looking at you, little Liam and Olivia), the real contemporary trend is going for uniqueness. As an article in The Atlantic notes, for most of American history families tended to name their children after a previous family member, with the goal of blending in, rather than standing out. But now, things have changed.

Recently, Kelley Cole went viral on TikTok for a video in which she shared the names that Gen Z teens think are now officially for "old ladies," which they read right out of a classroom from 1985. “I was told my name was an old lady's name by the teenagers on the adolescent unit I was working on,” she begins her video. “I was surprised, so the subject came up of what names are old lady names versus young names.”

@kelleykelleykelley

#oldladynames #names #girlnames #babynames #popularnames #trendynames #genx #millennial #genxnames

Laura Wattenberg, the founder of Namerology, told the outlet that “Parents are thinking about naming kids more like how companies think about naming products, which is a kind of competitive marketplace where you need to be able to get attention to succeed.”

But again, even with a keen eye on individualism, patterns pop up. “The same thing we see in fashion trend cycles, we see in names,” Jessie Paquette, another professional baby namer, told Vox. “We’re seeing Eleanor, Maude, Edith—cool-girl grandma names.”

So who knows…give it time (or maybe just a pop song) and one of these 80s names could make a comeback.

This article originally appeared last year.

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A mom showed her Gen Z kids 'Ferris Bueller' and was surprised who they think the real hero is

Gen X and Gen Z apparently see the hero's journey very differently.

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A photo collage from the movie Ferris Bueller's Day Off.

It's really interesting what nearly 35 years does to the lens of perspective. When my friend invited me to join her family for their once-a-month movie night, she asked which John Hughes movie she should show her 14-year-old twins. The answer was obvious. It had to be something fun, school-related, and iconic. Ferris Bueller's Day Off seemed to be the perfect choice as we Gen X-ers loved it when we were exactly their age in 1986.

The fraternal twins (one boy, one girl) sat down on a rare early Saturday evening when neither had dance practice or a sleepover. We gathered in our comfy clothes, popped some popcorn, and hit "rent now."

They were excited by the opening scene, where an adorable Matthew Broderick (doesn't matter what generation one is, he transcends them all) is pretending to be sick in bed with worrying parents. His sister Jeanie is suspicious and exhausted by his antics, but Ferris prevails. He then proceeds to give a brilliant monologue about eating life up and living in the moment. His now-famous line, “Life moves pretty fast. If you don’t stop and look around once in a while, you could miss it,” is still plastered in quote books and on Bumble profiles.

The twins seemed inspired, and one of them actually teared up in the first five minutes.

The opening scene from Ferris Bueller's Day Off.www.youtube.com, Paramount Pictures, Film Studies Fundamntals

Spoilers ahead: the movie is pretty simple. Ferris is a super cool high school kid with a beautiful girlfriend, Sloane, played by Mia Sara. His best friend is a depressed hypochondriac named Cameron, who is played to perfection by Alan Ruck. Ferris skips school a lot (nine times!) and grabs each day by the neck. There are themes of Hedonism, Nihilism, and Taoism, but neither of the twins mentioned that.

The first thing both kids DID bring up (after being delighted by the shower monologue) was how privileged the characters were. Affluent Chicago suburbs, after all, was the setting John Hughes knew best. They also noted, as many have over the years, that Ferris seemed rather selfish and insensitive to what others in his life wanted and needed.

Ferris Bueller, 80s movies, Gen X, Gen ZA Ferris Buellers Day Off Film GIFGiphy Paramount Pictures

There have been many conversations over the years about Cameron being the true hero of the film. He has a story arc, unlike Ferris, that is unwavering. He's sad, but pushes through it and even gets the guts up to stand up to his father after a Ferrari incident.

In fact, there was a theory that Ferris was a figment of Cameron's imagination—a Fight Club scenario, if you will. Robert Vaux writes on CBR, "The theory holds that the entire day is a fantasy taking place in Cameron's head while he lies sick in bed. His sickness actually supports the theory: once Ferris comes over, it vanishes, and Cameron plunges energetically, if reluctantly, into the events of the day. According to the theory, it's because there are no events of the day. He's still sick at home, and the whole thing is a daydream."

cameron, ferris bueller's day off, 80s movies, john hughes, gen x, gen zCameron GIF in Ferris Buellers Day Off 80SGiphy, Paramount Pictures

I fully expected the twins to have similar thoughts. If not the Fight Club part, at least the idea that Cameron was the true protagonist. But what they (both of them) said instead was shocking. "No," the daughter told me. "I mean, I liked Ferris and I loved Cameron. But it's Jeanie who's the hero here."

Jeanie, the sister mentioned earlier, was played with pure rage by Jennifer Grey. She spends most of the movie attempting to narc on Ferris rather than enjoying her own beautiful day. She is angry and determined until…she meets a "bad boy" at the county jail, played complete with bloodshot eyes by Charlie Sheen.

Taken aback, their mom pushed back. "Jeanie, the sister? Why?"

The son answers, "She just changes the most. She starts out, like, having it in for Ferris. Really, having it in for EVERYONE. And then she just like figures it out." The daughter adds, "Yeah, in the end she was rooting for Ferris. She came the farthest from where she started and she's the one who kinda saved him."

Jennifer Grey meets Charlie Sheen in Ferris Bueller's Day Off.www.youtube.com, Paramount Pictures, Tvoldy23

Gobsmacked, I turned to Reddit for more answers. In the subreddit r/movies, someone recently posted, "Something I noticed about Ferris Bueller's Day Off." They then proceed to drive the Cameron theory forward. "At the start of the film, Cameron is in bed sickly and not really confident in himself, but as the movie progresses, he starts to get more confidence, and by the end, he gains the courage to stand up to his father."

A Redditor replies with this thoughtful answer: "I've heard it called a flat character arc when the protagonist doesn't change but is instead the catalyst for those around them to change. It's hard to pull off but is often the most satisfying kind of character. Ted Lasso (especially in season one) is a good example."

Others echo that idea, offering up characters like Forrest Gump and The Dude from The Big Lebowski. They stayed exactly the same while the world or others in their lives changed around them. It's described on a YouTube clip as "The moment you realize the main character is not actually the main character."

The movie Ferris Bueller's Day Off is dissected. www.youtube.com, Paramount Pictures, CinemaStix

This would give credence to the twins' opinion. But I'd never heard anyone choose Jeanie before, and they weren't swayed by Grey's performance in Dirty Dancing because they haven't seen it yet. When pressed one more time, their answer didn't change. "No doubt, it's the sister. She should have a spinoff." Their mom was so proud and we all totally agree.

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'Best by' and expiration dates are mostly arbitrary. Here are the times they really matter.

Most foods are safely edible well beyond the dates on the packaging, but there are a few you don't want to mess with.

Photo credit: Canva

Checking expiration dates is always a good idea, but so is knowing when they matter.

You're getting ready to cook dinner, so you start pulling ingredients out of your pantry. As you pick up a package of pasta, you realize you bought it a long time ago, so you search for a date. The "best by" date passed two months ago. Is it okay to eat it? Will it make you and your family sick? Is it worth taking a risk? Is there really a risk at all with pasta?

That's only the beginning of the questions when it comes to dating food items. What's the difference between "sell by" and "best by" and "use by" and "expiration" dates? What if the package just has a date with no words or letters to indicate which of those it is? Does "best by" mean it just isn't fresh past that date? Does "expires" mean it might kill you if you eat it?

food packaging, best by date, expiration date, expired, food safetyWhat if a food just has a date but no other indicators on it? Photo credit: Canva

You're not alone. Food packaging dates are befuddling because get this: there are no real regulations or national standards that determine how they're decided.

In reality, a lot of foods—especially dry packaged foods—can be safely consumed well past any of those dates. They may lose optimal freshness, and they might taste stale, but generally speaking, the dates don't mean what people think they mean. In fact, they don't really have a well-defined meaning at all.

bread package, food, best by date, sell by date, breadIs this a package date? Sell by date? Use by date? Best by date? Photo credit: Canva

“It is a complete Wild West,” Dana Gunders, executive director of ReFed (a nonprofit trying to end food waste) told CNN. "Many consumers really believe that they are being told to throw the food out, or that even when they don’t make that choice, that they’re sort of breaking some rule."

According to America's Test Kitchen's science editor Paul Adams, the dates on foods are almost entirely about freshness and taste quality and not about safety. The USDA website states, "Manufacturers provide dating to help consumers and retailers decide when food is of best quality. Except for infant formula, dates are not an indicator of the product’s safety and are not required by Federal law."

- YouTubewww.youtube.com

Which brings us to the handful of foods whose expiration dates actually do matter and that you shouldn't overlook or ignore because there is some food safety risk involved. No one wants listeria, salmonella, botulism, or other forms of foodborne illness (more commonly known as food poisoning).

Along with baby formula, it's important to pay attention to dates on fresh meat and fish, deli meats, and unpasteurized cheeses. But for the vast majority of other foods, using your senses to check for signs of spoilage and having a sense of how long certain foods will last once opened will tell you more than the date on the package will.

food spoilage, food safety, how to know if food is good, milk, meat, fishYour senses can tell you a lot about whether food is good to consume.Photo credit: Canva

Signs of spoilage include an "off" smell or taste, a change in color, and changes in texture (many foods develop a slippery or slimy feel when they start to spoil). If you see signs of mold, in some cases the whole package should be thrown out (such as bread) or the moldy parts can be cut off (such as hard cheeses, cutting off an inch past the mold). For fresh fruits and vegetables that start to get moldy, a general rule is if it's hard/firm, you can cut the moldy part off plus an inch, and if it's soft/squishy, throw it out. (The USDA has a helpful chart to see which foods can still be used with mold cut off and which should be tossed.)

Knowing how long foods generally last once opened or purchased will also help you gauge when a food is too iffy to consume. FoodSafety.gov has a handy cold food storage chart that you can even download as a PDF if you want to print it out and put it in your kitchen for quick reference.

And, of course, there's the wise adage, "When in doubt, throw it out." But with the few exceptions listed above, dates on packages aren't the primary thing that should lead you to doubt.

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Psychology reveals surprising personality traits of people who still write grocery lists by hand

Could this really be relevant? Yes.

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Phone or handwritten? The great debate ensues.

Are you the type of person who always writes grocery lists by hand? Perhaps on the back of a receipt, in a special notebook, or on an index card? Do you insist on this method, even though you’re the only one in the store unfurling paper like an ancient scroll while everyone has their heads down, tapping away at their phones?

Lists are undoubtedly important. In a recent poll, research revealed that the average British adult writes an average of three to-do lists a week—which, in some cases, can add up to 9,766 lists in a lifetime. “Evidently, we all rely on lists for one aspect of life or another,” commented Shahbaz Khan from STABILO, a high-quality pen and pencil company.

But when it comes to the actual list-making, does the method in which you create it really matter? Apparently, yes. And your choice, handwritten or digital, can say a lot about your personality.


grocery list, grocery, lists, handwritten, handwritingPeople who write their lists by hand might be able to remember them better.Photo credit: Canva

If you prefer handwriting, you’re likely…

To have a mind that operates like a filing cabinet.

In 2024, two professors at the Norwegian University of Science and Technology, Dr. Audrey L.H. Van der Meer and F.R. (Ruud) Van der Weel, found that handwriting activates more elaborate and widespread brain connectivity patterns compared to typing. They suggest that the physical act of moving your hand while writing creates spatial and temporal patterns in the brain that promote learning.

In a similar study, Japanese researchers found that participants who wrote calendar events by hand on paper showed increased brain activity—particularly in memory regions—compared to those who recorded the same information on smartphones. The hand writers also recalled the information 25% faster than those who typed. Writing by hand triggers extra neural activity in regions tied to learning and memory. So, no matter how messy your handwriting might be, that grocery list might also be giving your memory a little work-out.

via GIPHY

To be naturally conscientious and understand the secret to success.

Conscientiousness isn't the same as self-control or self-restraint—rather, it refers to a person's tendency to be organized, reliable, goal-directed, and self-disciplined. It's no surprise, then, that those who score highly in conscientiousness tend to be successful: they aim for high-profile outcomes and have the ability to develop well-thought-out plans to accomplish their goals.

Comfortable getting tactile.

Nothing quite compares to writing with your perfect pen. (By the way, what's yours? A Pilot G2-2? Uni-ball Vision Elite? Or perhaps something fancy, like the Squire Classic Pen from Baronfig?) It's a complete sensory experience as your pen glides across paper. This physical connection helps create a deeper engagement with the task at hand.

woman, child, grocery, shopping, listWriting your list by hand could curb impulse shopping. Photo credit: Canva

To not buy on impulse.

Yanliu Huang and Zhen Yang from the LeBow College of Business at Drexel University examined how handwritten shopping lists differ from digital ones. Their research showed that people who write lists on paper tend to make more planned purchases and fewer impulse buys.

However, there are a few downsides to a handwritten grocery list…

Let's face it: sometimes you can't read your own handwriting. When rushing, you might scribble illegibly, forget items, or leave the paper at home entirely. (Pro tip for forgetful hand-writers: snap a photo of your list before heading out, just in case.)

Paper lists are also cumbersome to update on the go. Picture this—you've just remembered you need onions while backing out of the driveway, but now you're scrambling for a pen. Don't do this. Plus, paper lists make it difficult to coordinate shopping with other people.


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If you’re #DigitalForever, you’re likely…

In a poll of 2,000 people in the United Kingdom, researchers found that when it comes to list-making, only 40% use their phones, while 63% write on notepads and 24% use sticky notes. So congrats—you're right in the middle!

Extremely efficient and organized.

Your phone is a miracle list-maker: people who use digital lists value practicality over sentimentality—they appreciate the power of automatic sorting, expense tracking, and integrated coupon features. These lists can be updated instantly and accessed from almost any device, making them the most efficient, streamlined option.

Someone who uses data to make decisions.

Beyond expense tracking, many apps provide nutritional data, meal planning suggestions, and inventory management—helping you make smarter, healthier food choices. You're not just shopping anymore; you're strategically planning your nutrition.

groceries, grocery shopping, produce, lists, shopping, nutritionDigital lists are perfect for collaborations. Photo credit: Canva

Collaborating with someone in the kitchen.

The beauty of a digital list is that it can be shared with others in real time, allowing multiple people to add items seamlessly. This eliminates miscommunications and duplicate purchases while reducing paper waste and promoting environmentally friendly habits.

The digital life has its downsides, too…

Taking a break from your phone can be refreshing, but keeping your grocery list there means more screen time—potentially leading to digital fatigue or distractions from notifications and other apps. There's also the practical concern: what if your phone dies, you lose Internet connection, or your service drops out while shopping?

Grocery shopping can be such a treat. Whether you use digital lists, handwritten scribbles, or memory tricks to track what you need, there's no wrong approach. The “best” way to write a grocery list depends on you: your personal preferences, your lifestyle, and what works for your routine. Ask yourself, “What will make me feel the most organized and calm?” Then let your grocery list lead the way.


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'ASL?' My Gen Z kids were appalled over elder Millennials lack of Internet safety as teens

"How are y'all still alive?"

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Gen Z kids appalled by lack of internet safety of Millennial teens

The late 90s and early 2000s were certainly interesting times to come of age in America, and elder Millennials were the guinea pigs. We are part of what is known as a micro-generation, often referring to ourselves as the Oregon Trail Generation or Xennials due to our very unique experience of coming of age during the Internet's infancy.

Because we were the first teenagers exposed to the Internet in school and out, there were very little restrictions on what we were allowed to do online. It was essentially the Wild West and we were pretty oblivious to the dangers as were our parents, so no one was checking to see what we were doing. During a chat with my Gen Z kids recently, they recalled all the restrictions placed on them around electronics with access to the Internet. One bravely dared to ask if my parents were as strict about Internet use in the 1900s.

Gen Z; internet safety; AOL chatrooms; Millennial teens; Oregon Trail; Xennials; early internet; parentingoregon trail 80s GIFGiphy

They love to pull the 1900s card as if we were all churning butter on our front porches waiting for our pa to come back from town in a horse drawn carriage. I play along by talking in a drawn out old timey southern accent (I'm from Pennsylvania) to say something along the lines of, "Back in my day we had to walk up the Internet hills both ways while waiting for our dialup connection. Ma and Pa didn't even know how to turn the dang flabbin computer on I reckon so we talked to a lot of strangers in a far off land called an AOL chatroom and told them our ASL."

Gen Z; internet safety; AOL chatrooms; Millennial teens; Oregon Trail; Xennials; early internet; parentingSurprised students with books and open mouths against orange background.Photo credit: Canva

After explaining that ASL stood for "Age, Sex, Location" and not American Sign Language they were genuinely concerned. My younger one asked if we gave out accurate information and their older brother confidently said something about the use of a VPN. The looks of absolute horror that came across their faces when I broke the news that there was no VPN and I wasn't sure they existed then were truly something to behold. Suddenly, I was being scolded by two teenagers telling me how dangerous it is to share you location with strangers on the Internet. One of them even threatened to tell my mother, though I'm not quite sure what they thought the result would be there

Their questions, shock, and seeming disappointment grew when I shared we would meet some of these strangers at the mall and some friends even had them pick them up from their houses. My youngest Gen Zer gasped at that revelation, asking, "How are y'all still alive? Didn't you watch Unsolved Mysteries with that creepy guy telling you all about kids disappearing?"

Gen Z; internet safety; AOL chatrooms; Millennial teens; Oregon Trail; Xennials; early internet; parentingSurprised by what he sees on the tablet!Photo credit: Canva

Of course we watched Unsolved Mysteries and of course we didn't think those things could happen to us. The perk of being a teenager is truly believing that you're invincible while also never fully thinking through the consequences of impulsive decisions. Thankfully, myself and all of my high school and college friends made it to the other side without ending up another story for Robert Stack to tell.

Our late adolescence is also likely the reason many elder Millennials are so vigilant with our children's Internet access. We know what we were doing while unsupervised on the Internet and how quickly technology can develop, leaving parents in the dark and teenagers exposed to dangers. But having the conversation really opened the floor to deeper discussion about Internet safety and additional precautions I took while raising them in a world immersed in the quick paced advancements of the World Wide Web.

Gen Z; internet safety; AOL chatrooms; Millennial teens; Oregon Trail; Xennials; early internet; parentingInternet Web Surfing GIFGiphy

I'm the first to admit that they have reached the age where they have completely surpassed my knowledge of all things Internet. My oldest son rolls his eyes as I call him "Tech Support" when I can't figure something out just as I rolled my eyes when my parents would call me after class to ask where they were supposed to type a web address. Technology is inherently for the young. Sure, old fogies like me and older can catch on and use it, but we're slower at jumping on the bandwagon. We don't particularly like a lot of change and we also don't want to be left behind, which usually keeps us in the same role with our parents that we put our children in with us–show me how you work this thing.

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Watch a 5-year-old piano prodigy absolutely shred the ivories... while blindfolded

He's preparing to play Carnegie Hall before his 6th birthday.

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A 5-year-old piano prodigy has been invited to play at New York City's most prestigious concert call.

When I was five, the year was 1992. Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles was my whole world, I was getting ready to start kindergarten, and the most pressing issue on my mind was what to put on my Christmas list (Answer: A Sega Genesis). I took piano lessons around that age, but gave it up after a few years because I was more interested in other things (like my Sega Genesis).

Five-year-old Armenian-American Alec Van Khajadourian has taken a slightly different approach. His natural talent, passion, and work ethic have turned him into one of the most skilled pianists of his age in the entire world. In other words, he's a prodigy.

The child began showing his natural talents at the age of two. By age three-and-a-half, his piano teacher discovered that Alec has "perfect pitch" which is a rare and unique ability some people seem to be born with that allows them to correctly identify any note they hear. Think of it like photographic memory for music. Only about 1 in 10,000 people have the ability, which comes from a combination of genetic predisposition and early exposure to music.

When he was four, he performed his first recital alongside fifth graders (usually age 10-11). By five, he had won multiple international music competitions.

“When he started walking, he’d go right to the piano, tapping keys and smiling from ear to ear,” his father said in an interview. “We could tell right away that he had a special connection to music, and his skills have developed incredibly quickly.”

His parents have been posting some of Alec's incredible performances online to a social media account they manage, including one where he attempts an extremely challenging piece while wearing a blindfold.

The selection, one of Alec's favorites, is "Flamenco" by W. Gillock. It's an extremely inventive and upbeat piece that's fun to play and relatively easy to learn due to its composition and symmetry, but it requires some advanced hand, wrist, and finger techniques to pull off at a high level.

It also helps if you have your eyesight available. But that doesn't seem to hinder Alec very much in this clip.

After a video of Alec showing off his incredible perfect pitch skills went viral, local news stations around the country started picking up his story.

People just couldn't believe what those tiny hands could do on the ivories, and they got so much joy out of watching how much Alec loves to play.

"bravo to this young boy! The future looks bright" one commenter wrote.

"Cuteness overload and a little prodigy!" someone said.

"So cool, keep up the good work dude!" added another.

Did you know that there's actually a specific definition of the word "prodigy"?

I always thought a prodigy was any young kid who showed exceptional abilities in a given field. While that's accurate, the true definition is a little more specific.

Prodigy specifically refers to a child under the age of 10 who can perform at the level of a highly-trained adult.

Watching Alec play, it's clear that at the age of five he's well beyond the level that most adults could reach without serious training. The finger movement, wrist positioning, and playing speed are remarkable. And he does it all while his arms are too short to reach the whole set of keys—watch him slide up and down the bench so that he can play the full scale. It's incredible.

The obvious question that Alec's parents get a lot is whether they're pushing him into it. They say that Alec is completely self-driven and motivated, and that their job is to nurture his talent—as long as he wants them to.

“As long as it brings him joy, we’ll continue to support him," Alec's father said.

In interviews, they say Alec is really a normal five-year-old in most ways. He plays with the family dog, loves video games, and goes to pre-school. But his entire demeanor changes when he sits down at the piano. He brings an intense focus to his craft while still managing to take joy in playing.

“It makes me feel good,” Alec told NBC Los Angeles. “It feels calm.”

- YouTubewww.youtube.com

What's next for Alec? Well, his whole life, for starters. But more immediately, he's been invited to perform at Carnegie Hall and Disney Concert Hall.

The pianist was four years old when he decided he one day wanted to play at New York City's Carnegie Hall, one of the most storied and legendary musical venues in the United States. When his skills began going viral, it wasn't long before he received an invite to perform there. Achieving his lifelong dream before he even turns six—not bad!

He'll play at the NY Classic Debut Awards Gala Concert in July 2025.

Alec is also beginning to compose his own music. For reference, Mozart wrote his own first composition when he was only five and, suffice it to say, it still slaps.

- YouTubewww.youtube.com

I've always wondered why we're so fascinated with child prodigies.

It's inherently fun and surprising to see tiny people excelling at things far beyond their years. But I think it's also enjoyable to imagine what it would be like to find something you're passionate about and extremely good at from a young age. For many of us, it takes years and years, decades even, to find even one or the other—let alone both.

Prodigies, especially in the social media age, always face a critical transition at some point. When the novelty of their young age begins to wear off and people stop being amazed at their precociousness, what do they do? Do they double down on their craft and solidify themselves as a true master, or do they take the opportunity to let go of the fame and go live a more "normal" life?

Alec has a bright future ahead of him in music, that much is for sure. We can't wait to see where his talents take him, on the piano or otherwise.

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