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Gen Xers explain that weird moment in the late '90s when everyone got into swing music

It was money and we didn't even know it.

via Children of the Nineties/Blogspot

The Gap brought swing to the mainstream with its "Khakis Swing" commercial.

Every Gen Xer remembers a small moment in time when swing music was extremely popular in the late '90s. Swing went from nonexistent to an alt-rock radio mainstay from 1996 to 1998 and then, it was gone in a flash.

During that time, young people rushed to their nearest dance studios to learn the Lindy Hop and bought up old-school, retro suits and fedoras. Swing clubs started popping up all over the country and MTV played swing-inspired videos such as "Hell" by Squirrel Nut Zippers, "Jump Jive an' Wail" by Brian Setzer Orchestra and "You and Me (and the Bottle Makes Three)" by Big Bad Voodoo Daddy.

Film editor Simone Smith asked Gen X to explain what the hell was going on in the late '90s that led to swing music making a huge comeback.

It's always hard to figure out how specific trends crop up, but according to Kenneth Partridge from Billboard, it began with the formation of Royal Crown Revue in 1989 by two members of the seminal L.A. punk band Youth Brigade. Royal Crown Revue's old-school '40s tough-guy aesthetic was something punks could relate to while also bringing back the danceable '40s sound.

The band had a Wednesday night residency at L.A.'s The Derby before turning it over to Big bad Voodoo Daddy, who were featured in John Favreau's 1996 surprise hit "Swingers."

"Swingers" was probably the most important moment in the swing revival. The film centered around friends who roam L.A. like a modern-day Rat Pack to a soundtrack featuring Dean Martin, Count Basie and Big Bad Voodoo Daddy.

Others attribute swing's rise in popularity to "A League of their Own," (1992) "Swing Kids" (1993) and "The Mask" (1994).

In 1998, The Gap brought swing to the mainstream with its "Khakis Swing" commercial, featuring good-looking young people Lindy-hopping to the sounds of Louis Prima.

​On a psychological level, the swing craze seemed to be a pivot from the dreariness of grunge rock that began to fade from the public consciousness by around 1996. Some also think that the upbeat, fun music was a response to the return to the prosperity of Clinton-era America.

At the same time, rave culture, which was also centered around dancing and had an upbeat aesthetic, was becoming popular as well.

Some Gen Xers did their best to explain the phenomenon that felt like it came out of nowhere.

Swing music? it could have been worse.


Smith may be confused that there was a big swing craze in the '90s, but she should also know that it wasn't the only strange musical comeback of the era. What in the world was the whole Gregorian chant craze about?

This article originally appeared on 11.16.21


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Millennial asks Gen X people how they got their scars and the responses are unbelievable

"In fairness, most of us thought we would never make it to 30."

Photo credit: Canva

Gen X shares unbelievably wild tales on how they got their scars

Scars are something that just about everyone has. Some scars serve as memories from our childhoods while others occurred as adults from surgeries or other accidents. Either way, the permanent scars on our bodies tell a story, but the stories Gen Xers have to tell may not be for those with a weak constitution.

A woman that goes by Anxietay13 on social media is a Millennial married to a Gen Xer. Recently she shared a video expressing her horror in learning about how her husband got some of his scars. The mom proposed that other younger generations make it into sort of a game to find a random Gen Xer and point to any visible scar to ask how they received it.

Her prediction is that this middle aged generation will take inquirers on a truly wild expedition through their childhood that seems so far fetched that it sounds made up.

"Here's a fun little game you can play with your nearest Gen Xer the next time you get bored but trigger warning, it's not for the weak," the woman exclaims.

The given directive is to locate a scar, any scar and ask them how they got it, "and then just sit back and enjoy the chaos because they're never going to end the story with, 'and then I went to the doctor.'"

The Millennial's rant about Gen X scars was like a homing beacon because Gen Xers came out of the woods with a box of Little Debbie's in one hand and a good walking stick in the other to spin tales about their childhoods.

One woman shares, "big scar on my knee from 1st or 2nd grade. Wiped out in the gravel on the playground, teacher sprayed something on it, mom gave me a bandaid. Like 2 weeks later the scab came off and gravel fell out."

Nothing like walking around with tiny rocks in your knee for a couple of weeks, but that's not the most unhinged thing someone shared with the flabbergasted Millennial.


@anxietay13 I’m gonna start drinking from the hose…there’s something to it 🤔 #genx #genxersoftiktok #agegapcouple ♬ original sound - Anxietay13


"I drilled my index finger in high school metals class. They cleaned it up, put a band aid on it and never called my parents," another says.

"Oh this one on my forehead, my sister hit me in the head with 2 by 4 an it had a nail in it," one person explains.

"Broke my arm on the monkey bars at school. Rode the bus home. Mom gave me an ace bandage. Went to school trip next day to Carter Caves," someone else shares.

Gen X has some stories to tell. One Gen Xer, The Geek Preacher, responded with a video of his own explaining how he was being chased by his older brother when a board fell out of the ceiling plunging a rusty nail in his arm. There was no trip to the doctor or updated tetanus shot but it was the gem he dropped at the end that he might have wanted to lead with.

"I'm sorry what...... you drop that last part so casually...... you said your brother SET YOU ON FIRE?!," a commenter asks.


@thegeekpreacher #stitch with @Anxietay13 #GenX The #scars are real. The #1970s and #1980s ♬ original sound - The Geekpreacher


The 80s and early 90s was a different time for sure and while one person jokes that, "in fairness, most of us thought we would never make it to 30," we're all glad they did. Who else would tell childhood stories so outrageous that they cause you to question your own sanity.

So, Gen X, what's your craziest scar story?

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People are sharing all the random things they 'haven't thought about since grade school'

"The flavor of the wooden spoon haunts me to this day."

via Twitter

Everyone's childhood is different. But there are common objects, sights, sounds, smells, and memories from elementary school that most Gen Xers and Millenials share.

Personally, when i think back to being in elementary school in the '80s, I remember the taste of the chocolate ship cookie we got on Fridays (with the pizza). The humiliation of getting nailed in the back during nation ball. And the grumbling, grinding sound that happened when you slipped a disk into the drive on an Apple IIe computer.

Nowadays, in a world where most kids would have no idea how to even turn on an Apple IIe or have never felt the sting of a rubber nation ball hitting them square between the shoulders, I get a bittersweet feeling when I think back to my elementary school days.

Mel Madara stirred the nostalgia pot on Twitter this week when she posted a series of photos of things she remembers from elementary school that anyone from 50 to 25 probably recollect, too.

via Daniel Bagel / Flickr


She started up with a series of objects and experiences you may have forgotten that were a daily part of elementary school life.


She inspired countless followers to share the things they remember from elementary school in the '80s and '90s.

Heads-up 7-up!

Can you remember the anxiety as someone walked slowly though the room and you hoped and prayed they touched your thumb?


That clock you can wind up from behind.



Do you remember dying on Oregon trail repeatedly?



Four square!



Was that a state-mandated fitness exam or a test for scoliosis?



M.A.S.H.! Did you wind up in a mansion, apartment, shack or a house? What kind of job did you get? Who did you marry? What kind of car do you drive?



Before Michelle Obama it was acceptable to feed a kid a taquito filled with pizza.



Tether ball was fun until one of those rock hard balls hit you in the face.



The stool that helped you grab that Judy Blume book just out of reach. It aw also a rgeat place to sit and read if the tables were filled up or you just wanted some privacy.



Is the VCR bolted down? Check! TV strapped in? Check. It's time for a rainy day movie.



... or if you're older, you got "Rikki-Tikki-Tavi" or some other Disney nature film on 16mm film in the school cafeteria.



My skin is peeling off!



This brutal contraption isn't a Medieval torture device but a way to sarpen your pencil.



Finally, if more of us listened to this guy, the country would be in a much better place.



This article originally appeared on 03.05.20
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Pop Culture

Gen Xers are sharing the 15 things that people under 25 will 'never understand'

"Hello, and welcome to Moviefone!"

via Adria Berrocal Forcada/ Unsplash, Daniel Schludi/Unsplash and Sam Dan Truong/Unsplash

Casette tapes, film cameras and landlines were a big part of the pre-2000 world.

There have been a few momentous changes since the dawn of the new millennium, creating an invisible line between those born before and after. The big events that forever changed culture are the creation of the smartphone, dawn of social media and terror attacks on 9/11.

People who were born in 1999 or later have, for the most part, lived in a world where they were either too young to know what life was like before these events or weren’t born yet.

That’s not to say that one era is better or worse. But, when an entire generation has no idea what it is like to go through a day without being connected to the internet, we’re bound to eventually lose any understanding of living IRL 24/7.

Those of us who haven’t lived in a world without intense security while traveling will be less inclined to return to a time when it was easier to move through the world without fear. People who live in a time where everything is available on demand have no idea how much they should appreciate the convenience. Back in the day, if you missed a show, you may not ever have a chance to see it again in your entire life.

A Reddit user named Haunting_Ad_1224 posed a question to the AskReddit forum that got a lot of Gen Xers and older generations, nostalgic for the days before Y2K. They asked the forum, “What's something that people under 25 will never understand?” and received nearly 2,000 responses. The commenters talked a lot about the benefits of being able to disconnect while also sharing their nostalgia for the days of landlines and cassette tapes.

Here are 15 things that people under 25 will never understand.

1. Taping songs off the radio

"Waiting for a song to come on the radio so you can tape it but completely forgetting until it comes on then making a mad dash to the radio." — Collieman 1123

"Or having the dj talk over the intro." — HorselRockit

2. The Time Lady

"Calling from a landline to get the current time." — Surround726

3. Calling for movie times

"Calling your local theater for show times." — Andushan

"Moviefone and a notepad and pencil." — PerpetualGazebo

"Or checking the newspaper for show times." — ieatboys999

4. Talking to parents

"Calling your friend’s house on the landline and making small talk with their parents when they were the ones who answered until your friend got to the phone." — McVinney512

"Calling a girl you have a crush on but her mom answers and you have a 20-minute conversation because she sounds just like said girl until you say something embarrassing and she realizes she is not talking to her brother." — GlyohedArchitect

5. Life before the internet

"I'm as addicted to my phone as the typical teenager, but I'm old enough to remember when I'd get off work at the end of the day and there was no expectation that I was reachable until I came back to work the following day. Good times, didn't appreciate it enough back then." — Moshethemean

"The idea that being asleep, having dinner, or watching a show was a perfectly good reason why no one answered the phone." — Reavenas

6. Privacy

"Privacy is rapidly going away. But the root cause is people not valuing it. If you told people in the '70s that people 50 years later would be happy to have open mics to multiple corporate headquarters in their living rooms they would freak out. There's no way you could convince someone from the '70s that people would actually want that and not value their privacy in any substantive manner. I can barely understand it myself." — Dcnblues

7. Boredom

"Went to use the bathroom the other day while my phone was charging, resorted back to the old days, and read the stuff on shampoo bottles." — Hairyemmie

8. Dial-up internet tone

"Trying to sneak online with dial-up when you're supposed to be asleep. There was no muting those dial-up tones." — XxVerdantFlamesX

9. Film cameras

"Taking pictures, then waiting for them to be developed to see if they turned out okay. YEAH, I am really old lol." — Ranjoko

"… resulting in a few dozen cherished memories you will keep as treasures in a box or on a wall. Not thousands of no-effort shots in the cloud no-one will ever look at except perhaps AI image scanners." — Moose2342

10. Life before 9/11

"You ever see movies where family or a friend is at the gate waiting for someone to get off the plane to hug them? Yeah that. ... People could often even accompany you on the airplane to see you off, and then they'd leave the plane before departure." — -DementedAvenger-

11. Being a free kid

"Being kicked out of the house for the day during the summer and riding your bicycles around town and buying candy with the 50 cents you have to your name. No phones, no tablets, just finding your friends at the or whatever. Having that become the best day ever." — CapricornMonk

12. Commercial breaks

"The mad dash to go to the bathroom or heat up food before the commercials ended and your show came back on." — Leokina114

"Alternatively, painstakingly programming the clock on your vcr, and setting it up to record the show on a blank tape." — Griffin Flash

13. The power of channel 3

"Using channel 3 as the source to play video games or use the VCR." — Substantial-Cream-93

"Also, when the reception went out, we had to go up to the attic to fiddle with the antenna. TV static is also different - went from fuzzy white noise to digital blips. We watched so many shows through static but when the pixels blip it's gone. Also now it seems we lose service way more often than when TV wasn't all digital." — Shewholaughslasts

14. Aging

"How quickly they will become 50." — Icy_Newspaper3739

"This is no joke. There’s a saying that the days are long but the years are short. Perhaps the most accurate phrases ever uttered." — Junior-Gorg

15. Disappearing

"Being able to just 'disappear' for a while. Before cell phones, there was a time when people couldn’t get ahold of you at all times for any reason." — Yikester

"This is something I love about flying, there's no way to contact me since I've never paid for WiFi. No calls, emails, Whatsapp, can't mindlessly scroll Reddit or watch YouTube, just completely disconnected." — Dr-Kipper


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