Masuk Free Press

Clean girl slick back bun. Run, don’t walk to the new Lana Del Rey Skims collection. Bring back blueberry milk nails. Girl math and girl dinner. Heatless curl tutorial for ALL hair types. New Valentine’s Day Stanley cup released. All linked in my Amazon storefront. Alix Earle, Kylie Jenner, Emma Chamberlain. Are you a girl’s girl?

If you are a teenager and belong to social media, chances are you have been exposed to the exhausting and never-ending circus of these trends. TikTok and Instagram and most social media platforms have helped to create and feed the consumer mentality that makes up most young girls. The true definition of girlhood has been completely altered by modern capitalism.

According to FONA International, a website dedicated to consumption around the world, “On average, teen spending accounts for roughly 250 billion dollars per year.” The purchase rates of teenagers have steadily increased with the influence of social media. New products are flashed every week, supported by your favorite influencers every day. As long as everybody else is doing so, a girl’s first instinct is to buy, buy, buy. 

Navigating through the labyrinth that is modern trends, it is clear that most teenage girls of this generation entwine their identity with a constant pursuit of the newest, hottest and most glittery.

From messy girl to clean girl aesthetic, to the allure of pink bows, every facet of existence seems to hinge on what social media declares as the “next big thing”. 

According to the reputable statistical database Lexington Law, “82 percent of female teenagers say that online influencers help them discover brands and trends.” 

However, amidst the fog of Lululemon Align tanks and new matcha recipes, one must stop and think; What lies beneath this incessant cycle of consumption? Social media platforms like Instagam and TikTok, while serving as a catalyst for these trends, also perpetuate a consumerist culture that defines the very essence of being a teenage girl today. 

Merriam-Webster defines being a girl as, “having a gender identity that is the opposite of male.” Truthfully, we know it is much deeper than this. Young women share experiences that not everyone can relate to. It is time we start looking at this instead of becoming mere products of the digital age.

Though it may sound silly to others, a time I felt true girlhood was going to see the Taylor Swift Eras Tour movie in theaters with my best friends. I was surrounded by friends who found just as much excitement in singing and dancing to “You Belong With Me,” people who were just as enthusiastic about getting dressed up to sit in an AMC chair. 

Olivia Cusa, a sophomore who also watched the Eras Tour movie said, “It was like every little problem I had didn’t exist for three hours.” This is not only the power of Taylor Swift among teen girls, but the power of a shared experience and love for music. 

Another experience most girls can relate to is being in the bathroom before a school dance. 

Cusa said, “Being with your best friends, fixing each other’s makeup, listening to getting-ready-music, taking pictures. It’s a huge part of being a girl.”

This is the part of girlhood we should focus on. The endless consumption of trends is desolate compared to the rich experiences. Social media has caused us to conform to extreme capitalism under the false idea that “all the girls are doing it.”

It is time for young women to carve out their own identities beyond the confines of fleeting trends. It is time to question, to challenge and to redefine what it truly means to be a girl’s girl in a world overrun by algorithms and influencer endorsements.