I read a book called The 90's, and being 38, I was a kid in the 90's and about a teenager at the end. The book broke down a lot of what defined the era, the Clinton era or politics being a major factor
There were a lot of important shifts, 9/11 was a huge one. A lot of cultural changes. The election of George Bush in 2000. Major changes in the rap game. Hip hop becoming more prevalent. Parenting is huge. 90's parents tended to be way more open in terms of we just ran around. We ran the neighborhood until it got dark, and even then i would just call and say I'm up the street, staying for dinner. Parents are a lot more controlled now. Phones are a part of that.
The smartphone is the defining tech/social event of the 2000's, but probably the last 40 years at least. Social media. We had none of that in the 90's. Entertainment wasn't so bespoke. Oh do you have Netflix? No I have HULU? Are you on Tik Tok? No, I'm on Snap.
We watched a lot of the same shows. The same music. Not all the exact same. But, for instance, All My Life was a song that everyone loved. You didn't have to be this race or that race-- or a R&B fan, you just loved that song. A lot of common touch points in everyone's life. Lots of people went to movies or watched them. The same ones. We listened to the same artists. There was a lot more commonality. Being an extreme fan was seen as a being kind of weirdo. Like obsessing over artists online or "stan wars" wasn't really a thing. We hung a poster, and read interviews in XXL or The Source.
