Hey, guys! I hope you’re having an amazing week. This week’s song of the week is “Only Angel” by Harry Styles. I was sifting through my liked songs on Spotify to find something that I hadn’t listened to in a while, and “Only Angel” seemed to make a swift comeback and naturally made it onto my weekly playlist. I definitely recommend listening to this one on full blast in the car or the shower--it's worth it I promise. Now, onto my highlights of 2020.
Wisdom Kayne:
This year was definitely….a year to say the least. But even though coronavirus put the world on pause, some gems burst onto my TikTok timeline, one of them being Wisdom Kayne (@wisdm8 on Tiktok and @wisdm on Instagram). I’ve been following Kayne on TikTok since February, and watching him grow from 200 thousand followers to almost five million has been an amazing journey. Kayne’s content is fashion-focused, and he often creates short videos of the most chic outfits that I’ve ever seen. His style just perfectly fits the energy he gives off amazingly well. The way he edits his videos is the most distinct feature of his Tiktoks (here’s one of my favorites), and I feel like it’s one of the most distinguishing factors that sets him apart from other content creators on the app. The way he edits his videos is so effortlessly clean, and it almost makes me feel like I’m not even watching a TikTok in the first place. I also love how he’s not afraid to step out of what is societably acceptable for men to wear! Kayne has worn crop tops, heeled boots and a plethora of vibrant colors, making his signature style even more unique. In fact, he has quite a large boot collection that he incorporates in a lot of his outfits, and if there’s anyone who can pull off a pair of black leather boots, it's him. Although he’s made his place on the fashion side of TikTok, his spam account highlights his other talents. When I found out he could beatbox, I was pleasantly shocked because he makes it look so easy. His beatboxing video went viral and later came together in this chain of TikTok duets, which created a lovely short song. He also rants about random topics that aggravate him on his second account, and these discussions make me cackle. In addition, I love how he isn't a stranger on the app -- he engages with his followers and comment section often. Wisdom Kayne recently had his first billboard up in Times Square, and I’m so proud of him and his success on Tiktok and in the outside world of fashion.
Roller Skating:
Roller skating came back in a huge way this year, and I am so excited that it has made a comeback. Because of its regained popularity, the roller skating community grew tremendously over the summer and into the winter season after it took over everybody's TikTok timeline. All of the videos I’ve been seeing of people just gliding and vibing with their roller skates are so peaceful, and the raw happiness attached to a pair of roller skates is something I NEED to experience (here is one of my favorite videos). There’s an outdoor rink near my house that not many people skate at, and it’s the perfect spot considering the Coronavirus health and safety guidelines. Unfortunately, the surge of roller skating interest caused a worldwide shortage of them over the summer, and a lot of people (including me) are still feeling the effects of it. The pair of skates I have had my eye on have been on backorder for months now. I’m waiting very patiently for them to return, so I hope I can be rolling by the springtime!
Cargo Pants and Earth Tones:
As the seasons shifted and it began to get colder, oversized cargo pants made their way into everyone's closet. There’s just something about the big pants-little shirt combination that is so powerful. I like the fact that it's a genderfluid outfit, and almost anybody can pull it off. Paired with some chunky sneakers or converse, cargo pants are another easy, comfortable outfit to frolic around the city in. Now I personally don’t own a pair of cargo pants (yet!), but the outfits that my friends have put together as well as outfits on Pinterest with them are so cute to me. Here is an example of Billi Hall ’23 wearing some!

With cargo pants gaining more popularity came the rise of neutral earthy tones like deep greens, grays and muted oranges that look lovely on anyone’s skin tone. Especially paired with gold jewelry, earth tones are starting to become a staple of 2020 winter fashion. I’m obsessed with the comfy energy these colors seem to emit.
Kurtis Conner:
Lastly, Kurtis Conner is at the top of my list for my favorite YouTubers this year. Commentary-style YouTube videos are my favorite genre, which refers to when somebody finds a piece of content (whether it's a funny movie, social media influencer or a random pop culture event that happened that week) and adds their own side of comedic analysis. In my opinion, Kurtis Conner is the best at it. I’ve been following Kurtis for about three years now and watching his audience grow and content improve has been wonderful. Kurtis’s humor falls under the chaotic good category, and his editing style is just the right amount of random. He also makes videos with his friend Jacob Sharpe, who recently beat brain cancer, and when the two of them get together, they never fail to make me laugh. Kurtis’s YouTube videos and podcast, “Very Really Good,” helped me get through the thickest part of quarantine in April, and I’m grateful for him and his humor.
That’s all for this week’s article! I had a lot of fun reflecting on this year and what’s been going on. I encourage you to dive into new content creators over winter break. Maybe you’ll even discover somebody you really like. If you do, let me know!
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