Who Let the Aughts Out? 16 Signs the 2000s Are Back
You remember the 2000s, don't you? Sure you do: From rhinestone-emblazoned velour tracksuits and color-coordinated pop groups to VH1 reality shows and Von Dutch trucker hats, there's no way you've scrubbed the gloriously cheesy (and oft-embarrassing) sheen of post-Y2K pop culture from your memory. And why should you? Those years made us who we are today — for better or worse.
Lets take a walk down new millennium memory lane. Back then, our 1st Generation iPods (which weighed like, ten lbs) were no doubt stuffed with the must-have hits of the early '00s, from JLo and OutKast to Gwen Stefani and Atomic Kitten. On TV, Lizzie McGuire was busy teaching us how to go about telling our parents we wanted a bra, while Madonna and Britney Spears were ensuring they would never even let us watch TV again by sharing a smooch on MTV. (We still don't get what the big deal was, Mom.)
On Friday nights, the hottest place to be was the movie theater in the mall parking lot. We rushed to the box office every time Anne Hathaway, Lindsay Lohan, and Amanda Bynes had a fresh teen comedy out, or every time a new Harry Potter or Lord of the Rings flick dropped. If we weren't old enough to drive, we'd call our 'rents up on our indestructible purple Nokia 3390 afterwards to come pick us up.
Sure, there were plenty of cringe-worthy moments (we don't exactly miss the whole denim on denim look, and frosted tips can stay back in '02, thanks) but mostly, we look back upon the 2000s with a fond sense of nostalgia and familiarity.
Luckily, it seems that the decade that gave us "Who Let the Dogs Out?" and Laguna Beach is making a comeback, with contemporary pop stars adopting that signature early '00s style (chokers!) to countless reboots, spin-offs, and sequels for iconic aughts shows (The Powerpuff Girls!) and movies (Jason Bourne!) being announced. Yes, the 2000s are back — just scroll through (above) to read the writing on the wall.