Emma Li

The viral “2016” TikTok filter, which mimics the pink hue common in early Instagram photos, has been used in 55 million total videos, bringing back the platform’s casual feel.

Welcome to 2026, where 2016 is trending again. Pink-tinted filters, throwback photos and decade-old pop hits are flooding social media feeds, signaling a revival of last decade’s music and aesthetics. Across platforms like Instagram and TikTok, users frame 2016 as a simpler, more carefree era of life that they hope to return to.

The viral “2016” TikTok filter, which mimics the pink hue common in early Instagram photos, has been used in 55 million total videos, bringing back the platform’s casual feel. 2016 pop favorites, including “Lush Life” by Zara Larsson and “Closer” by The Chainsmokers, have also regained popularity on streaming platforms, with each averaging 4.5 and 1.5 million daily streams, respectively. Larsson’s “Lush Life” dance became its own TikTok trend in November of 2025, with users posting videos recreating the choreography.

In a schoology poll sent out to the upper school community with 92 responses, 40% of respondents associated 2016 with a time before life felt more chaotic. As 2026 brings heightened fear over Immigration and Customs Enforcement raids and uncertainty around President Donald Trump’s media censorship, which mark just a few of the uncertainties of the present, sophomore Aarya Vaidya believes that the renewed popularity of 2016 culture stems from people seeking ease in a tense social climate.  

“This trend reflects discomfort with the present rather than nostalgia about the past,” Aarya said. “Back then, life felt lighter because everybody was having a good time and nothing seemed super serious. Right now, being stressed is normalized and cancel culture is everywhere, especially on social media. Reviving 2016 culture does not fix everything, but it’s this carefree vibe that more people desire and need to embrace in 2026.”

While the longing for a joyful past is understandable, idealizing 2016 overlooks its complexities. 

Remembering its challenges is essential to ensure nostalgia does not become a form of escapism. For many, romanticization of the past is a coping mechanism, preserving a sense of security and placating action.

Despite its current representation online, 2016 was far from perfect. President Donald Trump’s victory in his first U.S. presidential election deepened political divides by igniting widespread protests, while the ongoing Syrian Civil War and opioid epidemic highlighted both domestic and global challenges of the time. These events are absent from the picture-perfect descriptions circulating online, but according to psychology teacher Julie Turchin, selective memory comes naturally.

“Our brains are wired to protect us,” Turchin said. “We don’t remember everything, so the thing about the past is that it’s easy to forget the emotions and the stress. Some people look at the past and think of it more fondly than the present because their memories preserve the good stuff and forget the rest.”

For many current high schoolers, the nostalgia portrayed online is not rooted in personal experience. Most were elementary school students in 2016 and have few clear memories of that time — 42% of poll respondents reported that they barely remember the year at all. Using the 2016 aesthetic has become a way to engage with a collective memory, even if much of it is constructed online rather than lived firsthand. Within the same poll, 32% of respondents believed that the 2016 trend was performative and not built off of genuine nostalgia.

“On my own, I might not think of 2016 as my best year ever, but social media accelerates a community effect,” Turchin said. “You build a belief on this tiny, one-legged stool, and you add a bunch of other beliefs to support that belief by adding other legs to the stool. Even if you say, ‘Actually, 2016 had all these things wrong with it,’ and you saw away that first leg, there are all these other legs I put in to support the first idea, which may not have been true.”

At the same time, 2016 nostalgia does not have to be dismissed entirely. Looking back offers perspective and inspiration as long as it is paired with awareness of the present. Junior Stellan Lindh, an avid TikTok user, interprets the trend as a reflection of a broader desire for sincerity in modern culture. 

“Everybody now is trying to be this perfect version of themselves,” Stellan said. “2016 was this era of authenticity. It was a time on social media where you would only see your own friends on your feed instead of influencers. During that time, people really weren’t worried too much about how many likes they were going to get on their posts.”

By both appreciating the past and staying grounded in the present, people can enjoy nostalgia without letting it overshadow current realities. For Stellan, this means working to implement change and seek improvement in our current world to model the positive aspects of 2016.

“Seeing 2016 again is bringing back an era where everybody felt less worried about the state of the world,” Stellan said. “It was a time when people were happier, so that’s why it’s been resurging in recent months. Some people are definitely doing it because it’s a trend, but a lot of people are coming together to appreciate that year as well.”