New Year’s Nostalgia - 2016 by Kaylee-Christina Rueda

With the brand-new year ahead, the people have decided that instead of celebrating 2026, they should take a step back to re-live the prime era, 2016. But why are we deciding to celebrate the past instead of the present? To understand this, I decided to explore all of the pop-culture events that happened in 2016 to understand why people are so interested in re-living a year that occurred a decade ago. 

Pop-culture shaped the entire year of 2016– making it a memorable event worldwide for everyone who touched the internet and news. Starting with the music industry, many major hits came out in 2016. These songs included: “Closer” by The Chainsmokers, Rihanna’s “Work”, and Justin Timberlake’s “Can’t Stop the Feeling!”. These songs were played constantly during the summer, becoming the top songs of 2016, and still being streamed even today.

One of the most unforgettable aspects of 2016 was the intense popularity of some of today’s biggest video games. The most notable game was Pokémon Go, which had a whopping 500 million downloads by September 2016. I remember when I would take walks with the Pokémon Go app in my hand, hoping to catch a shiny Pokémon during my trips. This game was one of the most widespread obsessions of all time and continues to be a fun way to connect with other Pokémon fans.

Finally, let’s talk about the most popular TV shows. Stranger Things, a Netflix series that has gotten increasingly popular in recent times due to their latest season, debuted in 2016. According to IMDb, other popular shows airing in 2016 included Orange is the New Black, Modern Family (my personal favorite), The Crown, and Black Mirror. Although many of these shows have concluded, they still remain popular and consistently watched by the public.

With all these events of 2016 in mind, why do we want to go back? While researching, I felt a wave of nostalgia as I re-lived the memories I had all those years ago. The idea of taking a moment to re-experience one's memories is beautiful. Although 2016 was a year of many memories and impactful events, I believe that we should cherish those memories while making room for the new year ahead of us. I’m excited to see the movies, games, and songs 2026 has in store for us. Happy New Year everyone!