Redefining the “hipster”

Recently, I’ve observed the ever-growing trend of being a “hipster.” Initially, the term hipster referred to someone who was socially deviant, meaning they followed trends that were not the norm. It meant they didn’t believe in doing things just because they were the things everyone else did. That is not to say that they chose interests just because it was not the norm, and that is not to say they disliked things just because they were the norm. This is an important distinction.

If you miss this, the difference becomes cloudy between being a hipster and being a prick.

So, one would expect the hipster movement to breed a large group of non-norm-followers. Sadly, the growth of the trend has not left society with an overwhelmingly individual population of young people.

If I had to knock all hipsters off their high horses in one foul swoop, I would have to point out how popular and, dare I say it, mainstream, being a hipster has become. Oops! It looks like your desire to follow the current trend has negated the trend itself. But this is not arguing my point, just attacking the hipster mantra…

Going back to my original point, being a hipster does not mean that that you are required to dislike things once they become popular. I know someone who discredits her music taste once she hears it on the radio. This is the most absurd thing a music lover could do. Apparently, what initially drew you to this song was the fact that no one else knew of it, and once the obscurity of the song disappeared, it lost its appeal. This tells me two things: one, that you really had no musical interest in the song first place, and two, you are not a hipster, you are an idiot.

I know others that were genuinely mortified to find that their favorite hipster band Fun. was covered on the not-so-hipster show choir comedy, Glee. This meant that everyone, including their foes, the unspeakable Glee fans, would now know of and listen to Fun. To this I say, who cares? Why should it bother you that your favorite band gets more fans?

Ultimately, I feel the hipster movement has not given the world any true hipsters, just more jerks. It has provided an excuse for snobby people to show a socially acceptable arrogance.

Everyone is entitled to their own preferences in their music, clothes, etc. and if you want to be close-minded and only accept your taste, that’s your prerogative. It’s when you make “rude” synonymous with “hipster”, that you’ve crossed a line. If you’re going to be a pretentious jerk, fine. Be that guy. But don’t justify your elitism by saying you’re simply being a hipster. Hipster means something different. There’s a word for the group you fit into and it’s something I can’t print in the newspaper.