Megan Sheel

Contributor

Photo via @tarayummyy

The aesthetic’s start in the 2000s with Ke$ha, its resurgence around 2010 with influencer Tana Mongeau, and its popularity amongst the Gen Z audience in the 2020s showcases that this trend can stand the test of time.

As a daily doom-scroller, I’ve seen many different aesthetics rise and fall in popularity. Recently, the new popular aesthetic on the internet is influenced by Tara Yummy, who has recently gained popularity on social media for her excessive talking, quick-witted remarks, and, most importantly, her style. She is mostly known for her new take on early 2000s fashion, which resembles that of the pop sensation Ke$ha, or reality T.V. star Snooki. However, Tara also takes inspiration from alternative fashion. Her influence has sparked a new style amongst her Gen Z followers, known as the “trashy girl aesthetic.”

Dawson College students report hearing about this trend. Julia Ellis, a health science student, associates the trashy girl aesthetic with “Ke$ha, 2008, silver glitter, dark smokey eyes, miniskirts, high heels, cheetah print tops, juicy couture, sleeping in mascara, eating unhealthy foods, and being chronically online.” Her description of the style also paints an accurate picture of the type of girl taking part in this trend. 

The clothes have a similar colour palette as dark alternative fashion. However, the style also draws influence from classic 2000s style, reminiscent of the party girl phase many icons of that era went through. The style leans away from the “emo” label because its fashion choices pursue a retro look, as opposed to a gothic one. Thus, the trashy girl aesthetic appeals to a broader public instead of solely the goth community. 

“When I think trashy girl, I think messy. Kind of like Snooki,” says Audrey Bélanger, a nursing student at Champlain College. The rise of the trashy girl aesthetic raises quite a bit of interest because it completely contradicts the clean girl aesthetic that was popular for the past several years. Instead of being limited to light and natural makeup, the trashy girl aesthetic encourages makeup that is dark and loud. ‘Trashy girl’ clothing also differs in the sense that it is not mainstream and is consequently often found at thrift stores, whereas clean girls can style themselves at popular stores, such as Brandy Melville and Garage.

‘Trashy girl’ clothing also differs in the sense that it is not mainstream and is consequently often found at thrift stores, whereas clean girls can style themselves at popular stores, such as Brandy Melville and Garage.

The Gen Z population is known for being harsh critics of new trends emerging on the internet. Something can be in one day and out the next. After I conducted a survey of 66 Gen Z women, the results showcase that 54% of  them are drawn to Tara Yummy’s trashy girl aesthetic, as opposed to the 46% that are drawn to the clean girl aesthetic of Alix Earle. 

Julia Ellis explains that she is “more drawn to Tara because she seems to have fun, her outfits and makeup are cute, and her overall vibes seem more ‘real.’” However, the preference for Tara Yummy’s style doesn’t mean her aesthetic reigns supreme. My  survey also reveals that 80% of Gen Z women who took part in it agree that the clean girl aesthetic is still maintaining its popularity despite Tara’s rise to fame. “I think the clean girl aesthetic maintains its popularity because it’s not something everyone can be,” explains Laura Sheel, a student at Heritage Regional High School, “not everyone can pull it off and you always want what you can’t have.” The trashy girl aesthetic provides women an opportunity to get away from the poised and perfect image of the clean girl, which has been indoctrinated into Gen Z culture for the past several years. Influencer Tana Mongeau has expressed on Tik Tok that it’s “hard being a Ke$ha girl in a Hailey Bieber world,” which perfectly depicts the pressure that Gen Z women face to portray an ideal online image. It’s noticeable that the trashy girls of social media are much more visible than those seen in real life; 83% of Gen Z girls who were part of my survey agree. Oftentimes, the aesthetic is used solely for “going out.” Léa Godin, a general studies student at Édouard-Montpetit College, suggests that the reason why the aesthetic differs between online and reality is that “the people online are doing all that for attention and you’re never going to see that in real life.” “Maintaining an aesthetic is difficult for anyone who isn’t an influencer or doesn’t have the money to spend,” explains Dawson student Julia Ellis. However, the aesthetic’s start in the 2000s with Ke$ha, its resurgence around 2010 with influencer Tana Mongeau, and its popularity amongst the Gen Z audience in the 2020s showcases that this trend can stand the test of time.