E-Kids — by Nicole Ford
Emergence and Background of E-kids —
E-kid, more commonly used in reference to people whom identify as female, as E-girl, is the shortened and contemporary colloquialism of ‘electronic-kid/girl/boy. The E-kid subculture, exist solely due to the presence of social media, and most evidently in the newest and most popular platform, TikTok, but its origin can be seen extending back much further then the 21st century. Upon first glance of E-kids, it is easy to draw parallels between their style and that of Punks from the 1960s, and Riot Grrrls of the 1990s. There also seems to be a clear reference to childlike dress, mixed with anime and cosplay. The borrowing of these historical subcultures is most visually evident in the tendency to have lime coloured or pink hair, black eyeliner, and pair bold-black clothing with pops of colour. While much of this subculture appears borrowed from historical subcultures, much of it is unique due to it’s modern features. E-kids seem to typically belong to the middle and upper class, as they much be privileged enough to own a smart phone, afford certain clothing, makeup and accessories, and have enough leisure time to create content. Below, we will discuss the E-kid subculture and it’s most important elements that make it what it is:
Artefacts —
TikTok
TikTok is possibly the most important part of the E-kid subculture, while simultaneously being the reason for is dissolution and commodification. TikTok launched in the US in 2018, and inevitably, quickly reached and spread through the phones of Australian youth. Much of the E-girl content shows girls dressed in ‘mainstream’ clothing, then undergo a transformation, to be dressed in striped T-shirts and pigtails, with pink blush swept over their nose and cheeks and with tiny black hearts drawn under their eyes. Much of the content also refers to mental health, and seems to romanticise it. They often present themselves in a gloomy way, not really smiling, making it cool (within the subculture and who ever looks up to them) to be ‘sad’. This kind of content is very interesting as it seems very complex, but I will attempt to break it down:
One of the most attractive components of participating in a subculture for young people, seems to be belonging and collective or shared identity. Most people, especially young people want to belong to a something, and for young people, this something often also opposes the mainstream. For E-kids, creating similar themed content, and uploading it for their peers to see, while simultaneously being flooded with similar content, quickly creates a sense of shared identity and belonging. It is also important to note that TikTok, like most social media platforms uses an algorithm which mostly presents content to you that you are interested in, thus, making this sense of connectives more accessible and prevalent than ever. It also makes the feeling of being accepted more accessible for young people, real or imagined. Erikson (1968) explains the phenomenon of ‘identity confusion’, in which young people often find solace in groups of cliques that accept them. For young people that might find it difficult to be accepted in the realms of the physical world, TikTok gives them an opportunity to put on a type of mask, and perceive themselves in a particular way, to join this group and be accepted into the clique. The two most prevalent elements of the the E-kid subculture on TikTok; style and mental health, appears easy to replicate, thus, who youths that can’t find that sense of belonging anywhere else, E-kids, may be an attractive choice. Furthermore, it is no secret that mental health, moods-swings, and navigating ‘who you are’, is a strong part of being a young person. The moody feelings of being a teenager seem to be often minimised by older adults, and that ‘they don’t understand’. Being an E-kid on TikTok, gives these young people an outlet for their emotions where they feel heard and accepted.
However, as TikTok is accessable by all people who have a smartphone, E-kid content is easily seen and may be replicated, taking away from the exclusivity and very essence of the subculture. Thus, there are many more important elements which must be adhered to, to have authentic ‘clout’ in this subculture. The elements of E-kid subculture that are to come, primarily rely on the existence and presentation through TikTok, and these linkages will become obvious throughout the blog —
Bedroom —
E-girls often present their rooms on TikTok with neon lights, lots of posters and teddy bears, although, because of the E-girl reliance on social media it is difficult to determine the authenticity of this presentation or if it is just for show.
Hand-in-hand with Tiktok, is the importance of the bedroom to E-kid existence. These young people present their fashion, ideas, and overall aesthetic in a space the solely exists within the confines of their own comfort-zones and even, countries. While many of these young people may uphold the aesthetic in all facets of their lives, it would be impossible to tell, because their ‘clout’ entirely exists on TikTok, presented in their bedrooms. This may be explained by post-subcultural theories, such as that presented by Bennett (2010) which explains modern subcultures in terms of being more about pleasure and escapism, than resistance. The fact that the subculture exists primarily online, allows these young people to express themselves, their inner teenaged feelings, urges, their resistance to the mainstream, within the safety and privacy of their own homes, but still partake in other aspects of mainstream life. For example a young person may enjoy dressing up, putting on a type of mask, and creating TikTok in their bedrooms during their leisure time, but as soon as they leave their rooms they dress much differently, partake in family activities and go to a conservative academic school. In this way, E-girls may be better described in terms of post-subcultural theory, because young people may dip-in and out of the subculture within the comfort of their bedrooms, but not entirely resist mainstream culture.
Style
It is obvious to tell that E-kid fashion is definitely in opposition to the mainstream. Their style appears to be very borrowed from Punk, Riot Grrrl, and childlike elements and with anime or cosplay. Although these historical subcultures have been around since the 1960s, I think it is fair to say that it still has retained its overt resistance and its shock-value. Particularly for young girls, wearing mostly black, getting body-parts pierced (other than single piercing in each lobe, which is socially acceptable and the norm), wearing heavy eyeliner, and colouring their hair in non-conventional colours — does spark and kind of moral panic and is clear that their style is in opposition to the mainstream —
Hair
Having coloured hair, or dark hair seems to be an important part of authenticity within the E-girl subculture. It seems that having light coloured hair (blonde or light brown) may be too conventional, and too soft, for this subculture. The dark hair seems to be reflective of the moody themes and harshness, and the colour seems to show defiance to the mainstream conventions. Colouring ones hair in this way seems to be a marker of authenticity because it is much more final than just putting on certain clothes, it shows commitment to the subculture, that they’re not just swapping and changing for a certain crowd or just to make a TikTok. However, it is interesting to note that, with the rise of TikTok and with Australia going into COVID lockdown, a whole trend of young girls, E-girl or not, dying the front two pieces of their hair became very popular. Since this tend, it seems more common for E-girls to have entirely black hair, or entirely coloured hair. This is an example of the commodification of subcultural capitol, through social media. The ingroup had to change their expectations of authenticity in order to determine who is authentic, the ingroup, and who is the outgroup.
Clothing
E-girl dress tends to be predominately black, and often incorporates stripes, and only one or two uses of colour (for example, in the picture on the left). The clothing is mainly to highlight the overt resistance to the mainstream. Haenfler (2004) explains that through their resistance, subcultures undermine the hegemonic social meanings and power relationships that influence our actions in overt ways that definitely do not blend in, and thus, is an immediate signifier of subcultural participation. Despite similar style existing in many pervious subcultures, the bold black (mixed with the other stylistic elements) still seems to hold a level of shock. This style of dress can be described as Meso action, in that it challenges social norms, it is overt and visible, but is still at a level that is not going to cause any kind of significant social change. The clothing simply is a way for these young people to display their overt resistance to the mainstream.
Makeup
Makeup seems to be a very important part of the E-girl subculture. It is seen expressed in a variety of creative ways but with a few common themes — black eyeliner, obvious use of blush, hearts often drawn on the skin — there is a clear mixing of very fantastical, artistic, well done, adult-like makeup, with a childlike fun and anime/cartoon feel. While experimenting with makeup is a common right of passage and past-time for many young people, it is mostly left behind-closed doors, and not put on display as a part of ones identity. The overt use of makeup by these young people may be due to the Modernisation theory — in that, modernity has allowed a space for increased individualisation, and self expression. There is less importance on institutions of social control, and more importance on creativity. This has allowed these young people the space to explore and display their creativity.
Music
The type of music associated with E-kids is ‘sad boy’ music; with themes of sadness, mental illness, teen struggles and toxic love. A clear theme throughout the subculture is moody and dark, compared to a lot of other youth groups, and the feelings of these young people, real or ‘imagined’, are easily expressed in other peoples words, through music. E-kid subculture his it’s foundations in a collective feeling of marginalisation from the mainstream; a sense that the rest of society doesn’t understand what they’re going through, that they are sad, their feelings are felt hard, and with passion, and that they simply don’t fit into the ‘bright, bubbly mainstream’. E-kids take refuge from this sense of marginalisation in the collective identity that is created when listening to this music and music artists that appear to ‘get them’. Their sense of feeling all alone, and misunderstood, is transformed into a shared identity, by listening to the music, making it necessary to be part of the in-group clique. This phenomenon may be explained by identity confusion, which Erikson (1968) explained, keeps young people together, when they temporarily over-identify with ‘heroes’ of cliques, to the point of an apparently complete loss of identity. The theory is that these ‘heroes’ are like roll models to these young people, justifying their feelings, and experiences. Music artists like the-late Juice Wrld, Clairo and Billie Eilish are typical E-kid artists, and their themes often align with that which were discussed earlier.
The E-kid takes the heroes words for their own, feels them as if ‘someone understands them’ and may behave in ways that align with this also.
“You left me falling and landing inside my grave
I know that you want me dead
I take prescriptions to make me feel a-okay
I know it’s all in my head…
I have these lucid dreams where I can’t move a thing
Thinking of you in my bed
You were my everything
Thoughts of a wedding ring
Now I’m just better off dead” — Juice Wrld, Lucid Dreams
It is easy from an outsider, adult, or a person not experiencing these feelings, perspective, to see the toxic themes in these lyrics alone — yet for a young person in this subculture, they may feel so real, so necessary and so heavy.
The consequence seems to be a whole group of young people that collectively feel alone, collectively feel misunderstood, and the consequence is group of young people that form a clique of shared identity, E-kid.
Mannerisms and in-group signs
The E-kid subculture uses a few quite specific mannerisms, hand signs, and body movements/gestures, which are markers of their in-group status and authenticity to the subculture. Beyond style, these mannerisms are markers that the individual is aware of these in-group rituals, and as such, shows subcultural capitol. The mannerisms that can be seen on TikTok include: rolling of the eyes, gritting their teeth, tapping their temples with their fingers, swaying side-to-side in a childlike way etc — they are difficult to explain, so this video will express further what I mean —
Like many subcultures, E-kid authentic recognition requires more than just a style — due to commercialisation, much of what makes subcultures identifiable, such as dress, has been commodified and turned into marketing tools for profit. The saturation of the media and markets has forced in-group membership to be more than what can be bought. Thus, mannerisms such as those that can be seen in the TikToks are significant indicators of subcultural capitol. Subcultural capitol required a combination of just the right amount of each element of the subculture, executed in just the right way — the angst carefully fused with innocence, shown through these gestures seems to be reflective of this in-group, making their participation authentic or not.
Mental Health
Mental illness themes are common throughout E-kid content. The themes that are presented seem not too different to what is collectively felt by many young people, so why participate in E-kid subculture and not something else? —
Strain theory and social disorganisation theories suggest that subcultural participation may be explained by a lack of legitimate opportunity for upward mobility, however, psychological trauma is not a reliable predictor of subcultural participation. Much of the mental illness themes seems to be not too different from what most teenagers and young people experience the difference very well maybe their chosen way of expression and or level of social disruptions, including family and institutional socialisation. For example, if a child is in an environment where they already feel marginalised, perhaps from their family, that they don’t fit in at that school they attend, they will seek belonging elsewhere. Social media has made this sense of belonging increasingly accessible. A young child struggling with their mental health, feeling marginalised, taking refuge from their struggles in the safety of their bedrooms, scrolling Tiktok to find young people struggling with the same issues; it is easy to see why the E-kid subculture may be appealing. The mental health struggles, and feelings of being misunderstood because of such struggles are an important part of E-kids shared identity. This also may be explained by Erikson’s(1968) ‘identity confusion’ — in which young people find solace in groups that accept them. For these young people it may be that only scene where they feel as though they belong, and so they participate to feel this sense of collectiveness, that they are apart of something.
Femininity and E-Boys
For young men, embracing more feminine parts of ones self is widely accepted, and an attractive feature for these young boys to the E-kid subculture. The femininity may be exclusive to the presented style, or may extend to their personality and values. E-boys too, are seen to experiment with coloured hair, makeup, nail-polish and jewelry.
Their physique seems to be more slender, and their aesthetic appears to be more concerned with romantic poetry and creativity, rather than sports, like many other young men. It seems to still be a quiet prevalent societal expectation and norm, that young men should participate in sports, and be innately athletic, and enjoy it. If they do not, remarks about them being ‘a girl’ or less of a boy/man are often made toward these young boys. The presence of young men participating in the E-boy subculture is a meso action, as it directly and overtly, challenges social norms of what a young man should be. This seems to heavily contribute to a moral panic that has been created amongst many people, and particularly, much of the older male generation, that there is a ‘masculinity crisis’. Time magazine (2016) (and many other major publications have reported on the topic) —
“…men who are feeling abandoned by the thousands of years of history that defined what it meant to be a real man: to be strong; to be a provider; to be in authority; to be the ultimate decision maker; and to be economically, educationally, physically and politically dominant.”
Traditional gender-roles are increasingly evolving and being redefined, as society is becoming more tolerant and accepting of gender-fluidity and constructs. The Birmingham School explains that since WWII these social changes have been significantly pushed into further motion. The transactional approach to deviance explains that social groups create this deviance by Consequently, where there is social change there is inevitably social push back from more conservative members of society. The moral panic is that there seems to be a loss of masculinity in todays youth and that that is simply unacceptable, wrong, that there is a whole generation of ‘pussys’ (a trending term on social media and in society to describe men who waver from traditional gender constructs), and ‘girls’. The truth is that gender fluidity has historically always existed, that society is just loosening it’s reins for exportation and acceptance. E-boys are free to explore these aspects of them selves through their style and presentation. This presentation may stay within the TikTok realm, as an outlet for this exploration, or may transfer into most aspects of their lives. The beauty of the post-subcultural expression is that they may pick and choose the elements they want to adopt and do not.
Hello Kitty
Hello Kitty is is a fictional character which was produced by the Japanese company Sanrio. Sanrio depicts Hello Kitty as a young female gijinka of a Japanese Bobtail cat with a red bow and no mouth. Hello Kitty is a favourable childhood past-time and notable figure for many generations, and E-girls have rebranded it to suit their image. The use of Hello Kitty in E-girl subculture is what the Birmingham School (CCCS) explain as symbolic resistance through the appropriation of certain items to mean a particular thing to a subculture, seperate from the mainstream. This cartoon, turned into a consumerist franchise, has been adopted by many; for E-girls it is a marker of in-group authenticity — showing Hello Kitty items in their clothing or bedrooms or wherever it may be, shows the rest of the E-girl community that they understand the significance of that item to the subculture. For example, if a young child has Hello Kitty pajamas it does not, by any means, mean that they are an E-girl — but if a young girl adheres to all other E-girl conventions and incorporates Hello Kitty into their aesthetic, it shows that they know the significance of that item, that they are in the know of the in-group, and thus have subcultural capitol.
It also further further shows the important mix of childlike elements, and teen angst, which is so important and indicative of this subculture.
References
Bennett, A 2011. The post-subcultural turn: some reflections 10 years on. Journal of youth studies, 14(5), pp.493–506.
Haenfler, R 2004. Rethinking subcultural resistance: Core values of the straight edge movement. Journal of contemporary ethnography, 33(4), pp.406–436.
Lerner, R.M., Orlos, J.B. and Knapp, J.R 1976. Physical attractiveness, physical effectiveness, and self-concept in late adolescents. Adolescence, 11(43), p.313.
Myers, J 2021. Young Men are Facing a Masculinity Crisis. Time Magazine. Viewed 26 September 2021, https://time.com/4339209/masculinity-crisis/
Links:
Paige Thomsen, Pintrest, https://www.pinterest.com.au/thomsen3200/egirl/