pop culture (amanda)

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IMBO/ ISSUE 29/ '14 IMBO/ ISSUE 29/ '14 30 POP CULTURE T he internet has brought with it many different trends since its inception. Phrases quickly became abbreviations as ‘LOL’ and ‘BRB’ became the cornerstone of everyday cyber conversation. Just as we were coming to terms with that fact, ‘part words’ sneaked in inconspicuously and ‘totes’ and ‘probs’ became the new way to seem cool while under the illusion of conserving time as you speak. The social media craze however, created terms that are a bit more complex and a little more telling, yet just as interesting. Anyone with a Facebook or Twitter account has had to deal with status updates that are garnished with phrases like “team no sleep”, “beast mode”, “we out’chea”, “no days off”, “sgetit” and so on, that bring to attention, the efforts of the modern day ‘hustler’. Words are a powerful thing. It’s not just that they help us communicate with our fellow homo sapiens, but they generally also reflect the mental state of the speaker and this got me pondering about two things: why these particular words sneaked into this particular generation’s lexicon and why they keep changing every other day. SEEKING IMMORTALITY A friend of mine raised a good point when I brought to her attention the use of these words by almost everyone on social media. In as much as these words are telling of the fact that the person saying or writing them is making moves and working hard as an independent or “hustler”, they also reflect a mental state that reveals the desires of the speaker. So for her, when she reads “no days off”, all she hears is “I am working hard because I want to become something in a world full of nothings, and sincerely hope that my existence will be worth something.” AIMLESS EFFORTS I let the thought take root in my mind for a minute and it sort of made sense. For a whole generation to be fixated on “hustling”− in the sense that you work independently to build something more than just a business but rather a living and breathing brand− is telling of the mental desire of that generation. If you think about it, this generation is born of war survivors and oppression slayers. The previous generations fought common and visible enemies in order to achieve common goals of freedom, self-determination and human advancement. The most devastating diseases and pandemics that brought them to their knees were annihilated by amazing medical discoveries such as penicillin and the like. This is maybe too much pressure for one generation to handle. As beneficiaries of a “better life”, perhaps we feel the need to be a generation that also leaves an intriguing chapter in the books of history. But with the lack of a visible and common enemy that helped those before us organise so well, we instead try hard and work hard and create hard and every step of the way remind everyone else that we “don’t sleep” and are “out’chea getting it”. And so these words come and go, replacing each other because whether you say one or the other, the resounding message is the same, and that is that you are not squandering your time but are making moves. Whatever the case may be, I’m still keen to see how far we will take this, and which word will be the new flavour of the month in a week or two. BY: Amanda Nkwinika WE OUT’CHEA GETTING IT! There is a raging desire among young people to #hustlehard, #staywinning, and make sure errebody knows it. “WORDS ARE A POWERFUL THING”

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Page 1: Pop Culture (Amanda)

IMBO/ ISSUE 29/ '14 31 IMBO/ ISSUE 29/ '1430

P O P C U LT U R E

The internet has brought with it many different trends since its inception. Phrases quickly became abbreviations as ‘LOL’ and ‘BRB’ became the cornerstone

of everyday cyber conversation. Just as we were coming to terms with that fact, ‘part words’ sneaked in inconspicuously and ‘totes’ and ‘probs’ became the new way to seem cool while under the illusion of conserving time as you speak. The social media craze however, created terms that are a bit more complex and a little more telling, yet just as interesting. Anyone with a Facebook or Twitter account has had to deal with status updates that are garnished with phrases like “team no sleep”, “beast mode”, “we out’chea”, “no days off”, “sgetit” and so on, that bring to attention, the efforts of the modern day ‘hustler’. Words are a powerful thing. It’s not just that they help us communicate with our fellow homo sapiens, but they generally also reflect the mental state of the speaker and this got me pondering about two things: why these particular words sneaked into this particular generation’s lexicon and why they keep changing every other day.

SEEKING IMMORTALITY A friend of mine raised a good point when I brought to her attention the use of these words by almost everyone on social media. In as much as these words are telling of the fact that the person saying or writing them is making moves and working hard as an independent or “hustler”, they also reflect a mental state that reveals the desires of the speaker. So for her, when she reads “no days off”, all she hears is “I am working hard because I want to become something in a world full of nothings, and sincerely hope that my existence will be worth something.”

AIMLESS EFFORTSI let the thought take root in my mind for a minute and it sort of made sense. For a whole generation to be fixated on “hustling”− in the sense that you work independently to build something more than just a business but rather a living and breathing brand− is telling of the mental desire of that generation. If you think about it, this generation is born of war survivors and oppression slayers. The previous generations fought common and visible enemies in order to achieve common goals of freedom, self-determination and

human advancement. The most devastating diseases and pandemics that brought them to their knees were annihilated by amazing medical discoveries such as penicillin and the like.

This is maybe too much pressure for one generation to handle. As beneficiaries of a “better life”, perhaps we feel the need to be a generation that also leaves an intriguing chapter in the books of history. But with the lack of a visible and common enemy that helped those before us organise so well, we instead try hard and work hard and create hard and every step of the way remind everyone else that we “don’t sleep” and are “out’chea getting it”. And so these words come and go, replacing each other because whether you say one or the other, the resounding message is the same, and that is that you are not squandering your time but are making moves.Whatever the case may be, I’m still keen to see how far we will take this, and which word will be the new flavour of the month in a week or two.

BY: Amanda Nkwinika

W E O U T ’ C H E A G E T T I N G

I T !There is a raging desire among young people to #hustlehard, #staywinning, and make sure

errebody knows it.

“ W O R D S A R E A P O W E R F U L T H I N G ”