5 Things from Culture That Caught THINKHOUSE's Attention This Week

This week has been one for the books from surprise double album launches, AI search on social, and gen Z heading off on yet another witch hunt. It’s also been a week which saw the publication of youth reports that give a sense of the state of the youth nation from an Irish perspective. This week’s 52INSIGHTS gives you the lowdown on youth culture, bringing you right up to speed on what’s what in the land of youth. 

1: Album Launches: 

It was the week when Taylor Swift dropped her highly anticipated eleventh studio album “The Tortured Poets Department”, the preview of the song titles alone was enough to whip social media into a frenzy. The album launch came with a surprise - an additional album, dubbed “The Tortured Poets Department: The Anthology.” This album release was a masterclass in both capturing and retaining public attention. From announcing the album at the 2024 Grammys, revealing song titles, and responding to album hype with song lyrics; the swifties were loving it, as the album became the first album to hit 1 billion spotify streams in a single week. For the social media nerds among us the singer (who has long avoided the threads platform) had something special lined up for us. A never before seen partnership with Meta, Taylor Swift joined Threads at the exact same time as her album drop, with hidden easter eggs dotted around her Instagram profile. 

While the execution was new, the innovative and clever use of new social media platforms to launch a new album isn’t. Just this month Billie Eilish, in the run up to her third album release 'Hit Me Hard and Soft,' made the bold move to add her entire following to her close friends list. (You know that list on instagram that ensures only your closest friends see certain content.) The move not just made her fans; day, but it also saw her Instagram following grow by an unprecedented 10 million followers. More than that, her fans loved the sense of connection with their icon. Tiktok user limlee_ posted: 

“Me when billie added me to her close friends (we’re besties now)” 

2: AI enters the social mainstream: 

It’s not all wins for Meta this week, the social behemoth has begun rolling out ‘Meta AI’ as a native search function across Instagram, Whatsapp, Facebook and Messenger in 14 countries. The newly updated AI assistant is one of the few chatbots that now integrate real-time search results from both Bing and Google, and is regarded as a response to TikTok overtaking Google as a search engine, like most big changers on social media platforms, users can be slow to see any change as positive. It may be the integration in the interface rather than the function - but so far not so good for many users. ‘X’ user @MaKaylaMaShelle explained: 

“I hate the Meta AI search on instagram! They need to put it somewhere else. I’m trying to search instagram not talk to AI.”

3: Gen Z Witch Hunts: 

A little over a week ago, Netflix dropped the new hit show that is taking conversations from the water cooler to our social feeds. ‘Baby Reindeer’, is an adaptation of Richard Gadd’s one-man show at the 2019 Edinburgh festival. The programme shares Gadd’s story based on real life trauma experienced at the hands of his stalker and a powerful industry abuser. The show has been met with massive viewing figures making the top 10 in 12 countries. Richard is receiving massive acclaim for not just his acting and writing, but his courage in sharing his real life. A side effect not expected is that the show has unearthed a series of investigations as fans of the series take to social media to discover the real identities of those depicted in the show, leading Richard Gadd to urge viewers to stop looking. This is an unfortunate result of a lot of true crime documentaries as viewers find themselves developing a deeper connection with the story and taking to the internet to conduct their own investigations. 

4: Irish Youth Report Downloads: 

The National Youth Council report, the ‘State of our Young Nation’, came out this week. The report, consisting of a nationally representative survey of 781 young adults aged 18 - 29 yrs from across the country, seeks to understand the current environment facing Irish youth today. 

Some key findings from the report include: 

● Housing & Rising Cost of Living: The most significant concerns for young Irish people are housing and the rising cost of living, cited by 67% and 62% respectively. Nearly half (48%) are dissatisfied with their current housing situation, with 31% stating that if there was just one thing they could fix they would choose to have more affordable housing. 44% feel financially worse off than last year. Over 1 in 5 (22%) have skipped meals due to costs. 

● Love of community: Despite the challenges, young people in Ireland express a strong sense of pride and attachment to their culture and community. There are still snippets of joy captured throughout the report with one participant in the study, Female, 27 - 29, Galway, stating: “I love living in Ireland, it’s an amazing country, the craic is great, the people are mighty, and the communities are tight knit.” 

Yesterday, Trinity College Dublin and Belong To published a new report on the mental health and wellbeing of LGBTQI+ people in Ireland. The report, Being LGBTQI+ in Ireland, is the second iteration of the 2016 LGBTIreland Report. It is the largest sample of Ireland's LGBTQI+ population, with over 2,800 participants.The findings show that, compared to the general youth population, LGBTQI+ young people experience: 

● Three times the level of severe or extremely severe symptoms of depression and anxiety. 

● Three times the level of self-harm. 

● Two times the level of suicidal thoughts. 

● Five times the level of suicide attempts. 

The findings of both reports reflect our own findings in our 2023 Youth Culture Report and, collectively, should serve as a rallying cry to the Government and policymakers to re-think the social contract in favour of young people, especially ensuring Ireland’s young LGBTQI+ community can feel safe and supported. 

5: Sleepunders: 

A New York Times article this week, entitled, “Sweetie, I’ll be back at 2AM” made our hearts hurt just a little…It claims that overly anxious parents, worried about their children staying in someone else’s home, are now opting for “sleepunders” over “sleepovers” - picking kids up just before bedtime, or even staying over with them to help avoid potential issues concerning gun safety, technology use, bodily autonomy etc. 

Sleepovers have for decades been a normative, fun part of growing up culture. They are a rite of passage for kids and teenagers, formative experiences that help build dependence. Helicopter parenting in the form of “sleepunders" never helps kids in the long-run…case in hand the multiple reports of third level students having zero to none resilience when they leave home. Sleepunders - a 2024 trend? No thanks.

BRAND TAKEOUTS: 

Authenticity Matters: The explosion of AI into the social media sphere has been met with criticism online. Perhaps this is because when people turn to social media they are searching out human connection and don’t want to be met with AI tools. It’s important for brands to keep this in mind when creating new offerings for customers - is AI a helpful addition or a humanless barrier to making a real connection. Be mindful of where you are communicating and invite community engagement wherever possible. 

Fostering Connection: The move by Billie Eilish emphasised the importance of fostering a deep connection (as much as you can do with millions of fans) with your people. When content feels exclusive or as if you have to be a part of something to opt in, the masses follow. Think of how you can engage your audience in special and exclusive ways. 

The power of a true story: If the fanfare over Baby Reindeer has taught us anything, it is the power of a true story. Take our client Barry’s Tea for example, the wildly successful ‘Sisters’ campaign was based on the true story of real life sisters. When ideas are born out of a deep understanding of how meaningful relationships matter most. 

Real Stories, Real People: And of course to all the young people who participated in the multiple national youth reports published this week, we say, we see you. We hear you. We’re here for a better tomorrow for young people.

NEWS FROM THINKHOUSE 

Connection and meaningful relationships will be central to some NEWS we’re dropping on Monday - the launch of the Good Life 2030 Ireland citizen vision report. The question ‘what is a good life?’ has preoccupied humans across time. This new project sees THINKHOUSE and Purpose Disruptors invite the citizens of Ireland to explore what they think a Good Life is for them in the year 2030 (a critical milestone for halving carbon emissions). The project, supported by Creative Ireland’s Creative Climate Action Fund, sets out to explore what citizens really want from their lives and uncovers how these visions can support Ireland’s 2030 climate objectives. The results might just surprise you - we can’t wait to share them next week. Follow @goodlife2030ireland on Instagram for more information.