Since the internet became mainstream in the 1990s, it has been used by millions worldwide. But what has taken over the web in the past year?
Can you ‘Dress To Impress’?
‘Dress To Impress’ is a video game released in November 2023 on the popular gaming platform Roblox. The game began to gain popularity in January of 2024, reaching around 5 billion visits by the end of the year. In the game, you dress your avatar according to a theme in a period of five minutes. After the timer runs out, you vote on other players’ outfits in accordance with their accuracy on the theme. Many influencers and celebrities have taken part in playing the game, going so far as to collaborate with one of these celebrities, Charli XCX, to create promotional content in relation to her new album.
‘I love ‘Dress to Impress,’ Said Colonia High School senior Alexa Beck. ‘I love being able to pick up all the different options for clothing and being able to make my own outfits.’ When asked about potential faults of the game, she stated, ‘I only win when I team with my friends. Not many people vote fairly.’
A Bratty Album
‘Brat’ is the sixth studio album by British singer–songwriter Charlotte Aitchison, known by her stage name, Charli XCX. Aitchson found previous success for her hit songs, such as Boom Clap, Fancy in collaboration with Australian rapper Iggy Azalea, and I Love It in collaboration with Swedish synth-pop duo Icona Pop. She released ‘Brat’ on June 7 2024, quickly reaching fame for its songs such as 360, 365, Von Dutch, and Apple. It would go on to become recognized as the album of the summer, quickly gaining public attention and media press. Kamala Harris would use the album to raise support for her 2024 presidential campaign.
When asked about the album, CHS junior Alexa Beck stated, ‘I really liked ‘Brat,’ It was a very good album.’ She went on to state her most liked song, stating, ‘My favorite song was Sympathy is a Knife.’
A ‘Wicked’ Phenomenon
‘Wicked’ is a movie directed by Jon M. Chu and produced by Marc Platt and David Stone, starring Cynthia Erivo and Ariana Grande. A film adaptation of the 2003 Broadway musical, ‘Wicked’ was announced in 2012 with no official release date. The movie’s first trailer was made public at Super Bowl LVIII, on February 11 2024. The film became extremely popular on social media platforms such as TikTok and Instagram, sparking trends such as the Elphaba & Glinda Trend, and memes such as ‘That’s My Line.’ ‘Wicked’ was released on November 22 2024. It became the highest grossing adaptation of a musical on record.
‘I thought it was a great movie adaptation from the musical on Broadway,’ says CHS junior Mariella Spina. ‘After I saw the musical a few years ago. I think Ariana Grande and Cynthia Erivo did a great job with the characters.’
Crumbl Cookie Takeover
Crumbl, formerly known as Crumbl Cookies, is a franchise of bakeries in the United States. It became popular for its weekly lineup of a variety of items. This unique business strategy caused an influx of weekly reviews on social media apps such as TikTok and Instagram. This includes many parodies of those who did review Crumbl.
‘I love Crumbl,’ said CHS junior Gabby Alva, ‘it’s really good and I love the softness of the cookies. My favorite item I’ve ever had was the tres leches cake. I didn’t like the raspberry lemonade cookies.’
