056 - nostalgia is eating us alive
how far back would you go on a hot tub time machine?
nostalgia soup
I’ve been back in Johor for two weeks, and like any extended stay, the past can’t help but creep in. The quiet rhythm of family dinners, the hum of the fan, the sound the doors make when they close. Even the car radio is stuck in time, playing songs from when I would go to school: Ed Sheeran, Lady Gaga, Coldplay (which might just be an indicator of how bad Class95 FM is, but its more romantic if you ignore that part). I almost forget that when I’m in the car going to Singapore, that I’m not on the way to school.
It’s not just me, though. The reminders of the past are constant. Airbnb’s Polly Pocket. The return of Yahoo. The Oasis Reunion Tour, and even Bridget jones’s new film. Cosmopolitan’s recently paid homage to Home Alone with its cover issue featuring, Macauley Culkin and London Tipton aka Brenda Song — leading millennial audiences like me to tear up a little bit at this real life crossover. Even Perfectly Imperfect made a whole guide on it.
In January, Google Trends found that “Song Nostalgia” was trending. “Iconic songs of the 2000s” was a breakout search in the past month with Destiny’s Child as a top-trending band, along with artists like Yung Gravy, Taylor Swift, Roddy Rich, Ed Sheeran and Drake. Searches for “2020 songs” had also doubled in the past week (At start of writing).
Even today’s music is looking back. Bad bunny’s new album (which I CANNOT stop listening to), Debi Tirar Mas Fotos captures the past perfectly. The album “laced feelings of regret, nostalgia and yearning into a simple yet devastating truth: we never truly realise how fleeting moments are until they’re gone.”
More than anything, we’re longing for the ghosts of technologies past — when picking up your phone didn’t mean being bombarded with targeted ads or algorithmic noise, or worrying about your attention being farmed.
Other people are also chasing the past. Technologist Riley Waltz launched his website, IMG_0001 — where you can go to watch looping footage from youtube between 2009-12, for your ambient viewing pleasure. A rejection of hyper-connectivity, of infinite scrolls, algorithmic recommendations and push notifications. “Everyone that's on the site is able to watch a video that only has five views.”. It’s a gentle rebellion against the chaos of the present — a nostalgic portal to a time when the internet felt smaller, more intimate, and less demanding.
bring back BBM
"Nostalgia serves as a kind of emotional pacifier, helping us to become accustomed to a new reality that is jarring, stressful and traumatic.” I am well aware that the news cycle perpetuates bad news, but it does feel like the bad news cycle has been especially bad. From the never ending suffering of Palestinians at the hands of Israel, to the forming of the bro-ligarchy (gag), the resulting DEI policies being pulled back, immigration policies being reconsidered, right wing governments being voted in, I’m finding it hard to keep my head afloat.
I catch myself wishing I still had my Tumblr or that I could still BBM people. It’s not the platforms I miss, but the feeling they represent — a version of the internet before it became a chaotic, algorithmic noise machine.
The internet is now bloated and sludgy. Bots are everywhere — I constantly get notifications of bots commenting on my previous substack issue about generative AI. Content moderation is going away, leading to post-truth corners of the internet and ever dividing societies, and AI generated content is on the rise (not just videos but also articles), blurring the boundaries of what’s genuine.
Tiktok failed to load.Enable 3rd party cookies or use another browser
It’s a wonder nostalgia has such a strong pull on us. I’m not the only one curious about it — plenty of newsletter-ers have shared their thoughts on why we’re so collectively drawn to the past.
On design, retro aesthetics are being seen as a rejection to the polished, blanding design we’ve been seeing. Design Lobster says the “Early Internet [design] culture…has returned texture to our screens with added retro feels, along with a seductive note of nostalgia for a simpler kind of decade where the digital world was still rough-edged and full of possibility, rather than balding billionaires.”
In music, First Floor (a newsletter about electronic music), notes the increasing focus on old sounds. He argues that electronic music journalism often leans on the past because the writers themselves are aging. As younger critics turn to newer platforms to talk and read about music — think short-form media — traditional outlets like RA and DJ Mag end up spotlighting the sounds of the past. “Their primary audiences (i.e. the ones who actually want to read about electronic music) are aging, which makes anything that tickles readers’ sense of nostalgia an increasingly attractive proposition.”
And on tech (the thing that ties it all together), Digital Native believes that nostalgia’s grip has everything to do with how fast technology has progressed, leading to society being unable to keep up. This creates a whiplash effect, which powers comforting feelings like nostalgia.
Our fixation goes beyond aesthetics, music or technology — it stirs something deeper, a longing that feels both intimate and universal. It’s not just about looking back; it’s about grasping for something real in a world that often feels anything but.
Studies have found that it "confers psychological wellbeing by increasing authenticity” — a feeling that many Gen Zers say is lacking in their lives. Especially as every moment is curated, and every interaction is filtered through an algorithm. The obsession with "dumb phones" isn’t just aesthetic; it’s a quiet rebellion against hyper-connectivity, a longing for something raw, unfiltered, and sincere.
Looking back also gives space for search for identity. Craving for something old and abstract, I even found myself watching the films of one of Malaysians sentimental directors, Yasmin Ahmad’s Muhsin. I don’t know what I was hoping to find watching it, a sense of belonging? A sense of understanding through the screen.
blink twice and its over
But nostalgia is tricky. For all the warmth of going back, revisiting the past can sometimes feel a little empty. I’ve rewatched old tv shows, revisited old films, only to realise the magic I was chasing isn’t there anymore. And when I look more closely around me, everything else is different too.
When I was growing up in Johor, there was barely anything to do. Jalan Trus was filled with old kopitiams, and run down mamaks in old colonial shophouses reminiscent of the Peranakan era. After being declared a heritage street, its become a perfect site for gentrification. Specialty cafes, local concept stores, vintage stores have moved in, transforming the streets into a curated version of its former self — a place for Singaporeans (and other tourists) to visit — to sip on ice coffees while soaking in a neatly packaged version of history.
As the Trend Report points out, “It’s not just the sequelitis, it’s not just the constant reboots or AI slop, but it’s that we’re stuck in a nostalgia longing for the recent past instead of building a better future.” Perhaps, as Sean Monahan suggests, it’s time to "break up with nostalgia because it’s too narrow minded. We should engage with the great creative objects of the past, but without pretending it’s still 1994, 1984, or whatever else.”
The past may have been simpler, but we can’t deny the fact that the past is always filtered through our own memories, and those memories — like the versions of Jalan Trus or old TV shows — are never as untainted as we’d like to think. The present, no matter how chaotic or difficult, holds the potential for growth. What good is clinging to the past if it means we’re too distracted to build the future we deserve?
At some point, we need to stop romanticising the past, and start using it as inspiration to challenge the present and build the future we want.
field notes
WATCH: apple cider vinegar is another reminder how toxic the girl-boss culture is, and also how entertaining it is to watch it crumble. White Lotus S3!!! AHHH. The Gabby Pepito true crime docuseries, about a crime which I swear just happened (actually 2022). A lot of people are uncomfortable with Netflix recreating Gabby’s voice using AI voice recognition technology. Mo is amazing.
BOOKS: After watching Shogun, i decided to pick up the book which the tv show is based off. Not before checking with reddit and reading this amazing recommendation to read the book. I finally read Giovanni’s room, and it’s so beautiful. There are so many quotes in this book that I saved which described indescribable feelings, “for nothing is more unbearable, once one has it, than freedom”. Martyr, is a haunting read. I didn’t really know what to expect but I found that I was taken away by the storytelling, reminding me about how life takes shape and meaning. I was told I didn’t shout out Middlesex, a book which I LOVED.
ARTICLES: worst offenders of internet enshittification. On the impact of our culture diet. What muslim men are wearing for Friday prayers: “If we as a minority Muslim community don’t document our own lives, we can’t expect anyone else to do it for us”. The science behind why we love to hate. My dad sent me this article, which explains SO well what happened with DeepSeek and Nvidia’s stock collapsing. In praise of voice notes.
TECH: Mac’s iphone mirroring is perhaps the worst app to be my favourite! I will be doomscrolling on my laptop, put it away, and then pick up my actual phone to do the same thing. kmn. BUT there are some cosy parts too: Taylor lorenz talks about new app Tapestry that aims to make a universal feed (think IFTTT in the 00s). Opera Air is a newly launched web browser, that focuses on mindfulness. wikitok is a new website that lets people scroll through wikipedia pages like tiktok.
RANDOM: celebrity side questing: I am so confused, and bewildered by what ed sheeran is doing in India. but he’s performing in telugu, performing with A R Rahman, busking on streets, and playing the sitar. It’s a gentle reminder that artists have their little lives and curiosities how ever peculiar they may seem. This account is cosy, letting people guess where knickknacks are being hidden in a carousel. get your pokemon card read. and one thing i’d love to do in japan. also I LOVE this nerdy account called Etymology Nerd.
BONUS - MALAYSIA: sometimes I come home and find the normal things here very peculiar. Like the belief-non-belief in ghosts and spirits. Or the racial and cultural heritage that still breeds space for racism. Wild censorial laws. So peculiar. Here’s a reddit list of other peculiarities (not fact-checked), but gives an insight into our little world. (our local uwu bird) A new modern version of the zapin (malaysian traditional dance) is trending on social media so I’m leaving you with this:
Tiktok failed to load.
Enable 3rd party cookies or use another browser
Tiktok failed to load.Enable 3rd party cookies or use another browser
if i missed any links, or made any spelling errors and you saw them, did you really? Also if you liked something I said or didn’t, tell me! I love nothing more than when I get a text about the things I write. 🥰🙋🏽🍄
Such a well-researched, thought-provoking piece! I’ve struggled with chronic nostalgia my whole life (obviously haha) it can be absolutely stifling. I’m so inspired by the emotion but at the same time resent it and your point “nostalgia is tricky. For all the warmth of going back, revisiting the past can sometimes feel a little empty” perfectly captures why. Such a great reminder to not get stuck in the longing and romanticising the past, but instead use it “to challenge the present and build the future we want.”
Thanks for your words 💘