It’s okay to hop on the bandwagon
It’s sheeple summer! Baaaaaaa!
Ciao! I just returned from my godmother’s wedding in Italy, and am back on home turf. Literally. Hopped into a cab from JFK and there was astroturf on the floor of the backseat that I’m choosing to believe was a personal choice and not the remnants from a weird night.
The theme of this ’stack is this Terrence O’Connor meme that resonated with me in such a profound way I want to go full Warhol and print it out 12x12 to hang on the wall. It skips hand-in-hand with something that’s been bothering me: people hating on “bandwagon” fans. Oh sorry, I didn’t realize you EMERGED FROM THE WOMB IN A MESSI JERSEY. Didn’t know your first steps were COURTSIDE AT THE KNICKS. Sounds slippery. Anyway, what a lame loser opinion.
Right now there’s a bit of a hivemind situation going on in New York—everybody got really into the Knicks, and then subsequently the World Cup—and now Internet pontificators are dividing fans into Sheeple and True Fans. People who wouldn’t have been able to identify a soccer ball if it hit them in the face are building their schedules around the games. Some of the things that people are bandwagoning are great (socialism!), others are okay (dotcakes), some still will be stale in 6 months (teal capris from Los Angeles Apparel and probably also dotcakes).
Over the past decade (rightfully so) jumping on the bandwagon has become synonymous with mental laxitude, a suspension of individuality in favor of group think—TikTok trends, unvetted medical advice from beef tallow influencers, shopping hauls, egregious NYC lines. Personally, I think we need to de-corporatize the bandwagon and enjoy the energy.
But what about critical thought? What about maintaining personal interests? What about my rare collection of soda tabs that nobody else will possibly see value in? I ask this: Are you really thinking so critically about football that the average jaywalker couldn’t grasp it? Are you such a solipsist that it’s unimaginable others could casually enjoy the same things as you? I’m not suggesting that you join the FroYo line made up of 30 people who’ve never experienced anxiety. I’m just saying if you walk by…and there happens to only be two people standing there…don’t deprive yourself on principle.
There’s a distinction to be made between getting something (buying, consuming) because everybody else is, and experiencing something because everybody else is (excitement, joy, camaraderie). I’d like to suspend judgement, our attachment to our own uniqueness, and instead embrace the wonder that comes from collective enjoyment. I personally love joining a bandwagon. That’s where the music is.
Cheering for any sport. And this amazing sold-out Drift Knicks hat!
Love Island. Specifically Bryce on Love Island USA. When people don’t like him it’s like, wow… you never fw a pathetic man?
My brilliant friend Katy’s response to Byline’s Caroline Calloway essay.
These leopard Cavalli dresses. Recently I’ve been banned by Poshmark. Please Poshmark let me IN!
