Labubus on tote bags, matcha in hand, and Clairo in wired earbuds. This archetype, dubbed performative males, has been trending in recent months. It is a curated aesthetic of this generation, opting for a more feminine style over masculinity. I have never seen one of these people in person, but in places like Seattle, there have been competitions to see who best fits the trend.
Slowly, this style has gained popularity, with memes surfacing about these men and hosting competitions in popular cities like Seattle to see who is the most performative.
In these competitions, people cosplayed as performative and voted on who matched the stereotype the most. The competitors carried around CDs, and some even brought fishing rods with Labubus on them.
From this trend, performative males have been making a name for themselves around the world.
What appears to be the reason for all this? Many assume it’s to appeal to modern women, but it could also be a man liking feminine things that many assume is done performatively.
Letting go of the idea of toxic masculinity and embracing a chill, more feminine-appreciating way of life is what these people are all about. It seems that some males perform like this because it is what they assume women want most, but are all men like this performing?
With the rise of this style comes a bit of hate. Netizens (internet citizens) have judged those who follow in these steps, saying that this aesthetic is just a sham, as suggested by the name “performative males”.
This trend has practically taken over, leaving behind shallow people who are just trying to get attention. This leads to a common sentiment: it’s bad to perform like this!
While faking is bad, it’s equally as bad to say that being feminine is considered performative for men now, when that’s not the case.
When we label men who like to read, or listen to indie music, or read feminist literature as performative, it creates the idea that this can’t be a genuine thing a man enjoys, when truly, it can be.
I think that this leads us back to the idea of what boys can do versus what girls can do: “Boys don’t read, they play sports!” “Girls don’t get dirty, they play with dolls!”- and so on.
So when a man collects cute keychains and reads books, and listens to girly music while drinking a (semi)sweet drink, it’s considered performative, as it is a bit out of the norm.
From where I stand, I see it as the boy version of tomboys, who are usually considered to be tough, and “one of the guys”, and possibly even pick-mes.
As ABBA said, “The history book on the shelf is always repeating itself.” Maybe the issue isn’t that these performative guys are trying so hard to get attention, but the fact that they are using this difference to do so, making it seem as if all people who act similarly are also acting.
Performative men have taken over the internet, and as time moves on, so will more trends similar to this one. Trends repeating isn’t a new thing; it actually happens a lot, whether it’s a good or bad thing.
When we move on from trends like this, they are bound to circle back. That means that if you don’t go to the root of a craze, you can’t stop it. If you don’t stop it, the trend goes on.
If we keep accepting sensations like the performative males and tomboys, and keep up the hate train, we will only end up making it worse, and it will last longer.