How Young Can You Be...

[thatonemom]

and still know who Ricky Martin is? Thatonedad and I were trying to figure out when he fell out of cultural common knowledge. (Sometime post-William Hung, I'd assume)

Anyway, the bb is the most easily accessible group of people younger than we are. (31) Thoughts?

[Dragon Lady]

I'm 30 and know him. So bump that number down by one.

[Portia]

and still know who Ricky Martin is? Thatonedad and I were trying to figure out when he fell out of cultural common knowledge. (Sometime post-William Hung, I'd assume)

Anyway, the bb is the most easily accessible group of people younger than we are. (31) Thoughts?

On the ngram viewer, he peaks at 2001.

So if you're 22, you've probably heard of him, but if you're 18 or younger, you might not have.

[mic0]

I'm 23, have heard of him, cannot picture who he is in my mind. I just looked his picture up and really had NO IDEA that that is what he looks like. I only know of one song - Livin' La Vida Loca.

[Emiliana]

I'm 23, have heard of him, cannot picture who he is in my mind. I just looked his picture up and really had NO IDEA that that is what he looks like. I only know of one song - Livin' La Vida Loca.

I'm 26 and I remember when he was popular.

[Portia]

I'm almost 26 and definitely knew his work and remember him as a teen idol. In 1999, I was almost 12, and starting to listen to popular music. I also remember his coming out as gay. So it looks like it all depends how old you were when we were gonna party like it's 1999. (Seriously that year was great. I miss the nineties.)

[mic0]

I remember him being popular, but I thought he was a lot older. Haha, I guess I probably thought everyone was old in 1999, though.

[Portia]

This thread inspired me to make a 1999 playlist. So much good stuff.

"...Baby One More Time" – Britney Spears
"Bills, Bills, Bills" - Destiny's Child
"I Want It That Way" – Backstreet Boys
"I Will Remember You" – Sarah McLachlan
"Everything You Want" – Vertical Horizon
"Every Morning" – Sugar Ray
"Kiss Me" – Sixpence None the Richer
"Livin' la Vida Loca" – Ricky Martin
"Mambo No. 5 (A Little Bit Of...)" – Lou Bega
"Man! I Feel Like a Woman!" – Shania Twain
"My Name Is" – Eminem
"My Own Worst Enemy" – Lit
"Scar Tissue" – Red Hot Chili Peppers
"Steal My Sunshine" – Len
"There She Goes" – Sixpence None the Richer
"What a Girl Wants" – Christina Aguilera

Oh, man. Good stuff. And probably too mature for a seventh grader. ^_~ (Although 2002 got even sexier with, say, "Harder to Breathe." I'm pretty sure Songs About Jane pretty much singlehandedly introduced me to human sexuality, despite our leaders' urging us to throw out our "bad" music.)

[Portia]

Check out these fashions!







I like the floral polyester maxi with the knit cap and flatironed hair, the men's pink tracksuit, and of course, the shoulder pads and the "Rachel." Simpler times, my friends.

[thatonemom]

That Ngram is amazing! I didn't know anything like that existed. And those clothes like look they're straight out of the delia's catalog, Or my senior yearbook...

So is there anyone who doesn't know who he is? I wondered if there'd be an older group of people who knew the Vida Loca song, and a younger set who maybe knew him more as a gay rights activist, if at all.

[Portia]

You might be best asking the actual board, since they're mostly born in the '90s now.

[Portia]

As was Mico, probably, and she is married. Sheesh.

[Portia]

Just for you, t1m. Brace yourself, you may not be able to handle the awesomeness.

The entire 1999 Delia's catalog.

(I don't remember it. I mostly wore Gap Kids and ugly big box clothes my grandma picked out at that age, and school uniforms.)

[Giovanni Schwartz]

I've heard of him. I'm 22.

[Portia]

Wow. The website and brand still exist. And it's horrifying. That cat sweater alone. Why?!

(Had to go to J. Crew as a palliative.)

[Dragon Lady]

I can totally see people I know wearing every sweater advertised on that first page.

[Portia]

If there's anything worse than high-waisted candy-colored Daisy Dukes, I'd love to hear it.

And Dragon Lady, are these grown women with children? (I fear to ask.)

[Dragon Lady]

And, maybe I'm reading the ngram wrong, but it looks like he peaks at 2002.

[Dragon Lady]

Haha, no, Portia. Mostly siblings-in-law, their friends, and nieces/nephews. And a few youth in my ward.

[NerdGirl]

Portia, I'm pretty sure I wore several of those outfits regularly. So much awesomeness.