the summer of
What it was like to be 15 in 2000 in America
To be fifteen in America in 2000 was to have “Bye Bye Bye” by *NSYNC everywhere, Gladiator on every screen, and Survivor on after school. That year, gas cost $1.51 and the PlayStation 2 was the new thing. Born in 1985? You turned 15 in 2000 — a teenager from 1998 to 2004, right in the window a soundtrack bonds to you for life.
Compiled by the Original Lore archive from period charts, box-office and price records. How we build these · sources noted throughout.
▶ Play your 2000 reel with sounda 30-second video of your year — the song, the screen, the turn.
the mixtape of 2000
Bye Bye Bye — *NSYNC
- Bye Bye Bye — *NSYNCThe choreography everyone attempted in their bedroom, the giddy peak of boy-band devotion and denim.
- Oops!... I Did It Again — Britney SpearsBritney's red-latex confidence ruled the summer, played until the CD single wore clean through.
- It's Gonna Be Me — *NSYNCJustin's overpronounced hook was the sound of TRL afternoons and completely impossible crushes.
- Say My Name — Destiny's ChildThe harmonies and finger-wag choreography every girl learned cold in front of the mirror.
- The Real Slim Shady — EminemThe gleefully rude anthem you memorized to shock the lunch table, feeling briefly untouchable.
why this one mattered
The peak-boy-band TRL anthem of the millennium. The marionette choreography was the single most parodied/imitated dance of the year, and 'No Strings Attached' moved 2.4M copies in a week. For a 15-year-old in 2000 this was the song that owned the hallway, the bus, and the sleepover.
the year-end #1 was Breathe — Faith Hill.
the movies you are watching in 2000
- Gladiator
- Mission: Impossible II
- X-Men
- Cast Away
- Meet the Parents
the tv shows you are binging in 2000
- Survivor
- Friends
- Who Wants to Be a Millionaire
- The Sopranos
- Malcolm in the Middle
the games you are playing in 2000
- Pokémon Gold and Silver
- The Legend of Zelda: Majora's Mask
- Tony Hawk's Pro Skater 2
- The Sims
- Spyro: Year of the Dragon
- Counter-Strike
what things cost in 2000
| a gallon of gas | $1.51 |
|---|---|
| a movie ticket | $5.39 |
| a Big Mac | $2.51 |
| minimum wage | $5.15/hr |
| a first-class stamp | $0.33 |
| the average income | $42,148 |
trending this year
the gadgets you just got
what everyone is snacking on
what everyone is drinking
what made the news in 2000
- A deadlocked presidential race between George W. Bush and Al Gore hangs on Florida's contested ballots and hanging chads
- Fears of a Y2K computer meltdown fizzle as the new millennium dawns peacefully
- The destroyer USS Cole is bombed by al-Qaeda suicide attackers in Yemen's Aden harbor
- The dot-com stock bubble bursts as the Nasdaq peaks and crashes, wiping out fortunes
what everyone is saying
top-performing stocks in 2000
| Company | Ticker | Price | Change |
|---|---|---|---|
| Philip Morris Companies | MO | $44 | +85% |
| ExxonMobil | XOM | $87 | +10% |
| Newmont Mining | NEM | $24 | +15% |
| Chevron | CHV | $84 | +5% |
| Anheuser-Busch | BUD | $45 | +30% |
worst-performing stocks in 2000
| Company | Ticker | Price | Change |
|---|---|---|---|
| Amazon.com | AMZN | $15.56 | -80% |
| Yahoo! | YHOO | $30 | -86% |
| Priceline.com | PCLN | $2 | -97% |
| Lucent Technologies | LU | $13 | -83% |
| Qualcomm | QCOM | $82 | -50% |
the summer of 2000.
you can't wait to be older.