the summer of

What it was like to be 15 in 2001 in America

To be fifteen in America in 2001 was to have “In the End” by Linkin Park everywhere, Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone on every screen, and Friends on after school. That year, gas cost $1.46 and the first iPod was the new thing. Born in 1986? You turned 15 in 2001 — a teenager from 1999 to 2005, 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 2001 reel with sounda 30-second video of your year — the song, the screen, the turn.

the mixtape of 2001

In the End — Linkin Park

  1. In the End — Linkin ParkThe rap-rock catharsis that made every misunderstood freshman feel their pain finally mattered.
  2. Last Resort — Papa RoachPapa Roach's scream was the raw, too-loud soundtrack to bedroom-door-slamming adolescence.
  3. Drops of Jupiter — TrainThe wistful sway that played at every graduation, already sounding like a memory as it did.
  4. It Wasn't Me — ShaggyThe absurd, unavoidable summer jam everyone quoted, laughing, all season long without shame.
  5. Crawling — Linkin ParkChester's raw howl gave shape to a private teenage anguish you couldn't yet even name.

▶ Play your 2001 reel

why this one mattered

The generational nu-metal/rap-rock crossover anthem. 'Hybrid Theory' was the best-selling album of 2001, and 'In the End' — the piano-line, the rap-verse-then-scream-chorus catharsis — was the song every angsty 15-year-old screamed into their headphones. It is the definitive sound of being a teenager that year.

the year-end #1 was Hanging by a Moment — Lifehouse.

the movies you are watching in 2001

  • Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone
  • The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring
  • Shrek
  • Monsters, Inc.
  • Ocean's Eleven

the tv shows you are binging in 2001

  • Friends
  • Survivor
  • CSI: Crime Scene Investigation
  • The Sopranos
  • Smallville

the games you are playing in 2001

  • Super Smash Bros. Melee
  • Pokémon Crystal
  • Tony Hawk's Pro Skater 3
  • Luigi's Mansion
  • Gran Turismo 3: A-Spec
  • Grand Theft Auto III

what things cost in 2001

What things cost in 2001
a first-class stamp34¢
a gallon of gas$1.46
a movie ticket$5.66
minimum wage$5.15/hr
the average income$42,228

trending this year

Apple iPod
Photo by Aaron Logan (Lightmatter) (Wikimedia Commons), source: https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Ipod_1G.png · CC BY 2.5
Apple iPod
Xbox
Evan-Amos (Vanamo Media) · Public Domain
Xbox
Wikipedia
Westmarch95 / CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons
Wikipedia
Shrek
John D. Batten (1865–1932), from English Fairy Tales (1890); public domain, via Wikimedia Commons
Shrek
All Your Base Are Belong To Us
ToxicZawad, CC0, via Wikimedia Commons — no attribution required · CC0 1.0
All Your Base Are Belong To Us

the gadgets you just got

Apple iPod (1st generation)
Photo by Aaron Logan (Lightmatter) (Wikimedia Commons), source: https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Ipod_1G.png · CC BY 2.5
Apple iPod (1st generation)
Nintendo GameCube
Photo by Evan-Amos (Wikimedia Commons), source: https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:GameCube-Set.jpg · Public Domain
Nintendo GameCube
Microsoft Xbox (original)
Photo by Evan-Amos (Wikimedia Commons), source: https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Xbox-console.jpg · Public Domain
Microsoft Xbox (original)
Game Boy Advance
Photo by Evan-Amos (Wikimedia Commons), source: https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Nintendo-Game-Boy-Advance-Purple-FL.jpg · Public Domain
Game Boy Advance
Nokia 8310
Photo by Jll (Wikimedia Commons), source: https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Nokia_8310_phone.jpg · CC BY-SA 3.0
Nokia 8310

what everyone is snacking on

Doritos 3D
Cindyy28, via Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 4.0
Doritos 3D
Cheetos
annulla, CC BY 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons
Cheetos
Oreo (Double Stuf)
Evan-Amos, via Wikimedia Commons (https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Oreo-Two-Cookies.jpg) · Public Domain (PD-self)
Oreo (Double Stuf)
Hot Pockets
Tony Branston, originally on Flickr, via Wikimedia Commons (https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Hot_Pocket_Cooked.jpg) · CC BY-SA 2.0
Hot Pockets
Pop-Tarts
Evan-Amos, via Wikimedia Commons (CC BY-SA 3.0)
Pop-Tarts

what everyone is drinking

Gatorade
Fotonovela, via Wikimedia Commons (https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Gatorade_Thirst_Quencher.jpg) · CC BY-SA 3.0
Gatorade
Red Bull
VincentLR, Wikimedia Commons (https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Lattina_di_Red_Bull.jpg) · CC BY-SA 4.0
Red Bull
Mountain Dew Code Red
othree (Flickr), via Openverse (https://www.flickr.com/photos/12452841@N00/5736155358) · CC BY 2.0
Mountain Dew Code Red
Sunny Delight (SunnyD)
Photo by JeepersMedia (Mike Mozart) on Flickr, CC BY 2.0
Sunny Delight (SunnyD)
Capri Sun
Photo by Tamzin Hadasa Kelly (Wikimedia Commons), source: https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Capri_Sun_pouch_standing.jpg · CC BY-SA 4.0
Capri Sun

what made the news in 2001

  • Hijacked planes strike the Twin Towers and Pentagon on September 11th
  • US launches war in Afghanistan, toppling the Taliban regime
  • Anthrax-laced letters spread fear through the mail nationwide
  • Apple unveils a sleek pocket music player that holds 1,000 songs
September 11 terrorist attacks strike the U.S.
Photo by Kenneth Gross, released to public domain via NIST/FOIA · Public Domain (U.S. federal government work, 17 U.S.C. 105)
September 11 terrorist attacks strike the U.S.
George W. Bush inaugurated as 43rd U.S. President
Photo by Susan Sterner, George W. Bush Presidential Library (public domain) · Public Domain (U.S. federal government work)
George W. Bush inaugurated as 43rd U.S. President
U.S. launches war in Afghanistan
U.S. Navy photo by Tech Sgt. Scott Reed (public domain) · Public Domain (U.S. Navy, federal government work)
U.S. launches war in Afghanistan
Anthrax letters mailed to media and Senate
FBI (public domain, U.S. federal government work) · Public Domain (U.S. federal government work, 17 U.S.C. 105)
Anthrax letters mailed to media and Senate
Apple opens its first retail stores
Joseph Thornton, via Wikimedia Commons · CC BY-SA 2.0
Apple opens its first retail stores

what everyone is saying

  • "Wassup?!"From the Budweiser "Whassup?" TV ad campaign, ubiquitous into 2001
  • "Is that your final answer?"Catchphrase from Who Wants to Be a Millionaire, peak popularity in 2001
  • "All your base are belong to us"Engrish meme from Zero Wing that went viral online in early 2001
  • "You are the weakest link, goodbye"Anne Robinson's line from The Weakest Link, which debuted on US TV in 2001
  • "Talk to the hand"Dismissive slang phrase at peak cultural use around 2001

top-performing stocks in 2001

Top-performing stocks in 2001
CompanyTickerPriceChange
Hansen Natural (Monster Beverage)HANS$5.20+150%
NVR Inc.NVR$200+130%
CephalonCEPH$73+90%
Quest DiagnosticsDGX$72+85%
Forest LaboratoriesFRX$80+70%

worst-performing stocks in 2001

Worst-performing stocks in 2001
CompanyTickerPriceChange
EnronENE$0.60-99%
Lucent TechnologiesLU$6.30-77%
Nortel NetworksNT$7.50-77%
JDS UniphaseJDSU$8.40-78%
Yahoo!YHOO$17.70-60%

the summer of 2001.

you think you've got all the time in the world.

…and then it cools. Play the reel to feel where 2001 goes.

Turn 2001 into a 30-second reel →

▶ Play your 2001 reel with sound