the summer of
What it was like to be 15 in 2007 in America
To be fifteen in America in 2007 was to have “Umbrella” by Rihanna ft. Jay-Z everywhere, Transformers on every screen, and American Idol on after school. That year, gas cost $2.80 and the original Apple iPhone was the new thing. Born in 1992? You turned 15 in 2007 — a teenager from 2005 to 2011, 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 2007 reel with sounda 30-second video of your year — the song, the screen, the turn.
the mixtape of 2007
Umbrella — Rihanna ft. Jay-Z
- Umbrella — Rihanna ft. Jay-ZElla-ella-eh-eh became the shorthand for a whole rainy, restless year of teenage longing.
- Crank That (Soulja Boy) — Soulja BoyEveryone crouched in the cafeteria doing the dance, and for one summer nobody was too cool to try.
- Big Girls Don't Cry — FergieFergie's slow ache soundtracked the first real goodbye you didn't know how to say out loud.
- Beautiful Girls — Sean KingstonThat Ben E. King sample looped from every phone speaker while you circled the one who wouldn't look back.
- Stronger — Kanye WestShutter shades and Daft Punk swagger made you believe getting older only meant getting harder to stop.
why this one mattered
The summer-2007 anthem that minted Rihanna as a superstar. The 'ella-ella-eh-eh-eh' hook was so viral it literally became shorthand for the whole season — you could not escape it at any party, pool, or mall. For a 15-year-old that year it is the instant-transport song.
the year-end #1 was Irreplaceable — Beyoncé.
the movies you are watching in 2007
- Transformers
- Spider-Man 3
- Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix
- Pirates of the Caribbean: At World's End
- Ratatouille
the tv shows you are binging in 2007
- American Idol
- Grey's Anatomy
- Heroes
- House
- Dancing with the Stars
the games you are playing in 2007
- Super Mario Galaxy
- Pokemon Diamond and Pearl
- Wii Sports
- Guitar Hero III: Legends of Rock
- Mario Party 8
- Halo 3
what things cost in 2007
| a first-class stamp | 41¢ |
|---|---|
| a gallon of gas | $2.80 |
| the federal minimum wage | $5.85/hr |
| a movie ticket | $6.88 |
| the average income | $50,233 |
trending this year
the gadgets you just got
what everyone is snacking on
what everyone is drinking
what made the news in 2007
- Apple unveils a touchscreen phone that reinvents the mobile world
- The U.S. troop surge escalates the grinding war in Iraq
- A subprime mortgage meltdown cracks the foundations of the economy
- Barry Bonds breaks baseball's hallowed all-time home run record
what everyone is saying
top-performing stocks in 2007
| Company | Ticker | Price | Change |
|---|---|---|---|
| Apple Inc. | AAPL | $198 | +130% |
| Research In Motion (BlackBerry) | RIMM | $113 | +150% |
| Amazon.com | AMZN | $92 | +135% |
| Garmin | GRMN | $97 | +85% |
| First Solar | FSLR | $267 | +795% |
worst-performing stocks in 2007
| Company | Ticker | Price | Change |
|---|---|---|---|
| Countrywide Financial | CFC | $9 | -79% |
| Citigroup | C | $29 | -47% |
| E-Trade Financial | ETFC | $3.55 | -84% |
| Washington Mutual | WM | $13.61 | -70% |
| Sprint Nextel | S | $13.13 | -30% |
the summer of 2007.
you think you've got all the time in the world.