the summer of

What it was like to be 15 in 2020 in America

To be fifteen in America in 2020 was to have “Mood” by 24kGoldn feat. iann dior everywhere, Tenet on every screen, and Tiger King on after school. That year, gas cost $2.17 and the PlayStation 5 was the new thing. Born in 2005? You turned 15 in 2020 — a teenager from 2018 to 2024, 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 2020 reel with sounda 30-second video of your year — the song, the screen, the turn.

the mixtape of 2020

Mood — 24kGoldn feat. iann dior

Mood — 24kGoldn feat. iann dior'Why you always in a mood' was the anthem of a locked-down year spent restless in your room.
Dynamite — BTSBTS handed a scared, stuck world a shot of dynamite joy right when everyone needed it most.
Blinding Lights — The WeekndThose synths glowed through empty streets, the sound of a whole isolated year longing to dance again.
Savage — Megan Thee StallionYou learned the TikTok dance in your bedroom because the bedroom was suddenly the only place there was.
drivers license — Olivia RodrigoOlivia's first sob-along let a housebound generation grieve loves they'd barely gotten to have.

▶ Play your 2020 reel

why this one mattered

The quarantine-year TikTok anthem - in a locked-down 2020 this hyperpop-rock earworm soundtracked endless bedroom videos and became the song every 15-year-old looped, beating the more 'adult' chart steadiness of Blinding Lights for teen ubiquity.

the year-end #1 was Blinding Lights - The Weeknd.

the movies you are watching in 2020

Tenet
Sonic the Hedgehog
Bad Boys for Life
Wonder Woman 1984
Soul

the tv shows you are binging in 2020

Tiger King
The Queen's Gambit
The Mandalorian
The Last Dance
The Crown

the games you are playing in 2020

Animal Crossing: New Horizons
Among Us
Fall Guys
Minecraft
Super Mario 3D All-Stars
Call of Duty: Black Ops Cold War

what things cost in 2020

What things cost in 2020
Gas (gallon)	$2.17
Movie ticket	$9.18
First-class stamp	$0.55
minimum wage	$7.25/hr
the average income	$67,521

trending this year

PlayStation 5 — Osh33m, via Wikimedia Commons · CC BY-SA 4.0

Tiger King — Gary M. Stolz, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service · Public Domain (US Fish & Wildlife Service)

Animal Crossing: New Horizons — Jon Sullivan · Public Domain

Dalgona Coffee — Kguirnela, CC BY-SA 4.0

the gadgets you just got

iPhone 12 — None required (CC0) · CC0 1.0 Public Domain Dedication

Xbox Series X — Der. Bellemer, via Wikimedia Commons · CC BY 4.0

Nintendo Switch — Liam Dawe / GamingOnLinux; PNG by VulcanSphere, via Wikimedia Commons (CC BY-SA 4.0)

AirPods Max — User:PJ (with User:Piko), via Wikimedia Commons · CC BY-SA 3.0

what everyone is snacking on

Cheetos — annulla, CC BY 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons

Doritos — Bananasoldier, via Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 3.0

Lay's Potato Chips — Evan-Amos, via Wikimedia Commons (released into the public domain)

Evan-Amos, via Wikimedia Commons (File:Oreo-Two-Cookies.jpg) · Public Domain (author release)

Takis — Thomson200, via Wikimedia Commons (CC0) · CC0 1.0 Universal (Public Domain Dedication)

what everyone is drinking

White Claw Hard Seltzer — Ktkvtsh, via Wikimedia Commons (https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:White_Claw_hard_seltzer_variety_packs_in_retail_freezer_case,_United_States.jpg) · CC BY 4.0

Coca-Cola — Christian Gidlöf, via Wikimedia Commons — https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Coca-cola_50cl_white-bg.jpg · CC BY-SA 3.0

Monster Energy — Bxxiaolin, edited by Pittigrilli, via Wikimedia Commons — https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Can_of_Monster_Energy_drink_sold_in_China_(0.33_l),_on_white_background.jpg · CC BY-SA 4.0

Red Bull — VincentLR, Wikimedia Commons (https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Lattina_di_Red_Bull.jpg) · CC BY-SA 4.0

ajay_suresh, via Flickr/Wikimedia Commons (https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Starbucks_-_Coffee_Frappuccino_(51259869202).jpg) · CC BY 2.0

what made the news in 2020

A novel coronavirus pandemic shuts down the world and upends daily life
George Floyd's death sparks nationwide protests for racial justice
Joe Biden defeats Donald Trump in a turbulent presidential election
Kobe Bryant dies in a sudden helicopter crash, stunning fans

COVID-19 pandemic shuts down the world — Natalie Wynne Pace, CC BY 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons · CC-BY 4.0

George Floyd protests sweep the US — Ourblacklives, via Wikimedia Commons · CC BY-SA 4.0

Joe Biden wins the 2020 presidential election — Tony Webster, via Wikimedia Commons · CC BY 2.0

Kobe Bryant dies in helicopter crash — Markowijaya, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons

Australian bushfires devastate the country — Neal Herbert / U.S. Department of the Interior (National Interagency Fire Center), public domain · Public Domain (PD-USGov-Interior)

what everyone is saying

"You're on mute"Ubiquitous video-call refrain as the world moved onto Zoom during lockdown
"Social distancing"Public-health term for staying 6 feet apart during the COVID-19 pandemic
"Quarantine and chill"Lockdown-era spin on Netflix and chill as people stayed home
"Karen"Meme label for an entitled woman demanding to speak to the manager, peaked in 2020
"OK Boomer"Dismissive Gen-Z retort to older generations that went mainstream

top-performing stocks in 2020

Top-performing stocks in 2020
Company	Ticker	Price	Change
Tesla	TSLA	$705	+743%
Zoom Video Communications	ZM	$337	+396%
Moderna	MRNA	$104	+434%
NVIDIA	NVDA	$522	+122%
Peloton Interactive	PTON	$152	+434%

worst-performing stocks in 2020

Worst-performing stocks in 2020
Company	Ticker	Price	Change
Carnival Corporation	CCL	$21	-57%
Occidental Petroleum	OXY	$17	-57%
Norwegian Cruise Line	NCLH	$25	-56%
United Airlines	UAL	$43	-51%
Wells Fargo	WFC	$30	-44%

the summer of 2020.

the best of it still feels like it's coming.

…and then it cools. Play the reel to feel where 2020 goes.

Turn 2020 into a 30-second reel →