"Make the friendship bracelets/ Take the moment and taste it". These are the words spoken by Taylor Swift in her song You're On Your Own, Kid from her latest album Midnights. Words taken literally by the community of fans of the American singer who, since then, have proudly worn bracelets with a message on their wrist. This elastic jewel with white pearls with black letters never ceases to fascinate Generation Z. On TikTok alone, the hashtag #friendshipbracelet has no less than 370 million views. The strength of the bracelet lies in the message conveyed by the pearls. The title of an album, a first name, a love note... There's something for everyone. Even if it means accumulating a good twenty of them on the wrist.
@ammberchen
to anyone that traded w my sis, it made her day #friendshipbracelet #erastour #taylorswift #swifties #taylorsversion #girlhood #sofistadium
Youre On Your Own Kid - Emily
Back to basics
If we keep in mind the success of this knock-off bracelet in the 2000s, its return in 2023 is also significant of a generation. Since the pandemic, DIY (Editor's note: DIY) has been gaining ground among younger people. The idea is no longer the bracelet you buy as a supplement to a teen magazine, but the one you make yourself. All with the aim of being traded. "It's taken on a crazy dimension," says Louise, 26, a swiftie, as the singer's fans call themselves. He continued: "With the friendship bracelet, we realize that being a fan is no longer ridiculous, as it was in the 2000s for fans of Justin Bieber for example. Today, we are a community of people who accept and appreciate each other. That's the message." It's also a way for Generation Z to reconnect, after a year 2020 marked by the absence of concerts and reunions between fan communities. Gigi Hadid, Selena Gomez and more recently Sophie Turner... The older ones are also succumbing to the trend.
A bracelet boosted by the Do It Yourself trend that has been gaining momentum since the lockdown in 2020. Enough to give ideas for micro-business. On Etsy, a site specializing in the sale of handicraft products, the search for "friendship bracelet" offers more than 309,000 results...