26 Jul The Rise of #humancore: How the Perfect Picture on Social Media Disappeared
Under the hashtags #humanbeinghumans, #peoplebeingpeople, and #humancore on TikTok, numerous videos showcase real people in their daily lives. Humancore is a cultural trend that focuses on embracing the everyday and human aspects of life. It centres around authenticity, simplicity, and a certain rawness of life. It highlights the beauty in ordinary, daily moments and conveys a sense of genuineness and humanity.
Humancore: Refreshingly Real
This human approach is a response to the often filtered, perfected, and ultimately unrealistic images we see in the online world. For some time now, the ‘perfect picture’ has no longer been a fit for social media. For instance, photo dumps have triumphed over stylised images on feeds, unattractive TikToks outperform high-end video productions, and people prefer sending unflattering selfies via Snap rather than editing their faces using Facetune apps.
Imperfection as a Response to AI
How does this renewed appreciation for imperfection align with the new AI era? In a world where everything becomes increasingly manufactured through AI, consumers crave a life without filters, scripts, or prompts. Authenticity and genuineness have long been trending on social media, but the humanity and ease of humancore seems to have been further boosted when AI entered the playing field.
Brat Summer
This imperfection on social media is also reflected in this summer’s trend: ‘Brat Summer’. Last year, the summer theme was all about Barbie; Brat Summer is the raw variant. The trend is inspired by Charli XCX’s album “Brat,” released on June 7, 2024. It stands for a carefree, rebellious, and edgy aesthetic, dominated by black and neon green colours. In short, Brat Summer is about enjoying the moment, being a bit rebellious, and having fun with a unique and bold personal style, far from last year’s perfect Barbie image.
Authentic Content for Brands
Campaign results also show that authenticity, genuineness, and originality are the best-performing content. Real videos featuring real people often get more extended views on social media than flashy commercials or scripted videos. For this reason, the popularity of User Generated Content (UGC) continues to grow. A beautiful example is Kiki Bosman, also known from De Yup in the Jordaan in Amsterdam. She has neighbours who are always there for her, and to thank them, she collaborates with Nationale Bioscoopbon. Watch the (first) video and be sure to read all the enthusiastic reactions!
Another excellent example of humancore is “Op stap met Oma” a format created for Hero Cassis. It’s impossible not to smile when Roos takes her grandma out for an adventure.