The Digital Campfires Consuming Gen Z Audiences

4 key behaviors defining this demo—and the campfires they’re obsessing over

There are a lot of so-called Gen Z experts out there, but Alice Ophelia and Faye Maidment— the whip-smart duo behind the High Tea newsletter, a weekly roundup of Gen Z culture, media and tech trends from around the globe—are the real deal. 

The two, who met in high school and bring backgrounds in journalism (Alice) and marketing (Faye) to the task, live and breathe all things Gen Z. Not only are they remarkably astute chroniclers of the content they’re consuming, behaviors they’re exhibiting, and the digital platforms where they’re congregating, and regularly cover trends the mainstream media often misses or dismisses, they have a highly-attuned sense of which up-and-coming influencers are going to pop. As a result, in one short year, High Tea, which Alice describes as their weekly “public, playful hot take” on all things Gen Z, has become a must-read for anyone looking to understand the preoccupations and destinations of a generation suddenly a the forefront of the culture, in the digital sphere and beyond.

As I’ve written about previously, Gen Z are gravitating toward smaller, more intimate and often more private online spaces and subcultures—a.k.a. digital campfires. To understand why this is happening, Alice and Faye shared 4 specific behaviors characteristic of Gen Z audiences, and the digital campfire platforms where you can observe each in the digital wild.

1. They’re using their voices

Zs are coming into their power as a cultural force, just as millennials did before them (and a political force—after all, in the U.S., they’re going to be a powerful voting block for the first time next month). As such, expressing their values is paramount. We already know that they’re using TikTok for a lot more than dancing in their bedrooms. What’s not as obvious is that they’re openly aligning themselves with causes, calling out brands they consider insufficiently diverse and loudly trumpeting what they stand for. Charli D’Amelio, the 16-year-old former competitive dancer who, with more than 88 million TikTok followers, has been called the platform’s biggest star, has been vocal on many issues—from her eating disorder to her experiences with body shaming and sexualization by adult men online, to her support for the Black Lives Matter movement, including posting a TikTok video decrying George Floyd’s murder. “What Charli was doing making TikToks in her bedroom after school and what she’s doing with her voice now is nothing short of incredible,” says Alice. Digital campfires to observe this behavior in the wild: TikTok, with its hyper-personal algorithm-driven For You page, is a place where distinct subcultures thrive (think: Willy Wonka TikTok, Cottagecore TikTok, Witch Tok, NunTok, just to name a few).

2. They’re experimenting with inhabiting different identities

Millennials grew up putting themselves online—albeit often highly  idealized versions of themselves. By contrast, Zs have embraced rawness and actual authenticity, increasingly moving away from representing themselves online with filtered Instagram perfection. In line with this, they’re also playing with the notion of self-distortion, regularly inhabiting other worlds and identities. “Maybe you want to adopt a different persona, or play with a meme as an identity or upload a photo of yourself doing something crazy. Maybe you really appreciate Pokemon or another subculture and you’re trying to grow that side of you. At the end of the day these kids aren’t able to interact right now because they’re not in school. They’re online, and they need these pockets where they can start to grow their identities, whereas we used to grow ours riding our bikes and playing outside.”  Digital campfire to observe this behavior in the wild: The 200M-strong avatar network IMVU, which allows users to customize their characters, connect with friends in immersive 3D chat rooms, and make new ones around the world through shared experiences. Runners up: Roblox, the #1 gaming site for teens, and Animal Crossing: New Horizons,  the fastest selling game on the Nintendo Switch (Source), both of which foster community through allowing users to create adventures, play games, role play, and learn with their friends in a virtual world.

3. They’re taking self-care super seriously

Ditching perfection is manifesting itself in a variety of ways. In all corners of TikTok for example, Zs are embracing body positivity, sharing recoveries from eating disorders and struggles with getting sober and “amazing supportive communities” that are now in the public domain are springing up around them, says Alice. As the barriers that once prevented people from expressing themselves openly and honestly out of fear of being shamed begin to fall, “there’s greater acceptance to just engage with that narrative.” It’s no surprise then that more expansive notions of self-care are emerging in tandem—such as an obsession with astrology. For a generation that grew up in a recession and are now in the midst of a global pandemic, it makes sense that they’re uncertain about their futures and looking for reassurance. Alice predicts a lot more to come in the astrology space since it speaks to Z’s need for self-expression and escapism and “who are asking questions that perhaps only the stars can answer.” Digital campfires to observe this behavior in the wild: Co-Star, the first ever AI-powered astrology app, which facilitates private messaging and allows users to compare their charts for compatibility) and The Pattern, which shows users not only their own predictions, but the astrological energies influencing their friends. Runners up: Replika, a sexual-health focused chat bot, and Reflectly, an “intelligent journal” designed to track users daily ups and downs and help them find community in the form of its sister app, Vent.

4. They’re finding their hyper-specific tribes

In the past, says Alice, barriers such as time zones or who was in your social network or closed circle of friends prevented you from finding your people online, but now, communities are flourishing in unknown spaces, and they’re not as insular as they used to be. In these subcultures, where Zs have the freedom to express who they really are, it’s become easy for them to find their tribes and forge real relationships, especially during their formative teenage years.  “It doesn’t feel so insular anymore. It’s not just you shouting into the void and hoping someone hears. Now people are listening and responding” — which is a really important factor right now as we live through a pandemic and people, but especially teenagers, are yearning for connection. Digital campfires to observe this behavior in the wild: Discord (a chat platform which is now used by 30 percent of people for reasons other than gaming) and Pinterest, which is having a major resurgence with the Gen Z demo.

Want to hear more from Alice and Faye? Check out our full hour-long conversation on The Digital Campfire Download here.

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Want to learn more about The Digital Campfire Download: what it is, why I'm doing it, what to expect, deets on future and past episodes, or suggest a guest? Check out The Digital Campfire Download site here.  

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Website or reach out at sara@swprojects.co.

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