From Your Screen to the Streets, the E-boy Aesthetic is Back
Perhaps there is no style subculture better to define Gen Z than that of the E-boy; ever pouty, chronically online, the young man’s emo. Coming up in the final years of the 2010s, the E-boy internet presence had been slowly priming its own canvas before eventually booming in the lockdown days of Covid, where TikTok doom scrolling became an essential fixture in daily routines across the globe.
Experts in lip-syncing to slowed and reverbed audio edits, through-the-phone flirtations, and rolling their eyes into the back of their heads whilst tap-tap-tapping on their temples, the E-boy became the world’s collective internet boyfriend in 2020. With what became a monopoly on TikTok algorithms, they stole hearts by containing multitudes, known for their tough exterior but also being in touch with their emotions. Swoon!
E-Boy dressing became the gold standard in the wake of the pandemic, where comfortable pieces—think crewneck sweatshirts, oversized tees, and Levi's® baggy denim—were accessorized with stacks on stacks of thick silver chains, clunky combat boots, and if you were brave enough…a touch of black eyeliner. Both virtually as well as in the wild (and by “in the wild," I mean Saddle Ranch, duh). The E-boy is known for a style that is nouveau-emo yet not overly complicated, with edgy accessories and a dark color palette reigning supreme.
The lure of the E-boy is that he is equal parts angst and “softboi.” He’s edgy enough to elicit the same thrill of being thirteen and walking into a Hot Topic for the first time, while simultaneously delicate enough that expressing his emotions doesn't seem to be a foreign concept. In short, he looks tough, but he listens to Clairo.
Even now, just as the internet tried to turn the page on this trend, the E-Boy style lexicon proves it still has a grasp on the masses, remaining one of few styles to take a long-term hold in the fashion sense of Gen Z. From fueling the haze of the Woodstock-esque flares of the seventies to the ultra-shredded denim of the nineties, if any brand has been the nucleus of style direction for history’s plentiful fashion coteries, it’s been Levi's. As the arbiter of subcultural styling, the classic American fashion label is back at it again as it ushers in the resurgence of the E-boy with open arms.
With the cultural mania surrounding the E-boy fashionable flair beginning to populated the ether again, Levi’s and Highsnobiety have tapped mega-scenester model, designer, and ultimate internet boyfriend, Kaito Hashimoto, to show us the ropes. As a grade-A member of the in-crowd, Hashimoto demonstrates how effortlessly the E-boy look can be achieved — whether it's tossing a sweatshirt over a pair of Red Tab Overalls or topping off your fit-pic with a denim Type 1 Jacket, the modern-day E-boy is never overstated, but always kicked back.
Today, the E-boy's outfit formula has grown into itself a bit, a sort of graduation in terms of style progression. The, at times dramatic, pseudo-toughness of 2020 has worn off — what remains is the cool-calm-collected wardrobe defined by comfort and laidback charm. Tees are worn oversized, comfort is achieved via chill-boy sweatshirts, and their “too-cool-to-care” aura is complimented by Levi’s 569 Loose Straight Fit denim — a trustworthy pair of jeans that is cool enough in its silhouette to keep your casual 1 million TikTok followers asking for a link in the comments.
