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Black hair, a floppy fringe covering a smoky eye, and music from bands like Green Day is probably how most remember the emo sub-culture in the early 2000s. An exhibition called I’m Not Okay: An Emo Retrospective has become one of the most visited displays at the Barbican Music Library with over 35,000 people coming through the doors to reminisce this era. Rare moments of packed shows, candid backstage moments and intimate portraits of emo youth are pinned on black walls of the building.
The show has also given emos a chance to reconnect with others and share their memories of the time.
AJ Turner is a 32-year-old musician. “The emo subculture was more than just a scene for me as a teenager in the noughties. It was a lifeline at a time when I was experiencing severe depression, loneliness, and bullying.
My life became filled with attending emo concerts, where I felt understood and part of a supportive community,” AJ told the BBC World Service. Visitors recognised AJ from the images and they found the sense of community still lingers. AJ still defines themselves as emo as the music they create is heavily influenced by that period. “I used to wear an ‘MCR (My Chemical Romance) saved my life’ T-shirt to gigs, and this stands true to this day for me,” they said.
Defined by its music, fashion and sense of emotional distress, emo culture peaked in the 2000s with bands like My Chemical Romance and hits like Welcome To the Black Parade taking it mainstream. The exhibition delves into themes of identity, angst, and catharsis that marked a generation’s search for belonging and self-expression.
Opposite the memory wall where visitors have covered the space in notes and printed screenshots of old MySpace accounts, three women are eagerly talking about the display in front of them. “It’s really cool, fun, it’s really cute, it just makes you smile,” they said speaking over each other. Maddie, Seren and Molly are students who made a special visit to the exhibition for Seren’s birthday. “It’s really nice to see people’s personal emo phases,” said Molly. “I am emo at heart,” said Seren. “I grew up around it with my older siblings, so it’s a nostalgic thing.” The first concert she attended was popular emo band Fall Out Boy, and after seeing MCR last year, she is part of the new generation of emos continuing the legacy.
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