Another, 28 years on, knows the song from Reels about enduring love and throwback posts from the 1990s. Goo Goo Dolls. One generation watched Nicholas Cage play an angel who fell to Earth to be with the mortal doctor Meg Ryan, heard Iris on the soundtrack, and stayed hooked. It helps that SZA covered Iris this year, and that their recent singles, Misery and Not Goodbye, are decent listening, no matter your age.
Main Development
Oasis. The Brothers Gallagher had music in a chokehold in the ’90s. Sooo… Sally can wait. Fans have put their lives on hold to book tickets. Make new music, guys! Metallica. The music is accessible. Can’t sleep? Play Enter Sandman. Can’t quit something? Play Master of Puppets. Sick of war? Play One on loop. The rockers are in their 60s. They’re still killing it. Nirvana. How old is this band? Why are they viral after disbanding three decades ago, after frontman Kurt Cobain died by suicide? Smells Like Teen Spirit (which appeared on Nevermind) has boosted sales of Teen Spirit deo-spray, opening the music to new ears.
Feuded in 2009. Stayed grumpy for 15 years and randomly announced that they had patched up and were playing gigs. Meanwhile, Wonderwall, their 1995 rock-ballad crossed 3 billion plays as England’s unofficial post-match World Cup anthem. The band formed in 1981, but their music has been referenced in so many shows and movies (shoutout to Zombieland, Project X, Stranger Things, Wednesday and Billions) that they never quite left the party. Spencer Elden, the infant swimming naked on their Nevermind LP cover, is now 35. Something in the Way, featured in 2022’s The Batman movie, which also helped too.
Because Gen Z is big on grunge energy.
Key Details
When frontman Chester Bennington passed in 2017, this fan mourned on SoundCloud. Judging by the success of the 2024 comeback album, From Zero, the fans are still angry. Their 2026 global tour is sold out. In 1985, music magazines (remember those, kids?) dubbed them an experimental English rock band. Today, they’re the 50-somethings whose song Let Down played on the S1 finale of The Bear. Radiohead’s 1992 bop Creep has pulled 3 billion streams on Spotify. The band is 50 years old this year. Olivia Rodrigo’s 2026 hit, titled The Cure, and their 2024 album, Songs Of A Lost World, have found them new fans. Maybe that’s part of the appeal in 2026.
Linkin Park. In the ’00s, you could tell an LP fan from a mile away: He was a teen or young adult, listened to music on burned CDs and liked his nu-metal-rap-rock loud and angry. In the End and Somewhere I Belong are all over our Reels. Radiohead. They’re just angry and whiny enough to resonate with a generation that likes its angst lowkey. Tracks such as Let Down, Karma Police and No Surprises have crossed the billion mark too. The Cure. But Pictures of You, Lovesong, Just Like Heaven, Boys Don’t Cry, The Love Cats and Friday I’m in Love are still smashing SM. Goth, a huge 1990s fashion trend, seems to be returning. Everyone’s a bit of a hopeless romantic now. No wonder Robert Smith’s music scratches an itch. Red Hot Chilli Peppers. So noisy. So angry. So ‘80s. So right now. RHCP are six-time Grammy winners. But the generation that loved Californication and Under the Bridge is decades older than the one that is streaming Scar Tissue and Can’t Stop. The boost: A Netflix documentary about the band and their global tours. California, their muse, is not what it used to be in the ’80s.
