37 Nostalgic Memes That You Might Appreciate If You Grew Up During The ’90s

To learn more about this iconic decade and how Only 90s Kids Know started in the first place, we got in touch with the page’s creator, Jonathan Miller. Jonathan was kind enough to have a chat with Bored Panda and shared that “the inception of 90s Kids stemmed from a mix of boredom and fear at the start of Covid.”

“I felt trapped in my tiny Brooklyn apartment, and I had no clue what the future held. At this point in time, I had been working in growth marketing and community building for about 12 years for both large and small companies,” Jonathan explained. “2 years prior to Covid, I decided to take a leap of faith and offer my services on a freelance basis to brands/companies/musicians around New York.”

“Business was actually booming, but once Covid hit, everything hit the fan,” Jonathan shared. “Brands were nervous about spending money, and it was difficult to onboard new clients. So here I am, sitting in my apartment, worried about my next move.”

“I start reminiscing about better times, specifically my childhood in the 90s,” the creator continued. “I realized that I can’t be the only person who just wishes we could go back to better times and escape our current reality. I took my professional experience and decided to create @onlyninetieskidsknow to test the waters.”

“I started posting 90s nostalgia, and to my surprise, users started sharing the content like I had never seen before,” Jonathan says. “In fact, the posts were getting significantly more shares than they were even getting in likes. That’s when I knew I was on to something. Fans were sharing my content with friends, family, etc., and it was clear I wasn’t alone in my thinking. I think I probably hit about 10k followers in the first month."

Jonathan says that around the time he hit 10k followers, he launched a website that sold nostalgic items such as pogs, fingerboards, enamel pins and other 90s toys. “The website started selling out, and I couldn't keep up,” he shared. “Within 2 years I had 275,000 Instagram followers and 16,000 orders placed on the website.” Around this time, Jonathan also sold the page to Almost Friday Media. He still manages 100% of the creative direction and makes all of the posts; they just own the account.

“Today, about 3 and half years since launch, the page has nearly 700,000 followers,” Jonathan continued. “Seeing the response to content has been overwhelming. It’s honestly been insane to see the growth, and I would have never imagined it would grow to the level it’s at. I get up everyday excited to create new 90s content for the fans, and sometimes I have to pinch myself because I can’t believe this is my job.”

We were also curious what it is about the 90s that Jonathan loves so much. “It’s hard to pinpoint one aspect of the 90s I miss most because the decade itself just feels so overwhelmingly positive,” he told Bored Panda. “From the music, food, movies, friendships, clothing, etc.”

“But if you’re twisting my arm and I have to choose one thing, I’d say it was the carefree attitude we all seemed to have,” Jonathan shared. “A typical weekend day in my childhood went like this: Wake up and have cereal with my cartoons. Go outside, meet up with my friends and ride bikes, skate, explore the woods, go to the pool, get into trouble, etc. No phones, no worries about anything.”

“I wouldn't come home until nighttime when the streetlights came on when my mom would stand on the front porch and yell my name. Most weekend nights would involve sleepovers with my friends who lived on the street,” Jonathan continued. “We’d go to Blockbuster and rent video games/movies, drink dangerous amounts of Surge and stay up all night. Everything just seemed more relaxed. Politics were rarely spoken about, and everyone seemed to be respectful of each other. All in all, it just felt very carefree.”

On the other hand, Jonathan can appreciate some of the advancements that the world has seen since the 90s. “As hard as it is for me to admit this, I do love a lot of technology,” he shared. “I’m fully aware of the irony in running an Instagram account dedicated to the 90s. But without technology, I wouldn't have this amazing community of like minded people who want to reminisce together.”

“Before, If I wanted to know some random fact, I’d have to dust off the ole encyclopedia,” the creator continued. “Today, I can Google anything in seconds. If I’m in the mood for specific food that I don’t have at home, I can have it delivered in 30 minutes on Grubhub. If I need a ride, Uber is at my fingertips rather than calling my mom Collect and leaving the message ‘at the mall, come get me.’”

But along with all of the good things technology has brought us, it definitely has its downsides too. “Fake news runs rampant, we are all in our own little bubbles, and the world seems more divided than ever,” Jonathan says. “I like to think my Instagram account adds a little positivity and joy to my follower’s day and brings fans a few moments of peace during their chaotic days.”

A love for 90s culture isn’t only for those who lived through that time though. “Over the last few years, I've definitely noticed a shift in interest from Gen Z and even Gen Alpha,” Jonathan says. “My niece and nephew, who are 13 and 9 respectively, have both shown interest in the 90s generation. My niece’s favorite movie is Clueless, while my nephew’s is Encino Man. Last Christmas, they asked for a boombox player with cassette tapes! It’s really funny to see, but we did the same thing with the 70s when we were that age."

If younger generations want to familiarize themselves with the 90s, Jonathan says movies are an excellent place to start. “Although sometimes exaggerated to what it was really like, many films are a snapshot of the time,” he told Bored Panda.

“I would also encourage the younger generation to follow accounts like Only 90s Kids Know. We are on TikTok too! It’s the best way to really see what us millennials miss most about the generation. I’ve already noticed many younger kids following the account. I’ll see comments such as ‘I was born in the 2000s, but I'm somehow nostalgic for this’ or ‘My older brother tells me all about the 90s. It looked like so much fun!’”

“Us Millennials could talk about the 90s all day. So please join in on the convo if you’re younger and curious,” Jonathan shared. “We’d love to tell you why N64 was superior to Playstation 1 or why Brink and Johnny Tsunami are the best Disney Channel original movies. We could go on for hours.”

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