Faith, Hot Vampires, Open Letters, White Bic Lighters, Wednesday Addams and Large Shoulder Pads. What could any of these things possibly have to do with one another? Other than being in this article together? Not much.
October has been an amazing month at Gen X Watch. We have had another month of amazing growth. 13% increase in new visitors this month! We could not do this without you the readers and our Patreons that make all of this possible! As we get ready for Halloween, we wanted to recap some of the amazing things that happened here. But first, we gotta have Faith!
George Michael’s Faith
On October 30th, 1987 the music world got a little more amazing. 37 years ago today George Michael released his first solo album, Faith.
This album was a juggernaut that could not be stopped. It sold 20 million copies worldwide. It hit #1 not only on the Billboard Hot 100 in the US, but also hit #1 in the UK, Canada, and the Netherlands. Speaking of #1, 4 singles from the album hit #1. “Faith”, “Father Figure”, “One More Try”, and “Monkey.”
In a 2010 interview with Mark Goodier, George Michael spoke candidly about the goals of the album. “I absolutely wanted to be in the same stratosphere as Jackson and Prince, definitely. I’d gone from, a couple of years before, being perfectly happy with being on Top of the Pops, to thinking, ‘I can do what Michael Jackson can do.’ I mean, he’d just done Thriller for fucks sake! I wouldn’t have the guts now. I wanted to be in that vein but, mostly, I wanted to make music as good as theirs.”
With this breakout album he solidified himself as a worldwide sensation and a fiercely talented musician. With five studio albums, two compilation albums, one extended play, 44 singles, six promotional singles, 36 music videos, and five video albums he became one of the bestselling artists of all time. Sadly, he passed away at the age of 53 on Christmas day of 2016.
“Kissing a Fool” is the editor in chief’s favorite song. Do take a few moments to rediscover this amazing album wherever you go to listen to music.
Now. Let’s talk about October at Gen X Watch!
October’s 4 top 3 Articles and a Hallows Eve Ghost Story
#1 Part 1! Vampires are Hot!
This is not only Kimberly Thalia’s debut article at Gen X Watch, it is her first published article ever! Her article created so much buzz we had the largest single day of clicks since July 30th! If you have not read this banger of an article about sexy vampires, give it a read!
#1 Part 2! Open Letter to Women
Tied for First Place was the Editor in Chief’s Open Letter to Women on Fem Friday! It was an intimate and heartfelt message to all women. If you’ve not read it, grab a tissue and get ready for a vulnerable and honest read!
#2: White Bic Lighter’s and the Curse of the 27
We did not expect this article to do as well as it did, but here we are. It was a little fun story about an urban legend surrounding white bic lighters and the 27 club. The 27 club is the host of celbreities who died at the age of 27 when their star was still rising and their lives were just beginning.
One of the most unexpectedly poignant moments in this article was a Gen X mother speaking of losing her child at the age of 27 in the comments. We hope you will give the article a read and hold space for a grieving mother in the comments.
#3: Wednesday Addams as a Fem Friday Feature!
Fem Friday is an anchor series that is getting it’s own solo identity in the near future. The top ten Fem Friday Features are all about women who were not celebrities, but young women in the 80s and 90s just trying their best to survive inspired by famous feminists and strong women. What would happen if we wrote about a woman who has been a work of fiction for 80 years now? Wednesday Addams, it turns out, is an inspiration to many women of different generations. We hope you take a moment to discover our most unique Fem Friday Feature!
The Shoulder Pad Wearing Ghost of Gen X Watch!
In May of 2024 we published an article about shoulder pads. It was a fun bit of fashion history that was not even close to the top 10 for that month. It just did not connect with audiences.
When an article hits the web, there is a 7-10 day “shout” phase. In this time frame about 50% of it’s total impressions is realized. For the next 30 days you have the “echo” phase. By this point over 78% of an article’s total reads will have happened. For the next 200 to 700 days you have the “reverberate” phase in which an article will get the remaining clicks. So after a month it is a ghost of the past forgotten by most of the internet which has the attention span of a weevil that just did a rail of coke with a red bull chaser in a club.
But out of nowhere, the article of women and 80’s shoulder pads found a new life to become the 5th most read article in the month of October. Braking all conventions it has topped what it did the first 30 days of it’s release. Daily this delightful ghost post from the past continues to haunt the internet and get read.
So, in recognition of this weird little twist of fate, do take a few moments to enjoy the ghost post and let it haunt your wardrobe choices. Shoulder pads are awesome!
Stay totally awesome!
Stay true to you!
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Stay Totally Awesome! Stay true to you!
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