TikTok has done a lot of good in the world (yes, get back to your seat please, hear me out). Ready? Men just might be a big bundle of emotions, and TikTok has helped them embrace that!

Yeah, we get that eboys (an evolved version of emo-boys) don’t fit the typical stoic profile of a male that has dominated the society for ages. But it’s 2020, time to learn the art of acceptance or maybe take a little bit of “inspiration” too—there’s no harm in that, is there? (“E” stands for “eenspiration”)

Enter, eboys!

Eboys are young males, mostly seen on internet platforms such as TikTok and Instagram. Imagine an edgy, cigarette-smoking, hair-dyed, skater boy, donning a striped full-sleeve t-shirt layered under a loose shirt along with (phew!) chinos and overloaded chains hanging over the neck or belts—getting the drift?

The eboy look gets tons of inspiration from various subcultures and aesthetics; so, before we jump into the nitty-gritty of dressing, let’s drench ourselves in the colorful flavors of dressing like an eboy and see the origins and inspiration of the aesthetic.

The origin of Eboy Aesthetic—a Baby of the Internet

Credits: Gen Z, social media, TikTok

The ‘E’ in the eboy aesthetic perfectly explains how this style is the baby of the internet generation. Yeah, of course, it has nuances taken from a lot of old subcultures and aesthetic, but it didn’t get its recognition from fancy showrooms from the malls or game-changing musicians.

The revolution of this clothing emerged in the late 2010s, dominantly started by the female counterpart, egirls. Platforms such as Tumblr, Instagram and YouTube were key in the early years. Eventually, the rise of TikTok changed the future of the eboys and egirls community. And 2019 marked the skyrocketing rise of the aesthetic.

You can call eboys an evolved version of emo boys from the 2010s—”E” stands for evolution.

Eboy outfit inspirations—emo punk-ish skater boys of e-age

When you scan from top to bottom, you can tell that a lot goes into the style. For starters, the loose layering done over the striped t-shirts was born out of 2000’s skater fashion.

The choice of colors comes from the gothic scene and jewelry from punk music (colors as well). The t-shirts and vans tap into the soft-boy aesthetic.

Lastly, hairstyles are taken from (you guessed it) K-pop culture. Coloring your hair is a major part of the trend, and those neon-and-bleached haired appearances scream K-pop.

Clothing: how to dress up like an eboy

Now, the heart of the matter. You need to be comfortable wearing a lot of layers. On top of that, your choice of clothes should be as loose as possible. The aesthetic lies somewhere between casual and neat—depending on how you fancy tweaking the elements.

Let’s scan every part of it from top to bottom.

Hairstyles—style per your face and liking

Bear in mind the idea is to embrace your true self, and it starts literally from the top. However, coloring adds a more profound influence of the style to your look, but it’s not a necessity. You have to put emphasis on the pattern and texture of your hair.

For example, if you have curly or wavy hair, let the curls come out and let the waves create a finely, messed-up look. If you have wavy hair, take all of your hair to one side and incorporate a welcoming, laidback, and soft vibe.

I believe this style is most suited to artists or people who create online content—just a personal feeling. Though, if you want to color your hair (or part of your hair), go for colors like neon green, pink or blue and keep your hair medium length. Another fun way to dye your hair is trying a double-dyed look—I’d reckon a combination of black and bleach would be perfect.

Now, let’s talk about the BTS look and discuss why it isn’t a BTS look. Call it a curtain haircut because Hollywood stars have been pulling it off as well— Timothée Chalamet, we’re looking at you.

I don’t think there’s any other look that would fill you with confidence quite like this one.

Clothing: loose and layers=real slayers

You need to be comfortable with two things, pulling off lose clothes and layering.

Upper body

There’s a lot of flexibility in terms of choice of clothing. You could never go wrong with a singular color theme, or clash different patterns together as long as you’re doing it right.

The most common ones inspired from skate fashion are layering a solid-colored oversized T-shirt over a long-sleeve striped t-shirt that’s underneath it.

You could also wear a single layer of vertical-striped shirts with skinny fit trousers. Tucking the shirt inside makes your appearance much chicer.

Another common theme is layering a plain t-shirt underneath a crewneck sweater.

Bottom

There’s a variety of options for bottom wear. Your choice of denim depends on what you’re wearing above. The options range from distressed denim, trousers, plaids, and joggers. Cuffed chino pants are not a bad idea either.

Tip: Wear high socks and show them by cuffing or cropping your pants.

Also, remember whenever you’re tucking your shirts inside the pants, try wearing the pants a bit above your waist.

Accessories: rains of chains

Using accessories correctly is just as important as the clothes—it’s more than just icing on the cake.

Chokers usually fit with most of the styles. Although if you find it too basic, you can hang chains around your belt and on your hands.

Tons of eboys love to color their nails. Although my advice would be to not overdo things—keep things simple with black nail polish.

Some less popular accessories could be piercings, jewelry, cute beanies, padlock necklaces, and chunky rings—but remember, less popular stuff could make your style more unique.

Shoes:

When it comes to being an eboy, there is nothing more important than your shoe collection.

Although there aren’t a gazillion options, the ones that are there need to be worshipped.

The classic Vans sneaker has dominated this style. Choice of shoes depends on if you are going with casual and neat. Vans and Converse would be the right pick for a casual feel. Otherwise, allow those chunky oxfords and Dr. Martens to make some noise when you walk into the room.

Elements Beyond Outfit

Dressing up like an eboy would do justice to your appearance, but to be a true eboy, you need to act like an eboy as well.

The eboy taste in music

Let’s begin with music. If you already have your own eboy music collection, let people know about it. Keep the songs in the background of your stories, hang the music records on the walls and, of course, let them be a part of your TikTok videos.

If you’re not too sure which artists you should follow, here are some of the most popular artists that are adored by the eboys: Billie Eilish, Rex Orange County, Mac DeMarco, BROCKHAMPTON, Juice WRLD, and Frank Ocean.

Most of these artists are indie music artists. The best piece of advice would be to find artists that go perfectly with your taste of music and create your own playlists and collections.

I’m a big fan of Mac Demarco. Here’s a playlist that I’ve made for the beginners.

Create a lot of content

Eboys post a lot of pictures on their social media. They also love creating videos on TikTok. Sure, you can follow the style selectively. But if you want to delve deep into the world of eboys and let every action scream “I’m an eboy and I don’t care”, create a lot of content.

Post pictures of your collection of shoes, tattoos, skates, headphones, etc. A lot of eboys also like uploading pictures in a black-and-white filter while smoking a cigarette. You can even show your obsession with lighters—if you dig the idea, here are a few cool lighter recommendations for you.

Remember, eboys are edgy. So, every time you upload your content, don’t forget to insert a little bit of edgy spirit in it.

In Conclusion

The aim of an eboy style is to blend older skater fashion with the staples of goth, k-pop, grunge and soft-boy aesthetic adding modern fashion trends.

You can also take ideas from the egirl aesthetic (both are pretty close to one another).

Take a deep breath, channel your edgy spirit, take your phone out, and don’t be afraid to drop a tear or bite your lips in that TikTok video.

“E” stands for exotic.