What Happened in 2014 Pop Culture? 10 Trends and Events That Shaped Our Lives

Every year, we see “new” trends (that are actually old trends) come back from their graves to breathe new life into the world of pop culture. In fact, they’re saying that the window of expiration (AKA time where something is not so trendy) is getting smaller and smaller. It used to be at least 30 years before you’d see something cycle its way back into the mainstream. Now, it’s taking 20 years or less.

So, staying on top of trends actually takes a balance of keeping up with the new & watching out for blasts from the past. But, the “past” doesn’t actually have to be that far back. In fact, it might be helpful to see even what was going on ten years ago, so you can be on the lookout for what trends are making their way back to the forefront.

Speaking of ten years ago, can you BELIEVE 2014 was 10 whole years ago? Today, we’ve got a roundup of pop culture events from 2014. You’ll be shocked at how long ago this all feels, as well as what’s still relevant. So, let’s get into it. Just WTF was going on in 2014?!

What Happened in 2014 Pop Culture?

What counts as “pop culture” can be kind of hard to understand if you don’t have a good reference point. Let’s chat about what pop culture is so you can be fully with it when we get into the ten-year-old drama (& believe us, there was DRAMA).

What is Pop Culture?

Pop culture is short for “popular culture.” It’s kind of like, what things in today’s culture is everyone going to know about and be able to talk about? Think less world news, and more celeb news. Pop culture encompasses sports, entertainment, some news/politics, memes, and more.

Think about it this way: if you’re trying to make friends at work, and you reference something from pop culture, they’re probably going to know about it. And, they might even have an opinion, too!

Of course, everyone’s experience with pop culture is different. So, if you’re talking to your new Boomer coworker, it’s definitely possible that that reference is not gonna hit. But, if you’re talking to your future emotional support coworker? They’ll be right there with you, babe!

What Pop Culture Events Happened In 2014?

We were all, like, OBSESSED with avocado toast.

Don’t get us wrong. Avocado toast is GOOD. Like, really good. But the level of obsession we had in 2014 with avocado toast was giving…unhinged, maybe? 

Gwyneth Paltrow, founder of GOOP and famous celebrity, included a recipe for avocado toast in her 2013 cookbook, “It’s All Good.” Avocado toast had been around long before, but it truly soared in popularity after Paltrow featured it in her book.

Gwyneth Paltrow is still known for being a trendsetter today. You can listen to her thoughts on current trends on her episode of The Skinny Confidential Him & Her Show.

John Travolta butchered Idina Menzel’s name at the Academy Awards.

Is this the most famous verbal typo of all time? If you don’t remember, at the 2014 Academy Awards, John Travolta was set to introduce Idina Menzel so that she could sing “Let It Go,” from Frozen. Instead, he introduced her as “The wickedly talented, one and only Adele Dazeem.”

By the end of the night, John Travolta, Idina Menzel, and Adele Dazeem were all trending. Later, Travolta released a statement saying, “I’ve been beating myself up all day. Then I thought…what would Idina Menzel say? She’d say, ‘Let it go!’” Talk about iconic.

Taylor Swift dropped 1989, the Bad Blood music video, & feuded with Katy Perry.

Taylor Swift had a busy year though it’s nothing like what her life looks like now! 

Prior to 2014, Katy Perry and Taylor Swift had a seemingly chill relationship. They tweeted about cats, performed on each other’s concert tours, and posed for pictures together. Then, in 2014, it all changed. Taylor had released 1989, and along with it Bad Blood. She told Rolling Stone it was about another woman in the music industry who had done her dirty.

She released the Bad Blood music video amongst rumors that the video was about Katy Perry. And, if you haven’t seen the video, you should go watch it. It’s absolutely a badass music video. Taylor described her relationship with the song’s subject as “straight-up enemies.” And, girl, that’s exactly what that music video is giving!

So far this year, it seems like Taylor’s chilled out on her feuds. For a look into Taylor’s 2025 life, grab your Sunday Sports Club hoodie and check out our article on NFL WAGS.

Ellen DeGeneres took her iconic Oscars selfie.

That year, Ellen Degeneres hosted the Academy Awards. During the event, she took a now famous selfie with Bradley Cooper, Jennifer Lawrence, Meryl Streep, Brad Pitt, Angelina Jolie, Julia Roberts, Lupita Nyong’o and her brother Junior, Channing Tatum, Kevin Spacey, and just a glimpse of Jared Leto. The selfie was posted to Twitter and had more than 2 million retweets before the end of the show.

2014 was the year of the “basic” girl.

You know how the “clean girl aesthetic” took the world by force in 2024? Well, back in the day, the clean girl was not the “It Girl” of the generation. Nope, everyone (like, seriously everyone) was into just being basic. It started as a stereotype, but videos and posts quickly came out with tutorials on how to be a basic girl.

Ariana Grande released her sophomore album.

Ariana Grande’s had quite the transformation over the years, but one thing stays the same her music ALWAYS hits. And it definitely hit back in 2014! Ariana Grande’s sophomore album, My Everything was absolutely packed with bops & bangers. It even landed her at the top of the Billboard 200 chart that year!

We began sipping and spilling the tea.

One of the most popular trends on social media was the meme of Kermit the Frog sipping his tea. Along with this meme came the phrase, “But that’s none of my business.” If you remember this meme, you’ll remember it was kind of a call out post when used. People would say some wild sh*t about another person, then end it with, “But that’s none of my business.”

After this meme went around, sipping tea became synonymous with minding your business (but not really). On the other hand, spilling the tea to this day means sharing the latest gossip.

Speaking of spilling the tea, have you listened to Patrick Starrr’s show, Say Yas to the Guest? Some serious tea has been spilled in this fun, inspiring, and colorful podcast. Check out this episode with Brittany Broski here!

First-time U.S. Olympians slayed the winter Olympics.

Admittedly, we only won nine medals at the 2014 Sochi Olympics. Not our best Olympics, by any means. However, of the nine medals that we won, a whopping SEVEN were won by first-time Olympians!

If you love the Olympics and want to learn more about some of our most incredible Olympians, check out our podcast, Summer of Gold. You can listen to the first episode here. Or, check out our post on trailblazing Olympians who paved the way for female athletes. No matter what you pick, it’s feel-good content that will bring out your inner patriot.  USA! USA! USA!

Kim K. broke the internet.

Was this the defining moment of 2014? Maybe, maybe not. But, if you were there, you’ll remember how floored we were when Kim K. showed her entire *ss for Paper Magazine. The pictures are absolutely iconic. 

In case you forgot, 2014 was a big year in pop culture.

There are so many things that happened in 2014 that led to what’s happening today. It’s so interesting to see the past in relation to the present. Plus, it’s easier to see what will be trending next. Keep an eye on Gwyneth Paltrow, babes, she seems to know what she’s doing when it comes to setting trends…

To learn more about the past that’s definitely shaping our present, read about the major events in 1996 here. You won’t believe how much history was made that year!
No matter what kind of content you’re into, we’ve got something for everyone. Check out our list of shows for your next great podcast, or make yourself at home on the blog. Either way, we’d love to see you there!