Hipsters vs. Indie Kids: The Fine Line and How to Tell the Difference

I have noticed that Hipsters and Indie Kids have been used synonymously, as if they are the same thing. I understand the mistake is easy to make because they dress similarly and sometimes listen to the same music, but due to my utmost respect for Independent (indie, if you will) kids, I feel it is my duty to explain the difference to the world.

Hipsters.

Oh Hipsters. Where to begin?

I feel sorry for them actually. They are deceived. They have deceived themselves into thinking they are Independent kids. Their main goal is to isolate themselves away from status quo. They want to get away from the kids smoking Malboro cigarettes and drinking Budlight at the “main stream.” They want to go to that small creek nobody has ever heard of and smoke their Natural Spirit cigarettes and drink PBR. They are obsessed with being different. Their favorite type of music is “indie.” (They act like indie is a genre of music. Deceived, much?) You know the underground music that you probably have never heard of? Yeah, that’s what they like, and they don’t actually like it. They just like it because nobody else has ever heard of it. None of that stuff they listen to at the “main stream.” No Lady Gaga, no Jack Johnson, especially not Mumford and Sons. Mumford and Sons used to be good, and then their music started playing on the radio. What sell-outs. I would tell you what they listen to at the creek, but it is pointless because you probably have never heard of it. They will tell you they belong to the indie scene. “Don’t mind me, I am an indie kid.” If a person ever says that to you, you should know right then and there that they indeed are a Hipster. Hipsters have an unjustified sense of propriety.

Independent Kids

These kids are just really cool. They like what they like and they are who they are. They don’t really care what other people think. They listen to the music they like, not the music that nobody else has ever heard of. Sometimes the music they like happens to be obscure, but that is not why they like it. They don’t feel the need to walk around and tell people that they have probably never heard of their favorite band. They understand that “indie” is not a genre of music. If you ask indie kids if they are hipsters, they will probably laugh, but not a mocking laugh, but just a knowing laugh. Then they will respond by saying, “Whatever you think, man. It doesn’t really mean much to me.”  I respect Indie kids so much because they like what they like and they believe what they believe no matter what people think of them. They understand, that in the long run, it doesn’t really matter. It is just important to be firm in your own personal tastes and convictions.

The main difference between Hipsters and Indie kids is that the Hipsters care about how people perceive them, and Indie kids don’t.

Those Independent kids, making everyone else look the fool. Sorry Hipsters, but the joke’s on you!