While the heart is one of the most universally recognizable graphics of all time, the underground music and fashion scenes have recently adapted it as a somewhat kitsch, but also very serious trend. Over the top reds, pinks, and white allow for Valentines Day year-round promoting positivity, good vibes, and a lust for finding honest love. An emerging trend called Heartcore makes it fully possible to cast a love spell with your look. Bold hearts, cupid graphics, frilly lace, polka dots, and other sugary sweet yet lightly ironic sub-trends such as Precious Moments figurine graphics or drugstore gift type plushies make up the key visual components of the Heartcore trend. Within the underground goth and post-Myspace emo scenes, heartbreak has always been an essential theme within music. Heartcore represents the lighter, more positive side of relationships projecting hope of one day finding true love and allowing followers of the trend to project an image of idyllic wholesomeness and emotional availability.
In 2016 the classic neon signs of nail shops that features an elegant hand holding a rose was being spotted all over t-shirt graphics, Tumblr and enamel pins. By 2017 this trend had been reduced down to a single rose being a trending graphic. Simple red roses were being spotted everywhere from the pocket tees in the mens section of Forever 21 to embroidery on dad caps to Gucci’s highly successful DIY patch garments that were spotted all over along with the red snakes, tiger head and butterflies. Heartcore is an even more simplified evolution of this trend, reducing the romantic connotations of a red rose to a simple graphic heart, yet also encompassing all things love-related.
As far as luxury brands go, there is no better example than the iconic heart with eyes graphic of Commes Des Garcons popular more streetwear-oriented diffusion line. Avril Lavigne’s legendary brand, Abbey Dawn, released a collection of hoodies in the early 2000’s called Heartcore that were decked out in skeleton bones and skulls with heart eyes. This is perhaps one of the first introductions to Heartcore within the punk and emo music scenes.
photo credit: Giovanni Giannoni
It seems as if the current Heartcore trend officially kicked off during the SS17 fashion week season as a handful of luxury brands embraced the Hallmark-style heart print motif in a big way. Timeless fashion powerhouse Christian Dior sent models down the runway in chic petticoat-style black tulle skirts that had been adorned with an allover red heart print. Gucci showcased a similar petticoat type dress that featured a giant red heart with a dagger going through it on the chest. Fausto Puglisi sent models down the runway in oversized graphic tees featuring highly adorned giant hearts, spreading positivity and emotionally rich vibes. Other brands that embraced the Heartcore trend during the SS17 season included Rodarte, J.W. Anderson, Michael Kors and Y/Project.
photo credit: Local Heroes
Luxury brand Proenza Schouler sent turtlenecks with a heart shaped cutout on the chest down the runway. Another more streetwear-oriented brand to release garments with heart-shaped chest cutouts was Local Heroes. They recently released a capsule collection of longsleeve crewnecks that were distributed through Dollskill featuring bold racing type graphics reading “Heartcore” for trendy goth chicks. Perhaps this is where the term was initially coined. The brand motto emphasizes girl power, confidence, and promotes babes supporting babes. Sunglasses with chunky heart shaped frames have been more popular than ever lately. Even makeup artists have been feeling the love as rosy heart-shaped blush has been popping up all over Instagram. Red eyeshadow has also been one of the biggest color trends in the makeup community for the past couple of months. Depop queen, Internetgirl, has been spotted rocking quite a few Valentines Day gone dark looks as of late, with a handful of kitschy red pieces including a really great polka dotted vintage swimsuit bottom skirt.
photo credit: @_peach_pit_
Accounting for the darker side of the Heartcore trend, one of the most popular necklaces seen on artists within the underground right now is the SoWet broken heart razorblade. Pennsylvania-based musician Fantasy Camp’s recent merch drop included some rad longsleeve tees that featured a victorian angel holding a wreath with roses printed down the sleeves as per traditional black metal and hardcore shirts.
photo credit: @fantasycamp
Musicians and fashion icons within the underground scene right now also seem to be going through a heavy Heartcore face tattoo phase. The most iconic face tattoos within the trend are certainly TooPoor’s multi-mini heart face and neck tattoos inspired by the Milk Makeup heart shaped stamps. Seattle-based rapper and producer Gemm Forza has a broken heart tattoo on his forehead. Lil Xan has one on his cheek, while his other cheek reads “Lover”. Plenty of artists including Lil Lotus and Lil Skies have black roses tattooed on their faces. Even the late Lil Peep had a handful of Heartcore tattoos including his very first face tat (the small broken heart underneath his eye), the rose on his cheek and the hand-lettered LOVE tattoo on his stomach that was widely replicated in the form of tribute tattoos after his death.
photo credit: @toopoor
Subliminally injecting the world with love, happiness and positivity in a tense, unsure political climate with the rise of hate groups such as white nationalists and the alt right, Heartcore is a welcome and refreshing trend that can be adapted by nearly anybody. It seems as if the music scene in 2018 has been searching for a return to authenticity and good morals. With the “me too” movement of women coming forward with sexual assault allegations against abusive male artists, a wider inclusion of LGBTQ artists within the mainstream, and Spotify’s recent “Hate Content & Hateful Conduct” policy which provoked the removal of dangerous artists such as XXXtentacion, Tay-K and others from the popular streaming site, it seems as if the time is ripe for the community to practice more love. The Heartcore trend makes it cool to be a good person, promotes loving treatment, positive morals, and quietly encourages the community to grow stronger together.