What is CoreCore? The new aesthetic trend taking over TikTok

If you've been scrolling on TikTok as of late, you may have come across the viral hashtag #corecore on your "For You" page.

And if you took a peek at what content the hashtag is associated with, you may have seen a video just like the one below.

"Oh, that's really sad," you may think to yourself.

You keep looking through videos, and you come across another one followed by another one.

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The videos, at first glance, may seem like meaningless collages of juxtaposed content that connect to a main message of social commentary.

However, there may be a deeper purpose.

What exactly is CoreCore?

CoreCore, which has over 371 million views on TikTok, is described by the Urban Dictionary as a "deconstructed art" of visual clips that invoke certain emotions or an aesthetic "that you develop your own meaning to."

The term itself also made an appearance on Tumblr back in 2020, but on TikTok, the hashtag dates back to July 2022. Still, the video trend seems to have grown in the most recent weeks.

"CoreCore" is also considered a play on the online niches that are described as something-"core."

For example, if you are someone who loves beauty, it might be described as "BeautyCore."

Other editing styles on TikTok also take on the "core" suffix.

Who started the trend?

It is unknown who started the trend.

Some people on the platform think a January 2021 video uploaded by the TikTok account @masonoelle was a vital example of the video editing style on the platform.

The video highlights satellite footage from a weather broadcast of the Arctic sea ice melting over 35 years, people chopping down trees, influencer Charli D'Amelio, the horror film American Psycho and more.

There is no "CoreCore" hashtag attached to the video.

On the other hand, others believe John Rising, who is behind the @HighEnquiries account on the platform, is the creator of "CoreCore."

According to NBC, Rising started dabbling in the editing style in May 2021. He doesn't see himself as the originator of the style, citing Korean American mixed media artist Nam June Paik.

Rising still noted that he feels like he "achieved something" by showing young people art styles online.

How do people feel about the hashtag?

Those who have shared their own "CoreCore" videos believe the term in itself shows how far the internet has come.

Ashling Sugrue, a TikTok content creator, recently took to her TikTok account to ask fellow viewers' opinions on the trend. The answers varied, but many believe the trend adds a sense of community, unifying people through real-life topics.

One person on TikTok wrote: "I think it's super condensed art. It uses the bare minimum of sequence to express distilled, difficult, to express emotions."

"CoreCore makes people feel like they're not alone with heavy feelings when they exist in a world that constantly tries to make them believe otherwise," another added.

A third wrote: "It goes against all that pretty shiny content we're overwhelmed by everyday. It's so much real, so much more imperfect, just like people."

It's worth noting that the trend has yet to entirely hit the mainstream, as some people were unaware that the trend existed.

One of those viewers added: "I don't understand what CoreCore is. TikTok's videos on it are so confusing."

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