Welcome to Our Happy Place
If you grew up with a Discman in your backpack and a Backstreet Boys poster taped to your bedroom wall, let me introduce you to your happy place: 90s Con. It's part fan convention, part reunion with friends you haven't met yet, and 100% permission to be the version of yourself who knew every word to every video on the TRL countdown.
We've been going for a few years now, and every single time, we leave already counting down to the next one. So grab your butterfly clips. Here are 10 reasons why we fangirl 90s Con (and why we think you should too).
1. We found our people (and our best friends)
A few years ago, a shared love of the Backstreet Boys and all things 90s brought our best friend group together. We've talked every single day since. Our group chat has not taken a day off, and honestly, neither have we.
If you're a pop culture fan who geeks out over the decade you grew up in, there's no better place to find your community. Everyone here gets it. Nobody will look at you funny for getting emotional over a song from 1997.
2. We get to meet the people we idolized growing up
Where else can you walk up to the faces from your bedroom wall and actually talk to them? At 90s Con, you don't just get a photo. You get a couple of minutes to tell them how much they mean to you and the impact they had on your life.
I've told several celebrities at their tables how they inspired my career. I've also confessed to more than one that I dressed up as them for Halloween because I wanted to BE them as a kid. This is an environment where fangirling isn't just allowed, it's encouraged. The only ground rules: no screaming and no passing out. Haha.
3. The Nick Carter acoustic set
What better way to celebrate the 90s than an acoustic set from one of the most recognizable boy band members of all time? Nick plays the Backstreet Boys songs we've loved for decades, and he also shares his solo music.
It's the best of both worlds. We get to watch a musician celebrate the legacy songs we all shared back then, and we get to see that he's still making amazing music for his fans today.
4. The panels
We love a good panel. How can you not enjoy behind-the-scenes stories about your favorite shows, movies and boy band moments? Every year we hear soundbites we'd never hear anywhere else.
Case in point: Zac Hanson sharing the alien theory that "Man from Milwaukee" and "Yearbook" are about the same character. Yes, they're an alien. We will never hear either song the same way again.
Panels are also a chance to Q&A your favorite casts and ensembles directly, which is basically a fangirl dream come true.
5. The photo ops
The professional photo ops are a must-do at 90s Con. We have a whole Trapper Keeper full of glossy 8x10s of us with our favorite 90s stars (because of course we do).
And trust me, there's a process. What are we wearing? Are we asking for a specific pose? How many photo ops are we buying this year? Let's be real: some of us buy multiple photo ops with the same celebrity, every day of the con, and have zero shame about it.
6. The creative backdrops
The lockers, the orange couch, the hand chairs, the classroom. 90s Con is packed with nostalgic sets built for fans to snap photos with, and we take full advantage.
This year, as creators, we used the classroom and locker scenes to film a fun video with some NSYNC creators. If there was ever a moment for BSB and NSYNC fans to come together and heal, this was it. The one thing we could all agree on? JC is everyone's favorite member of NSYNC.
7. The cosplay (and the 90s fashion)
Half the fun is getting dressed. Chokers, combat boots, sunflowers, butterfly clips, grunge flannels: if it was a trend in the 90s, someone at the con was rocking it.
And since it IS a con, plenty of guests go all out as their favorite 90s characters. There's even a cosplay costume contest, so the bar is high in the best possible way.
8. The shopping
Our wallets dread it. We live for it. There's a huge variety of 90s vendors, from t-shirt shops to vintage toy collectors to custom tumbler makers, and we always end up spending way more on merch than we planned.
One of our fangirls also always manages to find her way to a tattoo artist's booth and leave with some new ink. It's tradition at this point.
9. It's a weekend-long time machine
From the moment you walk in, it feels like someone hit rewind. The outfits, the sets, the merch and the conversations with total strangers in line all come back to the same thing: the decade that shaped us.
For a few days, adulting is on pause. We get to be the kids who raced home after school to catch our favorite shows and waited by the radio to record our favorite song onto a cassette.
10. It's become our tradition
90s Con is more than an event for us. It's our standing reunion. We plan the trip together, coordinate outfits, map out our photo op schedule and pick the panels we can't miss.
After months of daily group chat messages, finally being in the same room again makes the whole weekend feel like coming home.
Always on our radar
90s Con is always on our radar. We follow their social media accounts all year long to see which celebrities are coming and which city the event is heading to next, and our group chat lights up every time a new guest is announced.
We're so thankful this event exists. It gives us the chance to meet our idols, find our people, and fully embrace what felt like a golden age for those of us who grew up in the 90s. See you at the next one, butterfly clips and all.