About This Quiz
Don't get it twisted: we respect boomers, Gen X and Gen Z, but we'd be lying if we didn't admit we have a special place in our hearts for millennials. To celebrate this much-talked-about generation, we've put together a fun, little quiz to determine your millennial IQ. Oh, and just because you were born before 1981 or after 1996 doesn't mean you're off the hook. We're challenging Boomers, Gen X and Gen Z to try their hand at our millennial IQ quiz. Who knows, maybe you're a secret millennial at heart! Perhaps that date on your birth certificate is an absolute lie!
Who was onstage with Janet Jackson when she had her infamous wardrobe malfunction during the Super Bowl halftime show? What does "AIM" stand for? How many friends were in "Friends"? We're throwing it way back and dredging up all the nostalgia for our millennial IQ quiz! Do you think you've got what it takes to score genius status? Once you've gotten your results, pass it along to everyone you know (how do you think Grandma will do?) and see who's the most millennial! From Kanye's "College Dropout" to Lindsay Lohan's "Mean Girls," how much do you know about millennial pop culture? Take our quiz to reveal your millennial IQ!
Way back in September 1998, "Total Request Live" premiered on MTV. From then on, every Monday through Thursday afternoon, millennials would rush home to their TV sets to watch Carson Daly count down the top 10 music videos, which the show's fans determined via vote.
If you don't know the lyrics to "Wannabe," are you even really a millennial?! One of the best selling groups of all time consisted of five members: Sporty, Baby, Scary, Ginger and Posh.
He wasn't the first host of the "The Daily Show," but Jon Stewart helped make the Comedy Central program into a late-night comedy staple. For millions of young people, "The Daily Show" was both beloved entertainment and a trusted news source.
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Remember how mean Simon Cowell was? We wouldn't want to have that guy judge our singing! "American Idol" entertained audiences for 15 seasons. Millennials will remember that Kelly Clarkson defeated Justin Guarini to win the very first season.
These days, millennials get their music from streaming services like Spotify. But, back in the 2000s, millions of people used illegal websites like Napster, LimeWire and Kazaa to help them make mixed CDs for their crush. Xanga, on the other hand, was a blogging platform where you could have written about your crush.
In the aftermath of the 2008 financial collapse, millennials took political action. In September 2011, protesters gathered in New York City's Wall Street financial district to speak out against economic inequality.
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"Sex and the City" took the world by storm, and scores of millennials imagined themselves living in Manhattan with a shoe closet to match Carrie's. Actress Sarah Jessica Parker played Carrie Bradshaw.
Millennials stand up for what they believe in and are at the heart of the Black Lives Matter movement. In August 2014, protesters took to the streets following the death of Michael Brown. A white police officer shot and killed the 18-year-old African American man in Ferguson, Missouri.
In addition to all the bangers, rapper Drake also gave us YOLO. The acronym stands for "You Only Live Once." Drake reportedly had a sign outside his house with the four letters, but someone kept stealing it.
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To say "Titanic" was a blockbuster hit would be an understatement. The movie, starring Kate Winslet and Leonardo DiCaprio, is one of the highest-grossing films of all time. Céline Dion’s "My Heart Will Go On," from the film's soundtrack, has become a karaoke favorite.
Like pretty much everything millennials do, the generation fell in love with classic rock in its own unique way: thanks to a video game. In 2005, "Guitar Hero" was released for the PlayStation 2.
A millennial herself, Rihanna has earned a special place in the hearts of this generation. The Barbadian singer has sold more digital singles than any other artist. Not only is she one of pop music's biggest hit-makers, but Rihanna has also found success in a variety of other ventures.
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Every generation has their own iconic cartoons, and for millennials, that's "Spongebob Squarepants." While living in a pineapple under the sea, his show has become Nickelodeon's highest-rated and longest-running franchise.
Millennials have borne witness to their fair share of tragedy, including the unexpected death of Amy Winehouse. The English singer and songwriter died in July 2011. Four years later, the documentary "Amy" gave fans a look at her inner life.
After the TV film hit "Zenon: The Zequel," Disney knew it had a star on its hands and tapped Hillary Duff to play the title character in "Lizzie McGuire." The show premiered in January 2001 and made Duff into a full-blown teen idol.
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Millennials were the first generation to watch "Saturday Night Live" under the leadership of the show's first female head writer. Tina Fey helped "SNL" to new comedic heights. The cast included rising star Will Ferrell. Have you heard of him?
It's hard to imagine an internet before YouTube, but prior to 2005, the video sharing platform didn't exist. The site actually got its start following Janet Jackson's Super Bowl performance when the founders couldn't find footage of the infamous wardrobe malfunction online.
The glory of Vine was almost as short-lived as platform's video clips. In 2013, Vine hit the social media scene as a platform for short-form comedy videos. In the three years it existed, Vine helped musicians like Shawn Mendes get their start with six-second covers.
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Mariah Carey has been a fixture in music since the great teen-pop boom of 1990. In 2008, she married Nick Cannon. Millennials know him from the popular rap battle show "Wild 'n Out." The couple had two children before divorcing in 2016.
Every generation has begged their parents for pets that mom and dad knew they'd never take care of. Millennials found a work-around: Tamagotchi. Created in Japan, the digital pet lived on the end of a keyring.
While once reserved for the dark corners of Hot Topic, by the mid 2000s, pop punk was everywhere. Fall Out Boy's song "Sugar, We're Going Down" got major radio play and helped take the genre mainstream.
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Millennials have seen a lot of different actors play Batman, but in their hearts, there is only one Joker: Heath Ledger. Ledger won an Oscar for his portrayal of the Joker in "The Dark Knight." The award came after his premature death.
Not that he still isn't around, but in the 2000s, Will Ferrell was a BIG deal. Millennials quoted lines from "Anchor Man" and "Elf." While still a very quotable film, Will Ferrell was not in "Superbad."
From 2007 to 2012, "Gossip Girl" dominated millennial screens. To this day, it's still a Netflix favorite. Blake Lively played Serena van der Woodsen while Leighton Meester played Blair Waldorf.
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Disney knows how to make stars. The Jonas Brothers became teen-pop idols after signing a deal with Disney's Hollywood Records in the late 2000s. Millennials have seen Nick, Joe and Kevin announce a hiatus, reunite, call it quits and get back together.
"The Office's" Jim Halpert and Pam Beesly are arguably one of millennials' favorite love stories. The couple found each other in Scranton, Pennsylvania, while working in the office of a paper supplier.
Millennials have witnessed the rise and fall of actress Lindsay Lohan. Lohan stole hearts when she played a set of twins in the 1998 movie "Parent Trap." "Mean Girls," "Freaky Friday" and several unsuccessful stints in rehab followed.
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When she wrote the "Harry Potter" series, we wonder if J.K. Rowling knew it would make an entire generation fall in love with reading. The fourth book in the series, which was published in July 2000, is "Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire."
In 2004, Justin Timberlake was onstage and performing with Janet Jackson during the Super Bowl halftime show when part of her top came off. Timberlake tore a piece of fabric off her bustier.
In the 2000s, millennials couldn't get enough of rom-coms. Unfortunately, many gave viewers unrealistic expectations for life in the real world. We're not all Kate Hudson with Matthew McConaughey falling head over heels in love with us.
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Was there really a time when we didn't know who Taylor Swift was? Her songs became anthems for both love-struck and heartbroken millennials. Swift's debut song "Tim McGraw" dropped in 2003.
Certainly, the majority of millennials remember their first screen name. AOL Instant Messenger changed the way we communicate and provided some truly excellent shorthand lingo like BRB (be right back) and GTG (got to go).
Long before he married Kim Kardashian and became buds with Donald Trump, the world knew Kanye West for his rap genius. His album "College Dropout" featured hits like "All Falls Down."
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Remember when everyone was obsessed with Paris Hilton and Nicole Richie? The socialite duo gave us a plethora of incredible quotes ("What is Walmart? Do they sell walls?") from their show "The Simple Life" which took them all over rural America.
It wouldn't be right to talk about millennial pop culture without mentioning memes. Tumblr gave the world the "Hey Girl" meme which consisted of Ryan Gosling providing the feminist messages millennial women both needed and deserved.