What's In and Out in 2013

Tomorrow not only marks a change in the calendar year, but also a change in the popular trends of today's culture. Here are Silver Chips Online's predictions of what will be "in" and "out" in 2013. Happy New Year! (View as a slideshow.)

The Washington Nationals took the baseball world by a storm this year, when they finished with the best record in the Major League Baseball (MLB). As the team became more and more popular, it released it's newest slogan, and called on its fans to "Ignite their 'Natitude.'" The phrase can be seen everywhere from its constant usage on Twitter to the backdrop of the team's official store in Nationals Park. With the Nats finally winning this season, fans flocked into the stadium to Ignite their Natitude, and the team averaged a franchise best 30,010 fans per game.

Psy

Psy's Gangnam Style became an international phenomenon soon after its July 2012 release date. The official video has already amassed more than 1 billion views on Youtube. When the song did eventually reach this milestone on December 21, it was the first internet video ever to be viewed more than 1 billion times. The song's signature dance has been used in marching bands, everyday life and touchdown dances. If Psy can continue to produce billion-hit songs, he will reach legend status in no time.

RG3

When the Redskins traded up to the number two pick in the National Football League (NFL) draft to select 2011 Heisman winner Robert Griffin III (RG3), nobody knew quite what to expect. As the regular season comes to a close this weekend, it is clear that the rookie sensation has defied all expectations. RG3 has saved football in Washington, and has led the Redskins to the cusp of their first division title since 1999. RG3 has surpassed fellow young guns Stephen Strasburg, Bryce Harper, John Wall and Alex Ovechkin as the most popular athlete in the nation's capital. RG3 has even been credited for helping the Wizards upset the defending-champion Miami Heat earlier this year.

ASAP Rocky

In 2009 and 2010. Drake made it big with his mixtape So Far Gone. Then it was Tyler the Creator in 2011. Next it was Frank Ocean and Kendrick Lamar in 2012. If you can see the progression of how underground rappers are starting to get more attention, 2013 is definitely going to be ASAP Rocky's year to shine. Like the other successful rappers ASAP Rocky has an incredible sound, favoring slower beats and lyrical content over the more gimmicky and tired sound that's found in Lil Wayne's recent albums. Having met early success with his unofficial compilation Deep Purple , ASAP Rocky signed a two year $3 million record deal with Sony, RCA Records and Polo Grounds Music. Afterwards, he released his mixtape LiveLoveA$AP which also reached critical acclaim with songs such as Peso and Purple Swag. With his debut album LongLiveASAP being released on Jan. 15, you can bet you'll be hearing his name everywhere if you haven't heard it already.

H&M

Given that Montgomery County is one of the wealthiest counties in the United States, you would think that someone would open an H&M to capitalize on all the teenagers out there who want to stay fashionable. On Nov. 9, an H&M finally opened in Silver Spring, making a lot of Blazers happy that such a highly-sought retail-clothing store is nearby. Come 2013, a lot of Blazers will be flocking over to H&M to buy clothes for the spring season.
 

The Earth has survived Dec. 21, 2012. There should no longer be a need to adopt risky behavior and a hedonistic desire to check off items on our bucket list. Teens have always preferred glamorizing their failures instead of introspecting into the shame of their actions, especially on Twitter, but the premise of meme "#YOLO" is centered on the idea that the consequences of poor decisions will be irrelevant as the Mayan calendar will successfully predict the doomsday of the human race. But as time has moved past the "day of revelation," we will live to sleep another night and die another day. Or, you know, like most memes, kids will get tired of #YOLO. There is that explanation too. Either way, I'm sick of people YOLOing. In 2013, it's got to stop.

Lady Gaga

Since her album "Born This Way" was one of the top 10 selling albums of 2011, Lady Gaga has been awfully quiet. It seems that the Lady Gaga phenomenon may be nearing its end, but Gaga has certainly had her good times. Ever since she released "The Fame" in 2008, Lady Gaga has been somewhat of a pop icon. But in 2012, Lady Gaga did nothing to merit much attention, so she has cracked our "out" list.

The Washington Wizards

Just two years the Wizards appeared to show some signs of life. They drafted the dynamic John Wall with the number one pick and surrounded him with young talent. At the end of last year, the Wizards put together a nice streak to close out the season, leading many fans to believe that Washington would have a solid team this year. All that excitement is now gone. Almost no one from that team remains with the Wizards today, and they are indisputably the worst team in the league. They started the season 0-8 and never looked back from there. Washington has a legitimate chance to break the record for the worst 82-game season of all time, which is owned by the 1972-1973 76ers who finished a dismal 9-73. So far the Wizards are ranked 21 (out of 30) in the league in attendance. At the end of the day, they are awful, so don't expect that to change anytime soon.

Found Footage Horror Movies

The "found footage" style of cinematography was innovative and fresh when the Blair Witch Project used it, as the shaky camera brought a sense of claustrophobia and terror to the audience. Nowadays, it has turned into a gimmick where studios can turn low budget horror films into cash cows. The "Paranormal Activity" series is especially guilty of this, as it doesn't even try to make a good movie anymore. For anyone who saw Paranormal Activity 4 the ending practically killed the franchise and the rest of the "found footage" movies. There is no future in "Found Footage" horror movies if they can't even be scary.

Lil' B

Lil' B has a very interesting style of Hip Hop and when I say interesting, I mean it doesn't make a whole lot of sense. In 2010, he came off popping with Wonton Soup and I Cook and even though these songs were nonsensical, they resonated with the younger audience as his ridiculous lyrics were interpreted to be humorous. It is 2012 now, and today's audience is losing interest in Lil B's monthly mixtapes, especially when one-hit wonders such as 2 Chainz are stepping up to the game. With respect to the genre of music they're in, 2 Chainz is much more ridiculous, much more eccentric, and much more "swag" in his music. On top of that, 2 Chainz is signed onto a more lucrative record label than Lil' B and has garnered more recognition and fame as an artist. In 2013, Lil' B's swagger is going to be overcooked.