What Is A 'Kennedy Summer'? Inside the Trend Channeling the Summer Traditions of One of America’s Most Iconic Families (Exclusive)
What Is A 'Kennedy Summer'? Inside the Trend Channeling the Summer Traditions of One of America’s Most Iconic Families (Exclusive)
Tabitha ParentTue, March 3, 2026 at 9:48 PM UTC
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Images depicting a "Kennedy Summer" from TikTok users.Credit: @justsabrinarenee/TikTok; @charlottedrinkwater/TikTok
The '90s are back with this latest TikTok trend — and so are two of the era's most iconic figures: John F. Kennedy, Jr. and Carolyn Bessette Kennedy.As viewers across the country tune into Ryan Murphy's popular FX show Love Story, which chronicles the couple's relationship while they gallivanted around New York City before the turn of the century, they're also turning to the show's aesthetics for inspiration.Carolyn's style has blown up on social media, with everyone from celebrities to influencers alike getting in on the latest resurgence in obsession with the former Calvin Klein publicist's style. Creators have attempted to recreate the national style icon's signature looks, which also sparked trends before her untimely death alongside her husband and sister Lauren Bessette in a July 16, 1999, plane crash.Men are also looking toward JFK, Jr. for style inspiration, too, with social media users posting videos of guys out and about in New York City's West Village, donning backwards caps and his signature newsboy cap.However, social media is hungry for more than just style inspiration from these two famous Kennedys. A new trend has picked up on platforms like TikTok and Instagram, which sees users romanticizing a "Kennedy Summer."In episode five of Love Story, Carolyn makes her first visit to the Kennedy family summer compound in Hyannis Port, Mass., where she's put up against JFK Jr.'s intimidating family and their particular ways, including political quizzes at dinner and the sign-up sheet that the family uses for breakfast.On TikTok, users have curated roundups of videos of their own "Kennedy Summers," sharing clips and images of their summers spent in New England locations like Nantucket, Mass., coastal Connecticut beach towns and more, using hashtags like #kennedyfamily #kennedysummer #eastcoastsummer #newenglandsummer to demarcate their videos.
Read on to find out more about how the viral trend came to be, and what people online have to say about it.
What is the "Kennedy Summer" trend?
A screenshot from Charlotte Drinkwater's video depicting her version of "Kennedy Summer."Credit: @charlottedrinkwater/TikTok
The "Kennedy Summer" trend is less about the Kennedy family and more about the classic, Americana vibes that their summers spent in Hyannis Port remind us of.In a video posted by TikTok user Charlotte Drinkwater, which now boasts over 100,000 views, she breaks down what she refers to as "Nantucket's version of Kennedy summer."In her video, she includes clips of friends and other individuals wearing classic, preppy East Coast outfits, snaps of people eating seafood and other coastal activities like boating and trips to the beach.Over the video, Drinkwater layered the song "American Wedding," by Frank Ocean, which features lyrics that reference a Kennedy bride: "M-R-S dot Kennedy/She signed her name in pen/In the fancy, fancy cursive/Then turned her term papers in."It's unclear exactly which Mrs. Kennedy the singer is referring to in the song (which was removed from streaming platforms for legal disputes following Ocean's unauthorized sampling of "Hotel California" by The Eagles), but the song has since been co-opted as the soundtrack for many videos on social media about JFK, Jr. and CBK.Drinkwater tells PEOPLE that she first heard the term "Kennedy Summer" on TikTok right after she began watching Love Story.It was around that time that she first started getting CBK and JFK, Jr. content on her For You Page.Drinkwater describes the trend as more of an "aesthetic.""I felt it definitely related to Nantucket summers," she says of her own experience, admitting that while she knows the "basics" about the Kennedy family, she's not an expert on them.TikTok creator Sabrina Smith, who goes by @justsabrinarenee on the platform, also shared her video depicting her experience with a "Kennedy kind of summer," set to another favorite song from creators chronicling content about the Kennedys: Lana del Rey's "National Anthem."She tells PEOPLE that she thinks the term "Kennedy Summer" is great to "describe the type of summers that one experiences in New England.""Summers in New England really are special and unlike anywhere else in my opinion, so I totally understand why it’s trending," she adds.Other content creators like Erin Harper — who has 179,000 followers on TikTok and whose Kennedy Summer video now has over four million views — have been on the "Kennedy Summer" kick before it began blowing up."I’ve been posting 'New England summer' content for a while now," she tells PEOPLE. "In my opinion, it’s essentially the same vibe as what people are now calling the 'Kennedy Summer' aesthetic, it just has a new name."
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What are the key components of a "Kennedy Summer?"
Erin Harper.Credit: Erin Harper/TikTok
Per Drinkwater and Smith, there are a few components that make up a "Kennedy Summer.""I think it's mostly aesthetics," Drinkwater says. "The preppy clothing, the yachting, the East Coast vibe — I think people use 'Kennedy Summer' because it's catchy and instantly brings up that specific aesthetic."Harper also says that the Kennedy Summer aesthetic is "really just what a New England Summer has always been.""It consists of lots of things like sailboats, hydrangeas, coastal blues & whites, and an overall preppy style and Americana feel," she adds.Drinkwater touches on another element of the aesthetic, which many online have also called out: its perceived "elitism."The term, she says, gives off this aspect, as it sheds light on "how wealth contributes to summer activities and aesthetics.""Certain parts of the 'Kennedy Summer' trend are activities that typically are expensive or exclusive, such as yacht clubs, golf clubs and polo matches," she says.Smith also acknowledges the criticism that the trend has been getting online."I’m not originally from New England myself and had never experienced summer here until five years ago," she notes. "Living in Connecticut now definitely makes a difference in being able to have certain experiences. I’m not sure I would have had them otherwise."
Some might even argue that an aesthetic capturing the summer of one of America's most famous and influential families is innately inaccessible.Harper was surprised that her video, which included text, "lucky for me, Kennedy summer has never just been a trend," received negative comments."While I completely understand why some people feel the 'Kennedy Summer' aesthetic can seem inaccessible, my intentions behind sharing content around it are simply to highlight the beauty of summer in New England," she says."I recognize that growing up in the area is a privilege, and I’m incredibly grateful to my hardworking parents who made that possible," she adds. "That said, I've never personally shared content around an aesthetic to make others feel excluded, but rather to showcase a place or lifestyle that means a lot to me. "
How did the trend start and why are people talking about the Kennedy family online?
Carolyn Bessette Kennedy and JFK, Jr. and the Kennedy's Hyannis Port, Mass. compound.Credit: Ron Galella/Ron Galella Collection via Getty; credit should read STAN HONDA/AFP via Getty
With all the hype around Ryan Murphy's new Fx show Love Story, it's no wonder that the trend emerged online.While some users, like Harper and Smith, have a pretty robust set of knowledge about the Kennedy family and their influence on everything from American politics to culture to fashion, others like Drinkwater had less."I have known about the Kennedy family since I was a little girl," Smith tells PEOPLE, referencing her late grandmother, who was a huge fan of the family."I’m originally from St. Mary’s, Ga., which is where the ferry you catch to go to Cumberland Island is located," she adds, referencing the secluded Georgia island where CBK and JFK, Jr. were married in a clandestine wedding.Smith has her own very unique connection to the Kennedy family: "My grandmother was even on the city council while the wedding was being planned, so she was one of the few people who knew it was going to be happening," she reveals.Harper first heard about the trend on TikTok before she even began watching Love Story. She tells PEOPLE that she's "grateful" that it's trending."It's a reminder to me of how lucky I am to have grown up spending my summers in New England similarly to the Kennedy Family," she writes, of summers spent just a few towns over from Newport, R.I. "I truly believe there is no place like it, and it makes me so happy to see that so many other people appreciate how beautiful it is."
on People
Source: “AOL Entertainment”
