the new black

English

Etymology

The phrase originates with clothing fashion, where at one point black was a fashionable color in clothes, and the next color to become fashionable was referred to as "the new black".

Noun

the new black

1. Something that is trendy, popular; the latest fashion.
   • 2004, Out, volume 4, numbers 1-5, page 14:

     These reporters are so caught up in the ‘red is the new black’ mentality," he says, "they're more interested in selling clothes than taking a stand on anything.

   • 2008, Nina Raine, Rabbit, page 49:

     EMILY: ... I'm interested in the brain, and stuff... neurology... it's very trendy right now.
     RICHARD. Neurology. It's the new black.

   • 2009, Graham Huggan, Ian Law, Racism Postcolonialism Europe, page 77:

     The writer and political activist A. Sivanandan has argued that ‘poverty is the new black’ (2001).

See also

• Appendix:Snowclones/X is the new Y
• the new rock and roll

References

• “new black”, in Dictionary.com Unabridged, Dictionary.com, LLC, 1995–present.