There was a time (not that long ago) when showing a little side-boob felt like a moment. It was slightly risky. You knew exactly what you were doing, even if you pretended you didn’t. Millennials mastered this balance. It was revealing, but still tasteful. Now? That whole framework feels irrelevant because Gen Z skipped past suggestive and landed on removing an article of clothing altogether, specifically pants. And I mean that literally. Not shorts are getting shorter. Not hemlines are rising. I’m talking tights as pants, underwear as the outfit, or an oversized blazer with nothing underneath.
Is the Gen Z 'No-Pants' the New Millennial Side-Boob?
Gen Z redefines what it means to be fully dressed
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Published Apr 8, 2026
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It sounds extreme until you realize how often you’re actually seeing it. Hailey Bieber has been doing the blazer-and-briefs thing like it’s a perfectly normal daytime outfit. Kendall Jenner keeps stepping out in sheer tights with visible underwear. Bella Hadid has been circling this look for years—tiny bottoms, big layers, zero interest in balancing it out. And more recently, Sabrina Carpenter turned lingerie into a full wardrobe category. In her new House Tour video, she parades lingerie-as-outfit: bralette tops, teddies, garters, hot pants that are barely there. At one point the "Espresso" singer wears a bright bra with leopard print micro-shorts; at another, she’s fully in lingerie with a sheer robe thrown over it. It’s very clearly underwear, worn on purpose.
What’s interesting is how different the energy is compared to side-boob of yesteryear. Twenty years ago, millennials were embracing “the hint” at nudity. A cutout here, a drape there. You noticed it, but it wasn’t THE look. These days, no-pants doesn’t hint at anything. It is the full story.
There’s no subtlety. And weirdly, that directness is what makes it feel normal(ish). It’s not trying to be sexy in a traditional way. It’s not even asking to be read that way. It just exists. And, it feels super Gen Z.
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It seems Gen Z isn’t interested in looking put-together in the way millennials were—and perhaps it all links back to the internet. When you grow up online, you understand that getting dressed is truly about being seen. Outfits ARE content. And the more a look makes you pause, or question it, or screenshot it, the more it works.
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And if you’ve noticed, it’s not just the clothes, it’s the attitude that comes with them. The slightly blank, detached Gen Z pout face comes to mind. The no-pants look works the same way. It’s not trying to convince you it’s practical or even flattering in the traditional sense. It’s more like, “this is the outfit; take it or leave it.”
Years ago, I would have looked at the half naked Gen Zer and thought, where would I possibly wear that? I wouldn’t have been caught dead leaving the house in tights and underwear. But now, you see its influence everywhere. You see it in the way bike shorts suddenly feel like a full outfit. In how an oversized button-down becomes a dress. Or, the fact that shorter hems don’t feel as risky as they used to.
And that’s the real comparison to millennial side-boob. Not that they look the same (they don’t!), but that they each reflect what their generation is comfortable with, what feels “normal.”
For millennials, it was about revealing just enough. For Gen Z, it’s more, “why are we pretending at all?” And whether you love it or hate it, that mega shift says a lot.
