What is the succubus-chic aesthetic?

We are here to ask a very crucial question—is the clean-girl beauty aesthetic slowly being pushed out for more sinister trends? If you’ve been doom-scrolling through social media, you might know that the ‘Goth girl’ is back. No, not the Gothcore heavy-on-the-black kind. Of course, that’s one part, but not the whole story. We are talking about a very specific kind of Goth. The kind Wednesday Addams would grow up to be if she found a career in fashion or beauty. The kind Angelina Jolie perpetuated in the early ’90s during her blood vial era. Who, by the way, is the original model for this on-the-horizon trend that some call ‘succubus-chic’ and others are calling ‘voguish vampire’.

The two central characters of this succubus aesthetic are singer Gabbriette Bechtel and model Amelia Gray. However, it was Kylie Jenner’s latest Instagram post that brought this trend to our radar. It’s no secret that the make-up mogul has a little Goth girl hidden inside of her that peeks out every now and then. This time, she took the ‘new year, new me’ slogan quite literally, and embraced the succubus-chic look. We’re talking pencil-thin, powder-gray eyebrows coupled with a dishevelled bun, siren eyes, a nude lip, hollow cheeks and the perfect dead-in-the-eyes killer look. 

The elements of the succubus-chic aesthetic are so specific, all the way down to the pose. It’s characterised by a bowed head, a death stare and siren eyes that are deadly yet seductive. However, the emergence of this trend begs a larger question—was the Wednesday Addams frenzy more than a one-hot minute trend? Does it point to the fact that fashion and beauty are actively moving away from conventional ‘it girls’ to women who are openly embracing the darker side of their femininity? Just some food for thought…