Why Gen Z Wants Dino Costumes and Emo Playlists at Their Funerals

Why Gen Z Wants Dino Costumes and Emo Playlists at Their Funerals

So picture this: it’s your funeral, and your best friend shows up in an inflatable T-Rex costume because, well, you insisted in your will. Meanwhile, the playlist is a chaotic mix of My Chemical Romance, hyperpop, and Lo-fi SpongeBob remixes. Nobody's crying (except maybe from laughter), and instead of “Amazing Grace,” someone’s reading your favorite unhinged Tumblr post from 2014.

Sounds morbid? Maybe. But for Gen Z? It’s kinda perfect.

Welcome to the hilariously offbeat world of Gen Z death culture—where funeral planning gets the meme treatment, and grief is served with a side of glitter and emotional damage.

🪦 Death, But Make It Aesthetic

Let’s get one thing straight: Gen Z isn’t afraid of death. We’re just over the centuries-old tradition of it being grim, gray, and soaked in awkward silence.

We grew up with global crises, climate anxiety, and an internet full of horror memes. Mortality? Yeah, we know her. But instead of spiraling (well, we still do that), we joke. Dark humor is our armor, and nowhere is that more obvious than in how we think about the end of life.

From TikToks about custom casket colors (“paint it pastel pink with angel wings, thanks”) to viral tweets that say “If y’all don’t play ‘Mr. Brightside’ at my funeral, I’m not dying,” we’re curating our deaths like it’s our last post on Instagram. Literally.

🦖 The Rise of the Inflatable Dino Funeral

The inflatable dinosaur trend didn’t start as a funeral idea—but like most things on Gen Z TikTok, it spiraled beautifully. What started as a goofy costume for birthdays and gender reveals morphed into something darker and oddly comforting.

A viral post on Reddit described a girl’s request for her pallbearers to wear T-Rex suits as a final “LOL” from the grave. TikTok took it and ran. Now, funeral inspo boards (yes, those exist) are filled with ideas like:

• Friends in cosplay carrying the casket
• A hot dog cannon at the wake
• ‘Get In Loser, We're Going Dying’ embroidered on funeral merch

It’s the ultimate "have fun at my funeral or else" vibe.

🎵 The Soundtrack to Our Goodbye

Gone are the days of “Ave Maria” and bagpipes. Gen Z wants vibes.

Personalized playlists have taken over, and they’re as chaotic as our group chats. Think songs like:

• “Good Riddance (Time of Your Life)” by Green Day
• “Death Bed (Coffee for Your Head)” by Powfu
• “Somebody I Used to Know” but the Kidz Bop version (yes, really)

And honestly, if your last moment on Earth doesn’t include a sad remix of a Shrek soundtrack song, did you even live?

🪩 Death Planning, But Make It Personal

Here’s the real thing though: under the memes and madness, there’s heart.

Gen Z doesn’t see death as a taboo anymore—we talk about it, laugh at it, cry about it, and more importantly, plan for it. Whether it’s leaving notes in your phone titled “If I Die Before I Wake 😵,” or telling your BFF to play your FYP on loop at your wake, we’re personalizing death in a way that makes it ours.

Some are even turning to eco-friendly burial pods, mushroom suits, or biodegradable glitter urns (because of course). The goal? Leave the world with a bang, a sparkle, or a final dad joke.

💬 Why We Laugh at Death

It’s not that we don’t take death seriously. We just don’t want our last party to be soul-crushingly sad.

For a generation raised in chaos and coping with anxiety as a daily background hum, humor is our emotional support animal. By making death weird, funny, and ultra-customizable, we’re reclaiming control over something we were told to fear.

Plus, it brings people together. There’s something beautiful about your friends laughing through tears as they honor your memory in exactly the way you wanted—strange, loud, and wildly authentic.

Final Rest, Final Roast

In the end, Gen Z’s approach to death might be the most human thing ever. It's not about disrespecting the dead—it’s about honoring life in the most you way possible. Whether that's in a glitter coffin or a T-Rex onesie, what matters is that your goodbye feels real.

And if you need me, I’ll be updating my funeral Pinterest board with holographic urns and a playlist that ends with “I’m Blue (Da Ba Dee).” Because I wouldn’t be caught dead with basic vibes.

Stay weird with more offbeat takes on modern culture—only at Woke Waves Magazine. 🎭✨

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