Performative male

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The performative male (or performative man), also sometimes called the matcha male, is an internet meme and term referring to an alleged archetype of men that was popularized on social media in 2025. It generally involves performative displays of progressivism, feminism, and emotional sensitivity. Examples of such displays include reading books by feminist writers like All About Love by bell hooks, listening to female indie artists such as Clairo, drinking matcha lattes, habitually carrying a tote bag, and owning a Labubu. These displays are allegedly done as a means of superficially appealing to progressive women with the intent to romantically pursue them. The term has been used both seriously, to criticize the alleged insincerity of some Generation Z men, and satirically for humorous purposes online. Some have pointed it out as the 2020s manifestation of earlier alt-male archetypes like the soft boy or hipsters, the male manipulator meme, or the male equivalent of the pick me girl. Others have criticized the meme for stereotyping men as manipulative, discouraging them from reading and engaging in progressive causes.