Gothamist
A non-profit newsroom, powered by WNYC.
Gothamist
Listen Live
Arts & Entertainment
Joseph Gordon-Levitt Defines "Hipster" For Us All
By
Jen Carlson
Published Jan 27, 2012
Modified Jan 27, 2012
Share
FacebookTwitterRedditEmail
Never miss a story
Email address
By submitting your information, you're agreeing to receive communications from New York Public Radio in accordance with our Terms .
By
Jen Carlson
Published Jan 27, 2012
Modified Jan 27, 2012
Share
FacebookTwitterRedditEmail
We rely on your support to make local news available to all
Make your contribution now and help Gothamist thrive in 2026. Donate today
Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
If you look up "hipster" in the dictionary, you will not see any of this.
Last time we checked in on Joseph Gordon-Levitt he was Occupying Wall Street and singing a tune with Zooey Deschanel—and now the multitalented actor has kindly requested that you no longer call him a "hipster," please. Which we're cool with, because then he goes a step beyond and actually defines the word "hipster" for us all. Someone that no one has been able to pinpoint since the first bearded man in Williamsburg was spotted with a PBR in his hand. Someone telegram this to the OED, post haste:
Hipster
[hip-ster] noun, slang
- Someone who kind of dresses up like an artist but they don't actually make anything.
He added, "So all you people calling me a hipster can go fuck yourselves cause I'm makin' shit all the goddam time. People are like, 'You wear skinny jeans' but these are 501s man."
Tagged
defined
definition
hipster
jgl
Joseph Gordon-Levitt
Jen Carlson
Jen Carlson is a former WNYC and Gothamist editor.
Read more
Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
MORE arts-entertainment
Why LCD Soundsystem's 'New York, I Love You' is still the city's most honest anthem
The song continues to resonate 20 years after its release, even showing up in movies and TV to convey people’s mixed feelings toward the city.
By
Sonia Rao
Published Oct 30, 2026 at 9:30 a.m. ET
Would you live on a Halloween block? These Hackensackers live for it.
A guillotine, killer clowns, clownfish: They've got it all on Clinton Place.
By
James Ramsay
Arts & Entertainment
Would you live on a Halloween block? These Hackensackers live for it.
A guillotine, killer clowns, clownfish: They've got it all on Clinton Place.
By
James Ramsay
Owl pellets and period equity: What's happening at NYC's public libraries this November
By
Alec Hamilton
How the Village Halloween Parade keeps its soul
By
Hannah Frishberg
'You Can See Everything' … as long as you go to Staten Island
By
Sonia Rao
Never miss a story
Catch up on the most important headlines with a roundup of essential NYC stories, delivered to your inbox daily.
Sign upEmail address
By submitting your information, you're agreeing to receive communications from New York Public Radio in accordance with our Terms .