Did you know that Hot Topic has been around since the 1980s? It's always had a serious music-theme to how it presented itself and the merch it sold, even if the styles evolved considerably during that time.  

For instance, when they first showed up on the scene, Hot Topic was pretty dark and into nu-metal with a vengeance. It was only in later years that they shifted focus to hardcore, geek culture, scene and, of course, emo music and fashion. Basically, they've always been on the fringe of what was considered "normal." Not extreme by any means, but not the Gap, either. Hot Topic was there to appeal to people who felt a little different and wanted to express that in a way they felt looked cool and fun and a bit unique. And also people who liked "The Nightmare Before Christmas" and a lot of the color black.

Do you think your Hot Topic tastes reveal anything about who you are as a person? What if we told you we could match your personality up with an emo singer based on nothing more than what you'd buy on a Hot Topic trip? Sound crazy? Well, why not grab a shopping basket and see?