A couple weeks ago, a reader made the request that I look into the origins of the word “glowup,” because it always made her smile when she heard it. Who was I to say no? 😉
Glowup is a very new word, dating only back to 2013. It entered the vernacular specifically through African American Vernacular English (AAVE) and hip-hop culture and then diffused into the mainstream from there. The first recorded use was in rapper Chief Keef’s song “Gotta Glo Up One Day.” In the song, the word was used to mean that rather than just growing up, he wanted to get wealthy and gain status.
By the late 2010s, however, the word began to be used for a makeover, often including before and after images of people or spaces. These days, it’s been expanded to include positive changes to attitude, mental health, and any personal achievements.
So there we go! A new word but one which has already evolved a bit to go from strictly wealth-and-status to any improvement…and definitely one to make you smile.
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Roseanna M. White is a bestselling, Christy Award winning author who has long claimed that words are the air she breathes. When not writing fiction, she’s homeschooling her two kids, editing, designing book covers, and pretending her house will clean itself. Roseanna is the author of a slew of historical novels that span several continents and thousands of years. Spies and war and mayhem always seem to find their way into her books…to offset her real life, which is blessedly ordinary. 
