A Disengaged Adult’s Guide to Children’s Culture: South Korean Pistol Shooting Champion Kim Yeji
Young people don’t usually vote in large numbers, and I understand that: voting is boring and only inspires politicians anyway. But Kamala Harris’ entry into the presidential race appears to be galvanizing young people’s political interests. Whether this will translate into attracting new voters in November is anyone’s guess, but for now it’s generating a lot of memes and that’s the next best thing, right? And once you get that down, you can focus on what’s really important: a badass Olympic sniper with real protagonist energy .
Kamala Harris Memes Explainer
Ever since Kamala Harris became the Democratic presidential nominee just over a week ago, the internet has been busy remembering her. While it’s hard to cut through the hype to truly understand how young people feel about politics, it seems clear that they like Harris better than Biden and they like her better than Trump. At least they think she’s better suited for internet jokes. Here are some of the most famous Harris memes that have gained popularity and their meanings.
Brother : Some internet users are calling Harris a “brat” (additional). The honor was presented to Harris by pop singer Charli XCX in a tweet posted shortly after Harris announced her campaign, saying, “Kamala is a brat.” This is a reference to the singer’s album of the same name, which itself has already become something of a meme, partly thanks to the characteristic light green cover. According to XCX, being a “brat” is being “that girl who’s a little messy and likes to have fun and maybe says some stupid things sometimes, who feels like herself, but then maybe she has a breakdown, but she’s kind of having fun , Despite this”. “Maybe this is how young people see the future president? I accept this.
Coconut : Along with “brat”, people mention coconuts in the same breath as Harris or say they are “coconut pills”. This is a reference to a speech Harris gave in 2023, in which she quoted her mother as saying: “You think you just fell out of a coconut tree? You exist in the context of everything you live in and everything that came before you.” As for why it caught on, it’s a clear idea in a neat little package, a little silly, and new enough to remember. Or maybe the kids make fun of her a little, even Lifehacker Gen Z expert Meredith Dietz thinks it’s difficult? tell .
Weird : The Democratic Party has apparently reached an agreement to call Donald Trump and his running mate J.D. Vance “weird” as often as possible. Many people have called Trump weird throughout his life, but this time it took hold thanks to a cable news appearance by Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz in which he painted the Republican Party with the “they’re weird” brush. That message was soon reinforced by a statement from the Harris campaign calling Trump “old and kind of weird?” [sic]
In a broader context, the word “weird” fits perfectly with the song of the summer (and perhaps the decade) ” Not Like Us ” by Kendrick Lamar, in which Lamar kicks Drake out of hip-hop by defining him as “not like us.” ” Meme makers (and Democrats cashing in on the trend) are bringing the same energy to Trump’s world.
What is Budots music?
Add “budots” to the list of music subgenres you probably won’t like. Budots is a genre of electronic dance music that originated on the streets of the Philippines and gained popularity on TikTok. It’s characterized by simple, repetitive electro beats and lots of sound effects—music purely for the feet, not the head.
The breakthrough work in the Budots style was DJ Johnrey Masbate’s “Emergency Budots,” a remix of “Dr. Beat” by Miami Sound Machine. It has been used in over 400,000 TikTok videos and counting. But this genre has been around longer than this song. It was developed byDJ Love, an internet café owner in the Philippines who started releasing Budots videos 11 years ago (although “budots” originally referred to the silly, joyful, over-exaggerated dance moves that accompany the music).
What does EIP mean?
NSFW warning! If anyone has been texting you “Lemme EYP” lately, they are asking to eat your pussy. The phrase has been exploding in various online comment sections lately, but like Budots’ music, it’s been bubbling under the surface for a few years now, waiting for the right moment to catch on.
Ilona Maher: viral star of the 2024 Olympics
Most Americans don’t think much about women’s rugby, but young people are becoming increasingly aware of Ilona Maher. The 27-year-old Olympian is an absolute beast on the rugby field, and her TikTok and Instagram have become wildly popular thanks to a combination of body positivity , rugby positivity and content that everyone can relate to – like this video of Maher saying the most embarrassing thing ever. possible when meeting an Olympic tennis player, and her pure excitement about a photo shoot with Snoop Dogg .
Viral Video of the Week: “Kim Yeji Breaks Women’s 25m Pistol World Record”
Another viral Olympic star this week is South Korean pistol champion Kim Yeji. Although she is competing in various air pistol competitions this year, her popularity comes from the ISSF World Cup held a few months ago when Kim broke the world record in the 25m pistol event. She did it with such style that video of the moment has to be seen to be believed —it’s been viewed more than 20 million times in the last day alone. Del Walker , one of the many people who posted the video on Twitter, summed up the atmosphere: “The most ‘protagonist energy’ I’ve ever seen in my life.”
How you can break a world record by winning a gold medal at an international event and still be so cool is a mystery, but all the black clothes and cyberpunk magnifying glasses won’t hurt. (To add to her legend, Kim had just won a silver medal in the women’s 10 meter air pistol competition .)