The online world in 2025 continues to evolve, with meme culture relentlessly refreshing the public's sense of humor. From TikTok to Instagram Reels, and then rolling into Discord and Reddit, new memes often sweep the globe overnight, becoming everyone's shared background noise. This year's memes not only have greater cross-platform vitality but also reflect the transformation of youth culture around the world.
What is Tung Tung Tung Sahur? It's the wildly popular "Italian brain tortilla."
The "Italian Brainrot" meme trend went viral on TikTok, Instagram Reels, and YouTube Shorts earlier this year. The content mainly revolves around exaggerated Italian accents, gestures, and bizarre images, making it one of the most recognizable new memes on social media this year.
These types of memes often feature multiple characters, including the three-legged shark "Tralalero Tralala", the WWII bomber crocodile "Bombardiro Crocodilo", the wooden stick used to wake Muslims for their morning meal (sahur) during Ramadan "Tung Tung Tung Sahur", and the cup that blends cappuccino and ballet "Ballerina Cappuccina", among others.
"Brainrot" is a popular TikTok term used to describe a concept that is so captivating that you can't stop scrolling through it. Various memes have been labeled "XXX brainrot," with the most famous one being "Skibidi Toilet," which originated from the web series "Machinima" posted on the YouTube channel "DaFuq!?Boom!".
What's most unique about "Italian Brain Rot" is that the spelling of some of the "characters" in the series isn't even Italian; it's simply a random collection of memes pieced together using stereotypes and common phrases associated with Italians. This meme also mostly uses artificial intelligence (AI) to generate related images, linking to and emphasizing the vulgarity of AI-generated images and the ecosystem that is "completely unacceptable."
Discriminatory term for robots: Clanker
The term "Clanker" has recently gone viral on social media, evolving from a playful nickname among science fiction fans into a general label referring to AI and robots. The term originated from the 2005 spin-off game *Star Wars: Republic Commando*, which first used the term to describe enemy combat robots.
At the beginning of this year, "Clanker" not only resurfaced but was also widely used to refer to robots and AI technology in the real world. With the popularization of technology, many people are uneasy about AI replacing human labor, customer service robots replacing human workers, delivery robots, and automated services. This "anti-AI and robot" mentality has become the breeding ground for the resurgence of "Clanker."
However, such memes also have a degree of self-awareness; users may use "Clanker" to mock their future selves decades from now. For example, when robots' emotions, creative energy, or human rights positioning have become common knowledge and taken for granted in the future, Generation Z may become their most intolerable elders, constantly making discriminatory remarks against AI, and even suffering a stroke from anger as a result.
This meme subsequently went viral on short video platforms and social media, where it was used for humor, satire, and even rebellion, often related to generational gaps. For example, Gen Z elders started calling delivery robots "Clanker," mocking AI creations, or pretending that a child from 2079 brought home a "Clanker boyfriend."
Minecraft Movie: Chicken Riders' Chaos
"Chicken Jockey" first appeared in 2014 in Minecraft, a sandbox game developed by Microsoft's Mojang Studios. It is a small, randomly generated group of hostile mobs, consisting of variants such as "Baby Zombie," "Baby Drowned," and "Baby Husks," as well as a riding chicken.
After the video game adaptation "A Minecraft Movie" was released in April this year, "Chicken Jockey," which originally only existed in the game, was brought to the big screen. When the characters in the film suddenly see a baby zombie riding on a chicken, the characters shout "Chicken jockey!" which is considered by many to be the most memorable moment in the movie.
｜Extended reading｜"The McBride" sparked the "Chicken Knight" TikTok craze and disrupted movie-watching! British and American cinemas tighten controls
From then on, whenever audiences heard "Chicken Rider!" during a movie screening, they would spontaneously shout and cheer throughout the theater. Some would throw rotten popcorn, and some even brought live chickens into the theater, only to be kicked out. Influenced by this trend, some cinemas in North America and the UK had to post warnings, and some theaters even restricted minors to be accompanied by an adult.
Duoqi's song: <Anxiety>
American rapper Doechii re-recorded and released a song this year called "Anxiety," which samples Gotye and Kimbra's classic 2011 track "Somebody That I Used to Know." Through this song, Doechii depicts feelings of anxiety, such as a feeling of pressure in the chest, restlessness, and constant self-doubt.
Besides being used to depict anxious situations, "Anxiety" also shares the same opening melody as "Somebody That I Used to Know," making it a unique meme. In some short videos, the driver listens to the radio, thinking he's hearing Gotye and Kimberly's music, only to find it's "Anxiety" playing, causing the car to overturn.
"But you can't prove it": Dox Suss
"Doakes Sus" originates from a scene in the well-known TV series "Dexter," where the character "James Doakes" constantly stares at the protagonist "Dexter Morgan" with an extremely suspicious and dramatic expression. Online images are often accompanied by the tagline "But You Can't Prove It" to represent the image of "sus" as a symbol of doubt.
This meme is applicable to any situation of suspicion, distrust, or feeling that something is amiss. After the mystery game *Among Us* popularized the "sus" meme, this emoji suddenly became a viral sensation this year. For example, some netizens use the "sus" emoji with the caption, "When my buddy says he went to Thailand for the food and beaches, but you know what kind of person he is, you just can't prove it."
When you know your ex misses you and thinks about you everyday but you just cant prove it pic.twitter.com/c89FPLUPe1
— duck (@ExtremeBlitz__) August 4, 2025
Jet2 Holiday: Jess Grin's Divine Comedy Returns?
The "Jet Holidays" meme originated from a promotional advertisement by the British travel company Jet2holidays last year. The advertisement used the hit song "Hold My Hand" by British singer Jess Glynne in 2015, along with the narration "Nothing beats a Jet2 holiday," and suddenly became a hit in March of this year.
Some netizens dubbed the advertisement, which was supposed to promote a "fun vacation," with visuals that had nothing to do with "vacation" and created a strong sense of contrast. For example, a disaster video of a plane overturning was paired with Jet2's cheerful narration, creating a stark contrast and a sense of absurdity, which led to it going viral on social media.
The "67 Craze" sweeping across the United States: Dribbling gestures go viral
"6-7" comes from the song "Doot Doot (6 7)" by Philadelphia rapper Jemille Edwards (stage name "Lord Skrilla"), where the numbers or phrases "6-7" appear frequently. In March of this year, American internet celebrity Cam Wilder posted a video of a teenager shouting "67" into the camera with exaggerated gestures, which instantly went viral.
｜Extended reading｜"67 Fever" Spreads Across the US! Students' Massive Shouting and Revelry Drive Teachers Crazy
A flood of imitations and remakes began to appear online, filled with various short videos, edited clips, and parody versions, and horror-themed SCP-style variations also emerged. "67" subsequently became a kind of "secret code" among the younger generation. Whether it was seeing a time like 6:7, a basketball score of 6 to 7, or school seats numbered 6 and 7, it could all be used as a trigger to make people shout "six seven!"
The War of the Worlds Movie: Ice Cube Cool Guy's Solo Show
The classic science fiction novel *War of the Worlds* has been adapted into a film again after many years, starring renowned rapper Ice Cube and Eva Longoria. However, the film received terrible reviews after its premiere, earning a rare 0% rating on Rotten Tomatoes and a mere 3.2 on IMDb.
｜Extended reading｜Ice Cube's new film "War of the Worlds" has received a massive 0% rating on Rotten Tomatoes.
The film has a simple plot and a very low budget, almost entirely confined to a single scene, relying entirely on Bowser, and is filled with inexplicable and confusing lines, which has led to the creation of memes. The most famous meme is when Bowser suddenly stands up during a video call and shouts "It's you?!", with the upper half of the video cut off, creating a comedic effect.
After the film was released on the streaming platform Prime Video, it sparked a massive wave of "the best movie ever" memes, similar to the "It's morbing time!" trend created by Morbius in 2022, using exaggerated praise to satirize the film's failure.
Michelle Yeoh: Wicked Witch
The musical adaptation, *Wicked: For Good*, was recently released, with Oscar-winning actress Michelle Yeoh playing the villain Madame Morrible. In the lead-up to the film's release, she repeatedly performed the scene in front of reporters, reiterating in the exact same tone, "Madame Morrible, MM, Flip It Around, Wicked Witch!"
This move instantly reminded viewers of Lady Gaga's meme from 2018, when she repeatedly said the same line while promoting her new film "A Star Is Born": "In a room with 100 people, 99 of them don't believe in you, but you only need one person to believe in you to change your life."
The image of her repeatedly reiterating the same phrase went viral back then, often accompanied by the sarcastic line, "When you only looked at one page before the exam." Now, netizens are using the same word card to clip in Michelle Yeoh's "MM: Wicked Witch" video. Some netizens have also included this line in "Everything Everywhere All at Once," symbolizing the uniqueness of Michelle Yeoh across different universes.
We are all Charlie Kirk
In November of this year, the new song "We Are Charlie Kirk" released by the anonymous AI musician Spalexma suddenly swept social media. It is both a tribute to the late right-wing figure Charlie Kirk and a source of ridicule for internet users.
The song's exaggerated tone, absurd religious gospel symbolism, "deliberately forceful" vocals, and mechanical and jarring performance instantly made it a product of "so bad it's good." After its release, the song quickly generated a strong response on platforms such as TikTok, X, and YouTube, triggering a new wave of discussions about AI creation, political symbols, and internet culture.
"We are Charlie Kirk, we carry the flame, we fight for the gospel, we'll honor his name." pic.twitter.com/WzQhLav68c
— Just a Random JOLLY Person 🎄☃️ (@aRandom_acc_) November 27, 2025
