The memes and trends that go viral on social media shape our lives both on and off screen. For a hot minute, we embraced chaos in a shade of green, and then demureness took its place. We did the apple dance, then the maps dance, then an interpretive dance. We fell in love with a woman who married a pathological liar, and a baby pygmy hippo captured our hears.
We also watched brands capitalize on these memes — some expertly, some not so much. Now that the year is over, we can safely name the trends we loved, and the ones we’re ready to leave in 2024.
Let’s take a walk down memory lane.
10 social media memes and trends we loved in 2024
While it’s impossible to predict what songs, sounds, dances, or challenges will trend, it’s easy to see what they have in common in retrospect. 2024’s greatest memes were adaptable and easily accessible — meaning everyone had a chance to participate.
1. The apple dance
The Apple dance was inspired by the song "Apple" from Charli XCX’s Brat album, and it's the standout viral trend from 2024. Created by TikToker Kelley Heyer, the simple but playful choreography to Charli XCX’s lyrics "I think the apple’s rotten right to the core" was copied by thousands of people. The singer herself joined the trend on TikTok, helping the dance spread and garnering over 51 million views in the process.
The trending sound has inspired 1.7 million TikTok videos with celebrities like the Twisters cast and Joey King posting their versions. It hit another wave of popularity on Instagram, where accounts like the USA’s Olympic Women's Rugby Team joined in.
Takeaway: This trend took off because of its low barrier to entry — no amazing dance skills were needed to join the craze. Trends like this are perfect for plugging your brand into internet culture.
2. The hilarious fallout of Universal Music Group removing their music from TikTok
When Universal Music Group (UMG) pulled their music from TikTok due to a licensing change at the beginning of 2024, people worried the app would change forever. But TikTokers — always the resourceful bunch — turned this upset on its head by pivoting to unlikely creative sources. They created dances and fan-edits to royalty-free music. Others sang DIY covers to mainstream songs. Some made lists of their favorite songs — without sound.
Just Dance embraced the situation and shared videos replacing the music in their game with royalty-free music songs. Their TikTok got over one million views.
Takeaway: This could have been a disaster for the platform, its users, and brands. But in typical Gen Z fashion, creators turned a challenge into a comedic opportunity, showcasing how adaptable the platform and its users truly are.
3. 🐬 I just wanna be part of your symphony 🐬
This trend involves images of rainbows, waterfalls, and flying dolphins á la Lisa Frank set against the song “Symphony” by Clean Bandit and Zara Larsson. These images are paired with an irreverent, self-deprecating, or unhinged caption, like "I have social anxiety."
Gen Z and Gen Alpha love bright and flashy 90s and Y2K aesthetics, but this trend serves them up with a side of irony and cynicism. It's the juxtaposition that makes it work!
The artists of the song obviously jumped on the trend. Clean Bandit’s TikTok, "I love popcorn and Cher," has over 3.5 million views. Zara Larsson took it a step further by posting "What the f*** is going on." She also added a blow-up dolphin at her concerts as a nod to the trend.
And it wouldn’t be a trend without Duolingo hopping on it. Their interpretation featured green dolphins and the caption "end your streak and I’ll end you."
Takeaway: Dark humor and meme culture do numbers, especially on TikTok.
4. How many aura points did I lose?
Another self-deprecating Gen Z social media trend this year is where the creator posts about an embarrassing moment, asking "how many aura points did I lose?" "Aura points" can be loosely translated to "cool factor." We’re not 100% sure about the origin, but it can most likely be traced back to the basketball and football communities on X where people comment on the "aura" of athletes.
Calm, the wellness app, blended the trend with their self-care focus on this TikTok with the caption, "how many aura points do I lose if I don’t drink any water today?" Netflix also referenced it in a "Bridgerton" promo.
Takeaway: This trend worked well for various niches, brands, and industries because it was highly adaptable and relatable.
5. Moo Deng
Moo Deng is a baby pygmy hippo at Thailand’s Khao Kheow Open Zoo who stole the collective heart of social media this year. She’s cute, sassy, and her name means "bouncy pork." What’s not to love?
The zoo where she lives has trademarked her image and sells Moo Deng merch. But they're not the only ones. She also nabbed a collaboration with Sephora Thailand and a food delivery and ride-hailing company called Grab Thailand.
Takeaway: Moo Deng’s cuteness makes her a powerful symbol with the potential for cross-industry impact from tourism to beauty, to merch, to service-based industries. Whether your marketing is in or out of the box, hopping on a trend that makes everyone happy is a safe bet.
6. Subtle foreshadowing
A late entry in the 2024 meme race, subtle foreshadowing videos are an ironic twist on classic internet fail videos. A quick clip of the fail is teased intermittently as the video plays out, leaving the watcher aware of the chaos that ensues and curious about how and why it happens.
Singer Olivia Rodrigo, known for her raw and open lyrics, joined the viral trend and got 2 millions views of her slipping during her concert. British children's cartoon Peppa Pig made a TikTok using this trend with their character Daddy Pig and got 4.7 million views.
Takeaway: The internet loves a good fail video, but this trend breaks the traditional narrative and delivers classic slapstick humor in an unexpected format. If you can laugh at yourself, social media will laugh with you.
7. Wait! They don't love you like I love you
This social media trend features the Yeah Yeah Yeah’s lyrics “Wait! They don't love you like I love you” and a sped-up, two-step dance routine. The serious lyrics are contrasted with the silly dance and unserious caption.
It dropped in September 2024 by TikToker Cranny @southernbellesuzie as a remix to a previous dance of hers. TikTokers loved it and the viral organic trend began. Content creator Amelia Dimoldenberg, host of "Chicken Shop Date," got just over one million views with her take. Duolingo also posted its mascot doing the dance and gained just under 9 million views.
Takeaway: This trend demonstrates the power of simplicity, nostalgia, and cross-generational appeal.
8. Hello, Sharks
Inspired by the investor pitch format from "Shark Tank," Hello, Sharks sees creators on TikTok "pitch" exaggerated personal requests to the audience (the imaginary sharks). Pitches included everything from a midnight Taco Bell run to financial stability.
TikToker Madi (@maaaddsssssss) popularized it with their video asking the sharks to let her quit her job, go on trips with her friends, and in return, give them a full run down of the gossip. It got nearly 11 million views. Skincare brand Sol de Janerio joined the trend and gained over 500,000 views. The authentic trend resonated with the internet’s obsession with skincare, allowing Sol de Janeiro to connect authentically with viewers.
Takeaway: The Hello Sharks trend embodies relatability and humor. It gave brands and creators a way to connect on everyday human struggles and desires in a fun, engaging format.
9. Hopecore
Social media favors dark humor and chaos, but the viral Hopecore trend offers a refreshing alternative. It’s not about dwelling on life's problems (or laughing at them) — it’s about optimism.
The trend is simple, featuring wholesome videos and pictures with an uplifting affirmation. For example, a video posted by @hopecore.o of a child hearing clearly for the first time with the caption "life is beautiful" received over 22 million views on TikTok. SoulCycle embraced the trend, posting a video of an instructor in class with the caption "Be inspired by the strength of your SOUL" that matches the brand's positivity.
Takeaway: You’ve heard of doomscrolling. Let's replace it with hopescrolling. This trend offers audiences a dose of positivity and uplifting stories to improve their scrolling experience.
10. Your parents' '80s dance moves
Young millennials, Gen Z, and Gen Alpha TikTokers asked their parents to recreate dance moves from the 1980s and 1990s. The result? Club classics, retro dance moves, and family bonding. The trend was inspired by Dennis Appel (@dadsgotmoves) who danced like his dad on TikTok, with the video collecting over 48 million views.
Actress and businesswoman Jennifer Garner posted her take, and given her family-oriented food brand Once Upon a Farm, this trend was the perfect fit for her. Actress Courtney Cox also hopped on the trend, doing a perfect throwback to her role in the "Dancing In The Dark" music video by Bruce Springsteen.
Takeaway: Lots of social media content is about dividing the generations, but this one united us. By crossing generational lines, it brought people together and connected people — something we love to see on social media.
5 social media memes and trends we want to leave in 2024
They say if you love something, let it go. While these trends all charmed us, they also revealed something flawed about the nature of trends. Some have reached peak saturation. Some have hit the end of their lifecycle. Some remind us of the risks of jumping on the latest viral bandwagon.
We’re letting go of these trends in 2025, but we’ll carry the lessons they taught us forever.
1. Brat
Brat green. Brat summer. Brat and it’s completely different but also still brat. 2024 is brat.
When British singer Charli XCX released her album "Brat," it took on a life of its own. The album’s marketing was genius, and it infiltrated culture with a now iconic green hue and unapologetic lyrics that won the internet.
This trend took the world by storm for a number of reasons. Aesthetically, it was the anti-clean girl aesthetic. It was honest, authentic, care-free, rough around the edges. It inspired an attitude that can only be defined as... brat.
Who didn’t jump on the bratwagon? One of our favorites uses of this social media trend was Field Roast’s post on Instagram, which got nearly 4000 likes. Blending their plant-based product with the album’s care-free attitude is a match made in heaven.
Brat was also famously used by presidential candidate Kamala Harris. Her social media team rebranded Harris’ X account as "Brat," and went so far as to distribute yard signs in that neon green. This rebranding brought her $15.9 Million in media exposure.
Takeaway: It’s not that Brat wasn’t a great album. And it’s not that the marketing wasn’t genius. And it wasn’t even that shade of green. We loved it all.
It’s simply that brat is a cultural movement. It transcends marketing, and the likes of this list. In short, brat is not a trend. It’s a way of life.
2. Demure
Creator Jools Lebron posted a video about her “very demure, very mindful” job interview look, garnering 53.5 million views on TikTok. That phrase started echoing across social media as people reused the sound over their own videos.
Brat and demure are complete opposites. Brat was loud, chaotic, and carefree. Demure was cautious and toned down. Some even say this trend marked the end of brat summer and the start of demure fall.
Lyft, Netflix, and Zillow all collaborated with Lebron to create their own demure content. For Lyft, it was hailing a ride demurely. For Netflix, it was curating a list of demure shows. And for Zillow, it was a showcase of demure houses.
Takeaway: This uber-viral social media trend almost immediately went from fun and fresh to overused by brands. While we love to see brands going to the source and collaborating with the originators of these trends, too many brands glommed onto this one and it died a quick death. While getting in on memes quickly is important, they can be a double edged sword of sameness that prevent your brand from standing out.
3. Give me my money prank
The "Give me my money" trend emerged early in the year but gained traction around August. It's a prank that involves a group of friends or family taking turns saying "just give me my money" in an exaggerated voice while everyone cheers and claps. When it’s the last person's turn, the phrase is met with silence, leaving that person dumbfounded. Celebrities like Will Smith, Usher, and Idris Elba had this prank played on them.
Kai Centat originally started the trend when he used the phrase in a live stream with rapper DreamDoll. Some think it was influenced by the film Paid in Full. The hashtag #givememymoney has 134,000 videos on TikTok.
Takeaway: Call us soft, but his prank trend was hard to watch, especially as many of the videos involved children. It’s more fun to laugh with people than at them!
4. Gen Z edits of marketing videos
Loud breathing. Lots of "ums," "ahs," and "oks." Awkward pauses and strange body language. These are all elements of one of the most popular social media memes of 2024. Yes, really.
It started when realtor Mike Hedge asked his social media editor, Teresa, a Gen Z-er, to edit a video of him showing a property. What Teresa made was this video, which got almost six million likes on Instagram. Playing into the apparent differences between Gen Z and millennials, it’s easy to see why this took off.
Since this meme targeted marketing videos specifically, it was a field day for businesses and organizations on social media. Everyone from movie theaters to airlines to higher education got in on the action.
Takeaway: This trend was fun because it subverted expectations. However, once your expectations are subverted, they can’t be subverted again. That’s why this trend felt old quickly. Plus, generational humor can feel forced or even mean-spirited if it's not aligned with a brand’s audience and authentic tone.
5. Willy Wonka experience disaster
When a Willy Wonka reboot premiered this year, it inspired a Willy Wonka "immersive experience" in Scotland. And this inspired a world of memes.
The "immersive experience" was so poorly executed that people compared it to the Fyre Festival disaster. Bad sets, creepy costumes, and AI-generated scripts and marketing materials all contributed to a very public fiasco. Attendees filmed the event and that footage quickly went viral.
Players of games like The Sims, Fortnite, and Animal Crossing hopped on the social media trend and showed their in-game creations inspired by the event.
Takeaway: The disaster of the Glasgow Willy Wonka experience reminds brands of the dangers of overhyped events. While marketing, especially assisted by AI, can promise a dazzling experience, you don’t want your actual event to fall short in an age when everyone can document it.
Incorporating memes and trends in your brand's social presence
Reflecting on 2024’s social media memes, one thing is clear: navigating trend-driven content creation requires balance and critical thinking. Joining popular memes can connect with audiences and boost visibility, but staying true to your brand voice is key to being authentic.
Here are a few takeaways from the successful 2024 social media trends:
- Community: Successful social media trends brought people together and created a sense of community, especially across generations.
- Adaptability and accessibility: They were accessible (like easy dances) and adaptable (like loose formats) so different people and brands could partake.
- Creativity: Successful trends sparked an outpouring of creativity. Whether in reaction to an unexpected event, editing style, or subject matter, many trends showed us new ways to tell stories and show the world who we are.
Blending spontaneity with strategy is key to jumping on social media trends. Like all social media success, knowing your audience is the foundation for identifying the right trends to invest in.
