Top 19 Memes of the Decade
2010 – Bros Icing Bros
You’ve seen it done to your friends (or maybe you’ve been “Iced” yourself) and every time, it just really (and literally) brings you to your knees for those old college memories. A couple of South Carolina college students started “Icing” bros in 2010, and it spread like rumors on campus.
2011 – Planking
Some say planking started in 1984, when two teenage boys from Washington decided to lie face down in a field during a baseball game to see if they could gain reactions. Tom Green also claims he started planking in 1990, when he planked three times in a music video. Either way, this horizontal phenom really took off around 2011 and we have a lot to show for it. Also, Global planking day is May 25th.
2011 – The Cat Meme – Real Housewives of Beverly Hills
The Housewives have given us so much, including a wonderful and almost endless supply of meme material. The Cat Meme (one of the most popular of 2019) is good meme education on how to bring old content back to life via smart and simple image pairing, and make it last for countless memes to come.
2011-2017 – Gender Reveals
In 2017, there was a 60% increase in gender reveals, from the previous year. Safe to say people have taken these reveals to great lengths, but maybe in the 2020’s we’ll all just save that money we spend on reveals and put it towards a college fund? Only memes will tell.
2011-2019 – GOT
Too many Game of Thrones memes to count. This seemed like a good one, because you don’t have to know everything about GOT to know about Daenerys Targaryen and her dragons. It’s simple, childish, and giggle worthy.
2012 – Antoine Dodson – Hide your kids, hide your wife..
Antoine Dodson gave us a gift with this interview. It was truly handed to the public on a platter, waiting to be autotuned and initiated into meme culture. But, did you know that he’s an actor and a singer? With a meme life like his, celebrity was inevitable.
2012 – Grumpy Cat
The original Grumpy Cat, aka Tardar Sauce, appeared to be in a permanent state of grump due to the shape of her face, and her owner decided we all needed to know about. And what better animal is there to express our distaste for Mondays, or traffic, or needing more space? Probably none.
2012 – Gangnam Style
This absolute gem of a song and music video refers to a lifestyle associated with the Gangnam District of Seoul. It took like wildfire upon release and the vid won Best Video at the MTV Europe Music Awards that year. We’re still not over it, and are hoping for a resurgence in 2020.
2013 – What Does the Fox Say
This hit from a Norwegian comedy duo was the top trending video of 2013 on YouTube, so it was inevitably strong meme material. Sometimes, humanity just needs a little observational comedy about the simplicity of animal sounds to connect us across international waters. Also, the video rocks, the song is super catchy, and it just never gets old.
2014- Kim Kardashian – Break the Internet
We owe many thanks (and memes) to Kim Kardashian for trying to “break the internet” with her cover image. Because of her, we’ve been able to tirelessly use this phrase for any post that we’ve wanted to make sure is, without a doubt, taken into account as the be-all-end-all of, well, anything.
2016 – Flossing
No matter how old you are, you have attempted flossing. It’s the dance that seems to be easy for kids and difficult (and slightly embarrassing) when attempted by adults. Either way, it really brought us all together.
2016 – Cash Me Ousside (Catch Me Outside) – Dr. Phil
Danielle Bregoli first appeared on Dr. Phil, with her feisty phrases and presented to be very meme worthy. Since then, she’s topped the charts as a rapper, signed with Atlantic Records, and gone on to much more success. Turns out memes do make dreams come true.
2016 – The Bottle Flip
The bottle flip is just the wholesome family fun we all crave. This little one (Sam Rogers) went viral overnight for her flip and dab combo, landing her a guest spot on Ellen and a whole lot of love.
2016 – Arthur’s Fist
The Arthur’s fist meme is brilliant because it, by far, fits into more universal scenarios than the majority of memes out there. At the DMV? Arthur’s Fist. Out of toilet paper? Arthur’s fist. Team loses the game? You get the drill.
2016 – The Ultimate Bromance
Obama and Biden are the bromance we all love to watch. There are many memes of this shining duo, but Biden’s daughter says this is his favorite, so we went with it.
2017 – Salt Bae
Remember Salt Bae? Seems like it was a quick ride to fame for this Turkish chef, and then we all sort of stopped dropping salt with flare. Still, we’re grateful for this moment of seasoning decadence and all of the memes to follow.
2018 – Baby Shark
Did you know that this song was originally sung in the early 1900’s, and then again over 20 years ago around the campfire, and then again when some inspired folks began to sing it after seeing Jaws. Many origins and many versions (over 100 now!), and it was 2018’s biggest meme.
2018 – Moth Memes
These started with a Reddit post that took on a life of its own when people wouldn’t stop photoshopping the moth into awkward moments of jealousy where the female in the relationship was suspicious of said moth looking at or thinking of other women and the moth was on a serious quest for his one true love: more light.
2019 – Baby Yoda
Turns out this breakout character isn’t actually a baby Yoda at all, but the name has been embraced by the masses and turned into many memes wherein people need to express their creep stares or shady behavior from behind a hot beverage. We’re here for it.
