Meme History: How a tea commercial starring Kermit the Frog became the perfect reaction meme
Which movie received only moderate ratings on IMDb, Rotten Tomatoes, and Metacritic but gave rise to two of the most iconic memes in history?
Welcome to a journey through meme history.
Kermit Memes: The History
In early 2014, users began sharing image macros of Kermit the Frog, tagged with #KermitMemes.
It was a modest start, but things escalated with a Lipton Ice Tea ad aired during the 2014 Academy Awards.
This ad, tied to the Disney movie Muppets Most Wanted, featured a scene with Kermit that would soon become a meme legend.
Enter 'That's None of My Business'
The phrase 'That's none of my business' came into play a few months later, offering a way to convey superiority and passive-aggressiveness under the guise of the beloved Muppet.
On June 20th, the Instagram account @thatsnoneofmybusinesstho was created, quickly amassing nearly 150,000 followers.
Simultaneously, #noneofmybusiness and #Kermit exploded on Twitter, with the hashtag appearing in 19,000 tweets in just one week.
The meme even expanded to YouTube, where a video featuring a Kermit puppet delivering meme-worthy lines went viral.
The meme reached its zenith on June 22nd when the Tumblr blog 'Kermit the Snitch' combined the iconic tea ad still with the 'none of my business' phrase.
This fusion solidified the meme's status on the internet.
Popularity and Use
Although it calmed down after its initial peak, it resurged in 2016, thanks to LeBron James. Celebrating his NBA championship, James posted a photo with a Kermit tea hat, inadvertently promoting the meme:
Another Muppets Most Wanted meme emerged in November 2016 when Twitter user @aaannnnyyyyaaaa shared a screenshot from the movie, giving birth to the 'Evil Kermit' meme.
This new meme provided a humorous way to confront personal vices and bad decisions.
Other notable Muppet memes include 'Loving Kermit,' 'Miss Piggy,' 'Kermit Typing,' and 'Kermit Biting Nails.'
Google Trends data shows that, over time, 'Kermit Meme' searches have consistently surpassed interest in the movie 'Muppets Most Wanted,' indicating the memes' significant cultural impact over the film itself.
But, as they say, that's none of my business.
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