The cultural power of brainrot
More than a protective bubble of ironic nihilism
As with last week — trying out new ways of organising the trends - enjoy x
The old order are weaponising the worst of their destructive, gaslighty traits on a global scale, defending themselves against forms of progress that threatens their authority.
With things spiralling into unpredictable levels of evil, culture is protecting itself in a bubble of ironic nihilism. Absurd, brain rot content is not only a form of escapism (as is fairly well documented), but I’d argue it has a rebellious power of its own. It matches the warped logic around us with its absurdism. If nothing matters and nothing is real, then the Duolingo owl can die by getting run over by a cybertruck. If a convicted felon can be president, then an AI video of a cat turning into a cappuccino is real too. Right? Maybe I’m too passionate about brainrot, but at the very least it’s a sign of the times.
THE THREAT
Just a sprinkling of things that make one say — wtf is going on?
With Trump ruling by tantrum, it feels like mood swings have not only become a tactic of governance but also a facet of culture. Volatile, unregulated behaviour is mandated. These aren’t ‘unprecedented times; or ‘new normal’, it’s giving Roman Emperor Nero.
And Trump’s power means that the Conservative youth are having a moment too. Raquel Debono, who popularised the term ‘Make America Hot Again’ (i.e. white, it seems) and works at a right-wing dating app (Date Right), has been hosting parties in Trump Tower for young conservatives.
These young people are outspoken, urban, and emboldened by controversy, referring to their politics as a “movement” as opposed to staid, capital-C conservatism. “You don’t have to have the same Nashville country vibe in order to feel like you can belong in our space now,” she adds. “My cowboy boots are Louboutin, and I think that’s the perfect summary.”
They’re not hillbilly Republicans, but luxury-clad, city-dwellers. They don’t trust the media, they get their information from within right-wing influencer circles. The Conservateur, is trying disguise reactionary Conservative family values in a trendy new dress. It’s all a bit Hitler Youth social eugenics.
Russell Brand called his charges of rape ‘corruption within the legal system’ …. comparing his case to how the southport murders were handled …. hmmmm…..
And if we look to UK schools, behaviour is BAD right now (and has been worsening since COVID). There is a rise in students ASSAULTING adults. Children are sponges to the behaviours in the home and society (i.e. the internet). If they’re volatile, it’s a reflection of culture.
Incel accounts are rebranding on socials, using a ‘socially acceptable’ code language to bypass filters.
AND There is a new game called No Mercy that allows players to take on the role of a man who rapes his female family members!!! The game can be found on platforms accessible by young people from the age of 12. Violent misogyny sits at its core: a mother’s affair shatters the protagonist’s family, so he goes on a revenge mission against women.
The game description reads:
“Fuck your mom, fuck your auntie, and even fuck your friend’s mom. Why not? Already a fan favorite in the NSFW Game Incest community. Take what’s yours and show No Mercy.”
It lists options for players to commit incest, ave non-consensual sex and take part in a gang rape. It’s being called to be removed completely but to get to the point of release, a huge number of people have okayed this and that is terrifying.
IRONIC NIHILISM AS A RESPONSE
With the world feeling like a labyrinth in which every turn leads to moral conflict or social violence, ironic nihilism is a way of sidestepping the logical fallacies and hypocrisies around us by finding resistance, joy and humour in something that seems divorced of meaning (not to deep it but, by being silly, it also kind of celebrates life?)
On Tuesday, Sabrina Carpenter headlined an event you may not have heard about: Fortnite Festival. See this video in which players wearing the Sabrina Carpenter skin, a digital battlefield awash with players in mini skirts and gogo boots, withdraw their guns and dance in harmony — ahh peace!
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Although, it’s not all nice (it’s still kind of funny):
The Peckham Pimps (also helloooo brands, why aren’t you partnering with them?) have been blowing up on TikTok. They’re a group of friends who have been dressing up as pimps make faking music videos around London, grinding and vibing around the city. The silliness is a refusal to be downbeat. I’m obsessed.
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Enable 3rd party cookies or use another browserThere’s a trend for turning non-serious statement into ‘profound’ lyric videos (similar to last year’s Dolphin memes) — the jarring mismatch between image and visual exemplifies ironic nihilism (and speaks to our two-faced world).
And there are the aforementioned videos of AI-generated object transformations, soundtracked by a weird Italian voiceover. Or, badly animated frogs in bikinis dancing to pop songs. (yes you heard me). Ok, you could be an incel and love these videos as they’re divorced from the political spectrum. HOWEVER, I think they’re SO absurd that they reflect the disillusionment in society (not to over-intellectualise dumb memes but this is what Dada and theatre of the Absurd did.)
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A FORCE FOR CHANGE?
Supermodel Alex Consani is building a public persona based on slapstick, absurdist humour. I don’t think it’s any coincidence that Consani is also trans; and her silliness is a powerful act of resistance against society’s transphobic trolls. Her joy: a refusal to be defeated or to go away. All of which runs in parallel to her activism.
Gamers on Path of Exile trolled Elon Musk (while he was playing on live stream from his private jet) by spamming him with a message that read ‘YOU RUINED THE COUNTRY JUST LIKE YOU RUINED ALL YOUR MARRIAGES.’
This IPSOS study looks at how brands can respond to nouveau nihilism, by spreading joy and using humour (rather than fuelling an increasingly polarised and uncertain world) to relate to consumers. This suggests that underneath the silliness of ironic nihilism lies an optimism for the future.
Substack is to release vertical video TikTok-like feed - will Substack’s intellectual spirit fuse with TikTok’s penchant for brain rot to create a more pointed form of ironic nihilism?
BUT you still have to confront things head on
Stressed parents are taking their kids to tantrum parties to let off steam.
And if you’re thinking — that sounds amazing. There are rage rooms for adults too, inviting people to let out their anger. The market for them has grown in India.
A new app called Sez Us is looking to punish users who shit-post in the name of rage-bait by giving them a lower profile trust score.
Dean Withers as an influencer debating Trump supporters. Having grown up Conservative and confessing to use slurs in his past, he later educated himself of politics and changed his entire belief system. Since 2022, he’s been on a mission to educate MAGA Trump fans by debating them. He exposes logical fallacies through clever debate, often to a humorous degree such as this week when 12 million watched him expose a MAGA Voter’s lack of understanding of inflation.
SO OK Brainrot and ironic nihilism alone will overthrow the alt-right, but it’s definitely not TOTAL nonsense.