A meme of Megan Thee Stallion dancing to Adele’s “Water Under the Bridge” is racking up views, fans are so ready for Disney and Sony’s new Spider-Man flick, BTS’s ARMY showed up en masse for their first in-person concert since the start of the pandemic, the Kardashians’ kids are the best part of TikTok right now—plus more internet buzz on this week’s Viral List!
“Water Under the Body” Is The Internet’s New Favorite Song
Following her smashing “30” album release, Adele is (still) trending. This time, however, it’s because Twitter can’t stop talking about this mashup of Megan Thee Stallion dancing to Adele’s “Water Under the Bridge.” The joke started after one Twitter user inquired, “How come Adele never has any back up dancers?” Another social media user quickly answered that question, sharing a clip of Adele’s “Water Under the Bridge” performance mirrored with Megan Thee Stallion’s “Body” dance. The original tweet has garnered more than 3K retweets and 16K likes, but the video clip response has been viewed over 1.2 million times and retweeted almost 15K times (so far). Users are replying with the best gifs and dance clips set to Adele’s music, showing what it would be like if Adele did in fact have backup dancers. One TikToker took the joke a step further, sharing a mashed up clip of Megan Thee Stallion singing “Body” during the ensemble’s solo in Adele’s “Water Under the Bridge” to create a new song, “Water Under the Body”—the clip currently has 17M views. And despite the fact that the two songs are direct opposites of each other, the Adele x Megan Thee Stallion mashup is low key a bop—and the internet agrees. Now, TikTokers are auditioning to be backup dancers for Adele, so it’s only a matter of time before an Adele and Megan Thee Stallion collab (or joint tour?!) happens.
Tickets for Spider-Man: No Way Home Broke the Internet
Immediately after Spider-Man: No Way Home tickets went up for pre-sale November 29, fans flocked to domestic movie ticket sites to snag seats for the highly anticipated film premiering December 17. Sites began crashing shortly after, signaling that the new Spider-Man flick could be the most popular film in the pandemic-era box office. In just two hours, ticket sales outpaced those of Black Widow (Spider-Man: No Way Home will premiere exclusively in theaters, unlike Black Widow which was simultaneously released in theaters and on Disney+), which previously held Fandango’s best sales record of 2021, and the first day of Spider-Man: No Way Home pre-sales are higher than those for pre-pandemic titles including Avengers: Infinity War, Spider-Man: Far From Home, Star Wars: The Last Jedi, Rogue One: A Stars Story, and Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker. Fans who weren’t able to score tickets are going to resellers who are offering them for sky high prices. Tickets costing as much as $25,000 are listed on eBay, while other listings are selling for up to $100 per ticket. Experts say the film’s ticket demand shows the box office has a “bright future,” and YPulse research shows that going to see a movie in theaters is one of the experiences Gen Z and Millennials were most-looking forward to once they’re vaccinated / the threat of COVID-19 passes.
BTS ARMY Showed Up Big for The K-Pop Band’s Concert Return
Thousands of fans traveled to L.A.’s Sofi stadium this week for BTS’ Permission to Dance on Stage: Live Play—the K-Pop band’s first in-person concert since the start of the pandemic. Fans (a.k.a. BTS ARMY) spent thousands of dollars on tickets and traveling to the event, explaining, “it’s totally worth it” because BTS hasn’t performed in two years. Hotel prices near SoFi stadium understood the assignment, charging two to three times more than typical rates: Hilton hotel near LAX charged $395.65 for a two-person room this week compared to the $122.85 they’re charging the week of December 20. Koreatown in L.A. is also booming, particularly at Ahgassi Gopchang where fans have been waiting in line for hours to grab a table at the Korean BBQ joint often frequented by BTS. Leading up to the premiere, Ticketmaster released additional tickets to the sold-out show for “a select number of previously waitlisted Verified Fans.” Fans weren’t happy, however, and took their frustration to Twitter, explaining their concern over high resale prices and how they had bought tickets to performances in other cities because they were told by Ticketmaster that additional tickets wouldn’t be available closer to the event. If there’s one thing to take away from BTS’ Permission to Dance On Stage: Live Play concert, it’s that their global fanbase is powerful and will go the extra mile to make sure they support the group.
The Kardashian Kids Are All Over TikTok
ICYMI: Kim Kardashian West and North West joined TikTok as @kimandnorth. And as you can imagine, they already have nearly 2M followers, with their playful clips racking up millions of views. Kim and North’s first video (garnering 3M views) is captioned “spa day,” and shares the two using products from Kylie Jenner’s skincare line. Since joining, they’ve given the TikTok world a glimpse into their family gatherings, their dance skills, wardrobes, and of course, they’re also gracing everyone with their own versions of some of the biggest trends (this clip of Penelope Disick and North West doing the “California Gurls” dance trend will melt your heart). Kourtney Kardashian and her daughter Penelope Disick also recently joined the app, and Penelope is clearly the main star, documenting her mac and cheese dinners, beauty collection, and moments with mom and dad. One of Penelope’s and Kourtney’s most-viewed clips is one featuring Travis Barker that TikTokers can’t stop talking about—the clip has racked up more than 8M views in just a few days. The real beauty of the two kids’ TikTok accounts? The comment section. TikTokers are asking eight-year-old North things like, “North babe! Was there an awkward hunched over tall white man at thanksgiving this year? Tell us yes or no,” (referring to if Kim brought Pete Davidson to their holiday celebration), and, “North have you ever played cash app?” P and Kourt’s comments are also gold, with users demanding content, “P GO LIVE WITH MASON PLS,” and some not-so appropriate requests, “Penelope honey what are the numbers on that card your mommy used to buy you that,” reads one comment on a video where Penelope shares a video of her setting up a wax warmer. Unlike Keeping up with the Kardashians, the two mom and daughter accounts give the public an authentic glimpse into their kids’ not-so normal lives, and seeing the world through North’s and Penelope’s POV is the type of (weirdly) heart-warming content TikTokers can’t get enough of right now.
Links We’re Passing
Spotify Wrapped is all over people’s social media stories (again), and the memes about this year’s theme are endless.
MrBeast’s IRL Squid Game racked up more than 100M views on YouTube in less than one week, making it the most-viewed non-music video within a 24-hour period.
TikTok’s The Unofficial Bridgerton Musical created by Abigail Barlow and Emily Bear scored a Grammy nomination.
Hulu pulled its Astroworld: Concert from Hell documentary immediately following its release due to backlash surrounding how the service is responding to the matter.
Budweiser’s first NFTs, the “Heritage Collection,” sold out in under an hour, garnering nearly $984,000 in sales.
BTS’ “Dynamite” was the most-played song around the world on Apple Music.
Miss Excel is a TikTok creator going viral for her playful videos educating everyone on must-know Excel tips.
TikTokers are putting their own quirky spin on the “I hate him!” FaceTime trend on TikTok.
