The Top Viral Moments of 2023: Girl Math, Grimace Shakes, and Quiet Luxury

These are the viral stories that defined 2023—and some will be dipping into next year, too…

  • Girl dinner, girl math, tomato girls and beyond proved this was the year of the girl
  • The McDonald’s Grimace Shake indeed shook the internet—maybe more than the brand intended
  • Quiet luxury ignited an appreciation for classy, timeless fashion and beauty aesthetics
For brands, it’s important to understand when a viral trend is one they can be part of. Hundreds of viral moments come and go, especially from Gen Z creators with their chaotic sense of humor (but also their tendency to get deep once in a while). YPulse reports on these viral moments all year, providing inspiration for the trends brands can take part in as well as learning moments about social media culture. From the top viral moments of the year, there’s plenty of both.   So what makes a viral moment one of the biggest of the year? In 2023, there was no shortage of major media that spawned viral content: Barbie went viral in every way, but coming from a professional marketing team armed with decades of nostalgia and a feminist twist, it was destined to be a part of the pop culture conversation. The same could be said of the Eras tour which Swifties might have made a viral phenomenon on social, but was really an...

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