The story of 11 personalities who became memes a few years ago (and what happened to them)

Those who are in the habit of going online and tend to follow the news of the virtual world end up witnessing the birth of many memes inspired by personalities. Some of these personalities even manage to stay at their peak for quite some time, but most fall by the wayside quickly. Anyway, whether for a long time or for a short time, the important thing is that they did and still make a lot of people laugh.

Today the awesome.club brings you the story behind characters who have gone viral in the past decade and who have probably also been a part of your life.

Any of us can become a meme someday and celebrities are no exception. This happened to basketball player Yao Ming, who had his facial expression turned into a comic. Despite the great success the meme made on the Internet, it was soon forgotten about. Ming was the biggest Chinese star in the NBA, the American basketball league. The player retired in 2011 and currently runs the Basketball Association of the People’s Republic of China.

In 2011, a music video of a teenager leaving a party with friends had millions of views in its first week and became one of the biggest hits of the time. Lyrics and interpretation had the necessary ingredients to turn the video into a sensation, and it has to be recognized that the music was really catchy, the kind that you can’t get out of your head. Rebecca Black was just 14 years old when this happened. She returned to the music business a few years later, more mature and two of her latest singles are Self Sabotage and Closer🇧🇷

Perhaps the biggest hit of 2012, Gangnam Style (or “Horse Dance”), by Korean artist Park Jae-sang (known as PSY), “broke” the internet and was the most viewed video of the year. It also entered the Guinness Book of Records as the video that received the most likes in YouTube history at the time, having recently surpassed its numbers. gangnam style was Park’s biggest success, who remains in the music business, has nine studio albums and is still one of the most famous artists in South Korea.

The faces and mouths of animals are also reasons for many laughs and serve as inspiration for memes. But the photo of the dog Kabosu, better known as Doge, went a little further. In 2010, teacher Atsuko Sato posted a picture of the dog on her blog and overnight the whole world knew who she was. Kabosu was rescued and became a huge internet star. The coolest thing about this story is that all the money raised from her products was donated to animal protection organizations. She currently lives with three feline “siblings”. People say that she is very fond of babies and children and that she doesn’t get along very well with other dogs.

when the music Boyfriend, Justin Bieber, played on all radios a fan made a parody that went viral on the Internet. Laina Morris, better known as “the sinister girlfriend”, became very famous for her peculiar expression, which went around the world in the form of a meme. She took advantage of the great success, turned youtuber and his channel now has more than one million followers. However, she walked away from the internet due to personal problems and in 2019 she made a video explaining what led her to distance herself from networks. Laine recently reappeared, this time on TikTok, and returned to make the face that launched her into the world of fame.

You’ve probably seen memes of a gentleman with a weird smile that seems to be hiding some pain. The image became known precisely as “Disguise the pain, Harold”. The “owner of the face” is Hungarian engineer András Arató, who was photographed and had no idea that he would become an Internet star.

The most curious thing is that the unexpected fame did not please him: “I don’t think anyone likes to see that their face is a joke. At first, I wanted to destroy all my photos (…) It took me five years to accept it, until I said: if I can’t fight it, I need to accept it”, he confessed. He now faces the situation better and even participates in advertising campaigns.

This grumpy kitten was called Tartar Sauce and her fame began in 2012, after a photo of her was posted on Reddit. However, according to the official website of Grumpy Cat, the grumpy-cat image did not reflect her calm, affectionate personality. Unfortunately, the cat died in 2019, but his expression continues to draw smiles around the world. There is even a store with their products. Thanks for the best feline meme in the world, Tartar!

There are memes for all kinds of feelings and situations, including confusion. And netizens seem to have endless creativity to turn any kind of scene into a meme. This happened to actress Renata Sorrah. The scene is from the novel Lady of destination and turned into a smashing success. Netizens added math equations to the actress’s face to highlight a confused face. The success, which started here in Brazil, has spread to the world. The soap opera is over 15 years old and Renata says that the memes were transformative for her.

Two boys playing with a branch over a river. This is a scene that cannot end well. And that’s what happened. However, she left us one of the funniest videos of 2006, mainly because of the victim’s reaction. More than 11 years later, the protagonist told us in detail the true story behind this success, and how he lived this little stardom: “people only saw me as the chubby guy who fell. But they also said nice things to me, like ‘Edgar, you’re making people laugh,’” he mentioned in a YouTube video.

Edgar knew how to take advantage of the recognition and turned youtuber🇧🇷 Although he has been away from the networks since 2018, he recently appeared and promised that he will soon have more content for his followers.

A fruit with eyes, a mouth, teeth (yes, teeth!) and a voice. In 2009, this orange, whose favorite pastime was bothering other fruits and kitchen objects, became the great attraction of the Internet. The success was so great that the company Gagfilms created its own series and an alternative channel for games. The team even fulfilled the dream of a boy who wanted to know the backstage of the series. The fruit is no longer very successful, but its YouTube channel remains active for those who want to follow the new adventures.

A prank in a school yearbook can also turn into a huge internet hit. That’s what happened to Kyle Craven, who on the day of the photo for the yearbook wore a checkered tracksuit, slapped his cheeks to make them red, closed his eyes slightly and smiled. But the fun didn’t end there. His best friend posted the photo on Reddit and the “Bad Luck Brian” meme, in which uncomfortable situations were invented for the young man, began to be successful around the world. However, unlike the character, Kyle did very well because he went on to sell products related to Brian’s life and even appeared in McDonald’s and Volkswagen commercials.

He admits that hardly anyone recognizes him anymore, but says some still come to him to say that his memes made them laugh during difficult times. Currently, Kyle works at a construction company, is married and has two children. Looks like everything worked out for him.

What do you think is the best meme of all time? Don’t forget to share in the comments!