What Is The 'I'm Nothing Like Y'all' Meme? The Origins Of The Fish Leaping Out Of A Fishbowl Meme Explained

An inspirational photo quote meme showing a lone goldfish leaping out of his bowl to jump into another is going viral on TikTok, with many reposting the meme to say "I'm not like y'all." The image has heralded the coming of a new -core trend after 2022's CoreCore renaissance, but where did it all begin?

Here's the origin of the "I'm nothing like y'all"https://knowyourmeme.com/memes/im-nothing-like-yall meme, from stock image to moldy ironic fame.

Where Does The 'I'm Nothing Like Y'all' Meme Come From?

The image of a goldfish jumping out of a fishbowl was originally created by Swedish photographer Mikael Damkier and uploaded to the stock image site Dreamstime back in 2012. The image has a wider width than the meme and shows a crisper view of the goldish leaping out of his bowl.

At some point in the year 2016, the image was edited to read "I'm not like you n*****," alongside a clearly deteriorated image quality. These kinds of crunchy and diminished images are often called moldy memes.

While it is unclear who exactly edited the image to make it read this message, the meme's impact was lasting, with an object-labeling meme with the same messaging appearing on Reddit's /r/gtaonline in 2019.

How Did The 'I'm Nothing Like Y'all' Meme Spread Online?

The earliest iteration of the meme to change the messaging to "I'm nothing like y'all" is a 2020 post to Reddit by /u/MysteriousMrB, with variations of the meme appearing on Instagram as early as 2021.

How Did The 'I'm Nothing Like Y'all' Meme Become A TikTok Trend?

While some early instances of the image appeared on TikTok in 2022, it wasn't until late 2023 that it became solidified as a TikTok trend. This shift can be seen in a video posted by TikToker @yaboicoopdog on October 8th, 2023, gathering over 180,000 views in two weeks.

For the full history of the "I'm nothing like y'all" meme, be sure to check out Know Your Meme's encyclopedia entry for more information.