The line "Boy it's just alcohol" went viral recently after a TikTok of a barber made rounds online. People on the internet then proceeded to make a variety of memes and jokes about the interaction, evolving into brainrot edits of the original. But what is the origin of the "Boy It's Just Alcohol" video? And how did it turn into a viral meme? Here's everything you need to know.

What Is the Origin Of The Video?

"Boy It's Just Alcohol" is a viral video of a white barber rubbing alcohol spray on a customer's forehead, to which he responds by swatting him away. The video gained a lot of traction online, particularly due to the weird thug-like accent of the barber. After his customer's reaction, he responded by saying "Boy, it's just alcohol," with an accent that phonetically sounds like "Iss juh alcaha" or "It's jus alkahal."

The original video was posted by TikToker @choppedbystev0 on March 11th, 2024. This account belongs to the barber in the video, where his customer swats at him and @choppedbystev0 says, "Always doin' too much. Boy, it's just alcohol. Actin' like a kid, it's alcohol." The video received over 40 million views in roughly a month (shown below).

@choppedbystev0 They tuff until that alcohol hits them 😂🤣Soon as I step out 🎥🦆 #reels #reelsinstagram #reelsvideos #reelsindia #reelvideos #sonygear #gearaddict #reelslovers #houstonphotography #texasphotography #tomballphotographer #reelviral #barberlife #barber #barber #barbershopconnect #barberclips #tomballtx #magnolia #cypresstx #cameraman #sonyvideo#cameraman #reelsindia #funnyvideos #funnybarber #funnymoments #funnytiktok ♬ original sound – choppedbystev0

How Did This Video Spread?

Going into March and early April 2024, TikTokers started to use the video's sound for content. The very first example was posted by TikToker @sweetteataylor on March 13th, 2024, in which he made a joke about a straight friend having their first GBP drink at a gay bar, receiving over 124,100 plays and 4,800 likes in one month (shown below).

@sweetteataylor Gay bar pours aint for the weak, hoin💅🏼 #fyp ♬ original sound – choppedbystev0

Soon after, the video started receiving recognition outside of TikTok, such as on X, where user @SpinninBackfist tweeted the original video a screenshot of a top comment left on it, calling @choppedbystev0 "Bo nickal from the hood." This tweet received over 6,000 likes in 16 days (shown below).

Bo Nickal from the hood lol pic.twitter.com/1qA5sJEgCG

— Spinnin Backfist (@SpinninBackfist) March 25, 2024

How Is The Video Used In Meme Culture?

Following its subsequent spread, memes and edits started to increase exponentially, becoming more absurd as time went on. On March 29th, @balenciagafortnitedog posted a video in which he and a friend were doing a crude reenactment of the original video, receiving over 6.9 million plays in 12 days (shown below).

@balenciagafortnitedog @choppedbystev0 #gummypad ♬ MR TAKE THAT RISK – 彡 | ᵛʳᵗᵘ𝐬𝐦𝟔𝐤𝐚ʳⁱᵒᵗ | 彡

Brainrot edits started to appear starting April 2024, with things examples such as 'Evil Boy it's just Alcohol' or 'boi it's just aklahal (batman edition'. On April 14, user @deff_alt8 on TikTok posted a Spongebob version of the video, with the barber sounding just like SpongeBob SquarePants, receiving over 2.5 million plays in just one day (shown below).

@deff_alt8 boy it's just aklahal #boyitsjustalcohol #fyp #meme #barber #deff_alt8 #foryou ♬ original sound – deff_alt

For the full history of the "Boy It's Just Alcohol" video, be sure to check out Know Your Meme's encyclopedia entry for more information.