Meme Encyclopedia
Media
Editorials
More

Popular right now

Mr. Cool Ice

Mr. Cool Ice

Matt Schimkowitz

Matt Schimkowitz • 6 years ago

Italian Brainrot / AI Italian Animals image and meme examples.

Italian Brainrot Animals

Mateus Lima

Mateus Lima • about a month ago

100 Men vs 1 Gorilla viral debate meme and image examples.

100 Men vs. 1 Gorilla

Owen Carry

Owen Carry • 3 days ago

Tung Tung Tung Sahur meme image examples.

Tung Tung Tung Sahur

Sakshi Rakshale

Sakshi Rakshale • about a month ago

Tralalero Tralala meme example.

Tralalero Tralala

Sakshi Rakshale

Sakshi Rakshale • 2 months ago

Know Your Meme is the property of Literally Media ©2024 Literally Media. All Rights Reserved.

Guides

What's Up With The 'Nyan Cat vs. Tac Nayn' Memes On TikTok? The Viral Object Labeling Meme Explained

Nyan Cat vs Tac Nayn meme explained.
Nyan Cat vs Tac Nayn meme explained.

738 views
Published April 01, 2025

Published April 01, 2025

TikTokers have revived two ancient meme characters that are over a decade old as the hottest new object-labeling format on social media.

The memes revolve around a 2011 art piece showing Nyan Cat flying away from Tac Nayn and are being used to represent an intrusive thought, bad urge or something else negative that might haunt you.

But who made the Nyan Cat vs Tac Nayn art, how did the meme get started and what song is it set to? Here's what you need to know.

What Is The 'Nyan Cat vs. Tac Nayn' Meme?

For those who don't know, Nyan Cat is an animation of a cat with a poptart body flying through space and leaving behind a trail of rainbows.

When it dropped in April 2011, Nyan Cat quickly became one of the biggest memes of all time. That same month, a reverse meme to Nyan Cat called "Tac Nayn," meant to be an evil counterpart to Nyan Cat, also went viral.

In August 2011, DeviantArt user jrbarker immortalized the rivalry between the two cats in a piece of art known as "Nyan Cat vs. Tac Nayn," which shows Tac Nayn chasing Nyan Cat.

This art would largely live in obscurity until March 2025, when TikToker @iamaunicorn_xo posted a version of it set to "Hero" by Skyper captioned, "how it feels having friends who are lowkey haters." The meme gained millions of views in two weeks and sparked a trend on the platform shortly after.

How Is 'Nyan Cat vs. Tac Nayn' Used In Memes?

As a meme, the exploitable Nyan Cat vs. Tac Nayn artwork is used as both an image macro and an object-labeling format.

Some of the most viral examples of the meme feature labels on each cat. Tac Nayn is often used to represent an urge, intrusive thought or something else negative that Nyan Cat is then trying to escape.

The meme became increasingly popularized in the last two weeks of March 2025 and has continued to grow in early April. It's even spread outside of TikTok to sites, including Instagram and Reddit, where it's steadily becoming more prevalent for a wide array of jokes.


For the full history of Nyan Cat vs. Tac Nayn, be sure to check out Know Your Meme's encyclopedia entry for more information.

Tags: nyan cat and tac nayn, pop tart cat waffle cat, nyan cat evil cat, nyan cat evil waffle cat, nyan cat waffle cat, pop tart cat vs waffle cat, deviantart, tiktok, reddit, nyan cat vs tac nayn meme, cats, explained, explainer, object labeling memes,



Meme Encyclopedia
Media
Editorials
More