About

"Mask" is a 2021 song by Dream, a musician and YouTuber most known for playing Minecraft. The song released in May 2021, with the music video releasing in June. The lyrics surround struggles with mental health and feeling like you don't belong, based on Dream's struggles with ADHD. The song, particularly its music video, inspired criticism over its message about not needing medication to feel normal.

Origin

On May 21st, 2021, Dream released "Mask" (shown below).^[1] The song is ultimately about how Dream feels like he doesn't belong, and how he uses his persona (the Dream mask) online and feels normal. It is also about Dream's struggles with ADHD, the animation based on a real time in his life when he threw away his ADHD medication, realizing he didn't need it to feel "normal," as discussed in an interview^[3] with Smosh's Anthony Padilla.

Spread

Minecraft Remix

On May 22nd, 2021, YouTuber cargojeans posted a parody remix of the song featuring Among Us themed lyrics with a music video filmed in Minecraft, garnering over 19,000 views in a month (shown below).

Official Sus Remix

On May 26th, 2021, YouTuber "We The Sus Music" posted a sus remix of the song featuring lyrics about performing homosexual acts, garnering over 1.2 million views in three weeks (shown below).

On June 7th, TikToker^[5] @notpenney uploaded a video featuring the parody mocking the original song and propping the parody up as the "good version" of it, garnering over 3.1 million views in a week (shown below).

"Mask" Music Video

On June 8th, 2021, Dream released the official music video for "Mask" to the Dream Music YouTube^[2] channel, garnering over 3.6 million views in two days (shown below). The music video features 3D animation.

Criticism

The music video received mixed reactions from fans, with some accusing it of spreading a potentially harmful message about not needing medication. For example, on June 8th, Twitter^[4] user @24framesofnick tweeted criticizing the song's message, garnering over 8,800 likes and 1,000 retweets in two days (shown below).

Related Memes

Normal Pills

Following the release of the music video, users across social media began mocking the idea of Normal Pills as presented in it.

You Are Not Normal

You Are Not Normal refers to a series of memes based on a scene from YouTuber Dream's music video "Mask" in which he holds a note from his doctor reading "you are not normal!" The still image from the scene has been used as a reaction image and an exploitable.

Continued Spread

In June 2021, TikToker^[6] @yoake13 posted a video of a number of Dream fans meeting up outside to sing "Mask" together. The video has since been deleted after spreading across the web as a cringe video (shown below).

Various Examples

Search Interest

External References