About

I Am Looking Respectfully refers to a catchphrase and image macro based on an image of a flushed face emoji, the eyes overlayed with the text "I am looking respectfully." The meme became popularized in March 2020, being used as a reaction image on Twitter by K-Pop fan accounts to indicate their interest in a celebrity or something exciting related to their idols.

Origin

The earliest available post featuring the "I am looking respectfully" meme was posted by Twitter user @anyonesromance on January 20th, 2020. The image was posted alongside a caption complimenting a BTS's member looks at the 2020 Grammy Awards ceremony. The tweet (now deleted) was reshared by Twitter^[1] user @TaehyungBrasiI, a fan page of BTS, on the same day, receiving 445 likes and 175 retweets in three years (seen below).

Spread

Starting on March 2019, the image macro gained popularity on Twitter, with multiple sharing the meme as a reaction image to indicate their excitement over something they care for. For example, on March 5th, 2020 Twitter^[2] user @larslenoire posted a variation of the meme with the overlay text "I am looking away respectfully" that received over 35 likes in three years (shown below, left). A meme (seen below, right) posted by Twitter^[3] user @FoxA_R6on June 26th shows another variation of the phrase "I am asking respectfully for some tiddies," which garnered 475 likes and 11 retweets in three years.

On November 17th, 2020, Twitter^[4] user @rodaewi posted a version of the meme with the overlay text saying "I am looking intensely" to respond to another post about an anime trailer. The tweet (seen below) garnered 11 likes in three years.

Various Examples

Template

Search Interest

External References