"Lonely" TikTok Trend

About

The Lonely TikTok Trend refers to a series of skits on TikTok set to the song "Lonely" by Justin Bieber,^[1] which became popular in late October of 2020. Videos following the trend see users act out a skit where they play both themselves and a fan. The fan recognizes the TikToker and asks for a photograph. Before the photograph can be taken the fan requests that the TikToker perform an action/say something they're known for in their most popular content. The TikToker fulfills the request, they take a photo together, and the fan leaves. The videos end with the TikToker staring off into the distance with dead eyes as "Lonely" continues to play, representing their dissatisfaction with the encounter and being known for a single piece of viral content.

Origin

On October 21st, 2020, TikToker Brody Wellmaker, known largely for a TikTok Duet video where he winks as the camera,^[2] uploaded a skit acting out an encounter with a fan set to Justin Bieber's "Lonely" (shown below). The fan asks for a photograph, but first asks Wellmaker to wink. He fulfills the request happily, then dead-stares into the distance as the video ends. The video received over 1.2 million views in 5 days.

Spread

Shortly after Wellmaker's video, more well-known TikTokers took up the trend. On October 22nd, 2020, TikToker oneya_, who used to go by AngryReacts and upload angry reaction videos to TikTok, uploaded a skit acting out a fan encounter where the fan asks him to strike an angry face before a photo (shown below, left). The video gained over 12.4 million views and 3.2 million likes in 4 days. On October 24th, TikToker spicekingcam, known for eating spicy food on camera, uploaded a skit where a fan asks him to eat a bunch of spicy stuff, then saying, "That's it?" after he does so (shown below, right). The video garnered over 8.3 million views and 2.1 million likes in 2 days.

On October 25th, the Voros Twins uploaded a version of the trend where a fan asks them to reenact the Da Vinki video^[3] for them (shown below). The fan then calls them the "da vinki twins" as they leave, resulting in disappointment from the twins. The video garnered over 1.7 million views in 1 day.

Various Examples

Search Interest

External References