About

Ok Now Let’s Do A Silly One, also written Okay Now Let’s Do A Silly One, is a catchphrase used at the end of tweets and text posts that make the reader imagine the silly version of a given, usually not-so-innocent task or activity. The phrase stems from a cliché and axiom about taking group photographs or selfies, commonly portrayed as a "white person stereotype" by some online.

Origin

The concept of taking "a silly one" in reference to a group photo dates back to pre-internet days. The true origin of the cliché is unknown, however, on December 6th, 2010, Twitter^[1] user rossluippold posted the first-known tweet that used the cliché in internet humor, imaging the inventor of photography, Mathew Brady, saying the prompt to his subjects. However, the tweet received no likes in over 11 years after being posted (shown below).

Spread

Going into the 2010s, the idea of "Let's Do A Silly One' became associated with phrases that white people say through memes that isolated the cliché. For instance, on December 6th, 2015, the Instagram^[2] page thefatjewish reposted a Starter Pack listing "Shit White People Say" with one of them being about saying, "let's do a silly one!" Thefatjewish earned roughly 233,300 likes in eight years (shown below).

The cliché in regards to white people stereotypes resurfaced in memes and internet humor on and off until 2021. For instance, on May 31st, 2021, Twitter^[3] user moncleryear tweeted, "white people love sayin 'now let’s take a silly one' during a group picture," and earned roughly 2,400 likes in 14 months.

However, the trend didn't receive mass engagement as a notable meme format until early 2022 when many Twitter users ended their tweets by writing, "Ok now let’s do a silly one." This started with a tweet posted on November 12th, 2021, by Twitter^[4] user katiecantspell who wrote, "(taking nudes) ok now let’s do a silly one," and earned roughly 38,900 likes in eight months (shown below).

Inspired by katiecantspell's use of the phrase, many Twitter users followed her template in 2022. For instance, on June 30th, 2022, Twitter^[5] user jzux tweeted, "(doctor yelling from outside the MRI machine) ok now let’s do a silly one," earning roughly 61,900 likes in one week (shown below, left). On July 7th, 2022, the Instagram^[6] page the_charlie_sheen_machine posted a text post that joked about doing a silly one in regards to snorting cocaine. The post received roughly 3,800 likes in one day (shown below, right).

Various Examples

Search Interest

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External References