About

Old Pictures as Album Covers refers to a catchphrase and series of reaction images that revolve around posting old, often humorous or embarrassing pictures of oneself that resemble an album cover. Typically, these appear as a reaction image with the caption “If you had to choose an old picture of you as an album cover, what would you pick?” The theme was primarily seen on Twitter in late October 2020, beginning with lesser-known individuals before celebrities and brands began taking part in the trend.

Origin

The first example to use the theme surfaced online sometime around mid-to-late October 2020, but the exact first is unknown. One of the earliest versions was posted on October 23rd, by Twitter^[1] user BBTeamNorth (shown below). The tweet received 107 likes and 14 retweets in one week.

Spread

The theme continued to spread as other Twitter users joined in with their own versions of the trend in the following days. On October 28th, 2020, Twitter^[2] user Sarah Kendzior tweeted a variant featuring themselves, receiving over 4,400 likes and 370 retweets in 44 hours (seen below, left). That same day, Twitter^[3] user Alexander Chee also tweeting their take on it, receiving over 1,100 likes and 340 retweets in 44 hours (seen below, right).

On October 29th, various brands and companies also began joining in with old photos of their products, including Xbox’s official Twitter^[4] account, receiving over 41,200 likes and 1,800 retweets in 21 hours (shown below, left). That same day, the Bob’s Burgers Twitter^[5] also posted an example, receiving 777 likes and 40 retweets in 21 hours (shown below, right).

Various Examples

Search Interest

Unavailable.

External References