Run Boy Run TikTok Trend

About

The Run Boy Run TikTok Trend also known as If I Was… According To X, also associated with the hashtags #ifiwasa and #ifiwas, is a TikTok trend where a user visually represents what type of a given property they would be (for example, a season, planet or color) according to their significant other, a friend or someone else in their life using the phrasal template caption "if I was a X … according to X." The trend, often set to the songs "Run Boy Run" by Woodkid or "Mary On a Cross" by Ghost, began in late August 2022 and spread over the following month. It also inspired a Duet trend where users try and guess what the answer will be based on the visuals before the word pops up on the screen.

Origin

On August 24th, 2022, TikToker^[1] @aboutfinnwolfhard posted a video set to "Mary On a Cross" by Ghost captioned, "If Mille Bobby Brown Was A…" followed by visual descriptions of what color, flower, view, animal and item she would be, garnering over 1.8 million views in three weeks (shown below). The TikToker^[2][3] posted two other parts to the trend that day using other Stranger Things actors, garnering over 600,000 and 50,000 views, respectively, in three weeks.

Spread

The original sound for @aboutfinnwolfhard's video became increasingly popularized throughout late August and September 2022, inspiring over 58,000 uses by September 15th. The majority of the videos follow the same format and use the caption "if I was" or "If I was a" and "according to X," "X" being a friend, significant other or person in their life. For example, on September 2nd, 2022, TikToker^[4] @asiapaoloni posted a video following the trend, garnering over 2.1 million views in two weeks (shown below).

The original sound for "Run Boy Run" by Woodkid, as well as the hashtags "#ifiwas" and "#ifiwasa," also became prominent sources for the trend in September 2022. On September 10th, TikToker^[5] @jeessica.leeigh posted a video doing the trend, garnering over 2.5 million views in five days (shown below, left). On September 12th, TikToker^[6] @andreaandlewis posted another example participating in the trend, garnering over 4.6 million views in three days (shown below, right).

If I Was Duet Guessing Game

As the trend grew in virality, TikTokers, including @itsluke, began a duetting version of it, trying to guess what the answers to each question will be before the text appears. On September 13th, he posted a video to TikTok^[7] duetting @jeessica.leeigh's video, garnering over 3.6 million views in two days (shown below).

Various Examples

Search Interest

External References