About

So Called "Free Thinkers" refers to a TikTok trend based on a video of men following a military cadence, which is used as a sound accompanied by Self-Proclaimed Free Thinkers sarcastic phrases mocking and criticizing anti-conformists. The meme was popularized in early November 2023 on TikTok, mostly featuring ironic analogies of men abiding by a partner or any women's wish or demands, for instance, "So called 'free thinkers' when any female cosplayer tells me what to do."

Origin

Somewhere in early November 2023, the video featuring several men following the instructions of a military cadence challenge was uploaded on TikTok. The earliest known usage of the video paired with the overlay text "so called 'free thinkers'" was posted by @remarcooo on November 5th, 2023. The video^[1] (shown below) amassed more than 395,000 plays, 43,000 likes and over 11,000 other creators posted videos using the sound for the "so called 'free thinkers'" trend.

Spread

The video quickly spread on TikTok as an exploitable and viral sound, used mainly in sarcastic posts about men who obey women. For example, on November 11th, 2023, TikTok^[2] user @chocolatekings_used the viral sound, adding the overlay text "we are so called 'free thinkers' but this is us when our gfs tell us to do something." The post (shown below, left) amassed more than 1.8 million plays and 455,000 likes in two days. On the same day, TIkTok^[3] user @b1gmamah a version of the trend in which she abides by a man's demands that have "mustache, mullet, and a slutty little earring." The video (shown below, right) garnered over 1.3 million plays and 317,000 likes in two days.

Various Examples

Search Interest

External References