4.23 /// Fleeting Fame: The Viral Video Journey...

Can a few seconds of internet fame change your life forever? This week on Infinite Prattle, we dissect the whirlwind world of viral videos and social media trends. From the Harlem Shake to the latest TikTok phenomena, we explore how these sensational moments shape our culture and language.  Join me as we question whether the benefits of going viral outweigh the chaos it often brings, all while seeking your thoughts on the podcast’s direction.

Sudden internet stardom: a dream come true or a nightmare in disguise? In this episode, we navigate the highs and lows of viral fame, weighing the options between capitalising on newfound attention or retreating to privacy. Using examples from internet stars like Khaby Lame, we discuss strategic choices to manage the spotlight, especially when virality isn't all sunshine and roses. Engage with us for a candid discussion on the unpredictable nature of viral content and the intricate balance of leveraging fleeting fame for long-term success.

Buzzsprout - Let's get your podcast launched!
Start for FREE

Disclaimer: This post contains affiliate links. If you make a purchase, I may receive a commission at no extra cost to you.

Chapters

• 0:00 Viral Videos and Social Media Trends
• 14:45 Navigating Viral Video Fame

Transcript

Stephen: 0:00

Hello, welcome to Infinite Prattle. This is the last episode of this Infinite Prattle renamed season, season four, and on this episode I'm going to be talking to you about viral videos and viral sensations and that sort of stuff that occurs nowadays. And how does it happen? Stick with me for that nowadays, and uh, how does it happen? Stick with me for that. You're listening to infinite prattle with your host, steven. Thanks for joining me for unscripted, unedited everything. Welcome to infinite prattle. Thank you very much for joining me today. If you're new to the new, to Unedited Everything, appreciated.

Stephen: 1:01

Um, yeah, today's, today's episode. I'd personally like to apologize. I'm feeling a bit rough today. My hay fever's gone bar me. I have a dicky tummy from a meal, I say, which I probably shouldn't have eaten. Um, I ordered some food from a restaurant and it came out a bit cold than it should. We're eating outside. It took a while to get the food. I won't name and shame the restaurant. It's somewhere local, we've never been before and I ate it and I'm pushing off, but yeah, it's not looking good. Um, too much information and um, yeah, this is the last episode of the season. Um, um, yeah, this season, uh, saw sort of podcast get renamed to infinite prattle and uh yeah, it's, it's gone quick again. It's gone quick again.

Stephen: 1:44

I hope you've enjoyed the episodes I've been putting out. As always, feedback to me and let me know what you want to hear. If you're happy with what I'm doing, then thanks. If you're not, then tell me. I'm always intrigued and welcome feedback and constructive criticism.

Stephen: 2:03

Let's say, anyway, viral videos and viral things, um, probably not the sort of stuff that's happening in my gut right now uh, noise, um, yeah, you know they've been a thing for a while, haven't they? You know pretty much since, like the, the internet kind of took off, and probably more so since, like YouTube, and people have camera phones and they can just upload stuff and basically produce their own materials. Um, yeah, we get these, these things called viral, viral videos, and basically, if you don't know, they're just things that just take off and trend and become shared or copied and and become sometimes like part of our language, like I can't think of an example off the top of my head, but there's, there's things that just become, um, like queen phrases, like the harlem shake I suppose. I don't know if that was a thing before. Harlem shake, kind of like went viral and everyone was copying on it, but everyone knows what that is now, or majority of people were around when, when, that when that took off, but that's. That's the sort of thing I'm on about, you know. And there's there's the biggest one at the moment when, as I'm recording this, the biggest like meme and memes are a thing as well, aren't they? They're slightly different to like a viral thing, but memes are like a thing that kind of go hand in hand and they can be viral and people alter them. For you know different situations. You get like a still frame picture and people just slow them slightly differently.

Stephen: 3:41

But yeah, I have to excuse my nose. It's so blocked and I'm struggling to breathe, so bad I'm, so I'm wrecked. I've turned 40. I sneezed yesterday and I've pulled a stomach muscle. My stomach is absolutely killing me Every time I blow my nose or cough or sneeze. It's bad times. I feel very old today, old and overweight, and I need to do something about that. I can't do anything about the age thing, obviously, but I can do stuff about my weight. So he says eating two cakes yesterday, uh, anyway, enough about me and my sadness. And uh, yes, anyway, um, what the hell was I saying? I've just completely lost it.

Stephen: 4:29

Yeah, so the current one at the moment is, um, kind of a meme, but it's kind of gone viral as well. It was a, it was a video, I think it was on tiktok and it's hawk tour. Uh, hawk blah. I can't do it. That's not even how it goes. Um, google it. If you're of an age. Uh, if you're, this, this, this is marked for it's like adult content. So if you, if you're younger and you listen to this podcast, don't uh, it may and may, uh, pop up more questions than answers.

Stephen: 5:01

Yeah, but that's something that's gone, gone viral at the moment. It's everywhere and people are remixing into songs on their social medias, and social media is a big component in this, because everyone has that want for a big following. And I suppose the question I'm kind of like putting out there today is, after five minutes of talking, is going viral a good thing? Like, does it help? You know, does it? Um? I mean, people have made a lot of money from it, but you know, it's a, it's a lot of everyone go because I mean, the girl has done that, that hawk tour, basically what that is is, if you haven't seen it, you don't have to google it.

Stephen: 5:41

Basically some guy was like interviewing people on the street and he asks basically question about question, these two girls and one of them answers and I think it's about the bedroom antics. Let's say, uh, putting in a nice british kind of um, clean kind of version, um, she basically he basically asks about like bedroom antics and she basically says, oh yeah, you've got a hock to her and spit on that thang and it just went mental. I think it had like 40 million views on that guy's tiktok, which is insane. And yeah, she's now making money out of it. She's selling signatures and signed caps and T-shirts and you know, if you've got that fame and I'm sure she'll be interviewed by TV companies and such things. But you know, it does kind of beg the question of like I don't know, it's just a weird thing, I think. Isn't it Like to get famous from famous from? Like an offhand comment? Yeah, I just uh, it's bizarre, but she's making money. I'm like, well, good on her if you can cash in on that, I suppose that's good.

Stephen: 6:57

Sorry, I just snorted. I think, well, that didn't come out. If any of my snuffles come out, I apologize. Oh, I've got no tissue near me. Oh, no, I do, I do. Hang on, hang on. You may hear me blow my nose.

Stephen: 7:11

I'm not editing this. I can't be bothered. I don't edit anyway, that's. You know. If you're listening to this show, you know I don't do that. I'm gonna blow my nose and I'm gonna take a swig of Pepsi Max not a sponsor, yet delicious. Apologies for that.

Stephen: 7:29

Um, it's Pepsi Max time. Ah, refreshing for that. Um, it's pepsi max time. Refreshing just for you, michael, my brother-in-law is a coke man. Coca-cola, uh, I do not favor. I favor pepsi. Um, we've been over this.

Stephen: 7:49

Um, yeah, so she's just become kind of famous and it'll, it'll blow up, it'll go away and that's what. That's what these viral things do. Memes do the same thing. Memes are slightly different, though, because they do come back again in different guises. People put different words on them, but, like, she'll make some money out of it and you know good on her, from a moment of like, just kind of almost saying, uh, what she wanted in that particular moment, she's probably gonna make. I don't know how much money. Like, probably a little bit like how many people would buy a hat that says hawk tour on 2024? I don't know.

Stephen: 8:31

Um, yeah, there's been, there's been loads of viral things over the years. I've listed a few that I can remember before I started recording, because I was thinking, can I actually remember any? And the harlem shake is what I actually forgotten before I started recording, um, and didn't write it down and I remembered. Obviously when I started talking it came out to me. But uh, the ice bucket challenge thing, you know, I think it was for als the uh motives of motor neurons disease, uh, but that went viral for and it was for a good cause. You know, I don't think anyone kind of got famous out of it really, but it went viral as in, everyone was copying it, and that's sometimes what a viral thing is as well.

Stephen: 9:06

Sometimes something goes viral and it's of an individual and then sometimes something goes viral, people are copying and it becomes like a kind of thing to do and I think, since, like tiktok and instagram, especially like instagram stories and stuff like that and reels and all that come in, especially tiktok as well, like that kind of almost templates it for you to take part in them, things like you can copy and put your own thing on it, and like duel with someone, uh, that side I don't know. I don't, I'm not, I'm old, I don't know the terms that you can do that side by side thing where you can sing along with someone and all that, so yeah, and the bottle flip thing, where people just become themselves flipping bottles, bunkers, the that, what was that? That? Uh, tortilla slap thing as well. Uh, filling your mouth with water, then slapping, slapping each other with tortilla and try not to laugh. Bonkers um, one that I actually quite enjoyed, that I wanted to try. Actually, I want to try at some point and that was the um, the try to drink a whole bottle of like fizzy pop or soda as the Americans would call it Only once like I think it was like the Sprite Challenge at first, but people just then went on to like kind of use anything fizzy, but the idea was like you're trying to drink a whole bottle of Sprite without like stopping or taking too many gaps and not burping. You just had to drink the whole thing and not burp. And yeah, I think the child, the child in me, really likes seeing, seeing someone just burp ridiculously loudly, out of control. I don't know, but yeah, that was. That was something that went viral for quite a while and I still see them on the internet and, uh, they still please me. I don't, I don't care.

Stephen: 10:51

Uh, wedding videos as well. There was loads of wedding videos and entrances and reception videos and stuff like that that went viral. I remember seeing someone recreating I think it was maybe the one that started it, maybe and someone pretty much recreated Dirty Dancing at the wedding reception and it was really good. I mean, there's disaster ones as well. I mean you get the fails out of these as well, don't you? Because you get the people go and do the do the viral thing and it goes viral and then you get people copying it and then people successfully copy, but then you get people that fail copying. Then that becomes a whole of our video of someone failing to do the thing that went viral. Uh, it's a bit meta, isn't it? Um, and then you've got tiktok jam dances in general just people dancing and copying dancers and just dancing and dancing and dancing to the same song and choreography. That seems to have stopped me.

Stephen: 11:39

Now on TikTok. Tiktok's one of them. Social medias for me that I don't really like. I have it, but I don't use it as much as I did, and I have an account for this podcast on there. I hardly ever upload to it anymore. Sorry, if you're on TikTok and that's how you got notified I need to upload more to it, because I think I got quite a lot of engagement through TikTok as well. But I don't know.

Stephen: 12:06

I just Instagram's always been the one for me. When Instagram came out, it was all about taking pictures and obviously videos and stuff were added and then reels and stories and stuff. But I liked the pureness of Instagram. It was just like here's a picture, here's what I'm doing, here's my life in photographs. I kind of liked that concept, but they've all kind of merged together now and they were different features, like Facebook-owned Instagram and you can share between the platforms. We can do the same thing on each one, and you can kind of do the same thing on tick tock and you can kind of do the same thing on uh x I'm not gonna say formally twitter, because it annoys me.

Stephen: 12:46

I kind of just did, though, didn't I? So annoys me and threads now as well, because threads is a thing which is like the instagram, tiktok, uh, instagram x, um, what's the saying? I'm sorry, uh, I just feel so rough. I wasn't gonna delay this episode. I needed me, I wanted to get it out. I needed to get out today. I let you down last week and didn't get out in time. Um, yeah, I've never done a TikTok dance, though. I've never, never, never blow down anything like that to TikTok. It's always been like just pictures and videos and stuff, what I'm doing and just promos really. But yeah, I did it. Getting back to it. Getting back to it focus, steven, focus.

Stephen: 13:34

So if, if you did become viral, I mean, what would that mean to you? Like how's that managed? It kind of mind boggles me a little bit that people have this career on like instagram and youtube, um, and that you know they have like millions and millions of people supporting them and maybe on Patreon and stuff, and kind of look at some rough figures of what people could like maybe get like from that and like, some people are getting like 30, 40, 50 thousand dollars or pounds a week from subscribers and people on YouTube like the same. I think that's changed a little bit. It's not as lucrative, I think, for YouTubers. That's why patrons become quite a big popular thing for them upload themselves privately and have private subscribers. Um, yeah, I mean you look on some youtube videos um, there's some ones I I watch and at the end of the videos they thank all their you know patron levels and stuff like that. And, um, sometimes they add at the start of the video, like the main supporters, which may, by the way, be supporting like 50, 60, 70, 100 a month, which is a substantial like part of your paycheck, to do that.

Stephen: 14:45

Um, so when you go viral, is it? I suppose you have got a choice, haven't suppose you've got a choice, haven't you? You've got a choice of Excuse me, oh God, that so hurts, I have to go to the doctors. Yeah, I suppose you've got a choice of whether ride the wave and just take it as it is and maybe make some money out of it when you can, or maybe shy away from it. You don't want that fame, because I suppose not all viral videos are positive. They may be. They make a viral because you fell over or damaged yourself or said something really stupid. Um, and I suppose you have that choice of, like you know, if people kind of warm to you and people saying oh my god, wish they made another video, or wish they did this, or please do this, or have you got the options, then you know, maybe making it, trying to make it a career and actually saying you know, I'm gonna actually try and make another video and try and replicate this success.

Stephen: 15:42

Um, because at one point, like because I suppose, if you suddenly make a hundred thousand dollars I don't know if that's even realistic like you could quit your job and you wouldn't have to maybe work for a couple years. Excuse me, I'm just wiping my nose again. I should call this like the snot episode. Sorry, I'm sorry. Hay fever is terrible, it's awful. I think I might have a virus on top of that as well. And I say things are going south. They need to mention yeah, so what would I mean?

Stephen: 16:23

I don't know what I would do if I, if I released, like I say, a podcast episode that went viral, what would I do? Like I I'd, you know just that maybe, would maybe encourage people to listen to other episodes, and you know that would boost all my listens and be a bit scary though, because, like I'm sure, like everyone would be messing you, everyone would be like tagging you in things and I feel like your phone would melt down, I feel like your account would melt down. Would like instagram, you know, you know you're my or my host of my podcast buzzsprout. Would they contact me and say oh my god, you're blowing up on the internet. Um, here's what to do. Does that happen? I don't know. Like, I'm sure I mean I'm sure I'm sure people are approached by like agencies etc to they want to get on the action, help you ride the wave.

Stephen: 17:09

Um, I'm not sure I would want that personally, like I kind of like um, the idea of like building this podcast up from the ground up and like just gaining momentum and slowly building an audience and slowly building like a base of fans I would call them in inverted commas and listeners and then, you know, just growing it slowly, I think to just go straight into that fame. I mean, I'm not saying like that that could happen. I'm not saying that could happen, but if it did happen, I'd like it to be more of a gradual, like I get an uplift over like several months. So I could like kind of ease myself into a go, oh my God, like this is taking off, or prepare myself, rather than just say, like putting a post on and then within 24 hours having like 40 million likes and Like my face being everywhere, cuz I mean the moment that say that, walk to her. You can't literally go on anything without someone reposting it or Remixing it or write a song about it or it being on like it's on news stations and everything it's. It's insane really, isn't it, that something like that would.

Stephen: 18:09

And I suppose another big question is as well what? What would you do with that fame? And then the other big question is what? What makes that viral video is? Is there a formula that people can follow? Because, like, how is that even a thing? Like he said something like that. People probably say to each other in random conversations and you know, just offhand, flippant comments, and it is, yes, amusing, but why, in that situation, at that time, was that such an eye-catching, ear-catching moment for people that they were like oh my God, this is hilarious. We must share and share and share and share and copy and copy and copy and remix and write songs about it. And I know they're riding kind of off the back of that kind of thing, like, for whatever reason, that's had 40 million downloads or whatever it is. They then strike wild in the iron's heart and they put content out there. So when people search for it, they get a content match, get that. But what makes it viral in the first place? I suppose if anyone has worked that out or could work it out, then we'd probably know about it, because they'd be really famous.

Stephen: 19:23

I think one person that I think sticks out, that has kind of made a career from it, and I'll kind of wrap it up in a moment um is uh, what's his? What's his name? Now, I did find it uh, I don't know how you say his name I've followed him for a while is carby kb00. Um, and he's the guy. He's a black guy that reacts to things and he'll watch a video and then he'll react to it by putting his arms out and looking sharp, as they say. Why didn't you get that? So you'll see, I don't know someone trying to get out of a car because they've left the keys on the sidewalk and they can't get out of the car, and they smash the window and climb out the window, and then he'll be in a car because they've locked, because they've left the keys on the sidewalk and they can't get out of the car, and they smash the window and climb out the window, and then he'll be in a car and show that these keys are on the sidewalk. He'll just unlock the door from the other side and get out and then he'll just look at the door and like point his hands at it and his videos are hilarious because he's only pointing out the really obvious, like stupidity that's on the internet really, or just general stupidity, and whether the videos that he he kind of mimics and reacts to or set up or not, his reaction and his like, his form just makes it funny.

Stephen: 20:38

He's like physical comedy because he doesn't speak, he just reacts and then does the thing correctly. Um, and he's, he's got massive fame from that. I don't know what nationality is actually. I thought he was italian, I think I don't. I'm sure he was italian. I don't know, maybe I'm wrong. For some reason I feel like he's italian. Um, he's had massive sponsorship deals and he's actually in the new Bad Boys. He's got his first film role. He's in the new Bad Boys 4, pretty much doing what he does on his viral videos. I think if you search for the Bad Boys, whatever their Instagram, it might be the film company Sunny Pictures. I think it is. This isn't like an affiliation link or anything, I'm just saying They've actually got a clip of him Kind of like congratulating him on his first film role. It's quite funny. He's just doing what he got famous for, but he very much embraced it. He was doing videos on the internet. It went viral and, yeah, I'm sure he's a very rich guy now. Congratulations to him.

Stephen: 21:43

But yeah, what's your thoughts on viral videos? We've got so used to these occurrences in our lives. Like every like, it seems like every other week, there's like a new viral thing going on. How do you feel about that? You know, is it stifling people's minds? Is it reducing IQs? Because I sometimes feel like social media and stuff is pretty dumbed down, I don't know. Is it just me being old again? I don't know.

Stephen: 22:15

What do you think? How would you react If you put some content in there? Would you be happy that it went viral? Would you put it taken down? Would you want the peace and quiet? Would you try and make money out of it? Would you be happy that it went viral? Would you want it taken down? Would you want the peace and quiet? Would you try and make money out of it? Would you try and make a career out of it?

Stephen: 22:28

I suppose it depends on what sort of video it is and what your disposition is in the first place. Interesting isn't it to think about? It is and we're always looking for what the next viral sensation's going to be or the next person that's going to go at that door. And well, I was going to say we're searching for it, but it's kind of a wonderment as to what the next one is going to be and all of a sudden, a head scratcher is like why has that gone viral? I do think that to myself quite a lot, especially sometimes, to the extent they do go viral. Anyway, I'm going to wrap it up now because I'm just chunnering as normal and I need to go and blow my nose again and I don't want to do it down the microphone again to you. I'm so sorry.

Stephen: 23:06

Thank you very much for tuning in to season four. If you've missed any of the episodes, please go back and have a listen. Go back to listen to series one to three, which is under the guise of Steven Speak, which is now the name of my production company, which I'm trying to start, hence the name change. If you didn't know, then now you do. Um, yes, uh. Speaking of subscriptions, I you can subscribe to my podcast and give me a small little donation to help me. Help me power my way through and help absorb some of the cost of, you know, setting up and paying for things and and, uh, I have to pay to upload stuff. It just sucks. I'd like it to be free, but unfortunately it isn't. Um, I'm gonna take a little break, uh, between this series and series five. There may be a little bonus episode coming, so look out for that, I'll. I'll post wherever I put that up.

Stephen: 23:55

I don't know when the new series is going to start. Unfortunately yet I've not really thought that far ahead. Uh, possibly in august. Uh, maybe a bit before, maybe a bit maybe mid-august, I'm not sure. Want a little bit of a break. I want to try and go away, rework some stuff, smooth some stuff out, streamline some stuff, come back with season five and have kind of more of a direction with a podcast and more of a plan, and I want to make the best uh, it can be for you guys. Um, so I will keep posting random stuff. Uh, interact with me, let me know you want to hear in season five and until then, I will speak to you all very, very soon. Thanks for listening to infinite prattle with your host, steven. Follow me on social networks at Infinite Prattle and don't forget to subscribe. Thanks very much.