No. 1 Hit: "Let's Go Brandon!"
Memes represent a new art form of expression, catchphrases that spontaneously click and become instant mantras. "Let's Go Brandon!" is the latest of these phenomena.
Note: The following is not an endorsement of “Let’s Go Brandon.” It is more a testimony to the expressive power and impact of memes and not a personal political stance.
You’d think by now nothing in the news, politics or popular culture would surprise you. The maniacal screaming across the political aisle has reached sonic level. Full blown cognitive dissonance. Many Americans are cupping their ears and covering their eyes as the tribal hysteria burns. The intensity and inflammatory rhetoric of The Left vs. The Right is as nasty and vitriolic as it has been at any time in recent memory.
The latest phenomenon to emerge from ideology wars is the viral meme of “Let’s Go Brandon.”
For those who missed it, “Let’s Go Brandon” has become a battle cry of protesting against the current administration of President Joe Biden, and is sweeping across Social Media in warp speed.
What is “Let’s Go Brandon”?
The origin for the meme was malaprop, or misinterpretation, voiced by NASCAR sportscaster Kelli Stavast at Talladega (AL) Motor Speedway earlier this month. Stavast was interviewing race winner Brandon Brown when a group of fans, easily within earshot, began chanting “F**k Joe Biden.” The chant clearly was picked up by her microphone. An obviously flustered Stavast desperately tried to deflect. She commented “listen, they’re chanting ‘Let’s Go Brandon’” to Brown.
No they weren’t.
“F**K Joe Biden.”
It was clear. Loud. And very angry. Stavast knew it. Brown knew it. The broadcast was live so producers knew it … and couldn’t bleep it. Then somebody watching picked up on it … copied it … and now it has gone viral.
The Meme Phenomenon
Memes are among the many curious phenomena of Internet lingo and have become fixtures in pop culture. They represent a new art form of expression, catchphrases that spontaneously click and become instant mantras. As such, they are dynamic balls of social energy. Typically they combine funny or altered images and twisted phrases, generally witty or ironic. Culturally, memes are the contemporary answer to Happy Faces or “Shit Happens” bumper stickers. Anyone with a visual editing tool or .gif-maker and a clever idea can create one.
Some are cute and witty. Others can be darker, or cynical. “Let’s Go Brandon” (“F**K Joe Biden”) is a combination of both, a protest/backlash against President Biden, whose popularity polling has dropped substantially. Apparently, his policies have made a portion of the populace surly and outwardly antagonistic. Mr. Biden’s
Within a week, the top 5 positions on I-Tunes download charts were varied recordings of “Let’s Go Brandon,” replacing Adele and Ed Sheeran.
unpopularity has yet to trump his predecessor, whose very name is patented and ingrained in the Meme Hall of Fame. The mob is still angry. It’s just a different mob.
Cultural Impact
Evidence of the impact of the meme is showing up in pop culture, particularly in music. Wanna be artists/rappers have put the phrase to music and posted recordings on Spotify and I-Tunes. Within a week, the top 5 positions on I-Tunes download charts were varied recordings of “Let’s Go Brandon,” supplanting Adele and Ed Sheeran. Spotify already features a full “Let’s Go Brandon” playlist. T-shirts bearing the meme are flying off the shelves. Online chats and comments are packed with the three-word phenomenon. Even a member of Congress entered the chamber yesterday with the phrase printed on his mask.
As previously stated, memes have become an art form, part marketing, part sloganism … a message … sometimes funny, sometimes angry, sometimes powerful. In this case, the message is wildly popular with the political Right, much to the consternation of the Left.
Where does “Let’s Go Brandon” fit sociologically? Surely part of it is juvenile humor, akin to an adolescent getting away with saying a dirty word. Perhaps it will be fleeting, as pop culture often casually discards trends as quickly as it adopts them. Moreover, it is evidence that the division between ideologies has widened as the language has devolved, dumbed down to a point of profanity for mass consumption. No nuance of message, no legitimate debate points or civility of discourse. In their stead are hyperbole and pettiness. Nonetheless, it is a protest statement with impetus and potency.
Move over Adele -- right now Brandon has the No. 1 hit.
##.