“Gangnam Style” is the Pop single from South Korean musician PSY. Released in 2012, thanks to social networking sites such as Facebook and Twitter and the number of people who made their own versions, it became the most watched video ever on YouTube surpassing Justin Bieber in the number of plays it received.  But there’s a new cat in town…

Sure, the Gangnam Style beat and the amusing dance moves contributed to its success with multiple parodies being created. It became a favourite of “flash mobs” everywhere — each putting their own take on the original. The New Year in New York saw PSY in Times Square to welcome 2013 and here’s the Cornell version:

Move on over PSY — because the Harlem Shake took over.  The BBC tracked the new claimant to the meme crown.  Once again Facebook, and social media — in particular YouTube — were responsible for the amazing viral spread of this Shake “performance” phenomena… even though a new star is on the horizon…

Okay, so here’s the University of Nebraska-Lincoln football team — including head coach Bo Pelini — doing The Harlem Shake:

Harlem shake cat version — CAT VERSION?

Neither of those memes are prepared for the real contender to the social networking meme crown: Grumpy Cat!

It is a well-known fact that Cats do in fact rule the Internet and have done for many years.

Grumpy Cat is a nickname given to a grumpy-looking snowshoe cat that rose to fame online after its pictures were posted to Reddit in late September 2012.

The cat is also known as “Tard” which is short for Tardar (Tartar) Sauce. She has her own website and countless fan pages both official and unofficial.

Grumpy’s real popularity has come with the addition of sarcastic text to her picture — Grumpy cat can say all the things us mere humans may think but dare not say.  She has become a voice for the grumpiest of us all, she gives words to our dark side, our frustrations and an avenue to vent the unpalatable “obvious.”

She is the anti-hero of cats, she is adored by the cat brigade and respected by the anti-cat brigade and in doing that she unites us all and for that Madam Grumpy Cat — we salute you!

40 Comments

  1. I am so grateful you introduced us to Grumpy Cat, Nicola! She is my new, favorite, daily obsession! I think she’s is darling and beautiful and, yes, perhaps a little bit grumpy!

  2. I am glad you indulged me on this one – she is rather magnificent. I love the fact she unites while being a little on the testy side – I have a huge amount of friends that did not “do” cats until she came along.

    1. It’s tough to create a new internet cat sensation today — but Grumpy gets it done — and her owners are honoring her and tending to her, and protecting her while still letting the rest of us love her. She’s a young and tiny cat, too. She’s really just a Grumpy Little Baby right now. It’s all so new to her.

  3. it is easy sometimes to forget how young she is – I so look forward to sharing her life – is that a little selfish of me ?

    1. Not selfish at all! I think it’s a wonderful thing to watch and encourage something to grow and evolve. She was born to be a star and all the good energy she’s getting from all over the world can only help Ms. Grumpy do right.

  4. Just when I thought the internet cat craze might be dying down! It was a good choice for me to read this right after depressing myself with new stories.

    1. When Seth McFarlane hosted Saturday Night Live it was shortly after Gagnam style got really popular and they had a sketch about a sad store clerk who got cheered up by a magical button that summoned Bobby Moynihan as PSY doing the dance. At the end of the sketch they hit the button again and the real PSY came out and the crowd went absolutely crazy with cheers and applause. It was quite impressive given how shortly it was after it had gotten popular.

      1. Ai WeiWei is most famous for designing the”Bird’s Nest” Olympic stadium for the Beijing Olympics:

        https://www.google.com/search?q=ai+weiwei+birds+nest&hl=en&sa=X&tbm=isch&tbo=u&source=univ&ei=zdk7UcuOLfOs0AGIuoHAAQ&ved=0CEIQsAQ&biw=1179&bih=1272

        Of course, as a dissident, he now regrets designing what has become a political icon:

        http://www.telegraph.co.uk/culture/art/art-news/9123705/China-artist-Ai-Weiwei-says-he-regrets-designing-Beijing-Olympics-Birds-Nest.html

        1. I remember the building – it was spectacular – it must rankle that his vision and creation has been hijacked and given another meaning.

  7. Huge grumpy cat fan. I’ve read somewhere that he actually lives in New York!

  9. Pingback: Attitudes to Domestic Animals in Rural Portugal « Boles Blogs

      1. I guess it makes sense she’d make all this money. In the last 10 years, I can’t think of a cat as famous other than Maru. Maru has made a few commercials but he’s no “Morris the Cat.”

        Ms. Grump will take the cat commercial world by storm! She’s a born wonder!

          1. I agree. A SuperStar is born unto you — there’s no choice but to let the fame and profits cascade.

            I’m sure if you sell stuff for cats — you couldn’t wish for a better spokesmodel for your brand than Grumpy Cat. She’s both adorable and unforgettable.

    1. With your brood, you need to start breeding for Commercial Stardom. I would try for the following… “Anxious Cat” then “Laughing Cat” and “Doomsday Cat” and “Barbie Cat” and then “Hologram Cat.”

  12. at the moment I have three inside they are comprting for I m the best behaved cat – so you feed us treats award – what they do not know is that I can see them swiping each other when they think I am not looking!

  13. I have had three kids – I have eyes in the back of my head and I have bat ears – my kids loved and hated that at the same time !

  14. I have actually seen a lot of grumpy cat and lolcat memes and these are absolutely hilarious. Also, living on campus, I was hit with a wave of love for Gangnam Style and I actually have been hearing it on my internet radio stations now. Both have truly spread quickly.

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