Memo 8: DaVinki?
Another lunchtime version of Jouissance this week! I’ve already shown my hand and revealed that I’m back on Tiktok a couple weeks ago, so the following should really come as no surprise. The rapid turnover of microtrends on Tiktok never fails to keep the Pandemic Depression™ at bay for a couple of glorious seconds, but some trends are true treasures. Some tap into the obsessive nature of my reptilian brain and hold on tight. This week’s obsession is, without further introduction, the DaVinki video.
I don’t need to explain why it’s so good, the video speaks for itself. The himbo look of these two Voros twins. Their paintbrush hair. Their accent as they ponder the Mona Lisa. How they mispronounce da Vinci at the exact same time in the exact same way. Their facial expressions as they do so. The fact that we were able to see this all unfold in a couple of seconds. I could, have, and will continue to watch this video on repeat. It’s hypnotic in the best absurdist way.
One of Tiktok’s most fascinating features is how users can take sounds of videos and make new videos with them, often to make a comment on another relatable part of life. Commenting on casual parts of daily life using a cultural reference to specify a tone on how an individual experiences it is incredible, and results in videos like this one and this one. As I dove into this audio, I soon found this game-changing video, which revealed how the Voros twins are actually professional wrestlers. As we all know, wrestling is the fakest sport out there¹ so naturally, the Voros twins must be a persona well-cultivated over the years.² And so the illusion of himbos collapsed.
Another Tiktok video that blew up over the past week is the New York Summer song, which began when this gal Louise posted about how her song had minimal streams. Because of the cornyness of the lyrics, the bad quality of the song itself and Louise’s obliviousness of the former qualities, it shot off like a rocket on the app. The audio quickly caused spin-off videos using the objectively dumb lyrics, such as this one and this one. Similar to DaVinky, however, the song is too good to be true. An investigative Tiktok video revealed the potential real nature of the song, which is a satirical song made by real-life Columbia grad Louise.
On one hand, the viewers are being deceived in both videos very blatantly. The goofy, raw and embarrassing personas of the Voros twins and Louise were carefully constructed. Their videos hit the perfect balance of funny and catchy because they knew how to tap into what we find funny: dumbness in an era of supposed intelligence. In a certain way, the viewers are really the clowns because the “dumb” Voros twins and Louise are smarter than what one sees at first glance.
So I should be feeling dumb after spending copiuis amounts of time on these audios, but that’s not entirely the case. My view of New York Summer did fall more after finding out it was fake as oppposed to DaVinki, which I still like just as much. Why? DaVinki still has this energy of serendipity that feels unreproducable, even when I know it’s not entirely genuine.
Serendipity is far and few between nowadays, moreso than ever because of how we are supposed to be locked away in (as all ideal citizens should not be eating out or partying right now…). The chance for raw chance to unfold in front of our eyes is where Tiktok steps up. Tiktok, at its best, goes beyond the meta-ironic commentary on artifice as artifice is simultaneously made in video form. The videos that stick with me are the unexpectedly funny ones, as they feel the most like real life. Capturing life in video form all the time feels planned to some degree, so seeing something unpredictable shakes one from this planned energy. The videos using the DaVinki audio highlight this as well, as the feeling of being taken off guard in a funny way is genuine to many. Regardless of how DaVinki came to be, the raw surprise of finding out DaVinki painted the Mona Lisa has a universal energy somehow. And, c’mon, its funny.
And because there is always more to consume, here are some LINKS from this past week:
How Big Oil Misled The Public Into Believing Plastic Would Be Recycled. Kinda hard to read because it’s important and depressing, as most pieces about the environment are nowadays.
Dolphins Have the Best Skin-Care Routine for Dolphin Skin. Many odd things are written online so this article should not have made me loose my mind as much as this one, but alas. I started losing it when the interviewer asks, “What’s the function of dolphins’ skin?” completely unironically.
NASA to film an Estée Lauder ad in space as the ISS opens for business. The world is imploding, and at the same time, a makeup company is paying over $100,000 for astronauts to be makeup influencers.
Frog and Toad Are Self-Quarantined Friends, which makes my gay heart happy.
The Elusive Peril of Space Junk. If you aren’t stressed enough about trash and space from the above articles, this should send you over the edge. Also, a small detail that is no way comments on the quality of the article: the New Yorker went really hard in their design of this article.
Saying this half-seriously.
Which is confirmed by this Buzzfeed News article.