United States — A recent TikTok trend has users in the United States and abroad filming themselves dramatically lip-syncing to Chinese songs, even if they don't understand the lyrics.
The video includes a snippet of the song and captions that force people to make difficult choices, such as “give up (what you want) or sing in Chinese.”
The juxtaposition of the song's sentimental tone and absurd questions is what makes this meme so funny, and perhaps why so many people have started doing the same thing lately.
What is a “Samsung” song?
Chinese folk singer Chuan Zi released the viral song “This Life's Fate” in 2009, which remains one of his most popular songs to this day.
Delivered in a powerful and melancholic tone, this song is so exciting even if you don't understand the lyrics, that it may be what has attracted TikTok users around the world to join in on the latest trend.
The Chinese phrase “沧桑” sung in the chorus sounds like Korean smartphone maker Samsung to non-Chinese speakers, so it has come to be called the “Samsung” song by online users .
“Cang Sang” means “big change” or “up and down in life”.
In one video, a woman gives her own interpretation of the song using phonetically similar English words, saying, “All men cheat, but some do it through Samsung.
“Will he lie? I'll scream it out and say: 'YES!'
In response, Samsung Nordics, Samsung's official TikTok account in the Nordic countries, also jumped on the bandwagon and responded on TikTok: sorry? ! “
The video, posted four days ago, has been viewed more than 2.4 million times as of Friday (April 12).
