I am looking to make a compilation of music that consists of songs that owe their popularity to Youtube. What songs does the hive mind recommend? [more inside]
posted by theButterFly on Nov 10, 2009 - 34 answers

What is the music that Technoviking is dancing to?
posted by jimfl on Nov 9, 2009 - 5 answers

Where did the "Wag More, Bark Less" bumper sticker meme start? My own sightings of them have gone from extremely rare to many cars seen in every single trip I take. Is it a dog owner/pet store promotional item? Is it a political thing? Something on Oprah I missed?
posted by mathowie on Oct 26, 2009 - 29 answers

Can you help me find an Aerosmith quote about the song "St. John"? I'm writing an article about how certain songs and other media are catchy and/or sticky. I remember reading somewhere a quote from Stephen Tyler of Aerosmith saying, in effect, that he was surprised that the song "St. John" from "Permanent Vacation" wasn't a monster hit, because it sure seemed catchy to them. Attempts to google search for it just finds me scads of web sites of ring tones and lyrics. Anyone know where I might have seen the quote?
posted by Ubiq on Jul 26, 2009 - 1 answer

Academia must have discovered the Internets by now... right? I'm interested in finding some academic, long-form journalism, or just generally "high-thought" articles about "low" Internet culture, from memes to 4chan to Anonymous to Second Life. Halp?! [more inside]
posted by Keter on May 6, 2009 - 16 answers

What's the original joke that has the punchline "what, and give up show business?" Google doesn't help, since it's such a common reference, most links are using the line assuming you know the joke.
posted by bonecrusher on Mar 27, 2009 - 10 answers

What is the origin of the "demotivational poster" internet meme? [more inside]
posted by hpliferaft on Mar 6, 2009 - 11 answers

Over the past year or two, I've noticed an increasing use of the phrase "thread the needle" in news stories and blog entries. The problem is, I don't know exactly what "thread the needle" means, and it appears in a variety of contexts that don't appear entirely consistent with each other. [more inside]
posted by Powerful Religious Baby on Jan 11, 2009 - 16 answers

Does anyone know of a working mirror with all the "I accidentally the whole fleshlight" conversations? [more inside]
posted by hobbes on Oct 29, 2008 - 1 answer

Looking for examples of accidental/unwitting/unwilling celebrities, before the Internet. Help me find the Star Wars Kids, Afroninjas, and Tay Zondays of the pre-1990s. [more inside]
posted by waxpancake on Jul 25, 2008 - 45 answers

How can a person who doesn't even have a blog start a meme like thing, a cultural change or influence based on word play? [more inside]
posted by snsranch on Oct 25, 2007 - 18 answers

What's the origin of the phrase "special (little) snowflake?" [more inside]
posted by dw on Oct 5, 2007 - 19 answers

What is the origin of the phrase "the beatings will continue until morale improves". Google has failed me on this, only the hive mind will save me.
posted by bumpkin on Mar 30, 2007 - 12 answers

How are memes anything other than an extension/expression of the extended phenotype? [more inside]
posted by whatgorilla on Mar 11, 2007 - 20 answers

Where do all those (American?) childhood memes come from? Who wrote the "Miss Lucy had a steamboat" song? Who was the first person to punch people when they saw VW Beetles? [more inside]
posted by one_bean on Dec 3, 2006 - 30 answers

What is the origin of the "Where Is Your God Now?" Burger King meme/joke?
posted by Steve_at_Linnwood on Oct 4, 2006 - 21 answers

foo bar baz [1, 2]; alice bob mallory [3]; aphla ateb [4] [more inside]
posted by andrew cooke on Apr 15, 2006 - 13 answers

In Soviet Union, $noun $verbs you! What is the origin of this meme? It's everywhere online. Searching google and mefi/askmefi havn't helped... someone must know!
posted by adzm on May 6, 2005 - 11 answers