The Memes of 2015
Blue and black, or white and gold
The Social Boom, 2011–2015
On 26 February a photograph of a dress split the Internet into two camps, and scientists were soon publishing papers about it. Katy Perry’s Super Bowl halftime show a few weeks earlier had already made a backup dancer the star of the night.
In October, Drake danced in a grey sweater and the clip became one of the most reused templates of the decade. The stock photo that would become Distracted Boyfriend was taken this year.
Top memes of 2015
2 memes in the archive peaked this year, and 3 first went viral.
1The Dress
8/1000%Classic2015Peaked in 2015
2Drake Hotline Bling
38/100+2%Classic2015Peaked in 2015
3Pepe the Frog
44/100+6%Rising2005Peaked in 2016
2015, month by month
The leading memes of the year on one scale, 0 to 100. The yellow dot marks each one’s highest month.
The Dress
The Dress: Feb 52, Mar 93, Apr 24, May 17, Jun 15, Jul 12, Aug 12, Sep 11, Oct 11, Nov 10, Dec 11 Drake Hotline Bling
Drake Hotline Bling: Oct 52, Nov 82, Dec 81 Pepe the Frog
Pepe the Frog: Jan 50, Feb 55, Mar 53, Apr 58, May 58, Jun 60, Jul 62, Aug 61, Sep 64, Oct 65, Nov 69, Dec 71 This Is Fine
This Is Fine: Jan 35, Feb 37, Mar 39, Apr 41, May 41, Jun 45, Jul 44, Aug 47, Sep 49, Oct 48, Nov 55, Dec 56 Grumpy Cat
Grumpy Cat: Jan 49, Feb 51, Mar 48, Apr 47, May 45, Jun 44, Jul 43, Aug 41, Sep 41, Oct 39, Nov 38, Dec 39 Trollface
Trollface: Jan 39, Feb 39, Mar 38, Apr 37, May 36, Jun 36, Jul 36, Aug 35, Sep 34, Oct 34, Nov 32, Dec 32
Attention index, 0 to 100 on one scale for the whole archive. Estimated from each meme’s key dates, not measured.
Timeline
Dated moments from the memes above, in order.
News outlets join in. Media coverage spreads the question worldwide within hours.
A question on Tumblr. Caitlin McNeill asks what colour a dress is.
Split down the middle. Followers and friends argue between white and gold, and blue and black.
A copyright lesson. A Wii U game that used the face is removed for copyright infringement, showing it is owned.
Celebrities weigh in. Public figures and brands post their answers.
Science takes over. Researchers publish papers on how the brain adjusts for lighting.
A frog for every mood. Rare Pepes, reaction images and celebrity posts carry the character to a mass audience.
A stock photo. Antonio Guillem photographs actors in Girona for a stock library.
On image boards. The first recorded uses appear in niche corners of the Internet.
An annual return. Summer revivals follow, but the first wave remains the reference point.
Dance GIFs. The dancing is turned into GIFs and edits within hours.
The video. Drake releases the “Hotline Bling” video, directed by Director X.
The approve and reject format. Two moments from the video become a template for preferences.
Late-night parody. Saturday Night Live parodies the dance, bringing it to a larger audience.
What kind of memes
Categories across the memes active in 2015.