Hey guys, it’s Dolly here with Goldthread.
In 2018, we roamed around China to bring you stories
about its people and culture.
But we can’t talk about culture without talking about this.
AKA China’s alternate universe, the internet.
Here’s a look back at some of our most interesting stories
about Chinese internet culture in 2018.
Make sure you watch till the end
to hear about our favorite memes from this year.
In 2018, the Chinese internet became obsessed with 666.
666.
The Chinese internet is obsessed with 666.
Hello everyone.
Welcome to “The Internet” with Goldthread.
Today, we’re going to talk about why the Chinese internet is obsessed with 666.
666 is liu liu liu in Mandarin,
which sounds like niu niu niu,
which means cow cow cow,
Chinese slang for powerful or awesome.
To give more context,
I’m going to summon Timmy, one of Goldthread’s reporters:
666 is a big thing ‘cause it sounds like “liu liu liu” in Mandarin.
And liu liu liu means awesome.
Like that’s dope, that's awesome, that’s liu liu liu, that’s 666.
I use it a lot when I talk to my friends.
Let me show you on WeChat:
In fact, there are a lot of 666 stickers on WeChat.
But it's not just on the internet, it's in real life too.
Now I’m sure you’re wondering,
where did this all come from?
Well, one story claims that this live streamer, Fireloli, started the whole trend.
He would use 666 as a quick way to compliment his teammates
during a video game.
There’s even a hand gesture for 666.
So, next time you see a 666 from the Chinese internet,
now you know what it means: dope.
This was the first in our series explaining the Chinese internet,
and we got a range of responses,
from awesome to “Jesus is the answer.”
Hmm.
If 666 piqued your interest,
make sure to check out the other internet explainers
from our talking mouth series.
You’re probably watching this video on YouTube, Facebook, or IG.
All of these are banned in China,
but this doesn’t stop young people
from being glued to the internet
and doing livestreams on other platforms within the country.
We hung out with one of these internet celebrities,
Star.
Here’s her story.
Meet Star.
She's a wanghong.
A phrase in Mandarin that refers to a new generation
of Chinese internet personalities
who are often livestreamers.
Wanghongs like her livestream their day-to-day existence
to their online fans.
Sharing everything from mundane train rides
to elaborate meals.
Star started livestreaming in 2018
in an industry that's already saturated and fiercely competitive.
Though only six months in,
she's already amassed a fan base of 12,000 regular followers.
Star is also known among her fans for wearing hanfu,
historical Chinese garb that's become trendy again
in recent years among Chinese youth.
For internet celebrities like Star,
making it big means potentially broadcasting
to over 730 million Chinese internet users.
That’s more than double the size of the U.S. population.
Last but not least,
here’s a round-up of our favorite memes
that came out of China in 2018.
Two years ago,
this kid from Minneapolis
took the English-speaking internet by storm
because, well,
he’s got a facial expression for everything.
Gavin finally made it to the Chinese internet this year.
And the reason why people love him here?
Well, people think his smile looks fake.
“Fake Smile Boy” now has nearly two million followers on Weibo,
the Chinese version of Twitter.
This is the eye roll that launched a thousand memes
and giggles in 2018.
This reporter’s amazing eye roll at this woman’s staged
and over-the-top question captivated the Chinese internet,
which is generally just fed up with
how everything in their media tends to be choreographed.
When Drake’s Kiki challenge made its way to China,
it morphed into this.
Rich kids pretending to fall out of their fancy cars
with their designer shoes and expensive possessions
all splayed out on the floor.
Satirical memes quickly followed,
and even government officials joined in.
Although China’s Great Firewall
blocks our favorite American apps and websites,
this doesn’t necessarily mean young Chinese internet users
can’t access the same content that we see.
The difference is they have to use a VPN
or the content is uploaded to a Chinese platform.
If there’s more you’d like to know about the Chinese internet,
comment below and let us find out more for you.
Don’t forget to like this video,
subscribe to Goldthread
for another year of memes and internet stories.