Viral Internet Trends from 2016 We’d Rather Forget
2016 was a year jam-packed with events that we will remember for a lifetime, although not all of them should be in the highlight reel. Social media was at its peak, smartphones were with everyone all the time, and people seemed to be willing to do just about anything for likes and shares.
A few trendy things brought laughter and happiness, while some left people shaking their heads wondering what the heck everyone was thinking. It is like looking through a photo album and taking a second to remember the crazy outfits that we wore when we were teenagers.
Here are the 2016 internet crazes that most people would rather forget.
The Mannequin Challenge
People simply stopped moving and pretended to be mannequins while someone filmed them, and this became a thing that everyone wanted to do. Schools and companies were involved; even sports teams were able to do it.
The premise was quite simple: acting as a dummy in a shop window while the camera captured the scene. What appeared to be a smart move turned out to be thousands of imitation videos that all looked very similar, and after a couple of weeks, everyone was fed up with standing like statues.
Damn Daniel
Daniel was a teenager who just happened to wear white sneakers to school one day. His pal thought it was pretty cool and filmed him walking down the hallway while repeatedly calling out Daniel’s name.
Nobody really knew why, but the clip went viral. This led to Daniel and his friend making appearances on talk shows, landing a bunch of free shoes, and becoming overnight internet sensations.
To show that with the right pitch even something as ordinary as a kid walking around with a new pair of kicks can result in a viral sensation, seems this whole affair was the proof.
Bottle Flipping
It became such a craze that everyone at home and at school wanted to toss a water bottle that was half-full and then nail the landing when it was upright. One could hear kids doing their trick over and over in the hallway as parents and teachers were at their wit’s end with the noise of plastic hitting desks.
One student actually took the bottle flipping to a talent show where he received a standing ovation, demonstrating how low our standards for entertainment have become. Finally, the craze died down after everyone sat down and realized they’d invested their time for months on end, mastering a skill with no practical value whatsoever.
Dabbing
This dance move involved dropping your head into one arm while raising the other arm straight up, and suddenly everyone from kids to grandparents was doing it. Athletes celebrated touchdowns with dabs, politicians tried it to seem cool, and it showed up in family photos across the country.
The gesture came from hip-hop culture but got so overused that it lost whatever appeal it originally had. By the end of the year, seeing someone dab made people groan instead of laugh.
Clown Sightings
Creepy clown reports started popping up all over the country, with people claiming to see menacing figures lurking in woods and neighborhoods. Social media amplified the fear, and soon entire communities were on edge about painted faces hiding in the shadows.
Schools sent out warnings, police investigated reports, and some areas even banned clown costumes temporarily. Most sightings turned out to be pranks or hoaxes, but the whole episode showed how quickly panic could spread online.
The Running Man Challenge
This dance trend had people filming themselves doing an old-school move to a 1990s song, and it spread faster than a cold in winter. Police departments, fire stations, and military units all posted their versions, trying to outdo each other with creative takes.
The challenge was harmless fun, but watching it flood every feed got old pretty quick. At least it encouraged people to move around a bit, even if the dance itself looked kind of silly.
Pokémon Go Madness
The game got people walking around staring at their phones, trying to catch virtual creatures in real-world locations. Parks filled with players, some folks wandered into dangerous areas chasing rare finds, and accidents happened when people stopped paying attention to their surroundings.
The initial frenzy was intense, with groups roaming neighborhoods at all hours. Within months, the excitement died down as people realized walking in circles to collect digital animals wasn’t as thrilling as it first seemed.
Harambe Memes
After a gorilla at the Cincinnati Zoo met a tragic end, the internet turned the situation into endless jokes and tribute posts. People made memes, wrote songs, and even started fake petitions about the animal.
What began as genuine sadness quickly morphed into absurd humor that felt disrespectful to many. The whole phenomenon demonstrated how the internet could take a serious event and twist it into something uncomfortable and weird.
Chewbacca Mask Lady
A woman sat in her car, put on a character mask that made growling sounds, and laughed hysterically while filming herself. The video racked up millions of views and became the most-watched Facebook Live at the time.
She appeared on television shows, got sponsorship deals, and became famous for giggling at a toy. The success was genuinely happy for her, but it also made people wonder why this particular moment resonated so strongly when countless others got ignored.
The Floor Is Lava
The game itself was harmless childhood fun, but watching grown adults scramble onto filing cabinets at work felt a bit much. Some folks even got hurt trying to reach high places, proving that not every trend was worth the risk.
Pen Pineapple Apple Pen
A Japanese comedian sang a bizarre song about fruit and writing instruments, complete with strange dance moves and odd facial expressions. The video made absolutely no sense, yet millions watched it repeatedly.
The tune got stuck in heads everywhere, annoying everyone who heard it more than twice. It showed that language barriers meant nothing when it came to viral content, and sometimes the most random things caught fire online.
Salt Bae
A chef became famous for sprinkling seasoning onto meat with an exaggerated flourish, and suddenly everyone was imitating his technique. The move involved tapping your forearm and letting the grains fall dramatically, which looked cool but didn’t actually improve the flavor of anything.
Restaurants started doing it, home cooks tried it, and the gesture appeared everywhere from sports celebrations to political cartoons. The chef turned his moment into a successful business, but the rest of the world eventually stopped pretending that fancy salt sprinkling was revolutionary.
Kylie Jenner Lip Challenge
Young people tried to plump their lips by creating suction with bottles or glasses, and the results were often painful and embarrassing. The trend aimed to copy a celebrity’s appearance but ended up causing bruising, swelling, and even injuries.
Doctors warned against it, parents freaked out, and the whole thing highlighted the pressure social media put on people to change how they looked. It faded away once enough people posted their swollen faces and realized the method was both dangerous and ineffective.
Water Bottle Challenges Gone Wrong
Beyond basic flipping, people started trying increasingly ridiculous stunts with containers of water. Some attempted trick shots from rooftops, others tried landing them on moving objects, and plenty of property got damaged in the process.
The quest for viral fame pushed people to take bigger risks, and videos showed shattered windows, broken lamps, and frustrated family members. The trend proved that adding ‘challenge’ to any activity made people willing to try things they’d normally avoid.
Juju On That Beat
A dance to a hip-hop track had everyone kicking and stepping in specific patterns, and the challenge spread through schools like wildfire. Groups filmed themselves in hallways, parking lots, and bedrooms doing the coordinated moves.
The dance itself was energetic and fun, but seeing it everywhere got repetitive fast. Teachers probably got the worst of it, hearing the same song blasting from phones between every class period.
Where The Trend Train Went Off The Rails
These 2016 moments captured something unique about that year’s internet culture: the willingness to jump on anything trending without thinking too hard about it. Social media had reached a point where everyone wanted their moment of fame, even if it meant doing something they’d normally find pointless or embarrassing.
The platforms rewarded quick participation, so people stopped asking whether trends were actually worth doing. Now, years later, most of these crazes feel like artifacts from a simpler time when the biggest online worry was whether to attempt the latest challenge.
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