We Got To Celebrate Our Differences is a 2005 parody public service announcement (PSA) skit poking fun at racist people who advocate for diversity and equality. What started as a skit full of offensive jokes on an early-aughts MTV2 show has transformed into a reaction meme and TikTok trend.
Meme basics:
- Meme Type: Reaction, TikTok trend
- First Appearance: May 2020
- Origin Source: MTV2’s Wonder Showzen
- Peak Popularity: November 2022
‘We Got To Celebrate Our Differences’ lyrics
We’ve got to celebrate our differences!
Ching chong ching chong ching, ching chong ching chong chong!We’ve got to celebrate our differences!
Oogah boogah do, oogah boogah doh!We’ve got to celebrate our differences!
Nacho taco, chimichanga!
Because it’s beautiful when the whole world sings in harmony!
Cultural context
The music video for We Got to Celebrate Our Differences comes from an April 2005 episode of MTV2’s Wonder Showzen. The black comedy puppet series was formatted as a children’s show; the skits and shorts were designed as though they were geared at kids but contained mature themes. Many of the jokes in Wonder Showzen‘s two seasons are too crude for today’s audiences, leaving the cult classic out of many nostalgic looks back.
The clip appeared as a children’s song about diversity inter-spliced with racial stereotypes.
Meme origins and spread
YouTuber @freshnuggiesTM posted the song and animation on YouTube on May 30, 2020. He prefaced it with a warning that reads:
“The content ahead may be offensive to some users, and likely more so to those with Chinese, African, or Mexican descent. It is important ot celebrate our differences as the music video says, but it is NOT OK to encourage or perform racist acts or to mock those who are from other races.”
“I make these meme videos for fun, but that does not automatically mean I blindly agree with everything in the video, nor does it mean I try to get laughs out of disasters. Me posting this video also does not mean that I enjoy participating in racist acts. Only together can we end the evil of racism.”
The video started getting views and spreading among the YouTube community, where many weren’t aware of its origins or the fact that it is a parody. After this, it was manipulated into several different edits shared across YouTube.
In late 2020 and through 2021, videos showing people reacting to the song on their first listen. These started appearing on YouTube and YouTube Shorts.
The ‘Celebrate Our Differences’ TikTok trend
The sound from “We Got To Celebrate Our Differences” started trending on TikTok in 2022. Videos feature groups of friends reacting to the song, particularly multiethnic groups of friends singing along. Videos that joke about diversity also use the sound occasionally.
@matorma_diama celebrate your differences 🫶🏾#alllifesmatter #asianlivesmatter #blacklivesmatter #hispanucheritagemonth #dogsforlife🐶 @lillifarts@29amisha @giannnamariaa ♬ Celebratory Differences Song – Smaher
@alice.plsn WE GOTTA CELEBRATE OUR DIFFERENCES.
♬ Celebratory Differences Song – Smaher
@matieplg 👩👩🏿🦱👩🏽👩🏻🌍
♬ Celebratory Differences Song – Smaher
Meme examples
More TikTok trends:
- Why are people commenting ‘Raw. Next Question’ on videos of hot guys?
- ‘Sigma Sigma Boy’ goes TikTok viral
- The internet can’t put down Dave Blunts’ ‘I Can’t Put Down The Cup’
- The viral ‘We Listen And We Don’t Judge’ TikTok trend is causing savage breakups
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