The Brief: A video of Ghanian pallbearers dancing while carrying a coffin is being used to celebrate fails on social media.
DEEP DIVE
Videos of dancing pallbearers carrying a coffin are circulating the internet via memes. The videos are paired with the EDM track “Astronomia” by Tony Igy to celebrate an epic fail or to signify the end of a potentially dangerous act. One video which shows pallbearers dropping the coffin began popping up on TikTok in February 2020. It then grew in popularity and appeared on Twitter and Reddit in mid-April.
According to KnowYourMeme, one of the earliest videos of dancing pallbearers on the internet was posted on YouTube by Travelin Sister on Jan. 22nd, 2015. It showcased dancing pallbearers in Ghana performing a death celebration.
Then in July 2017, BBC News covered a story on Ghana’s Dancing Pallbearers.
Clips from this video as well as other dancing pallbearer videos were paired with “Astronomia” by Tony Igy and began popping up on the internet nearly three years later.
TikToker @lawyer_ggmu (previously @khvichagogava) shared a video of the meme, in which a skier’s trick fails and is accented by the dancing pallbearers on Feb. 26. The video was viewed over 4.5 million times and received over 474,700 likes within the first month.
@lawyer_ggmu##fyp ###foryou ##follow ##global♬ original sound – khvichagogava
It then began to grow on TikTok, as others shared more epic fails using the video, like user @xacamnhuong. Their video received over 2.7 million views and 330,800 like after being posted on March 6.
@xacamnhuong🤣🤣🤣
Here are a few more videos:
The videos took on another life as internet users began using screenshots to create even more memes on Twitter and Reddit.
Since they’ve become a social media phenomenon and are using their newfound fame to encourage social distancing.
"We'll carry them. We'll bury them. We're going to dance with them." – the Dancing Pallbearers of Ghana to people who don't stay home pic.twitter.com/oWUW8hEvuS
— Gene Park (@GenePark) April 23, 2020