Brain Rot

The word "brain rot" isn't unfamiliar to us by now. We've all encountered it, seen it, heard it, or even used it in our daily lives. Brain rot was first popularized in 2010 and soon grew more popular in the 2020s. 2024 was probably the peak of brain rot where many memes and Gen Alpha slangs were displayed and used across social media platforms like TikTok, Instagram, YouTube, and others.

What is Brain Rot?

According to dictionary.com, brain rot is a slang term used to describe the effects of being "perpetually online" and consuming large amounts of low-value internet content. Back in 2007, brain rot was used in Twitter (X), to describe dating game shows, video games, and hanging out online. Later on, it was introduced more in the app Discord where people used it for internet memes. The effect of brain rot can be easily seen in the rising gen alphas who can't go a day without singing Sigma Sigma Boy.

Is Brain Rot Good or Bad?

Being brain-rotted doesn't necessarily mean it's a bad thing. Some people might even start using brain rot to their benefit. As it's a popular slang used by many people; by understanding brain rot you can join in other people's conversations without feeling left behind or confused. It can even help some people socialize and make new friends! The creators of brain rot also get many benefits for example: Betsy and Maria Yankovskaya who are the singers of Sigma Boy have performed many successful concerts with engaging crowds thanks to their viral song.

However, there are some drawbacks to the rising brain rot trend. Although I am a culprit myself, I do admit that the use of brain rot in real life can often be seen as cringe and annoying by other people. Whenever I see someone singing the new KSI song: Thick Of It in public, I would feel secondhand embarrassment. Some people may find it funny but many people may find it disturbing, especially the older generations who do not understand brain rot.

Why Do We Love Brain Rot?

Brain Rot is most commonly used by the Gen Alphas. Gen Z used to critique the use of Brain Rot yet they use it themselves in their daily lives. But why are all these young generations obsessed with brain rot? It's meaningless online content that "rots" your brain. The trend first started with Skibidi Toilet. Yeah, we all remember that video of a guy's head popping out from a closet.

I remember seeing videos on my FYP (For You Page) about people unboxing their surprise skibidi toilet toy. Next, it evolved to the looksmaxxing trend where people would "mew" to somewhat make their jawline sharper. Other popular brain rots are: Chill Guy (which I think originated from someone's OC on Twitter/X), Only in Ohio (a trend that relates every weird and horrible thing to Ohio), and Queen Never Cry (from a webtoon called Ki Sisters).

Brain rot serves as a comedic way to express ourselves with jokes and silly memes with our friends. Most of my friends know it's cringe. They're using brain rot while being aware it's weird. So brain rot is not dangerous or anything—as long as we don't overdo it.

In conclusion, brain rot neither serves as a blessing nor a curse. It's up to us to interpret it based on our views. We can see brain rot as something humorous yet some may see it as something weird. But that's okay! Everyone has their own opinion about this topic and we should respect each view.