🕷️ Crawler Inspector

[Skip navigation\!](https://www.refinery29.com/en-us/2021/02/10330043/viral-memes-2021#r29-container) ADVERTISEMENT [](https://www.refinery29.com/en-us/unbothered) A community celebrating Black voices, Black art, and Black folx. [](https://www.refinery29.com/en-us/latine-somos) Latines learning, remembering, healing, and finding joy in our diverse stories. [](https://www.beautycon.com/) Beautycon is a global platform that brings together beauty enthusiasts, brands, and industry leaders to explore the latest trends, innovations, and conversations shaping the future of beauty. Featured Channels [Fitted](https://www.refinery29.com/en-us/fitted) [Horoscopes](https://www.refinery29.com/en-us/horoscope) [Money Diaries](https://www.refinery29.com/en-us/money-diary) [Beauty Studio](https://www.refinery29.com/en-us/beauty-studio) [Not Your Token Asian](https://www.refinery29.com/en-us/aapi-heritage-month) [My Period](https://www.refinery29.com/en-us/my-period) Get The Latest [Shopping](https://www.refinery29.com/en-us/shopping) [Work & Money](https://www.refinery29.com/en-us/work-and-money) [Sex & Wellness](https://www.refinery29.com/en-us/health) [Beauty](https://www.refinery29.com/en-us/beauty) [News](https://www.refinery29.com/en-us/us-news) [Entertainment](https://www.refinery29.com/en-us/entertainment) [Fashion](https://www.refinery29.com/en-us/fashion) [Politics](https://www.refinery29.com/en-us/politics) [Lifestyle](https://www.refinery29.com/en-us/living) Get In Touch [](https://www.refinery29.com/en-us)[](https://www.refinery29.com/en-us/unbothered)[](https://www.refinery29.com/en-us/latine-somos)[](https://www.beautycon.com/) [](https://www.refinery29.com/en-us) [](https://www.refinery29.com/en-us) United States - Switch To - [United Kingdom](https://www.refinery29.com/en-gb/2021/02/10333690/viral-memes-2021) - [Australia](https://www.refinery29.com/en-au/2021/08/10616742/viral-memes-2021) - [Germany](https://www.refinery29.com/de-de) - [France](https://www.refinery29.com/fr-fr) We noticed you're in France, would you like to see your local site? Click on the country / region above to switch. [](https://www.refinery29.com/en-us/unbothered) [](https://www.refinery29.com/en-us/latine-somos) [](https://www.beautycon.com/) [](https://www.refinery29.com/en-us) Now Reading #### Most Important Viral Memes Of 2021 So Far [Story from Tech](https://www.refinery29.com/en-us/tech) # The “Best” Memes Of 2021, So Far [Michelle Santiago Cortés](https://www.refinery29.com/en-us/author/michelle-santiago-cortes) Last Updated [May 7, 2021, 8:10 PM](https://www.refinery29.com/en-us/archives/2021/05/07) ADVERTISEMENT [See All Slides]("See All Slides") [Begin Slideshow](https://www.refinery29.com/en-us/2021/02/10330043/viral-memes-2021#slide-1 "Begin Slideshow") Photographed by Beth Sacca. We have learned a lot from a year of living most of our lives online. We’ve gone back and forth between treating the internet like a virtual town square on Twitter, revisiting our teenage archives on Tumblr, finding new identities on TikTok, and abandoning old ones on Instagram. Unshockingly, [last year’s “top” memes](https://www.refinery29.com/en-us/best-memes-2020) reflect the breadth of this range. From World War III memes in January to [coronavirus memes](https://www.refinery29.com/en-us/2020/03/9536396/coronavirus-memes-jokes) in March to memes about Grimes and Elon Musk’s newborn being some kind of cyberpunk Messiah in May, all struck a chaotic, filthy, and dystopic chord — but they were still funny. For a moment, no matter how bad things were, you could still laugh. That didn’t hold in June, when Black Lives Matter protests erupted across the country. Suddenly, pastel backgrounds and girl-boss slogans stepped in, promoting antiracism as if it were a brand — or worse, a part of *our* brands. These disgraceful actions eventually got to the point of [memeifying Breonna Taylor](https://www.vox.com/21327268/breonna-taylor-say-her-name-meme-hashtag), showing the power of memes to steer us totally wrong. Memes are just repetition, but that has a power of its own. A meme groups a few words, images, videos, or sounds, and as more people replicate it and share it, a meme grows stronger, more complex, and harder to pin down. In a way, the “best” memes are the ones that become building blocks for those that come after; they evolve into other memes and live through the ages. Through “dark times” — be they high school or a pandemic — that repetition can make us feel less alone. No matter what, as long as you get the memes, you’re laughing with *somebody.* At this point in 2021, viral memes are a cacophony of [laugh-crying](https://www.refinery29.com/en-us/2021/02/10314024/gen-z-millennials-laugh-cry-emoji) moments. We were projectiled into 2021 with the same level of messiness that pulled us through 2020. Since we still don’t know where exactly we’ll end up, once again, we’re going to keep a record of the most viral and impactful memes, one month at a time, to help us along on this journey. [Begin Slideshow](https://www.refinery29.com/en-us/2021/02/10330043/viral-memes-2021#slide-1) ADVERTISEMENT ADVERTISEMENT Most Important Viral Memes Of 2021 So Far [Tech](https://www.refinery29.com/en-us/tech) • [The Latest](https://www.refinery29.com/en-us/the-latest) • [Living](https://www.refinery29.com/en-us/living) • [Lifestyle](https://www.refinery29.com/en-us/lifestyle) • [TikTok](https://www.refinery29.com/en-us/tiktok) [written by Michelle Santiago Cortés](https://www.refinery29.com/en-us/author/michelle-santiago-cortes) Photographed by Beth Sacca. ## More from Tech [Unbothered I Became A ‘Corporate Catfish’ & Proved Job Discrimin... Seven months ago, Aliyah Jones, a 26-year-old creative from Washington, DC, published a documentary on LinkedIn titled “Corporate Catfish” and rocked t by Maxine Harrison](https://www.refinery29.com/en-us/aliyah-jones-corporate-catfish-discrimination-at-work) [Living I Track My Health Data Nonstop — Is This A Problem? From the moment I wake up, I begin tracking. I track my steps, calories burned, sleep quality, period, and ovulation. I track my runs on Strava and my hear by L'Oréal Blackett](https://www.refinery29.com/en-us/fitness-trackers-health-data-anxiety) [Dedicated Feature What Should A Coder Look Like? This New Media Artist Is Challengi... Even the briefest, most cursory glance at Mattaniah Aytenfsu’s TikTok offers incredible insight into the 27-year-old engineer’s wildly imaginative, bou by Andrea Cheng](https://www.refinery29.com/en-us/mattaniah-aytenfsu-new-media-artist-creative-technology) [Somos Latine Latines Lamented the TikTok Ban. Now Many Are Voluntarily Giving ... From the so-called “spa water” videos that started a conversation on the cultural appropriation of agua fresca, to the catchy Brazilian funk snip by Giulia Baldini](https://www.refinery29.com/en-us/latines-tiktok-ban-exodus) [Somos Latine Sewell Setzer’s Death Reveals the Dangers AI Poses to Latin... For almost a year, Sewell Setzer III, a 14-year-old from Orlando, spoke to AI-generated chatbots, powered by a company called Character.AI, meant to emulat by Valeria Ricciulli](https://www.refinery29.com/en-us/ai-dangers-latino-black-youth-sewell-setzer) [Unbothered I Spoke To Chat GPT’s “Black Female Therapist.” Will AI Sav... I’ve been speaking to Black Female Therapist™ for three days. My therapist doesn’t have a name but is an artificial intelligence chatbot described by by L'Oréal Blackett](https://www.refinery29.com/en-us/artificial-intelligence-chat-gpt-black-mental-health) [Somos Latine I Have 24,000 Followers, But I Still Feel Lonely On Social Media I have this distinct memory of a summer family party in Queens, New York. While the grown-ups danced to Joe Arroyo’s salsa hits in the backyard and kids by Kat Lazo](https://www.refinery29.com/en-us/social-media-loneliness-influencer) [Black History Month 2024 Can Hollywood Be Trusted To Put People First In Its AI Expansion? Artificial intelligence is sweeping almost every industry, and the never ending discourse about it highlights conflicted feelings of fear and excitement fo by Ineye Komonibo](https://www.refinery29.com/en-us/ai-movies-tv-hollywood-jobs-representation) [Black History Month 2024 Is Artificial Intelligence *Really* Racist? It’s Time To Con... The first articles that come up when you Google “artificial intelligence” and “Black people” are concerning to say the least. The New York Times as by Kathleen Newman-B...](https://www.refinery29.com/en-us/artificial-intelligence-black-futurism-racism) [Black Friday 2023 Take A Bite Out Of These Apple Cyber Monday Deals At Refinery29, we’re here to help you navigate this overwhelming world of stuff. All of our market picks are independently selected and curated by the ed by Victoria Montalti](https://www.refinery29.com/en-us/best-apple-black-friday-deals) [Shopping Olivia Rodrigo Talks *GUTS*, Fall Must-Haves, & Her Fave Tik... Great news for the 20- and 30-something teenage girls out there: Your GUTS listening experience is about to get even more cathartic. Olivia Rodrigo —ever by Venus Wong](https://www.refinery29.com/en-us/linkbud-s-olivia-rodrigo-interview) [Deals 15 Labor Day Tech Deals You Can Score Today by Avery Felman](https://www.refinery29.com/en-us/2020/08/9990398/best-labor-day-tech-sales) ADVERTISEMENT  COMPANY - [About Us](https://sundialmg.com/) - [Jobs](https://www.linkedin.com/company/refinery29/jobs) - [Advertising](mailto:advertising@refinery29.com) - [Feedback](mailto:feedback@refinery29.com) - [R29 Intelligence](https://www.refinery29.com/intelligence) - [Licensing and Reuse of Content](https://info.wrightsmedia.com/refinery29-licensing) INFORMATION - [R29 Company News](https://www.refinery29.com/refinery29-news) - [Terms](https://www.refinery29.com/en-us/terms-and-conditions) - [Privacy](https://www.refinery29.com/en-us/privacy) - [Cookie Policy](https://www.refinery29.com/en-us/cookie-policy) - [Accessibility](https://www.refinery29.com/en-us/accessibility-statement) - [Archives](https://www.refinery29.com/en-us/archives) - [RSS](https://www.refinery29.com/rss.xml) - [Gérer Mes Paramétres de Confidentialité](https://www.refinery29.com/en-us/2021/02/10330043/viral-memes-2021#do-not-sell-my-info) EDITIONS - [United Kingdom](https://www.refinery29.com/en-gb) - [Germany](https://www.refinery29.com/de-de) - [France](https://www.refinery29.com/fr-fr) - [Australia](https://www.refinery29.com/en-au) [NEWSLETTER SIGN-UP]() [](https://www.essentialaccessibility.com/refinery29?utm_source=refinery29homepage&utm_medium=iconlarge&utm_term=iconlarge&utm_content=header&utm_campaign=refinery29) © 2026 REFINERY29 ADVERTISEMENT

Photographed by Beth Sacca. We have learned a lot from a year of living most of our lives online. We’ve gone back and forth between treating the internet like a virtual town square on Twitter, revisiting our teenage archives on Tumblr, finding new identities on TikTok, and abandoning old ones on Instagram. Unshockingly, [last year’s “top” memes](https://www.refinery29.com/en-us/best-memes-2020) reflect the breadth of this range. From World War III memes in January to [coronavirus memes](https://www.refinery29.com/en-us/2020/03/9536396/coronavirus-memes-jokes) in March to memes about Grimes and Elon Musk’s newborn being some kind of cyberpunk Messiah in May, all struck a chaotic, filthy, and dystopic chord — but they were still funny. For a moment, no matter how bad things were, you could still laugh. That didn’t hold in June, when Black Lives Matter protests erupted across the country. Suddenly, pastel backgrounds and girl-boss slogans stepped in, promoting antiracism as if it were a brand — or worse, a part of *our* brands. These disgraceful actions eventually got to the point of [memeifying Breonna Taylor](https://www.vox.com/21327268/breonna-taylor-say-her-name-meme-hashtag), showing the power of memes to steer us totally wrong. Memes are just repetition, but that has a power of its own. A meme groups a few words, images, videos, or sounds, and as more people replicate it and share it, a meme grows stronger, more complex, and harder to pin down. In a way, the “best” memes are the ones that become building blocks for those that come after; they evolve into other memes and live through the ages. Through “dark times” — be they high school or a pandemic — that repetition can make us feel less alone. No matter what, as long as you get the memes, you’re laughing with *somebody.* At this point in 2021, viral memes are a cacophony of [laugh-crying](https://www.refinery29.com/en-us/2021/02/10314024/gen-z-millennials-laugh-cry-emoji) moments. We were projectiled into 2021 with the same level of messiness that pulled us through 2020. Since we still don’t know where exactly we’ll end up, once again, we’re going to keep a record of the most viral and impactful memes, one month at a time, to help us along on this journey.