In Japanese stores that sell pocket money trinkets, there are racks of toys, stickers and keyrings based on the global crew of AI-generated characters that almost every child knows, with few adults.
The walking shark in oversized sneakers, an orange with muscular arms, and a round-round head mug “ballerina cappuccina” is one of the strange stars of the online phenomenon known as the Italian brainlot.
“It's not funny at all at first, but it grows into you,” said Yoshi Yamanaka-Nebesney, 16-year-old New York. AFP.
“You might use it to bother someone and find it interesting.”
The name nods to the stupid effects of scrolling through heartfelt social media posts, especially over-the-top images created with artificial intelligence tools.
Shouty, the crude, often pointless Italian narration is made with many clips made by people from different countries that have spread this year on platforms such as young Gen Z and Tiktok embraced by members of Gen Alpha.
More than dozens of cartoon-style AI creatures have become memes, inspiring streams of new content such as “Brainrot Rap,” which they've seen 116 million times on YouTube.
A YouTube short entitled “Five Crazy Italian Brainrot Animals,” which includes a cactus elephant crossover named “Lirili Larila,” has also been viewed 320 million times.
“There are a lot of phrases that all these characters have,” Tokyo's Yamanaka-Nebesney said along with her mother Chinami.
School-age Italian Brainrot fans can find from Kenya to Spain and Korea, but some of the most popular videos refer to Indonesian language and culture instead.
“I went on a trip to Mexico with a boy,” Yamanaka Nevezny said, and people would “joking about it.”
“Melodic Language”
Internet trends are moving rapidly, with Italian brainlot “peaking two or a month ago,” says Idil Galip, a lecturer at the University of Amsterdam in New Media and Digital Culture.
Italian – “Melodic Language with Joke Opportunities” has previously appeared in other memes.
And “There are so many people in Indonesia,” Galip said, sharing a post with potential global reach.
The “multi-level marketing economy” has emerged, and AI video makers are targeting the vast audience of Italian Brainrot through online advertising and product sales, she added.
Nurina, a 41-year-old Indonesian NGO worker, said her 7-year-old boy loves the world of Brainrot, which was mashed up.
“Sometimes, when I go to pick him up from school, or when I work from home, he screams, 'Mom! Bombardino Crocodillo!'” – a bomber plane character with a crocodile head.
“I know it's fun to watch,” said Nuna, who like many Indonesians, by one name.
“I need him to make him realize that this is not real.”
Some videos have been criticized for including offensive messages that put the heads of young viewers, including rambling references in Italian for the children of Gaza's “Bombaldino Crocodillo.”
“The problem is that these characters are put into adult content,” and “many parents aren't familiar with high-tech,” enough to find danger,” warned Jakarta-based clinical psychologist Oriza Sativa.
Tung Tung Tung Sahur
The most famous Indonesian brainlot character, “Tung Tung Tung Sahur,” resembles a long drum called the Kenton Gun, which is used to wake people up for pre-dawn meals and Sahur during Ramadan.
Indonesia has a young digitally active population of around 280 million, and “Tung Tung Tung Sahur” is not the only export of the virus.
This summer, video footage of a boy wearing sunglasses dancing on a row boat during a race at a festival in West Indonesia has also become an internet sensation.
Noxa, the Tiktoker behind the original “Tung Tung Tung Sahur” clip, is currently represented by a group based in a group of artists, lawyers and researchers called the Mementum Lab.
“Noxa is an Indonesia-based content creator. He is under 20,” they said. AFP. “He makes fast, over-stimulated, AI-supported videos.”
“He doesn't call himself a 'modern artist', but I think he's already acting like one,” Mementum Lab said. MementumLab says it focuses on complex emerging issues with AI's intellectual property, helping Noxa negotiate deals for his work.
Noxa said in a comment provided by The Collective that the character was “inspired by the sound of Sahur Drum I heard.”
“I didn't want my character to be just another joke. I wanted him to make sense,” he said.
But while cultural nuances can be lost on a massive scale, a 12-year-old Tokyo tourist says he thought “Tung Tung Tung Sahur” was a baseball bat.
And the generation gap appears to last.
“What is that?!” She laughed at the woman when she was confused by the line of Italian brainlot dolls. “Absolutely cute!”
