관짝 밈

Meme Name: Coffin Dance Meme (관짝 밈) - pronounced "Gwan-jjak Mim" (roughly "Gwan-jahk Meem")

The Coffin Dance Meme originated from a video first uploaded to TikTok on February 26, 2020, and quickly gained global popularity. It spread even further during the COVID-19 pandemic, often combined with messages promoting social distancing.

The Coffin Dance Meme is a humorous meme created by superimposing a video of Ghana's unique funeral culture onto clips of shocking accidents or absurd failures. Whenever an unfortunate outcome is expected or actually occurs, the meme shows dancers in black suits cheerfully carrying a coffin and dancing, wittily conveying that the situation has "gone wrong" or "failed spectacularly." The background music predominantly used is "Astronomia" by Vicetone & Tony Igy or "Astronomia 2K19" by Stephan F. This song is now so strongly associated with the meme that it's often called the "execution BGM."

Originally, this Ghanaian funeral dance is performed only when the deceased lived a good life (a "hosang," meaning a fortunate death). However, in the meme, it's applied to accidents or unfortunate situations, diverging from its original meaning. During the COVID-19 pandemic, it was also used with the phrase "STAY AT HOME OR DANCE WITH US" to emphasize the importance of social distancing and self-quarantine. Various modified versions exist, such as those where an accident is avoided, or someone thought to be dead comes back to life. In Korea, it's also known as '관짝춤' (Gwanjjakchum, Coffin Dance), '관짝밈' (Gwanjjak Mim, Coffin Meme), or '관짝 댄스' (Gwanjjak Dance, Coffin Dance).

Originating on TikTok and spreading across various online platforms like YouTube and Twitch, this meme was primarily consumed by young internet users, mainly in their late teens to early thirties. While it gained recognition globally across all ages and genders, the main consumers are generally the younger generation familiar with internet culture.

The Coffin Dance Meme is used in various video content to evoke laughter. For instance, it's often appended to clips of absurd deaths in video games, critical mistakes in sports, or ridiculous accidents in daily life.

While the Coffin Dance Meme is used humorously, it's important to be aware that its origin lies in Ghanaian funeral culture. Specifically, if used in a way that mocks actual unfortunate events or the deceased, diverging from the meme's context, it can be perceived as disrespecting the dead. The original funeral dance in the source video is performed only when the deceased lived a good life ("hosang"), and applying it to accidents or unfortunate situations, as in the meme, differs from its original meaning. Furthermore, care should be taken to ensure it does not demean specific individuals or groups, or contain racist elements.