2025

Hana Khan, Writer • January 17, 2026

There have been many trends in 2025; it was what some people would say was the “peak of brainrot.” We started off the year with the infamous Labubu dolls and ended with the big 67 that took over the world. Let’s break down the most famous TikTok and music trends we experienced each month in 2025 and leave that year in the past.

January:

This month, TikTok was being shut down in the United States, which caused big influencers to come on the platform and state a big confession. Some even confessed to faking or staging their videos just for TikTok to come back, not even 24 hours later. Along with that, “Die With a Smile” by Lady Gaga and Bruno Mars smashed the Billboard charts, with the Weeknd’s new album “Hurry Up Tomorrow”.

February:

This month, the internet sparked a slightly pointless debate: 100 men vs 1 Gorilla. This gained popularity as people started stating that we have underestimated the strength of a gorilla. This debate was on many popular social media apps and websites, such as Twitter, Reddit, Instagram, TikTok, etc. In this month, there was a rise in the popularity of blind boxes such as the popular Labubu dolls and the Sonny Angel Babies. The dominating song this month was “APT” By Rosé from BLACKPINK. Along with APT, Tate McRae’s song “Sports Car” aligns with her album release “So Close to What.”

March:

This month, wherever you walked, you probably got a glimpse of someone drinking Matcha. Whether it was freshly homemade or bought from a fancy store, everyone was drinking the famous Japanese drink. This month, Chappell Roan’s single “The Giver” was dominating the Billboard charts. Playboi Carti released an album that stayed on these charts as well, the album “Music.”

April:

This month, the infamous 67 meme was popularized, causing every kid on the block to scream “67” any chance they got. Although we didn’t see any recognizable albums come out this month, we saw a rise in Kendrick Lamar and SZA’s song “Luther.” It was dominating all the charts while being featured on most social media platforms

May:

Have you heard someone say “Nothing Beats A Jet2 Holiday”? Well, that was an ad released by the Jet2 Airline in the UK, and the audio was put over fails or funny moments. This month, the pop singer, Sabrina Carpenter, released her single, “Manchild,” from her soon-to-be-released album “A Man’s Best Friend.”

June:

This month, Addison Rae’s song “Fame is a Gun” started a new “main character” energy trend. with people lip-syncing to the audio while showing something off. This month, Tate McRae takes the charts once again with her song “Just Keep Watching” for the anticipated F1 movie, finally coming out. Along with that, Sabrina Carpenter’s album “Man’s Best Friend” came out and charted high.

July:

This month, the “sorry we’re late” trend was all over all social platforms. This trend consisted of two people, one of them starting with “sorry *the other person* was throwing a fit” and then showing the other person in a flattering outfit. This month, Benson Boone’s Crumble Cookie was plastered across the internet, and people would use his song “Mystical Magical” while holding the cookie and doing a backflip in the store. This month, Benson Boone’s “Beautiful Things” was the most popular song on the charts

August:

This month, people were trying to do makeup looks of the year they were born, which resulted in many bold and vibrant makeup looks. The world-famous pop star Taylor Swift posted her engagement to the football team, Kansas City Chiefs’ tight end, Travis Kelce; the engagement is currently the most liked engagement post on Instagram. This month, Reneé Rapp’s new album “BITE ME” was high on the charts along with Billie Eilish’s “BIRDS OF A FEATHER” and Conan Gray’s “Wishbone,” which maintained its high position on the charts.

September:

This month, everyone’s back-to-school hauls started popping up on social media. From note-taking hacks to what notebooks and pens to buy, this happens every year; it’s a trend at this point. This month, Tate McRae’s single, “Tit for Tate,” had just come out, and it was very high on the charts along with some other 2025 favorites.

October:

For this month’s famous social trend, influencers would hang from high poles while singing Kid Cudi’s popular song “Maui Wowie.” Taylor Swift released her album “The Life of a Showgirl,” which dominated the charts; all 12 songs on that album took over the first 12 Billboard spots, “The Fate of Ophelia” being number one.

November:

This month, it was a trend to wear maximalist, 2000s clothing, with people thrifting old clothes or raiding their parents’ closets. This month, there were no significant album releases, but we had Alex Warren’s “Ordinary” dominating the charts along with Taylor Swift’s recent release, “The Fate of Ophelia.”

December:

During this holiday season, as always, Mariah Carey’s “All I Want for Christmas is You” topped the charts along with Taylor Swift’s “The Fate of Ophelia,” which maintained its number one position despite the holidays coming up. For our TikTok trends, we had the “Holy Freaking Airball,” where they revealed shocking things about themselves. Example: “I told him I go to college” and then the hypothetical person asks, “So you go to some small college?” The last slide would say “Holy Freaking airball” with an Ivy League school.

Wow, 2025 was a long ride; it felt so slow and so quick at the same time! Some of it felt like a fever dream. We were really eating cookies and doing backflips while screaming numbers at the top of our lungs. As much fun as I had in 2025, I can’t wait to see what 2026 has waiting for us.