There Is A New Viral Meme Called 'Damn, Daniel' That Only Millennials Will Understand

Lauren Keating, Tech Times 26 February 2016, 04:02 pm

As much as it is frustrating, it's actually a bit funny when our parents or grandparents ask for help on how to use their DVRs, for advice on deciding whether to buy an iPhone or a "smartphone" (yes, this conversation really happened) or when they ask what FOMO means. However, as we continue to get older — and learn just how adulting (meaning doing grown-up things such as paying rent and having a nine-to-five job) is — we are learning that it's us too who are becoming a bit out of touch.

For example, you probably have not heard about that new viral meme called "Damn, Daniel" that is taking social media by storm. Even if you did watch the video, we bet you will officially start considering yourself an adult if you don't get it. Ugh, damn millennials.

Before we get into this new Snapchat obsession, we have to break down the brief history of similar viral videos so that you can better understand just why this has become so popular among millennials.

We are hoping that you are familiar with the viral video from 2005 "Charlie the Unicorn." Created by Jason Steele from the independent film company FilmCow, the animated short features the moody unicorn Charlie who goes on a journey to Candy Mountain led by two other obviously hyper unicorns. It's most popularly known for the phrase "Chaarliee" in the narrator's distinct voice.

"Damn, Daniel" is essentially the modern take on this video. This new video-turned-meme that is taking the Internet by storm was created by Joshua Holz, a high school sophomore who started filming his friend Daniel Lara. The video consists of a series of clips where Holz repeatedly says, "damn, Daniel," using the voice from the "Charlie the Unicorn" video, focusing on his sneakers — white Vans — for the big finale before panning to his face.

To understand this part, we must digress and talk about another viral video. Over the summer, an Instagram video rose to Internet fame that featured user @youngbusco asking a police officer, "What are thoooose?!" while focusing on his shoes. This led to an all-out viral sensation on Instagram, Vine and Snapchat that featured other sneakerheads and goofballs asking others about their choice of footwear.

Free Myesha fast

A video posted by Snapchat @youngbusco87 (@youngbusco) on Jun 14, 2015 at 10:55am PDT

Get the picture?

"Damn, Daniel" was originally posted on Snapchat before being uploaded to YouTube and shared on Twitter, gaining over 45 million views.

Damn Daniel pic.twitter.com/Va10hmpePO
— josh (@josholzz) February 16, 2016

The series of Snapchat videos have become so big that the two teens were even featured on an episode of The Ellen DeGeneres Show that aired on Wednesday.

Since the phrase "back at it again with the white Vans" is repeatedly used, this has gotten the attention of the company, which is using the teen's Internet celeb status to further engage with its customers.