The internet thrives on meme and viral culture. From hilarious 6 second memorable phrases on Vine to vlog channels that we all know and love, social media finds a way to pull a gem out of almost anything. The majority of popular videos hit virality worldwide by becoming well known on platforms like Twitter and Facebook, and the Virgin Islands are no exception. Here are some “viral” Virgin Islands-based videos that you may have forgotten about.
1. VI Slap Chop
Ripper The Entertainer is the man responsible for one of the most familiar and most viewed Virgin Islands viral videos titled “Virgin Islands Slap Chop.” The video is a hilarious voiceover of the infamous Slap Chop infomercial, which gives the passionate TV host a VI persona and dialect to go along with it. This viral hit was originally posted in 2012 and quickly went viral with a current view count of just over 380,000. It even led to other Caribbean-themed parodies of the same infomercial such as “Trini Slap Chop” and “Jamaican Slap Chop.” How many of us can say that we don’t occasionally yell out “BRAM!!” when chopping vegetables in the kitchen now?https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DfTlRsFTkSo
2. Norma Pickard Samuel’s “I DON’T CARE!” Rant
Our next viral video resurfaces on occasion as a reaction meme used by many VI Twitter users. The year was 2011. Virgin Islanders in St. Thomas had gathered to protest rising utility rates courtesy of the Virgin Islands Water and Power Authority (some things never change.) What was planned to be a simple protest ultimately became a viral video thanks to former senator Norma Pickard Samuel, whose filmed confrontation with one of the protestors was uploaded to Youtube and quickly went viral. In the video, Norma delivers a heated message and suddenly turns to the cameraman to ensure that if and when he uploads his footage, she is given due credit. Although the team here at Kickin’ It is not sure what led to the confrontation – we do know that no matter what you take from this video, you better know how to “get it right, and spell it right!”https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MHcB_5TvKJI
3. Only In The Virgin Islands Pt. 1
So what happens when you put VI music legends Rock City, Benny Demus & photographer Jamal Samuel in a comedy sketch? One of the funniest viral Virgin Islands videos to date. In the sketch uploaded in 2014, the crew acts out a number of typical Virgin Islands scenarios and common phrases, from interactions with friends on the phone, fights and confrontations, and a hilarious moment with Benny Demus as an old VI mother. Today you might see small clips of their recorded antics on Twitter being used as reaction videos. This sketch will be remembered for years to come as one of the first videos to accurately depict the unique way in which Virgin Islanders interact. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pjPo3yulf8A&t=14s
4. Stop The Bleeding Commercial
The tone of this commercial was in no way meant to be comedic when it initially aired in the summer of 2009. Stop The Bleeding USVI filmed and promoted this commercial as a part of its nonviolence campaign in an effort to encourage parental involvement in their kids’ lives. Still, as all things in Virgin Islands and internet culture go, the jokes gon’ fly. The teens who starred in this commercial are now responsible for memorable phrases such as “Mami! Papi! Do you see where I am?” https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=riVybttnEzY
5. Kyra’s “Accent Tag”
Some would say this is the video that started it all. In this fun OG Kickin It challenge, Kyra joins Rhea (St. Thomas) and Kevin (St. Croix) to showcase the fun differences and similarities in accents across the Virgin Islands region. Who knew that we were all pronouncing “syrup” so differently? Our favorite part of this video is the fact that so many of us discovered Kickin’ It as a result and are still here enjoying the content five years later! https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=p8LiQiTAXaw
Can you think of a “viral” Virgin Islands video that can be included on this list? Tag us on social media and take us down memory lane!
