Jonas Brothers Team Up with Joe Biden for Viral Pro-Vaccine Video That Will Befuddle the Olds
The Jonas Brothers teamed up with President Joe Biden for a short pro-vaccine video that capitalizes on the popular “Joe Byron” Tik Tok meme.
The 17-second video, posted to Twitter and Tik Tok, features the three brothers lip-synching to snippets that revolve around the question “Are you vaccinated?” but which include references that might be confusing to those for whom Tik Tok is the noise a clock makes, and The Jonas Brothers are people you’ve heard your children discuss as you drive them to the mall.
And President Biden shows up at the end of the video, with the reveal that he has been filing it with a cellphone camera.
Nick Jonas tweeted the video with the message “Dinner plans, @POTUS?” — which is another reference to the meme.
Dinner plans @POTUS? pic.twitter.com/v1WynwwakI
— Nick Jonas (@nickjonas) December 17, 2021
Several White House staffers also tweeted the video and added their own references, as well as some light lampooning of the boss.
Bing — and I’m not being solicitous, I mean it — bonghttps://t.co/4clB0xFJRh
— Rob Flaherty (@RFlaherty46) December 17, 2021
The first time I watched this I had zero frame of reference for it because I am old, yet I weirdly still loved it even though it sounded like literal nonsense. Then @RFlaherty46 explained it to me and it got even better. “‘Sup, baby?” (Did I do it right, Rob?) https://t.co/sNUwm4Paqs
— Kate Bedingfield (@WHCommsDir) December 17, 2021
Folks,,,, THE JOE BROS https://t.co/Kzd5W1bAOE
— Megan Apper (@meganapper46) December 17, 2021
If anyone needs me to explain this to them, just let me know
cc @mkikukawa46 @naustin46 @ADCPerez46 https://t.co/1MXXaShf1s
— chrismeagher46 (@chrismeagher46) December 17, 2021
Journalists, political and media figures, and other verified users reacted to the video, not all positively.
Watch til the end… https://t.co/4RIDYuxDU0
— Jeremy Diamond (@JDiamond1) December 17, 2021
Took the JoBros for Biden to know about Byron https://t.co/s96IbpQ80l
— Marisa Dellatto (@MarisaDellatto) December 17, 2021
We live in hell https://t.co/JQY0Jl8FQA
— Luke Savage (@LukewSavage) December 18, 2021
The White House and POTUS jumping on the viral “Joe Byron” meme https://t.co/6nO0eCSaLs
— Rebecca Morin (@RebeccaMorin_) December 17, 2021
This was discovered in the White House pool bus yesterday and now I’m so mad I did not include reporters’ reactions in my reports.
(Mine: 1. “stop playing that please” 2. “Ok I know I sound old but are the Jonas brothers still relevant?”) https://t.co/Dc2AFWjKK2
— Danielle Kurtzleben (@titonka) December 18, 2021
I’ll take cringeworthy tiktoks for $1000 https://t.co/YELmwFzXlO
— Sean Spicer (@seanspicer) December 18, 2021
Missed opportunity not to use “you see these dogs in your front yard?” with Major https://t.co/ArHWnGcNZp
— Grace Panetta (@grace_panetta) December 17, 2021
The reporter was too stunned to speak https://t.co/kFVvcYXJSD
— Sarah Mucha (@sarahmucha) December 17, 2021
The video has racked up over 10 million views.
If you’re not cool enough to get all the references, you can read a detailed explanation of the meme at Know Your Meme, excerpted in part here:
Joe Byron, also identifiable as Fuck Ya Life, Bing Bong, refers to a viral video, TikTok sound and lip-dub trend that originated from a Sidetalk NYC video posted to YouTube, TikTok and Instagram in September 2021. Although “Joe Byron” had been shouted and emphasized in a precursor Sidetalk video from April 2021, it wasn’t until a September video, and other various reposts of it on TikTok in October 2021, that the audio started being exploited en masse on the platform. As a summary, the video showed New York City residents in Coney Island shouting different catchphrases at the camera like Bing Bong. One man, in particular, shouted “Joe Byron!” as a butchering of Joe Biden’s name.
The president’s efforts to get more of the country vaccinated got a boost, temporarily at least, when an appeals court reversed the stay on his employer vaccine and testing mandate Friday.
Watch above via Joe Biden and The Jonas Brothers.
