The internet is a weird place. One day you’re listening to a chart-topping R&B track, and the next day, a single line from that song has been stripped of its context, deep-fried in irony, and plastered over a video of a spinning capybara. That is basically the life cycle of the think about you meme. It’s catchy. It’s slightly melancholic. Honestly, it’s the perfect soundtrack for the digital age where we communicate mostly through vibes and short-form video loops.
If you’ve spent more than five minutes on TikTok or Instagram Reels lately, you’ve heard it. That high-pitched, almost chipmunk-soul vocal tag: "I think about you." It’s usually followed by a beat drop that feels like a warm hug or a sudden realization. But where did it actually come from? Most people humming it don't even know the source. They just know it fits perfectly when they're posting a "POV" video about missing their ex, or more likely, missing a sandwich they ate three years ago.
The Drake Connection and the "Chicago Freestyle" Roots
Let’s get the facts straight. The core of the think about you meme comes from the song "Chicago Freestyle" by Drake, featuring Giveon. Released in 2020 as part of the Dark Lane Demo Tapes, the track was an instant atmospheric hit. But the specific line everyone is obsessed with isn't actually an original Drake melody. It’s a clever interpolation of Eminem’s "Superman" from 2002.
Drake took Eminem’s gritty, cynical flow and turned it into something smooth and haunting. Giveon’s baritone provides the weight, but the "think about you" part—the part that became the meme—is often pitched up or remixed in social media edits. It creates this strange juxtaposition. You have a song about the lonely, jet-setting life of a superstar, but the internet uses it to describe the feeling of looking at a cool rock they found on the ground.
Music memes work because they are malleable. When a sound goes viral, it loses its original baggage. Nobody is thinking about Drake’s flight to Chicago when they use this audio. They’re thinking about the specific, relatable yearning the melody evokes. It’s a sonic shorthand for "this thing is on my mind."
Why This Specific Sound Went Nuclear
Trends don't just happen by accident. Usually, there's a specific "format" that takes hold. With the think about you meme, the format is almost always nostalgia or obsession.
Think about the way we consume content now. We’re constantly bombarded with "corecore" edits—those fast-paced, emotional montages of movies, old home videos, or nature scenes. The "Chicago Freestyle" hook became the unofficial anthem for these edits. Why? Because the cadence of the line "I think about you" mimics the way human memory works. It’s repetitive. It’s rhythmic. It lingers.
There's also the "Slowed + Reverb" phenomenon. On YouTube and SoundCloud, creators took the original track and stretched it out. This makes the "think about you" line sound like it’s being played in a giant, empty cathedral. That version is what really fueled the meme’s longevity. It stopped being a song and started being a "mood." You’ve probably seen it used in:
- Sports edits showing a retired player’s highlights.
- Travel vlogs where someone is leaving a beautiful city.
- Irony-poisoned memes where the "thing" being thought about is something absurd, like a cursed image of a cat.
The Irony Factor: From Sincere to Silly
Every meme eventually hits a turning point. It starts out sincere—people actually using the song to express feelings. Then, the internet gets bored and starts making fun of the sincerity. This is where the think about you meme found its second life.
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You’ll see videos now where the text overlay says something like, "Me thinking about the 4-piece chicken nugget I accidentally dropped in 2014," while the dramatic Drake vocals swell in the background. It’s funny because it’s a massive over-dramatization. We love taking high-production, serious art and applying it to the most mundane parts of our lives. It’s a way of reclaiming the "main character" feeling, even if only for a 15-second clip.
It’s also worth noting that Giveon’s voice is particularly "meme-able." His deep, resonant tone is so distinct that even a three-word snippet is instantly recognizable. When you pitch that down or up, it retains a certain soulfulness that other pop songs lack. It doesn't feel manufactured; it feels like a genuine expression of a thought.
Technical Breakdown: The "Superman" Interpolation
To really understand the think about you meme, you have to look at the 20-year gap between Eminem and Drake. In 2002, Eminem sang: "I’ll put out for you / I’ll get out for you / But I won’t look back and think about you."
Drake flipped the script. He kept the melody but changed the sentiment to: "I’ll go catch a flight for you / I’ll roll out in the night for you / I’ll go out of my way to think about you."
This shift from "I won't think about you" to "I'll go out of my way to think about you" is why the meme exists. We live in an era of overthinking. We live in an era of digital stalking and nostalgia for things that haven't even ended yet. Drake tapped into a universal modern anxiety—the inability to let go—and the meme culture just ran with it.
Common Misconceptions About the Sound
A lot of people think the meme is from a TikTok-exclusive remix or a generic AI voice. It’s not. While there are thousands of remixes, the soul of the meme is a human performance. In an age of AI-generated music, the fact that a real vocal performance from years ago is still dominating the algorithm says a lot. People crave that grain in the voice. They want the imperfections.
Another misconception is that the meme is "dead." In meme years, 2020 is ancient history. But the think about you meme belongs to a rare class of "evergreen" sounds. Much like the "In This Shirt" by The Irrepressibles or "Space Song" by Beach House, it has transcended its original trend cycle. It’s now just a tool in the creator’s toolbox. If you need to convey "yearning," you use this sound. Period.
How to Use the Meme Without Being Cringe
If you’re a creator or just someone trying to stay relevant on the timeline, you can’t just slap this audio on anything. The internet sniffs out "corporate" or "forced" meme usage instantly.
The most successful uses of the think about you meme usually involve high-contrast storytelling. Start with something very normal, then use the beat drop to reveal the "obsession." For example, a video of someone working a boring desk job, and then the drop happens and it cuts to a slideshow of their Minecraft world. That’s the sweet spot. It’s self-deprecating but visually engaging.
Also, pay attention to the "vibe." This isn't an upbeat, "get ready with me" sound. It’s a "staring out the window of a rainy bus" sound. If your visuals don't match that atmospheric weight, the meme falls flat. You've got to lean into the moodiness.
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What This Says About Modern Pop Culture
The think about you meme is a perfect case study in how music is consumed today. We don't listen to albums as much as we listen to moments. A five-second "moment" in a song can be worth more in marketing capital than the rest of the four-minute track.
Drake is a master of this. He writes "caption music." He knows that certain lines will be clipped, saved, and repurposed. Whether he intended for this specific line to become a hallmark of internet culture doesn't really matter. The audience took it, reshaped it, and gave it a life of its own. It shows that the "artist" no longer has the final say on what their work means. The "editor" does.
Real-World Impact and Longevity
Interestingly, this meme has actually helped sustain Giveon’s career. While he’s a massive star in his own right now, for a lot of younger Gen Z users, the "Chicago Freestyle" hook was their first introduction to his voice. It created a "who is that?" moment that led to millions of streams on his solo work like "Heartbreak Anniversary."
Memes are the new radio. They are the primary way music is discovered and kept alive. A song from 2020 shouldn't still be trending in 2026, yet here we are. It defies the traditional decay of the music industry.
Actionable Takeaways for Navigating Music Trends
To stay ahead of trends like the think about you meme, you need to look at the "bones" of a song. Look for:
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- Simple, repetitive lyrics: Three to five words that can be applied to many situations.
- A clear emotional "pivot": A moment where the energy of the song changes significantly.
- Nostalgic samples: Songs that reference older hits (like Eminem) have a built-in cross-generational appeal.
- Space for visuals: The audio shouldn't be too busy. It needs "room" for the video content to breathe.
If you're looking to dive deeper into the world of viral audio, start by tracking the "Original Sound" tags on TikTok. Don't just look at the top videos; look at the first 50 videos made with a sound. That’s where you’ll find the "original" joke before it gets diluted by the masses. Understanding the context of the think about you meme helps you see the patterns in everything else that goes viral.
The next time you hear those three little words over a video of a golden retriever or a sunset, you'll know exactly why it's there. It’s not just a song snippet. It’s a digital shorthand for the way we all get stuck on things. It’s Drake, it’s Eminem, and it’s every weird thing you’ve ever thought about at 2:00 AM.
To keep your finger on the pulse, keep an eye on how classic R&B tracks from the early 2010s are being sampled today. The "nostalgia cycle" has shortened to about 5-10 years, meaning the songs you're listening to right now are likely the memes of tomorrow. Watch for tracks with isolated vocal hooks or heavy atmospheric production—those are the prime candidates for the next big "mood" meme. Stay curious about the "why" behind the "what," and you'll never be behind the curve.
Next Steps for Content Creators:
- Identify the "Hook": Find a 5-10 second clip of a song that expresses a singular, relatable emotion (longing, confusion, triumph).
- Contrast the Visuals: Pair high-emotion audio with low-stakes or humorous visuals to trigger the irony that makes memes go viral.
- Check the "Slowed" Versions: Search YouTube for "slowed + reverb" versions of current hits to find audio that fits the atmospheric "corecore" aesthetic.
- Trace the Source: Always look up the original artist and lyrics. Understanding the "Superman" vs. "Chicago Freestyle" history gives you an edge in creating content that resonates with multiple fanbases.