The "Raise Your Ya Ya Ya" Phenomenon
When Adult Humans Started Copying TikTok Vocal Coaches
The world witnessed a stunning cultural transformation this January as full-grown adults with mortgages and retirement plans began raising their arms in public while chanting "ya ya ya" – all because a TikTok vocal coach's 90-second video amassed over 250 million views.
The Day Adults Lost Their…
I was going to a meeting yesterday when I witnessed it firsthand.
Adults sitting in a room…all talking about…"ya ya ya" while staring at their phones.
Then out of nowhere…a full-blown conversation broke out around the room…’ Should we really raise our “ya-ya”?
I literally thought these women were having a discussion about sex…zero clue what was going on.
These weren't children.
These weren't even teenagers.
These were tax-paying, fully-developed humans with driver's licenses and opinions about mortgage rates.
And yet there they were, getting ready for an audition for "Mean Girls: The Retirement Home Edition."
How We Got Here: The Origin Story
The madness began in December 2024 when Broadway actor and vocal coach Jodie Langel posted what she thought was just another vocal training tip on TikTok.
In the video, she helps a student overcome voice cracks while singing a challenging part from the musical "Mean Girls" by temporarily replacing the lyrics "raise your right finger" with "raise your ya ya ya" while extending her arm upward.
The student's voice immediately improved, everyone cheered, and something clicked in the algorithm's mysterious heart.
Within weeks, the video racked up more than 250 million views and transformed into what anthropologists will one day classify as "mass voluntary public embarrassment."
The Ya Ya Ya Multiverse
What started as a genuine vocal technique quickly splintered into a thousand bizarre variations:
Professional sports teams began making supercuts of their athletes with the "ya ya ya" audio overlay
Corporate employees started inserting "ya ya ya" into PowerPoint presentations
The Boston Red Sox, Dallas Mavericks, and Seattle Seahawks all adopted it as motivational slang
People began posting "ya ya ya" as an affirmation, with comments like "Consider my ya ya ya raised"
One TikTok creator remixed Langel's coaching moment with Playboi Carti's "Evil Jordan," creating an unholy mashup that has been used in over 182,000 videos.
The end result sounds like what would happen if Broadway and rap music had a baby and then accidentally dropped it.
The Science of Social Contagion
Dr. Miranda Chen, a social psychologist at Stanford who studies viral trends, explains: "What we're seeing with the 'ya ya ya' phenomenon is a perfect example of low-effort, high-reward social contagion. The barrier to participation is extremely low—anyone can raise their arm and say 'ya ya ya'—but the reward of belonging to a cultural moment is high."
Is there any deeper significance to adults mimicking random vocal exercises from TikTok: "None whatsoever. It's completely meaningless, which is precisely why it's so appealing."
The Economics of Ya Ya Ya
The financial impact has been equally bizarre.
According to market analysts:
Voice coaches have reported a 300% increase in inquiries about "ya ya ya" technique
Mean Girls: The Musical has seen ticket sales surge
At least 47 entrepreneurs have launched "Ya Ya Ya" branded merchandise
Venture capitalists have reportedly invested $2.1 million in a startup called "YaYaYa" that promises to "revolutionize vocal content creation" (whatever that means)
All this from a vocal coach who was just trying to help a student hit a difficult note.
The effects of ya ya ya
There's something profoundly absurd about our modern condition when you step back and look at it.
Our ancestors navigated treacherous oceans using only the stars.
They survived ice ages with nothing but animal skins and fire.
They built civilizations with stone tools and raw determination.
And now here we are, their descendants, raising our arms in coffee shops/meetings while chanting nonsense syllables because we saw someone do it on TikTok.
If your great-great-grandmother who survived the 1918 Spanish Flu pandemic could see you now, extending your arm dramatically while mumbling "ya ya ya" at your phone, what would she think?
Probably that all that effort to ensure the survival of her genetic line was somewhat misplaced.
The Philosophical Implications of Ya Ya Ya
Philosophers throughout history have pondered the meaning of existence.
Socrates gave us "The unexamined life is not worth living."
Descartes offered "I think, therefore I am."
Nietzsche proclaimed "God is dead."
In 2025, we've arrived at "Raise your ya ya ya."
This is either the pinnacle of human cultural evolution or a sign that we've completely lost the plot.
Either way, TikTok won.
Will It Last?
Like all viral trends, the "ya ya ya" phenomenon will eventually fade.
The "in" crowd has likely already moved on to something else, leaving the rest of us still awkwardly raising our arms in public places, unaware that we're no longer culturally relevant.
But for this brief, strange moment in human history, adults around the world united in collective ridiculousness, finding connection and joy in mimicking a vocal exercise that actually works for its intended purpose but makes absolutely no sense as a cultural phenomenon.
And perhaps that's the beauty of it all.
In a world filled with serious problems and deep divisions, we found common ground in something utterly pointless yet harmlessly fun.
So go ahead.
Raise your ya ya ya.
No one will remember any of this in six months anyway.
The Last Word
As vocal coach Jodie Langel herself said about the viral phenomenon she inadvertently created: "I'm just so tickled and touched by all of it... If this trend is going to provide so much joy through music and teaching and education, then I've done my job."
When was the last time you created something that brought joy to millions?
Maybe don't be so quick to judge the "ya ya ya" people.
But also, maybe don't do it in public.
Some things are best kept between you and your phone.
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