A clip of a British comedian scatting on a radio show became the latest addition to the legion of tough-to-name memes that cropped up this summer over the weekend, when footage of the Michael Dapaah rapping as Roadman Shaq went viral.
From “it’s fuckin’ nice out” kid to “right in front of my salad?” lady and all of the disloyal boyfriends in between, this new meme is so specific that it’s more difficult to define than memes like dat boi or true O.G.s like Philosoraptor.
But nonetheless, the meme, which has been referred to online as “the ting goes” and “man’s not hot”, originated with comedian Michael Dapaah’s appearance on BBC Radio 1xtra’s “Fire in the Booth” program, hosted by Charlie Sloth.
In the clip, tweeted out by Dapaah, the comedian appears as two different rappers: MC Quakez, the inferior performer, who Sloth subs out in favor of Roadman Shaq, who wears a huge winter jacket in the studio and delivers the bars that became the meme.
The lyrics found life in the hands of some… creative transcribers, and the soundbite has been inserted into videos ranging from commercials to footage of Big Ben.
The song has also made the brave leap from the internet into real life, with footage posted to Instagram by Dapaah showing “Man’s Not Hot” being played at a party and in U.K. department store Selfridges.
Skepta who? One Twitter user had a prediction for the future of Dapaah/Roadman Shaq’s career:
Never on a waste ting, indeed.
