Welcome to #VIRAL, The Newsletter from Girl and the Gov®, sharing need-to-know content trends and concepts for Dem social media, digital, and comms professionals. For 1v1 tailored help building out your social media, book an Office Hours Session or an Audit here.

Email forwarded your way? Subscribe here.

Book an Office Hours session with Girl and the Gov®

Get fast, expert feedback on comms, digital, creator strategy, and anything new media. Bring your idea, your challenge, or your half-baked plan—we’ll sharpen it, stress-test it, and send you off with crystal-clear next steps. Office Hours with Girl and the Gov® is the shortcut to moving smarter in today’s media world.

Give these a whirl (and post them on Reels & Shorts too)

→ “First to like my Story but don’t like me” Trend: This audio is being used to showcase when someone that outwardly dislikes you and/or runs their mouth about you, looks at your Instagram Story; in fact that they might just always be lurkin’ on the Stories with the hater vibes. The trend itself looks like this as done by creator Clara Cox. In the video, she lip-syncs to the audio over a green screen of a screenshot of her Story analytics that show a hater/lurker watching her IG Story. In this case it’s Karoline Leavitt. In the case of you, reader, it can fit the profile of anyone that’s top of your views that has nothing nice to say about ya. 

→ “When someone starts arguing…” Trend: This trend is centered around that moment where someone starts arguing about a topic that you’re “disgustingly educated on” and you know you’re about to own that argument like no other. The trend itself uses this audio, a b-roll video like this of the principal creator, and text added in the following formula: “when someone starts arguing about [TOPIC] not knowing I’m disgustingly educated on it. The trend provides a moment to highlight the principal’s expertise, and opens the comments to arguments that they can use for engagement, which if they respond to the comments with a video, provide additional content opportunities and a way to prove their point as an expert on said topic.

→ “My impression of an owl” Trend: Once upon a time sometime in the last two weeks, creators have decided to share their impressions of celebrities, stereotypes, people they know, etc if those people were owls, like this and this. An additional variation of the trend that has people hootin’ and hollerin’ [literally], is to add a context to the person they’re doing the impression of – for example: “my impression of an owl but it’s a candidate trying to deny they once were connected with [insert problematic person here].”

→ “Ted Cruz weather-meter” Trend: If there’s one thing that Senator Ted Cruz likes to do during a major weather event, it’s leave the state of Texas – the one he represents. And that fleeing from responsibility has become not just a joke amongst residents, but a meter for how bad an incoming storm will be. Hint: Ted has already fled ahead of this weekend’s storm [whether he plans to return, who knows]. That groundhog’s day behavior has spurred the creation of content like this [and meme-style too], where Texans are showing themselves preparing for the storm with a nod to how serious it must be if Ted has fled. The trend can be done a variety of ways, but requires getting on it very quickly given its time sensitive nature. Also, for audio, may we recommend a preferred country song that mentions Texas?

→ “I’ve been called a c*nt, I’ve been called a b*itch, but you know I’ve never been called? A Republican” Audio: In this case, the audio’s verbiage is fully written out in the title of the trend. It’s being used with videos like this and this, of the girlies celebrating never having been called or mistaken for a Republican. Since technically there are two expletives in the audio, it should only be used with someone that’s comfortable with that language and/or doesn’t give a rats ass [hint: them cursing themselves should come off naturally and not like a goody two-shoes trying to be a vibe].

Trending TikTok audios for BTS and b-roll vids

AUDIO → Original Sound (FDT) *use for videos highlighting your position on the current admin [this audio buries the lead effectively, btw]

AUDIO → Taste (Instrumental) *use as a background audio for vlog style videos

AUDIO → Original Audio *use this for videos or carousels building energy around an announcement

AUDIO → Nothings Going to Stop Us Now *use for videos that show or depict a slapstick comedy situation, where somehow everything has gone awry

Creative content concepts to try

→ “If the temperature outside is younger than I am…” Audio: The first half of this season-centric and highly relatable audio goes as follows “if the temperature outside is younger than I am, do not invite me anywhere.” That section can be used to create a five second skit between reps from the south [where it’s warm] and reps from the north [where it’s cold]. In this scenario, the southern rep(s) are in charge of lip-syncing the audio [with a bit of visible sass] toward the northern rep(s) who visibly appear as if they just asked their pal to come visit their neck of the woods in the cold. Text should then be added to the video that explains the ‘tug of war’ between the warm weather people and the cold weather people; a possible caption could go something like this: “built different but on the same team.”

→ “So when do they kiss” Trend: Heated Rivalry has continued to dominate the conversation, and get even more girlies into hockey than before. As a result, we have this trend, which is also popping off on TikTok and Shorts. It’s a 2+ person trend, with at least one person being an OG “serious” hockey fan and the other being a new “heated rivalry originated” hockey fan, with the HR fan asking “when do they kiss?” It’s a trend that hits at the cross-section of pop culture meets sports culture, and can be done by thought leaders looking to diversify and humanize their content, as well as political niche content creators.

Uncover what’s missing—and get a path to close the gaps with a Social Media Audit

Likes don’t tell the full story. Girl and the Gov®'s Social Media Audits analyze your content, engagement, consistency, and platform performance—so you know exactly what’s working, what’s not, and what to optimize next. Book your audit today and turn insight into action.

Background audios that make Reels move

AUDIO → wambamdancam original audio *use for videos to illustrate a situation that’s heating up in a positive way

AUDIO → original audio (Minnesota) *use this with b-roll and text overlay to encourage viewers to listen to the audio that shares what it sounds like on the streets of Minneapolis and St. Paul currently

AUDIO → Leanin (slowed) *use for videos and carousels that are sharing heavy news

AUDIO → When you voted for a felon *use for videos critiquing those defending the current admin

AUDIO → Brain Stew *use for videos with a resistance vibe

Reply or Repost to these digital notes on Threads

The Thread → Reply OR repost by elaborating on the Trump Admin not releasing the Epstein files in full and their ‘strategy’ around it.

The Thread → Reply OR repost by further discussing the pardons of Jan. 6’ers and the hypocritical position of the GOP on “back the blue.”

The Thread → Reply OR repost by adding POV and details on the alarms being rung about what’s happening internally at the FBI.

The Thread → Reply OR repost with a political action “he’d” be “doing” if he “wanted to.”

The Thread → Reply OR repost by sharing who you ‘hate on’ and why. 

The Thread → Reply OR repost by sharing a photo declaring a run for office, being inaugurated, signing a bill, etc – a proud political moment.

The Thread → Reply OR repost by using this as a jumping off point for either saying what you would “say at the round table” OR who you would invite to a round table and what topic y’all would tackle.

Trending topics ATM on Bluesky

Jack Smith

Oscars

Delroy Lindo

Davos Forum

Oscar Nominations

…find more from Girl and the Gov®

→  Get on-demand comms and digital help with GATG Office Hours Sessions

→  Receive good news and all the political goss fit to print with The Gov Hub Newsletter

→  Tap into the creator world by subscribing to Keeping It Currant

→  Keep up with GATG on Insta, TikTok, YouTube, & Threads