The phrase originated from the song "Doot Doot (6 7)" bySkrilla, which became popular in video edits featuringprofessional basketball players, especiallyLaMelo Ball, who is listed at 6 ft 7 in (2.01 meters) tall.[2][3] The meme was further popularized throughOvertime Elite playerTaylen "TK" Kinney's repeated use of the meme.[4] In March 2025, a boy named Maverick Trevillian became known as the "67 Kid" after a viral video showed him yelling the term at a basketball game while performing an excited hand gesture.[5]
Described as "annoying" and "like a plague"[6], multiple news outlets have linked the meme to the wider "brain rot" phenomenon—digital media deemed to be poor quality.[7] Some commentators also see it as evidence ofGeneration Alpha’s growing presence inInternet culture.[8]
The slang originated from thedrill rap song "Doot Doot (6 7)", in which American rapperSkrilla raps, "...I know he dyin' (oh my, oh my God) 6-7, I just bipped right on the highway (Bip, bip)" as thebeat drops.[9][10]
The meaning of the number in the song remains ambiguous: some have connected it to 67th Street in Skrilla's hometown ofPhiladelphia,[11] or to 67th Street inChicago.[12][9]Linguist and African-American English expert Taylor Jones has speculated that it may refer to "10-67", thepolice radio code used to notify of a death.[13]: 9:36 This aligns with the previous lines' descriptions ofgun violence and his interpretation that the line depicts the narrator playing innocent during a traffic stop.[13]: 7:20 Skrilla himself has stated, "I never put an actual meaning on it and I still would not want to."[11]
The song was unofficially released in December 2024[14] (and officially on February 7, 2025)[15] and was soon used in video edits of professional basketball players, particularlyLaMelo Ball who is 6 ft 7 in (2.01 m) tall.[14]
A few weeks after the song's unofficial release,[16]Taylen Kinney, a high school basketball prospect at Overtime Elite, became strongly associated with the phrase after a clip of him ranking aStarbucks drink by saying "six, seven" went viral on social media.[4][17] His repeated use of the phrase during Overtime Elite content led to his nickname "Mr. 6-7", and he later launched a "6-7"-branded canned water line.[4][17]
The meme has been referred to inNBA highlights,WNBA news conferences,NFL touchdown celebrations, and also by celebrities, including former NBA playerShaquille O'Neal, who participated in a video referring to it despite admitting he did not understand its meaning. Additionally, the term has been frequently used throughoutcollege sports.[18][4] Expanding beyond sports, social media users began to employ the meme in unrelated contexts, such as joking about getting a score of 67% on an exam.[19][20][14] Additionally, the term has even made its way intolawmaking, with lawmakerBill Buckbee, who represents the67th District in theConnecticut House of Representatives, using the term as a joke during a special legislative session.[21]
6-7's identity as a slang term has allowed it to spread in offline contexts, especially in schools,[8] with some banning its use due to its disruption in the classroom.[22] In November 2025, BritishPrime MinisterKeir Starmer apologized to a headteacher after joining school children in the gesture when a schoolgirl sitting next to him noted the book they were reading was turned to pages 6 and 7; the gesture had been banned at the school.[23][24][25]
Themoniker "Mason" has been used to refer to a stereotypical white boy who overuses the slang.[26]
On March 31, 2025,YouTuber Cam Wilder posted a video titled "My Overpowered AAU Team has Finally Returned!" (stylized in all caps) in which a boy, Maverick Trevillian[5] — later nicknamed "67 Kid" — is seen going up to the camera and yelling "six seven" while performing a hand gesture in which he moves his hands up and down with upward-facing palms.[27][26][28]
In August 2025, social media users begin creating photo edits distorting Trevillian in a bizarre or grotesque fashion likened toanalog horror. This meme, called "SCP-067 Kid", satirizes theSCP Foundation, a collaborative fiction project about fictionalparanormal anomalies. "SCP-067 Kid" is not related with thecanon "SCP-067", which is about a supernatural fountain pen.[26][29][30][31]
Variants
41 (pronounced "forty-one") is a meme of similar origin, deriving from the song "41 Song (Saks Freestyle)" in which rapper Blizzi Boi raps the number throughout.[32][33] Other variants include 61 (pronounced "six-one" or "six-swan") a variant created by TikTok creator Spartan Swot,[34] and 56 (pronounced "fifty-six") created by TikToker YungJayJayy.[35]
Use by media and brands
People lining up to get free chicken nuggets from McDonald's UAE (top) and the special "6(7)" sticker (bottom).
On October 16, 2025, the1st episode of season 28 of the adult animated showSouth Park would air[36] with a prominent plot point being the children brainwashed by the 67 meme. This season of South Park, along with season 27, is known for targeting online trends such asLabubu,TikTok, andprediction markets.[37]
On November 6 to 7,Pizza Hut sold chicken wings for 67 cents each.[40][41] On the same days,McDonald's in the United Arab Emirates gave free chicken nuggets between 6 and 7 PM. Each 6-piece chicken pack contained a special "6(7)" sticker, and included seven nuggets inside, rather than the usual six.[42]Domino's offered members a one-topping pizza for $6.70 when using the promo code "67".[43]
Reception
Multiple news outlets, such asBusiness Insider, have attributed the meme to the wider phenomenon of "brain rot" — the spread of digital media considered to be poor quality.[7] Many viewed the meme as a sign of increasing involvement ofGeneration Alpha inInternet culture.[8]
In October 2025,Dictionary.com named "67" as its 2025Word of the Year, describing theinterjection as "a burst of energy that spreads and connects people long before anyone agrees on what it actually means".[44] TheMerriam-Webster dictionary defines it as "a nonsensical expression connected to a song and a basketball player".[45]
Alphonse Pierre ofPitchfork lamented that, in exchange for virality, Skrilla had been reduced to a one-dimensional mascot, and "not a human artist with music packed with complicated views and morals worth considering".[16]
