The Dancing Triangle, also known as “Triangulo Bailando,” is more than just a simple computer animation; it’s a cultural phenomenon that has captivated the internet. This anthropomorphic “triforce” triangle, originating from the fan-made Legend of Zelda web series The Legend of Zelda: The Light of Courage, has danced its way into countless memes and online videos since its emergence in June 2018. What began as a niche animation quickly evolved into a global sensation, with users setting the looped clip to a diverse range of songs, creating viral moments across platforms like Twitter and TikTok. By 2020, the dancing triangle meme, often synced with Missy Elliott’s iconic track “Lose Control,” experienced a massive resurgence, solidifying its place in internet meme history.
The Genesis of a Meme: Humble Beginnings in a Zelda Fan Series
The animated dancing triangle first saw the light of day in the second installment of The Legend of Zelda: The Light of Courage series, uploaded to YouTube on May 29th, 2006. This early appearance (as seen below, left) garnered over 152,000 views in its first twelve years, a modest start for what would become a viral sensation.
However, the dancing triangle‘s journey into meme culture truly began on October 24th, 2007, when YouTuber DancingTriforce took the animation and paired it with “The Legend of Zelda Medley” from The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time. This video (shown below, right), while not initially viral, accumulated over 9,000 views in eleven years, planting the seed for the meme’s future growth.
From Obscurity to Virality: The Spread of the Dancing Triangle
The dancing triangle started its ascent into mainstream meme culture in June 2018. YouTuber TinoPosts Dancing Triangle ignited the spark by setting the animation to “Battle – Mario & Luigi Superstar Saga Music Extended” on June 6th, 2018. This video gained over 1,200 views in a single month, signaling a growing interest in the animation’s meme potential.
The meme’s reach expanded significantly when Facebook user EricoTereran reposted the TinoPosts video to the “Nintendo Switchposting” Facebook group on June 25th, 2018. This repost resonated widely, amassing over 650 reactions and 300 shares within a month, demonstrating the dancing triangle‘s appeal to online communities.
Just two days later, on June 27th, 2018, the Facebook account “Super Conchetumario 64” (sctm64) further amplified the meme’s visibility by creating an “Everyone Is Here!” meme featuring the animation. This post went viral, receiving over 340 shares, 130 reactions, and an impressive 16,000 shares within just three weeks, showcasing the meme’s rapid spread.
The same day, the dedicated Facebook page “El Mismo Triángulo Bailando Con Diferentes Canciones” (“The Same Dancing Triangle With Different Songs”) was launched. Their inaugural video showcased the dancing triangle dancing to “Snakey Chantey” from Donkey Kong Country 2. This post quickly garnered over 645 reactions, 550 shares, and 25,000 views within three weeks, establishing the format of pairing the animation with diverse musical selections.
Over the ensuing years, these groups and others contributed to the meme’s growth by posting over 600 videos, each featuring the dancing triangle set to a different song, exploring the animation’s versatility and comedic potential.
2020: The Resurgence Fueled by TikTok and “Lose Control”
While the dancing triangle meme had established a presence online, it experienced a significant resurgence in 2020, largely driven by platforms like Twitter and TikTok and the popularization of pairing it with Missy Elliott’s “Lose Control.”
On February 11th, 2020, Twitter user @melancholyhill posted a version of the video set to “Lose Control.” This tweet went explosively viral, amassing over 1 million views, 2,100 retweets, and 4,300 likes within just two months, catapulting the meme back into the spotlight.
Starting in late February 2020, the meme found a new home and audience on TikTok, becoming a popular video reaction format. While pinpointing the absolute first TikTok featuring the dancing triangle is challenging, TikTok user @danieldessau is credited with some of the earliest and most impactful uses of the meme on the platform. On February 24th, 2020, @danieldessau posted two videos featuring the animation, with one clip achieving over 205,900 views and 23,100 likes in a month.
In the following days, @danieldessau continued to create and post more dancing triangle memes, further fueling the trend. Notably, a February 25th meme garnered over 500,000 views and 90,000 likes, while a February 26th “My Last Brain Cell” meme resonated even wider, achieving over 927,000 views and 201,000 likes within the same period. This “My Last Brain Cell” iteration particularly struck a chord, showcasing the meme’s relatability and comedic timing.
In early March 2020, Twitter users further capitalized on the @melancholyhill “Lose Control” version, utilizing it to create memes, particularly within the “IDK I’ve Never” genre. For example, a March 2nd, 2020, meme by Twitter user @DEVILWIIFE received over 640 retweets and 2,200 likes. Another successful example is a March 4th meme by Twitter user @undereyecircle, which garnered over 2,100 retweets and 5,700 likes, demonstrating the meme’s continued adaptability and humor.
The dancing triangle‘s versatility was further highlighted by a March 7th, 2020, TikTok from @beetlejuice_official69, which paired the animation with Tongo’s cover of “Pumped Up Kicks” by Foster the People. This post went massively viral, achieving over 3.4 million views and 558,700 likes in three weeks. Building on this momentum, a same-day meme based on this version by TikTok user @wysitsdanny reached over 7.4 million views and 1.1 million likes. Another example, posted by TikTok user @jerryyyk on March 8th, 2020, gained over 4.7 million views and 737,000 likes in the same timeframe.
By March 10th, 2020, YouTube user Mushx uploaded this “Pumped Up Kicks” version to YouTube, accumulating over 3.2 million views in three weeks. In the subsequent weeks, the dancing triangle meme‘s resurgence extended to Instagram and YouTube, with Cyranek’s March 24th “Lose Control” meme on YouTube reaching over 270,900 views in a week, demonstrating the meme’s widespread and sustained popularity.
Keju Joget: The Dancing Cheese Adaptation
The dancing triangle even transcended linguistic and cultural boundaries, inspiring a unique Indonesian adaptation known as Keju Joget, or “Dancing Cheese.” This variation emerged due to a humorous misinterpretation of the triangle as a piece of cheese. Indonesians began mimicking the dancing triangle‘s moves, often accompanied by the song “jgn dipake buat drama komtol,” taken from “Asik Bet Deh Jagonya – Lagi Trending” on TikTok.
The Keju Joget trend gained traction on August 1st, 2021, when TikTok user @cikewi_ uploaded the first video using the dancing triangle with the caption “Keju Joget” and the associated song. This video quickly amassed over 399,000 likes in 23 days. The trend further exploded when TikTok user @rannunn uploaded a video of herself mimicking the dancing triangle‘s dance on August 13th, 2021, achieving over 530,000 likes in just 11 days. Adding another layer to the phenomenon, TikTok user @sofarsabi cosplayed as the dancing triangle in a yellow jacket on August 9th, 2021, with his video reaching over 2.7 million likes in 15 days, demonstrating the widespread embrace of the Keju Joget variation.
Conclusion: The Enduring Appeal of a Simple Triangle
The dancing triangle meme‘s journey from a simple animation in a fan-made Zelda series to a global internet phenomenon is a testament to the unpredictable and often whimsical nature of online virality. Its simple yet captivating animation, combined with its incredible versatility in musical pairings, has allowed it to resonate with diverse audiences across multiple platforms. From its initial spread on YouTube and Facebook to its explosive resurgence on TikTok and Twitter, the dancing triangle has proven its enduring appeal. Whether it’s grooving to “Lose Control,” “Pumped Up Kicks,” or inspiring the “Keju Joget” craze, the dancing triangle continues to dance its way into the hearts (and memes) of internet users worldwide, proving that sometimes, the simplest shapes can create the biggest waves in internet culture.
External References
[1] YouTube – Dancing Triforce Official Video Part 1
[2] YouTube – triangle dance
[3] Facebook – EricoTereran’s Post
[4] Facebook – sctm64’s Post
[5] Facebook – TrianguloPosting
[6] TikTok – @danieldessau
[7] TikTok – @danieldessau
[8] TikTok – @danieldessau
[9] TikTok – @danieldessau
[10] TikTok – @beetlejuice_official69
[11] TikTok – @wysitsdanny
[12] TikTok – @jerryyyk
[13] YouTube – Dancing triangle pumped up kicks Tongo #DancingTriangle
[14] YouTube – MUSIC MAKE YOU LOSE CONTROL
[15] Twitter – @melancholyhill
[16] Twitter – @DEVILWIIFE
[17] Twitter – @undereyecircle
[18] TikTok – @cikewi_
[19] TikTok – @rannunn
[20] TikTok – @sofarsabi
