The Instagram
egg is a picture of an egg posted by the account @world_record_egg
on the social media platform Instagram, notable for becoming a global
phenomenon and an internet meme within days of its creation. It holds the world
record for both the most-liked Instagram post and most liked online post on any
website in history. The owner of the account was revealed to be
Chris Godfrey, an advertising creative, in a Hulu special reveal.
Egg Similar to Instagram Egg
On 4 January 2019, the @world_record_egg account was created, and posted an image of a bird egg with the caption, "Let's set a world record together and get the most liked post on Instagram. Beating the current world record held by Kylie Jenner (18 million)! We got this." Jenner's previous record, the first photo of her daughter Stormi, had garnered a total of 18.4 million likes. Jenner posted a video of her cracking an egg on a sidewalk, a reaction to her being overtaken.
The post quickly reached 18.4 million likes in just under 10 days, becoming the most-liked Instagram post of all time. It then continued to rise over 45 million likes in the next 48 hours, surpassing the "Despacito" music video and taking the world record for the most liked online post (on any media platform) in history.
After the account became verified on 14 January, the post rose in popularity and 'likes', which snow-balled into coverage in various media outlets.
As of 18 March 2019, the post has accumulated over 53.3 million likes, nearly three times the previous record of 18.4 million. It posted frequent updates for a few days in the form of Instagram Stories.
Several individuals tried to claim that they were the account's creator. Their claims are said to be false. On 3 February 2019, the creator of the Instagram egg was revealed by Hulu and The New York Times to be Chris Godfrey, an advertising creator. Alissa Khan-Whelan, his colleague, was also outed.
On 18 January 2019, the account posted a second picture of an egg, almost identical to the first one apart from a small crack at the top left. As of 25 February 2019, the post accumulated 11.8 million likes. On 22 January 2019, the account posted a third picture of an egg, this time having two larger cracks. In less than 25 minutes, the post accumulated 1 million likes, and as of 25 February 2019 it has accumulated 9.5 million likes. On 29 January 2019, a fourth picture of an egg was posted to the account which has another large crack on the right hand side. The post has 7.6 million likes as of 25 February 2019. On 1 February 2019, a fifth picture of an egg was posted which looks similar to the fourth picture, but it has stitching like that of a football due to the upcoming Super Bowl. The post has accumulated 6.5 million likes as of 25 February 2019. The account promised that it would reveal what was inside the egg on 3 February on Hulu. The Hulu Instagram egg reveal was used to promote a Mental Health Campaign.
In response to breaking the world record for most-liked Instagram post, the account owner wrote "This is madness. What a time to be alive." Hours later, Kylie Jenner posted a video on Instagram of her cracking open an egg and pouring its yolk onto the ground, with the caption: "Take that little egg."
Pundits pontificated on the meaning of the egg picture's dominance over social media's "first family". As Vogue observed, tapping a heart pictogram is easy, and eggs are "lovable". More pointedly:
The significance of the event and its massive republishing are a topic of discussion.
AUniversity
of Westminster researcher of internet
memes compared it to the movement to name a scientific research vessel in the United Kingdom
The researcher suggests that the accomplishment of becoming such a widely heralded unpaid viral post may become increasingly rare, as social networks rely more on paid and business promotion.
It has been characterized as a populist backlash against "consumerism". It is seen as a triumph of community over celebrity. However, propelled by their popular success, the creators have promised to cash in to a merchandising opportunity, releasing 'egg-centric' memorabilia; thereby adopting the corporate culture the effort seemed to implicitly reject.
Hundreds of games based on the Instagram egg have appeared on the Apple App Store. The creators of the Instagram egg also reached a deal to promote Hulu.
Background
The photo was
originally taken by Serghei Platanov, who then posted it to Shutterstock on 23
June 2015 with the title "eggs isolated on white background.”
History
On 4 January 2019, the @world_record_egg account was created, and posted an image of a bird egg with the caption, "Let's set a world record together and get the most liked post on Instagram. Beating the current world record held by Kylie Jenner (18 million)! We got this." Jenner's previous record, the first photo of her daughter Stormi, had garnered a total of 18.4 million likes. Jenner posted a video of her cracking an egg on a sidewalk, a reaction to her being overtaken.
The post quickly reached 18.4 million likes in just under 10 days, becoming the most-liked Instagram post of all time. It then continued to rise over 45 million likes in the next 48 hours, surpassing the "Despacito" music video and taking the world record for the most liked online post (on any media platform) in history.
After the account became verified on 14 January, the post rose in popularity and 'likes', which snow-balled into coverage in various media outlets.
As of 18 March 2019, the post has accumulated over 53.3 million likes, nearly three times the previous record of 18.4 million. It posted frequent updates for a few days in the form of Instagram Stories.
Several individuals tried to claim that they were the account's creator. Their claims are said to be false. On 3 February 2019, the creator of the Instagram egg was revealed by Hulu and The New York Times to be Chris Godfrey, an advertising creator. Alissa Khan-Whelan, his colleague, was also outed.
On 18 January 2019, the account posted a second picture of an egg, almost identical to the first one apart from a small crack at the top left. As of 25 February 2019, the post accumulated 11.8 million likes. On 22 January 2019, the account posted a third picture of an egg, this time having two larger cracks. In less than 25 minutes, the post accumulated 1 million likes, and as of 25 February 2019 it has accumulated 9.5 million likes. On 29 January 2019, a fourth picture of an egg was posted to the account which has another large crack on the right hand side. The post has 7.6 million likes as of 25 February 2019. On 1 February 2019, a fifth picture of an egg was posted which looks similar to the fourth picture, but it has stitching like that of a football due to the upcoming Super Bowl. The post has accumulated 6.5 million likes as of 25 February 2019. The account promised that it would reveal what was inside the egg on 3 February on Hulu. The Hulu Instagram egg reveal was used to promote a Mental Health Campaign.
Reception
In response to breaking the world record for most-liked Instagram post, the account owner wrote "This is madness. What a time to be alive." Hours later, Kylie Jenner posted a video on Instagram of her cracking open an egg and pouring its yolk onto the ground, with the caption: "Take that little egg."
Pundits pontificated on the meaning of the egg picture's dominance over social media's "first family". As Vogue observed, tapping a heart pictogram is easy, and eggs are "lovable". More pointedly:
"[T]he attention economy
is a scam based on requiring little to no labor from both producer and consumer
despite commanding the most space, and therefore value, in our digital lives...
but it very well could be: As a metaphor for the fragility of the influencer
ecosystem, the egg has broken the Internet."
The significance of the event and its massive republishing are a topic of discussion.
A
The Instagrammer's success is
a rare victory for the unpaid viral campaign on social media. "There is a
bit of an anti-celebrity revolt here – 'look what we can do with a simple
egg'"
The researcher suggests that the accomplishment of becoming such a widely heralded unpaid viral post may become increasingly rare, as social networks rely more on paid and business promotion.
It has been characterized as a populist backlash against "consumerism". It is seen as a triumph of community over celebrity. However, propelled by their popular success, the creators have promised to cash in to a merchandising opportunity, releasing 'egg-centric' memorabilia; thereby adopting the corporate culture the effort seemed to implicitly reject.
Hundreds of games based on the Instagram egg have appeared on the Apple App Store. The creators of the Instagram egg also reached a deal to promote Hulu.
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