'Smack my a-- like a drum' is TikTok's hottest lyric as creators mash up CupcakKe's song 'Vagina' with music from Mozart and Madonna
- CupcakKe is a rapper and poet known for her lyricism and sexual imagery in her music.
- "CupcakKe remixes" that splice the rapper's lyrics into other songs are exploding on TikTok.
- While the remixes have existed online for years, they began to trend on TikTok in July.
A new, hyper-specific subset of musical remixes has emerged on TikTok: elaborate mashups of songs ranging from Madonna to Mozart's greatest hits with snippets from a song called "Vagina" by CupcakKe.
Most TikToks using CupcakKe's song feature lines from "Vagina" like "smack my a-- like a drum" and "slurp that d--- till it c-m."
CupcakKe, whose real name is Elizabeth Harris, is a Chicago-based rapper and poet who rose to prominence in 2016 with her mixtape "Cum Cake." Her music is frequently sexual, featuring memorable lines that evoke vivid erotic imagery. As Pitchfork contributing reporter Sheldon Pearce wrote, it's also often incredibly candid, covering "trauma and abuse, [B]lack femininity and power dynamics."
CupcakKe remixes have been wildly popular online in various forms since 2016, when YouTubers dedicated entire accounts to the art form with channel names like Cupcakke Remixes or CupcakkeMixes.
Her sexual one-liners, particularly on "Vagina," have now brought her into the TikTok remix spotlight. Fan-produced mashups known as "CupcakKe remixes" have become nearly inescapable since the trend began to gain traction in July.
Weeks into the remix trend, CupcakKe herself has joined TikTok and started to weigh in.
"This is my first day on TikTok and idk what's going on," she commented on one of the remix videos on Friday.
CupcakKe remixes gained traction on TikTok in July
It's not immediately clear how or when CupcakKe remixes crossed over to TikTok, but videos tagged with the hashtag #cupcakkeremix began to go viral in early July (at least one remix was uploaded to TikTok in 2020 but didn't inspire a broader trend).
One of the earliest remixes to go viral on TikTok was one that paired the rapper's vocals with Olivia Rodrigo's "Drivers License." While the sound was uploaded to TikTok by user @aaronheyaaron on July 8, it appears to match a remix created by YouTube channel heavenonvenus that was uploaded on May 1.
Over the course of July and well into August, TikTok filled with remix after remix after remix, mashing up CupcakKe's vocals with songs like John Denver's "Country Roads" or Mozart's "Eine Kleine Nachtmusik."
Videos of people playing Mario Kart to the remixes spread like wildfire. Footage of video games, especially mobile ones, is a mainstay on TikTok when the focus is on the audio.
CupcakKe began giving opinions on the remixes after joining TikTok
On Friday, CupcakKe joined TikTok herself, amassing over 361,000 followers without posting a single video. She also began to chime in on the remixes.
"Real funny," she commented, accompanied by a laughing emoji with a sweatdrop, on a video featuring the "Drivers License" remix of "Vagina."
"Ok this is getting out of hand I'm calling my lawyer," she commented on a "Shake it Off" by Taylor Swift mashup.
"Bts ran out the studio when we recorded this," she commented on a remix of "Dynamite" by BTS.
Amid the stream of remixes, however, are TikTok users also calling for CupcakKe's music - not just out-of-context soundbites - to be more appreciated. Over the years, she's received high praise from critics, particularly in regards to her lyricism and ability to blend the introspective and the outlandish.
"Your lyrical genius is so underrated," @tessfstevens said in a video responding to CupcakKe's comment on one of her videos. "You were making 'WAP' before 'WAP' was a thing, and I take my hat off to you."
"The cupcakke remixes were kinda funny before but I feel like she's just being turned into a meme when she's so much more than that," a comment on @tessfstevens' video reads.
CupcakKe did not immediately respond to Insider's request for comment.
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