As the internet breaks apart and mutates in hideous new ways at breakneck speed, 2024 reminded netizens of one comforting constant: cat memes ¡ª at least that remains the case in Japan, where the year¡¯s top trends on YouTube revolved around our furry friends.
That¡¯s not to say Japanese YouTube is some kind of outlier from the rest of the world. In fact, through the 2020s it has been thematically aligning with a standard narrative on the platform. Take music, for example. A good chunk of Japanese youth discover new tracks on YouTube, and this year¡¯s biggest included rap duo Creepy Nuts¡¯ ¡°¡± and Kocchi no Kento¡¯s ¡°.¡± The ¡°trending¡± section was dominated by pop acts as well as assorted TV personalities and, arguably Japan¡¯s biggest celebrity, Shohei Ohtani.
Still, it¡¯s animal clips that get the views.
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