7 Shocking Facts And The Full History Of The 'It's Gonna Be May' Meme

Every year, as April 30th approaches, the internet prepares for one of its most beloved and enduring viral traditions: the "It's Gonna Be May" meme. This cultural phenomenon, which has exploded in relevance again in the past few years thanks to social media platforms like TikTok, is a yearly celebration of pop culture, misheard lyrics, and the power of a single, highly stylized vocal delivery. Far from being just a funny picture, the meme has a deep, fascinating history involving Swedish pop producers, a 2012 Tumblr post, and a now-iconic boy band.

The phrase "It's Gonna Be May" is a playful mondegreen—a mishearing or misinterpretation of a phrase—of the lyric "It's Gonna Be Me" from the 2000 *NSYNC hit single. The way lead singer Justin Timberlake pronounced the final word famously sounds like the name of the fifth month, a fact that both Timberlake and his former bandmates now fully embrace. With the meme surging in popularity every year, let's dive into the full story, including the surprising reason behind the pronunciation and how the band keeps the joke fresh for a new generation.

The Complete History of the Viral 'It's Gonna Be May' Phenomenon

The "It's Gonna Be May" meme is a perfect storm of early 2000s pop nostalgia and 2010s internet culture. Its longevity is a testament to the enduring appeal of the *NSYNC era and the hilarious specificity of Justin Timberlake's vocal performance.

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The *NSYNC Hit and the Birth of a Mispronunciation (2000)

The song at the heart of the meme is "It's Gonna Be Me," a smash hit from *NSYNC's second studio album, No Strings Attached, released in 2000.

• The Song: "It's Gonna Be Me" was the second single from the album and reached number one on the Billboard Hot 100 chart.
• The Key Lyric: In the chorus, Justin Timberlake sings the line: "Every little thing I do, never seems enough for you / You don't wanna be lonely, baby, it's gonna be me."
• The Swedish Connection: The song was written by a trio of renowned Swedish songwriters and producers: Max Martin, Rami Yacoub, and Andreas Carlsson.
• The Real Reason for "May": Justin Timberlake himself has explained the iconic pronunciation. According to him, producer Max Martin insisted on a specific, exaggerated pronunciation of "me" to make the word "sound better to the ear" and punchier on the radio. Martin, a non-native English speaker, often guided American artists to pronounce words in ways that he felt had a stronger pop hook, resulting in the famous "May" sound.

The Meme's Unexpected Tumbler Origin (2012)

The song was a classic for over a decade before the meme officially took hold. The viral sensation we know today was born in 2012, far from the recording studio, on the blogging platform Tumblr.

• The Creator: The original image was posted by Tumblr user Kianna Davis, who went by the username "amyricha" at the time.
• The Image: The meme features a close-up image of a young Justin Timberlake from the *NSYNC era, overlaid with the text: "It's Gonna Be May."
• The Timing: Davis posted the meme in January 2012, but it truly went viral in the days leading up to May 1st, solidifying its status as an annual event. The trend quickly spread across social media, including Twitter and Facebook, becoming a predictable and beloved cultural marker for the end of April.

How *NSYNC Members Keep the Meme Fresh and Relevant

A key factor in the meme’s longevity is the enthusiastic participation of the band members themselves. In recent years, especially with the rise of short-form video content, the former members of *NSYNC have leaned heavily into the joke, ensuring the viral trend remains fresh and current for a new generation of fans.

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The Justin Timberlake Acknowledgment

For years, Justin Timberlake remained relatively quiet about the meme, but in the last few years, he has fully embraced it. He has posted videos on his own social media channels, including TikTok, where he humorously acknowledges the mispronunciation. In one notable clip, he stitched a video of a fan asking for the lyrics, and his simple, self-deprecating response solidified his approval of the annual joke.

Lance Bass and Joey Fatone’s Hilarious Trolling

Other *NSYNC members, particularly Lance Bass and Joey Fatone, are often the most active participants in the yearly meme cycle. They frequently troll Timberlake and post their own variations, proving the band has a great sense of humor about their legacy.

• Lance Bass's Maytag Man: Lance Bass once famously tweeted a version of the meme replacing Justin Timberlake's face with the Maytag Man, a classic appliance mascot, further illustrating the absurdity of the tradition.
• Joey Fatone's Inside Jokes: Joey Fatone has revealed that the band even shares "It's Gonna Be May" memes among themselves in private group chats.
• Commercial Collaborations: The band's involvement has extended to commercial partnerships. In recent years, *NSYNC members have leveraged the meme's popularity for promotional campaigns, such as a collaboration with Great Wolf Lodge, demonstrating its commercial viability and enduring cultural relevance.

7 Shocking Facts About the 'It's Gonna Be May' Phenomenon

Beyond the basic history, there are several deep-cut facts that prove this simple meme is a complex piece of internet and pop culture history.

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1. It's a "Mondegreen," Not a Mistake: The term for a misheard lyric is a "mondegreen." This meme is the most famous example of a pop music mondegreen tied to a specific calendar date.
2. The Producer Made Them Do It: Justin Timberlake confirmed that the "May" sound was not an accidental vocal flourish but a deliberate, stylistic choice mandated by Swedish producer Max Martin for rhythmic emphasis.
3. The Original Image is from the "Bye Bye Bye" Era: Although the meme is about "It's Gonna Be Me," the iconic image of Timberlake with the frosted tips and intense expression is actually from the promotional cycle for the album's *first* single, "Bye Bye Bye."
4. The Meme Creator is Known: Unlike many viral memes, the person who created the original image is known: Kianna Davis (formerly amyricha), who posted it on Tumblr in 2012.
5. The Song is a Global Hit: "It's Gonna Be Me" was a massive success, but it was the only *NSYNC song to ever reach number one on the US Billboard Hot 100 chart, making the meme's source material uniquely significant.
6. It Helped Define a New Era of Memes: The "It's Gonna Be May" meme is considered one of the early examples of the "annual meme," a trend that reappears reliably on a specific date, like "September" by Earth, Wind & Fire.
7. Other *NSYNC Members Were Also in the Running: The song’s original lyrics were written to be sung by any of the band members—JC Chasez, Chris Kirkpatrick, Joey Fatone, Lance Bass, or Justin Timberlake—but Timberlake's distinct vocal delivery ultimately secured his place in meme history.

The "It's Gonna Be May" meme is a yearly reminder that pop culture never truly dies; it just gets recycled into an endlessly amusing viral tradition. As long as the calendar flips from April to May, and as long as Justin Timberlake's distinctive pronunciation echoes through the air, this beloved joke will continue to dominate our feeds.