Singer-songwriter Gabbie Hanna built an audience on Vine and YouTube before scoring a series of viral hit songs, including her October 2018 single, “Monster.” She recently stopped by Genius to break down the track during an episode of Verified, and performed the entire song including her belted high note on the chorus. The internet immediately took notice of an editing switch between the two microphones on set, and turned the moment into a meme playing on Hanna’s high note:
Luckily, the YouTube star had a sense of humor about the whole thing, uploading a video explaining her trip to Genius and filming her reaction to the litany of memes that followed:
“I wanted to scream. That’s how the song is written, that’s my style,” she said. “I personally gravitate towards sounds and music that has growling and screaming sounds in it, so that’s what I do… I wanted angst, I wanted pain, I wanted anger. I wanted all of that in there.” She’s even previously said that she dreamed of becoming a meme:
During the Verified episode, she explained the meaning behind the line that birthed a meme:
“Monster” has racked up over three million YouTube views since its video debuted in October, with another 1.7 million streams on Spotify. The song is set to appear on her debut album, This Time Next Year.
Watch the original Verified episode above, and catch up on all the lyrics to Gabbie Hanna’s “Monster” on Genius now.
