Lorde's VMA Dance meme originated from the singer's performance of Homemade Dynamite at the 2017 MTV Video Music Awards. Due to a severe case of the flu, Lorde opted out of singing live and instead performed a unique, high-energy interpretive dance routine while the studio track played. The internet quickly latched onto her expressive and somewhat erratic movements, turning the performance into a relatable symbol for winging it or putting in maximum effort during awkward or difficult situations. Today, the meme is widely used to represent moments of chaotic creativity, unexpected enthusiasm, or the feeling of trying to act normal while everything is going wrong internally.