Parents naming newborns after this TikTok trend spark debate: ‘I would genuinely cry’
Are these names very mindful and cutesy?
In the wake of the “demure” trend taking over social media popularized by TikTokker Jools LeBron, parents are taking the fad one step further.
They’re naming their newborns “Demure.”
One new mom posted a TikTok video featuring her baby girl earlier this month, revealing that she had been named Demure Reign.
“Meet DeMure,” the mom wrote in the caption. “See how she not crying! Very sweet, very cutesy, very demure.”
The caption is a play on LeBron’s original video that went viral after it was posted Aug. 2, spurring a cascade of creators, brands and prominent figures to use her catchphrase, “very demure, very mindful, very cutesy.”
Incredulous viewers couldn’t contain their shock, hoping the creator was only joking, despite her insistence that she was not.
“Plz say sike,” begged one user.
“Oh y’all are INFLUENCED,” said another.
“I would genuinely cry every day if my name was demure bless her,” someone else snarked.
“Now my question is was this picked prior to the trend or not,” inquired another, to which the new mom explained it was a “last-minute switch.”
The original name, she revealed in the comments, was “Rhaenyra,” a nod to the “Game of Thrones” spin-off “House of the Dragon.”
Meanwhile, others thought the name was “cute.”
“Demure is actually a pretty name,” argued one person.
“You know what…I’ll allow it,” wrote another. “It’s really cute.”
“So funny cause I seen a post saying they’re waiting for ppl to start naming their kids demure,” commented one viewer. “Congratulations!”
And she isn’t the only one — one mom joked to have named her newborn “De’Mure Dy’Nasty,” while another seemed serious about her unique baby name, “Demure Gray.”
“First of their generation,” one user championed the latter.
“I actually think it’s a cute name,” wrote another. “Who care if it’s a tiktok trend.”
The TikTok trend of the month originated from a video posted by LeBron, who now boasts more than 2 million followers on the platform, in which she described her vibe as “very demure, very mindful” — or, in other words, classic, elegant or not “doing too much.”
“I’m not messy or mean or jealous, I’m cutesy,” LeBron explained to People on the meaning of “demure.”
“I’m not crazy and out there and wild, I’m very demure; I’m very reserved and laid back. I’m mindful. I’m cognizant of how I treat others and how I make people feel and how I am perceived by others.”
Ironically, though, LeBron posted the video with no intention of spearheading a fad, which has now thrust her into the spotlight after more than a decade of content creation.
“I thought I looked particularly like a Bratz doll,” she told People, adding that she just “liked [her] makeup that day.”
“I saw a video saying how Barbie started very modest and demure and how her biggest competition Bratz was far from it. So I thought it was funny to say I was demure with my black winged eyeliner, giant lashes, blonde hair down to my thighs and acrylic nails.”
The catchphrase and buzzword have since snowballed into a viral trend that shows no signs of slowing down, with prominent pop culture figures and successful creators all using the trending sound and phrase online, including the likes of Jennifer Lopez, Olivia Rodrigo and Jenna Ortega.
“Maybe you should make the videos,” she advised prospective content creators. “Because one day, I was playing cashier and making videos on my break and now, I’m flying across [the] country to host events.”