"It's Gonna Be May" — Close-up of a smiling young Justin Timberlake with curly blond hair

"It's Gonna Be May"

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Published September 2, 2026

"It's Gonna Be May" is a mondegreen meme built around Justin Timberlake's pronunciation of the word "me" in the NSYNC song "It's Gonna Be Me," which sounds like "May." Starting on Tumblr in January 2012, the misheard lyric turned into a yearly countdown to April 30th, spawning image macros, calendar edits, and even a full Maytag ad campaign years later.

misheard lyrics memes annual tradition memes catchphrase memes tumblr memes early 2010s memes

Overview

"It's Gonna Be May" centers on a still of Justin Timberlake, usually caught mid-vocal, paired with the caption "It's Gonna Be May" over his mouth1. Common formats include calendar edits with Timberlake taped over April 30th, side-by-side clips of the lyric versus what fans hear, and image macros used as a countdown to the month2.

The joke works because Timberlake's staccato delivery on the word "me" sounds like "May," turning a pop song from 2000 into a yearly countdown gag1. A subtler variant appears in late April when users post the phrase "So About Tomorrow" alongside a Timberlake picture4. Fans keep the format alive by posting the same joke every year in the final week of April.

Origin & Background

Platform
Tumblr
Creator
amyricha
Date
2012

The mondegreen comes from NSYNC's "It's Gonna Be Me," released on June 13, 2000, as the second single from No Strings Attached. The official music video was uploaded to the NSYNCVEVO YouTube channel on October 24, 2009, and passed 20 million views by 20143. On January 29, 2012, Tumblr user amyricha posted a picture of Justin Timberlake with the caption "It's gonna be May," pointing out that his pronunciation of "me" sounded like the month4.

How It Spread

The joke picked up on March 15, 2012, when the Nairobi-blue Tumblr posted a photo of a calendar turned to April with Timberlake taped over the last day, and BuzzFeed reposted the image within 24 hours4. YouTubers began cutting clips of Timberlake singing the title as their own countdown edits later that same month, and the joke settled into an annual ritual on Twitter, Tumblr, and Facebook every April 30th.

In April 2019, Maytag built an ad campaign directly on the format, replacing Timberlake with a Maytag Man singing "It's Gonna Be Maytag" and pushing the hashtag #itsgonnabemaytag2. Lance Bass of NSYNC tweeted an image of the Maytag Man in the classic meme layout, and the Daily Dot covered the campaign as a rare case of a brand using a meme without dulling it2. CNN also ran a segment tied to the annual joke around this window6.

On April 30, 2020, NSYNC updated the title of "It's Gonna Be Me" on Spotify and Apple Music to include the phrase "It's Gonna Be May," temporarily rebranding the song across streaming services1. TikTok picked up the format later, with users like @chandrajordan4 posting Timberlake image macros around April 30, 20235. The song still spikes in plays every April 30th on streaming services1.

How to Use This Meme

The template is simple. People typically pair a still of Justin Timberlake mid-lyric with the caption "It's Gonna Be May" in bold text1. A common variation swaps in a calendar photo with Timberlake taped over April 30th2. Timing is the whole joke, so posts land in the last week of April, usually peaking on the 30th itself.

Frequently Asked Questions