What is Star Posting?

Star Posting is a format of exploitable image macros showing a cartoon star labeled 'The X Star' with a caption telling viewers to repost it in a specific situation.

What does Star Posting mean?

The captions instruct viewers to repost the star when they want friends to recognize the scenario it describes, starting with the sarcastic Just Kidding Star used to flag ironic bait posts.

How do you use Star Posting?

People typically share a star to an Instagram Story when they hit the exact situation named on the image, following the 'Post this star when you X, so that your buddies know X' prompt attached to the design.

Is Star Posting still popular?

The trend peaked in August 2021 after @coincellpro2 helped popularize the name and inspired a run of re-edits, and it slowed afterward.

Star Posting

Q: Where did Star Posting come from?

Instagram user @premiles made the first version, 'The Just Kidding Star,' on February 16, 2019.

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Published October 21, 2026

Star Posting / The Just Kidding Star began on Instagram in February 2019 when user @premiles layered a cartoon star labeled 'The Just Kidding Star' over a bait caption, telling followers to repost it as a sarcastic cue. @premiles continued posting the star through 2019 and 2020, but a July 2021 repost finally kicked off outside re-edits, and by August 2021 Instagram account @coincellpro2 had given the trend its name.

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Overview

Each image follows a simple exploitable template. A cartoon star sits centered on a plain background, labeled in bold text with a name like 'The Just Kidding Star,' and a smaller line below lays out its purpose with phrasing such as 'Post this star when you X, so that your buddies know X'3. The original Just Kidding Star was designed to be slapped on top of ironic or bait content, telling viewers the preceding image was a joke1.

Later additions to the meta stuck to the same style, swapping in a new star name and a new scenario, from awkward crushes to petty grievances3. Because the captions directly instruct a reshare, Star Posting works especially well on Instagram Stories, where friends tap through to signal the exact mood described on the image4.

Gallery

Origin & Background

Platform

Instagram (viral spread 2021)

Creator

@premiles

Date

2019

Instagram account @premiles made the first version, 'The Just Kidding Star,' and posted it on February 16, 2019, inside a two-image upload1. The first slide showed a bait caption reading 'Awesome Underground Music for Indie Fans!' with the star overlaid, while the second slide displayed the Just Kidding Star on its own, and the post gathered roughly 5,700 likes over the following two and a half years3.

Across February and March 2019, @premiles followed up with more than five additional star posts and began selling merchandise, including stickers featuring the design2.

How It Spread

After the initial burst, Star Posting stayed inside @premiles's own feed through 2019 and 2020 without catching on outside the account. That changed on July 10, 2021, when @premiles reposted the Just Kidding Star4, and this time the image inspired other Instagram users to produce fan-made stars with new names and new scenarios.

By August 2021, Instagram account @coincellpro2 popularized the term 'star posting' and anchored most of the re-edits that defined the meta5. Because each caption directly instructed a reshare, Instagram Stories became the natural home for star posts, with meme pages and personal accounts resharing them widely3.

Timeline

2019-02-16

@premiles creates The Just Kidding Star in a two-image Instagram post.

2019-03

@premiles follows up with more than five additional star posts and begins selling star-themed stickers.

2021-07-10

@premiles reposts the Just Kidding Star, triggering outside re-edits for the first time.

2021-08

@coincellpro2 popularizes the term 'star posting' and anchors the surge of fan-made stars.