# They Know What Is What But They Don't Know What Is What They Just Strut Roland Clark's 2000 house track 'I Get Deep' delivered a strangely cadenced lyric, 'They know what is what but they don't know what is what they just strut, what the fuck,' that Fatboy Slim sampled in 2001 and Katy Perry pitched down for 'Swish Swish' in 2017. By October 2021, that Katy Perry sample was powering a TikTok Original Sound with over 13,000 uses in lip-dub skits within weeks. ## Origin Roland Clark released the deep-house single 'I Get Deep' in 2000, and the chorus contained the line that would later anchor the meme[3]. On April 23rd, 2001, Fatboy Slim released 'Star 69,' which looped a reworked version of Clark's vocal over a club beat[1]. Katy Perry and Nicki Minaj then revived the sample on May 19th, 2017 for 'Swish Swish,' slowing it down and lowering its pitch so the words came out in the hypnotic cadence that TikTok editors later seized on[2]. - **Platform:** House music records (origin) / TikTok (viral spread) - **Creator:** Roland Clark (lyricist); TikTok audio format popularized by @lacrioxlover6969 - **Date:** 2000 ## Overview The audio clip lifts a single line from Katy Perry's 'Swish Swish,' which slows and lowers Roland Clark's original vocal into a near-monotone chant: 'They know what is what but they don't know what is what they just strut, what the fuck'[2]. The deadpan delivery and the tongue-twister logic of the phrase sell the joke, since the lyric unravels any attempt to parse it as a sentence[5]. On TikTok, creators lip-sync the clip while strutting toward unsuspecting bystanders, or hold up strange objects in front of relatives so the 'they don't know what is' line lands as an insult[8]. The payoff typically arrives when the target reacts with visible confusion, letting the closing 'what the fuck' double as the viewer's reaction[7]. ## How to Use The audio format typically pairs the pitched-down Katy Perry clip with either a strut toward an unsuspecting target or a cutaway to someone being handed an object they can't identify. Creators often sync the moment of confusion to the closing 'what the fuck' line for the punchline[8]. ## Frequently Asked Questions ### What is They Know What Is What But They Don't Know What Is What They Just Strut? It is a lyric originally from Roland Clark's 2000 house track 'I Get Deep,' later sampled by Fatboy Slim in 2001 and Katy Perry in 2017, that became a viral TikTok audio meme in October 2021[5]. ### Where did They Know What Is What But They Don't Know What Is What They Just Strut come from? Roland Clark delivered the line on his 2000 song 'I Get Deep.' Fatboy Slim sampled it for 'Star 69' in 2001[1], and Katy Perry pitched the sample down for 'Swish Swish' in 2017[2]. ### What does They Know What Is What But They Don't Know What Is What They Just Strut mean? The lyric is a deliberately tangled line about people who act confidently without actually understanding what they are doing, and meme creators use it to call out obliviousness in friends, family, or strangers[8]. ### How do you use They Know What Is What But They Don't Know What Is What They Just Strut? On TikTok, creators lip-sync the Katy Perry clip while walking toward an unaware target or holding up an object someone can't identify, syncing the confusion to the closing 'what the fuck'[7]. ### Is They Know What Is What But They Don't Know What Is What They Just Strut still popular? The Original Sound had been used more than 13,000 times on TikTok by October 19th, 2021[5]. The underlying Katy Perry track 'Swish Swish' and the Fatboy Slim original 'Star 69' keep the lyric in circulation as classic dance releases[2]. ## References 1. [https://genius.com/Fatboy-slim-star-69-lyrics]() 2. [https://genius.com/Katy-perry-swish-swish-lyrics]() 3. [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5ejQsbnAHbI]() 4. [https://www.instagram.com/p/BuFUYCAFJt6/]() 5. [https://knowyourmeme.com/memes/they-know-what-is-what-but-they-dont-know-what-is-what-they-just-strut]() 6. [https://www.tiktok.com/@lacrioxlover6969/video/7015047789965036805]() 7. [https://www.tiktok.com/@j0mgl0m/video/7016129297580608773]() 8. [https://www.tiktok.com/@derkslurp/video/7016487592371834118]() 9. [https://www.instagram.com/p/CIrVDnTFv_d/]() --- Source: https://meme.com/memes/they-know-what-is-what-but-they-dont-know-what-is-what-they-just-strut Published by meme.com — The Internet Meme Library