This Could Be Us But You Playing — Low-resolution image showing faint couple imagery with text overlay.

This Could Be Us But You Playing

2014Hashtag / Image Macroclassic

Published March 24, 2026

Also known as: #ThisCouldBeUsButYouPlayin · This Could B Us But U Playin

"This Could Be Us But You Playing" is a hashtag-driven meme from early 2014 where people pair the caption #ThisCouldBeUsButYouPlayin with intentionally unglamorous, awkward, or absurd photos of couples. The phrase traces back to a 2012 Maino song, but the hashtag exploded on Twitter in January 2014, racking up over 1.9 million mentions within weeks4. The meme crossed over into mainstream music when both Prince and Rae Sremmurd created songs inspired by it.

relationship memes hashtag memes ironic memes black twitter memes early 2010s memes

Overview

The format is dead simple: take a photo of a couple doing something unremarkable, unattractive, or flat-out ridiculous, slap #ThisCouldBeUsButYouPlayin on it, and post. The humor comes from the gap between the romantic aspiration baked into the phrase and the deeply unromantic reality of the image. Think couples sitting on a couch in sweatpants, eating fast food in a parking lot, or posing awkwardly at a family reunion. The hashtag works as ironic commentary on relationship goals culture, poking fun at the performative romance common on social media4. Some versions also leaned into NSFW territory, adding another layer of absurdity4.

Origin & Background

Platform
Twitter (hashtag), influenced by Maino's 2012 track
Creator
@blackgalaxshe
Date
2014

The phrase most likely came from the 2012 Maino track "This Could Be Us," which repeats "that could be us" throughout its chorus4. But the meme didn't materialize until January 18, 2014, when Twitter user @blackgalaxshe first used the hashtag #ThisCouldBeUsButYouPlayin4. The format caught on fast. By February 2014, the hashtag had been tweeted over 1.9 million times4.

The idea struck a nerve because it flipped a common social media dynamic on its head. Instead of aspirational couple content, people weaponized the phrase to highlight how hilariously far from perfect most relationships actually look.

How It Spread

Within a week of the first tweet, the meme had spread across platforms. A Facebook page titled "This Could Be Us But You Playing" launched on January 25, 2014, and the next day, the Twitter account @ButWhyYouPlayin started posting image macros of unremarkable couples paired with the caption4. On January 29, Bossip published a roundup of the best #ThisCouldBeUsButYouPlayin photos4.

By early February, The Daily Dot ran a piece calling it "the greatest hashtag," cataloging the awkward couple photos and noting the growing NSFW wing of the trend4. The meme was inescapable on Twitter, Tumblr, and Instagram throughout spring 2014.

On May 21, 2014, Complex published an article titled "To the Grave: Time to End the 'This Could Be Us, But You...' Meme," declaring the format played out1. Writer Michael Arceneaux compared it to "the crunk music of memes" and argued it was really just "a subtweet with a picture and ugly font"1. He called out people posting photos of Beyoncé and Jay Z with the caption, writing: "You probably couldn't be Beyoncé and Jay even if you found her bra and an old pair of this rich man's draws at the local Goodwill"1.

Despite the backlash, the meme had already jumped from internet joke to music industry inspiration. In June 2014, the Minneapolis Star Tribune reported that Prince's upcoming solo album would include a track called "This Could Be Us," directly inspired by the hashtag2. Prince specifically cited an image macro that parodied a still of him and Apollonia Kotero riding a motorcycle from the 1984 film *Purple Rain*2. "Every No. 1 song, every Top 10 song, every song in the Top 40 is at least six months old," Prince told the paper. "We should be able to make music and put it out now"2.

On May 12, 2015, rap duo Rae Sremmurd released the music video for their track "This Could Be Us," named after the meme and featured on their debut album *SremmLife*. The video pulled in 39 million views on YouTube4.

How to Use This Meme

The format follows a simple template:

1

Find a photo of a couple (or two people) in an unglamorous, awkward, or absurd situation. The less aspirational, the better.

2

Add the caption "#ThisCouldBeUsButYouPlayin" or a variation like "This could be us but you [specific complaint]."

3

Post it on social media.

Cultural Impact

The meme's biggest mainstream crossover was Prince writing a song inspired by it. The fact that one of music's most iconic artists saw a Twitter hashtag meme and turned it into a track on his album showed the meme had broken well beyond internet culture2. Prince's song was specifically sparked by seeing himself parodied in the format, with fans using a still from *Purple Rain* alongside the hashtag2.

Rae Sremmurd's "This Could Be Us" track and music video further cemented the phrase in pop culture, bringing it to audiences who might not have been scrolling Twitter in early 20144.

An Urban Dictionary entry submitted on March 29, 2014 defined the phrase as a joke, "often in meme form," involving photos of unattractive or "ghetto" couples used as aspirational examples3. The definition captured the meme's core irony: treating obviously imperfect situations as relationship goals.

Fun Facts

The hashtag hit 1.9 million Twitter mentions in under a month, making it one of the fastest-growing relationship memes of 20144.

Complex compared the meme's trajectory to Lil Jon's career: huge burst of popularity followed by a "forced timeout"1.

Prince's interest in the meme was specifically triggered by a parody using his own image from *Purple Rain*, making him both subject and fan of the format2.

The meme functioned as what Complex called "a subtweet with a picture and ugly font," tapping into passive-aggressive social media behavior1.

Derivatives & Variations

Prince's "This Could Be Us"

— A full track on Prince's solo album, directly inspired by a Purple Rain image macro using the hashtag[2].

Rae Sremmurd's "This Could Be Us"

— A single from *SremmLife* (2015) that took its name from the meme and scored 39 million YouTube views[4].

NSFW variations

— A subset of the meme used explicit couple photos with the hashtag, creating a raunchier parallel track to the main trend[4].

Complaint-specific captions

— Variations that swapped the generic "but you playing" for specific relationship grievances, turning the format into a passive-aggressive subtweet tool[1].

Frequently Asked Questions