What is the Hamster Cult on TikTok? Viral trend challenges Lana Cult

After Lana Del Rey fans took over TikTok with the Lana Cult, users are now challenging the trend with the new ‘Hamster Cult’; changing their profile picture to the same image of hamster and flooding comment sections across the app with bizarre messages.

TikTok has a huge user-base, and with so many people using the app every day, it doesn’t take long for trends to take off, spreading across For You Pages and comment sections at insane speeds.

Sometimes this takes the form of filters or sounds, but other times users just decide one day that they want to make a trend, and with so many people willing to participate, these trends can easily explode in popularity.

A prime example of this is the Lana Cult, which started picking up traction around February 19. The trend sees fans of the singer Lana Del Rey change their profile pics to the same meme image of the star standing in front of a fire, and commenting pro-Lana messages under countless popular videos.

the Lana cult 🙏🏻 pic.twitter.com/yE1SgBRk67

— emily¹ᴰ 🥀 is missing louis (@SOUR94CHERRY) February 19, 2021

It was a baffling phenomenon for many who had no idea what the Lana Cult was, confused about why comment sections were abruptly being taking over by the same image of the singer.

In a further bizarre twist, some users appear to be pushing back against the prevalence of the Lana Cult by forming a new group: the Hamster Cult.

The Hamster Cult follows a very similar format to the Lana Cult, in that all participating accounts change their profile picture to the same popular meme of a Hamster, and posting comments like, “hello hamsters! Join the hamster cult! We don’t mock God or burn Bibles. Join the Hamsters now.”

DO NOT JOIN THE HAMSTER CULT ON TIK TOK 💀 I DID IT AND THIS HAPPENED pic.twitter.com/EReF4os784

— chlo ᵕ̈ (@intolouve) February 20, 2021

As seen with the Lana Cult, many of the participating users follow each other, which can lead to some people gaining hundreds of followers as a result of their affiliation with the Hamster Cult.

While some find the trend entertaining, other users are becoming frustrated at just how prevalent these accounts are on TikTok.

if you are in the lana cult or the hamster or quackity cult on tiktok you’re annoying and the block hammer is approaching

— mya (@verycoolmyaa) February 20, 2021

The Cult trend is gaining traction, and the chances are this bizarre phenomenon isn’t going to stop at just Lana Del Rey and the hamsters, but it’s just another example of TikTok’s power to make something go viral.

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