The meme’s origin and appeal The “Only in Ohio” meme started with a 2016 Tumblr post of a bus announcement that inexplicably stated, “Ohio will be eliminated.” ...

You can follow him on X @GabeHauari or email him at [email protected]. This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Do you remember? Why '21st night of September' memes are back About Our Ads ...

The idea went viral, making the rounds on Tumblr, Reddit, Twitter, and Instagram. By 2019, this Ohio-centric joke had also evolved into the “ Wait, it’s all Ohio? Always has been ” meme.

A 2016 post on Tumbler went viral, launching Ohio into meme stardom. The image showed a broken bus stop's marquee that read, "Ohio will be eliminated," according to Yahoo.

The Ohio memes have become so near-constant that they've taken on a life of their own. To date, the hashtag #Ohio has 33 billion views on TikTok, while #OnlyInOhio has about three billion.

The song was released as a single and rose to No. 1 on the Billboard Hot Soul Songs chart and No. 8 on the Billboard Hot 100. "September" also reached No. 3 on the UK Singles Chart.

The meme usually features a screenshot of former founder, leader and co-lead singer of the band, Maurice White, singing in the song's music video. Why was the 21st of September specifically chosen?

You can follow him on X @GabeHauari or email him at [email protected]. This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: '21st night of September' memes are back: What it means and why you'll see it ...