How an AI-generated song about a political activist became a viral cultural phenomenon
In short: Following the 2025 assassination of activist Charlie Kirk, an AI-generated power ballad titled We Are Charlie Kirk surged across social media. The song, widely panned as robotic slop, became a bizarre internet fixture, appearing in over 58,000 TikTok videos and marking a milestone for AI music on major charts.
Released on September 16, 2025, just six days after Charlie Kirk was assassinated at Utah Valley University, the song We Are Charlie Kirk emerged as a strange digital monument. Credited to an artist named Spalexma, the track was flagged by Deezer's detection software as artificial. It features a dramatic, 1980s-style power ballad aesthetic with lyrics framing Kirk as a religious martyr. Despite its origins, the song achieved unprecedented success for AI-generated media, reaching number 21 on the Billboard Hot Christian Songs chart and topping Spotify's Global Viral 50 playlist.
The song's virality was driven by a mix of genuine mourning and ironic mockery. TikTok users frequently paired the track with 'Kirkifying'—a trend involving editing Kirk’s face onto other figures—or used it in videos depicting conservative politicians like JD Vance appearing to sing the lyrics. While some supporters embraced the song as an emotional tribute, many others treated it as a modern-day rickroll or a target for ridicule. Critics, including writers for Paste and Kotaku, lambasted the production as uninspired and robotic, with some labeling it a prime example of 'AI slop'.
The phenomenon highlights a growing tension in digital culture regarding the proliferation of generative AI. By December 2025, the song had become a focal point for debates on the quality of AI-generated content, with critics like Sam Kriss arguing that such software threatens to degrade global culture. Despite the backlash, the song’s reach was significant; one viral TikTok video mocking the track garnered over eight million views. The trend eventually spawned parodies, such as 'We are Jerome Powell' in early 2026, cementing the original song's status as a peculiar, if controversial, artifact of the AI era.
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- Summary by Intellect · source: We Are Charlie Kirk
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