My Idol

About

MyIdol, also known by its Chinese name 小偶 – 我的3D萌偶, is a mobile application that allows users to upload a selfie which will then be transposed on to one of a variety of personalized avatars. Users can then choose from a variety of different environments and song styles for the avatar to perform. The app also allows the user to share the performances on a variety of social media platforms.

History

Version 1 of the current version of the app was uploaded to the iOS App Store on August 6th, 2014. Despite the app only having Chinese language support, it began trending as an App Store download in America in late April, 2015.

Online Presence

The origin of the app's American presence is unknown. However, between April 21st and April 22nd, 2015 it skyrocketed in popularity among users of social media networks. On April 22, technology blog Kotaku called myIdol "the Internet's Funniest New Obsession,"^[1] and gave users detailed instructions on its use so that users who couldn't figure out the Chinese instructions could upload their avatars. Celebrities, including Miley Cyrus and Lena Dunham, created their own avatars as well, tweeting them out to their social media followings and further spreading the app.

Between April 22nd and April 24th, the app was trending on Vine, Instagram, Twitter, and Tumblr. ^[3][4][5][6]

Various Examples

Search Interest

External References

^[1] Kotaku – My Idol is the Internet's Funniest New Obsession

^[2] Faceli.com – Guide to My Idol for non-Chinese Speakers

^[3] Twitter – Search: myIdol

^[4] Tumblr – Search: myIdol

^[5] Vine – Search: myIdol

^[6] Instagram – Search: myIdol