Obama throwing ‘Clairo shade’? What the viral meme really means

Seeing "Clairo shade" pop up all over your feed? Here’s what the memes are actually about.

(Image: Nick__Nation on X)

If you’re trying to figure out if this article might be throwing shade at Clairo, don’t worry—it’s not. This space is Clairo shade-free, but it will explain what the ongoing meme actually means. The term has become a Twitter sensation this year, even getting a reaction from Clairo herself. So, what’s the deal? Let’s break down the Clairo shade memes and tweets.

Who is Clairo? Claire Cottrill, known as Clairo, is an indie pop artist who first gained attention with her viral bedroom pop tracks before releasing her acclaimed debut album, Immunity, in 2019, featuring the standout track “Bags.” She has worked with artists like Mura Masa and Charli XCX, and her 2021 album Sling was a 70s-inspired project with Jack Antonoff that didn’t focus on commercial success. This isn't Clairo shade—just a sign that she wasn’t chasing hits.

Clairo’s latest album, Charm, released this year, has been her most commercially successful to date. During this album cycle, the memes have exploded, likely boosting her profile even further.

So, what is Clairo shade? It’s a meme trend among the Twitter music community where almost anything is humorously interpreted as indirect shade towards Clairo. The idea is to claim that random, unrelated things are somehow a subtle dig at her. Here are some examples:

• Barack Obama’s omission of Clairo from his summer playlist was humorously labeled as "international levels of Clairo shade."

• A political meme suggesting that an event like a Trump assassination was "lowkey Clairo shade."

• Even a simple birthday wish from PopCrave to Clairo was scrutinized for potentially being shade because it used a period instead of an exclamation point.