Rivers Cuomo wants you to know that he’s #hip to your #rare memes. As part of his larger attempt to reclaim the Weezer sound of his own youth, he’s injected a bit of youth culture into his new video for “California Kids” by adding a cameo from the kids behind the “Damn, Daniel” video.
After Rivers quite literally finds himself by digging himself out of the sand of a California beach, the “Damn, Daniel” kids run up to help him. The video closes with the video’s creator saying (in his singularly odd voice), “Damn, Rivers. Back at it again with the Ray-Bans.”
While the YouTube commenters are torn on the inclusion of the meme in their long-awaited Weezer video, I have to say I’m fully team “Damn, Daniel.” Milk this brief fame for all it’s worth. Get your lifetime supply of Vans. It’s owed to them after they’ve had their lives interrupted by SWAT teams and had their phones hacked by racists.
And it’s not like Weezer is above diving into things that instantly date their videos. “Pork and Beans” was nothing but viral video stars, and the members of the band starred in a video with Fred.
Oh, and the song? It’s not that bad.
