TikTok trends are like the tides—constantly changing and pulling people into new waves of creativity, humor, and sometimes profound reflection. The latest trend to catch fire on the platform is “We Listen, We Don’t Judge.”
At its core, the trend features creators voicing their thoughts on the condition that no one judges. It’s more of a “safe space” for people to open up.
The trend gained momentum in November after the account ‘the.girlies’—four girls dressed in school uniforms, supposedly from South Africa—made confessions that garnered mixed reactions from app users. This backlash forced the creators to withdraw the statements made in the original video, although the “damage” had already been done. Hundreds of followers had already picked up on the trend, pouring out their hearts with the hope that no one would judge.
Like the usual comedy skits and dance challenges TikTok is famous for, this trend is equally fun to participate in and showcases creativity. But its uniqueness lies in its wholesomeness and heartwarming nature; a venting outlet. Not to mention its flexibility to cut across to other apps like X.
In this post, we bring you comments from the latter platform that resonated with us. Not because we’re judging, but to encourage you to jump onto this trend if you haven’t yet. Spit it out—whatever it is—and go into the new year with a lighter heart.
No offense to math teachers out there, but hey, y’all need to go back to teaching school and take a course in “how to teach students so they actually understand what you’ve taught.” It’s beyond abnormal that almost 90 percent of users, from different countries, all attest to failing even the “easiest” things, like drawing a straight line let alone telling the time on a 24-hour clock. The same way you gave us an easy way of differentiating between greater than and less than with an elbow is the same way you should have taught us how to tell what’s vertical and horizontal. Not to mention solving H.C.F. (Highest Common Factor) and L.C.M. (Least Common Multiple). Imagine Felix Nanor, with two master’s degrees, still struggles with these!
As Africans, there are certain things we will never let go of, not because we don’t want to or can’t, but because they define us. Trashing them is like denying who we are: a price too high to pay. No matter how big our houses are, we will still keep brooms behind the door. We’ll use empty tins (of margarine, ice cream, you name it) to store sugar, salt, and tea. Nice plates and cups in our cupboards will always be for special occasions or visitors, as will certain chairs in the living room. As kids, throwing away the liner after eating a cupcake was practically a criminal offense. So, when @mimichinde1 said he chews the nylon after drinking pure water until it’s beyond recognition, we truly understood.
We extend the same grace to @Light, who, to this day, finds it hard to wear his new clothes and shoes until it’s a life-or-death situation. “I like buying them, bringing them out occasionally to stare at how beautiful they are, then taking them back to where they’re kept,” he noted.
To Dean, who is still scared to speak up when he gets to his bus stop: we recommend you relocate to Rwanda, where we just hit the bus windows to announce our arrival. As for Cedarlovee, who squeezes her bread, drops it in tea, and then uses a spoon to eat it: just do you. Life is too short to stress. Besides, the end justifies the means.
The same applies to Ollyskay, who steals meat from his pot even though he’s the one who cooked it, and Wendy, who eats 10 eggs every day.
Growing up, Jhunea would see obituary posters of people and rank them 1st, 2nd, and 3rd according to their ages. Verdict? It was, and still is, okay. There’s no harm in doing what you think is right.
At the age of 29, Longipenny hasn’t had sex—not because he doesn’t want to, but because the feeling of losing his virginity disgusts him. We listen; we don’t judge.
When ‘unknown’ said in a meme that no one should ask questions when they find him speaking to himself because he’s holding a board meeting with his brain cells, Sy_Sy took it personally. She gists herself when bored, imagines the other person’s reaction, and laughs where necessary. Similarly, Sanjo Olatunde misplaces his things on purpose, finds them, and derives immense pleasure from it. We listen; we don’t judge.
You’re not “girl enough” if you go to bed without lip gloss and perfume, @myma_xoxo style. Neither have you truly been in love if you still called “him” to apologize after finding out you were the side chick, like Eseoghene.
Has someone you love ever ghosted you for no reason? Well, Dera Onuh was once in a similar situation. She had read somewhere that “if you call someone’s name at 3:00 a.m., you’d be stuck in their mind.” She applied the trick, and it worked. Use that information as you please; we won’t judge.
Mustapha’s son came home with Arabic homework that neither the wife nor he could solve. The wife pretended to be busy in the kitchen, while Mustapha feigned illness in bed. Both laughed about the situation later.
So, Mosparkles, instead of feeling guilty for not knowing how to use Snapchat, how about you just laugh it off? Very soon, I’ll also be laughing about not knowing how to drive after spending a whole month taking lessons that I paid for with my hard-earned money. Again, we listen, but don’t judge.
