The ‘6-7’ meme simply cannot be missed. Anyone who has been near TikTok, Instagram, or a high school cafeteria in the past few months has, no doubt, heard it. Someone pretending to juggle invisible items, nodding with fake seriousness, and saying, ‘Six… seven.’ That’s it. Yet somehow, it’s taken over the internet.
Madness of virality aside, behind the chaos and the endless edits lies a surprising origin story. It begins in a Starbucks airport with two basketball players: Kentucky’s own wildcat and his former Overtime Elite teammate, Taylen ‘TK’ Kinney. So how did a random coffee order turn into a generational meme?
How Did Jasper Johnson’s ‘6–7’ Meme Come Into Being?
It started “early in the morning” in Atlanta. Speaking to On3 after a commercial shoot in Lexington, Johnson, the Kentucky freshman, recalled the moment that made him a popular name.
“We were at the airport, about to head to the Bahamas, I think, to play a game,” Johnson said. “We were trying to get some food, but there was not too many options. It was early in the morning, not too many things were open. We had went to Starbucks.” Right beside him was his close friend, Tay Kinney.
Without overthinking it, Kinney ordered something first, so Johnson just copied it. When Kinney asked how it tasted, Johnson shrugged, “Yeah… It’s like a six, seven.” And that was it. Ideally, it would have been a throwaway line, but Kinney’s reaction turned that throwaway line into something special.
“’Oh yeahhh, we gotta do it into the camera! I feel like it’s gonna go crazy!’” Johnson recalled Kinney saying. Within minutes, they grabbed their media person, hit record, and turned a casual rating into the “6–7” video that would soon become an algorithm favorite.
The Real Meaning Behind Jasper Johnson’s Famous ‘6–7’
The phrase was not entirely random. Johnson and Kinney had both heard it in a low-key drill rap track called “Doot Doot (6 7)” by Skrilla, in which the artist repeats the phrase as the beat drops. At the time, hardly anyone knew the song until the duo’s 10-second clip sent the internet into a frenzy.
“I never thought it would get that big,” Johnson admitted. “Just saying two numbers. It’s definitely crazy.” Before long, Tay Kinney was being called “Mr. 6–7.” He leaned into the hype, using the phrase in Overtime Elite content and launching a “6–7” water brand.
Meanwhile, Johnson, the quiet creator behind the viral storm, was stepping into a new spotlight at Kentucky. His new teammates didn’t even realize the meme’s true origin.
Forward Reece Potter laughed when he found out, saying he always assumed it was Kinney’s doing. “It’s kinda funny that Jasper was the one who started it,” Potter said.
The “6–7” meme blew up far beyond TikTok. It appeared in NBA highlights, WNBA press conferences, and even NFL celebrations. Celebs like Shaquille O’Neal joined in too, despite admitting he had no clue what it meant. It’s now more than a meme, a slang term that’s jumped offline into schools and everyday chatter.
Meanwhile, that story’s become part of Johnson’s growing legend in Lexington. Johnson will bring the same energy to Mark Pope’s squad as the dust on virality settles. This season, Pope’s roster has some serious depth.
Inside Kentucky’s Stacked Lineup and Where Jasper Johnson Fits In
Otega Oweh returns as an SEC Player of the Year favorite. Denzel Aberdeen and Jaland Lowe bring reliable backcourt experience, and transfer forward Mouhamed Dioubate adds athleticism and edge.
Kam Williams’ three-point firepower and Brandon Garrison’s growing presence in the paint make Kentucky nothing short of scary. That is the loaded roster that Johnson is walking into.
However, let’s not forget Johnson is the kind of freshman who can change the energy of a game the second he checks in. As a Woodford County High School sophomore, he averaged 20.1 points per game.
At the 2024 FIBA U18 AmeriCup, Johnson averaged 10.0 points and 2.7 assists. Now, he brings the same energy to the Pope squad. And with guys like Trent Noah, Collin Chandler, and Reece Potter alongside him, there’s a sense that Pope’s group could be both dangerous and fun.