People on TikTok are making puns out of anything and everything with potentially the most innocent and funniest trend: the “Don’t Leave Me” challenge.
The challenge, which features people pointing to two random objects before making a pun out of them and running away from the camera—to the cries, “don’t leave me, don’t leave me”—originated from a video by Nigerian comedian Josh Alfred on the 24th of March. In it, the comedian makes a pun on leaf and “taking your leave,” walking away from the camera as his friend laughs and begs him: “don’t leave me.” It’s pretty fun and endearing to watch.
And, the TikTok editions of Alfred’s challenge are pretty great. The puns vary from genuine laughs to eye rolling-worthy bad puns, but it’s all really sweet.
In one clip, TikTok user Iconic Pink holds a receipt—or for the sake of the joke, a bill—and then plucks someone’s eyelash to make “Billie Eyelash.” Then, she grabs her phone case and puts it under a blanket, “resting her case.” In another, she puts a stick on someone’s lips—”lipstick”—before running away and revealing a clock, asking what it tells—”time”—and putting on the same girl’s face—”facetime.”
You… get the idea.
That said, while we love and love to hate some of these videos, it’s worth pointing out that the trend has been met with a bit of criticism. Some of the people in these videos are putting on a stereotypical African accent in an attempt to mirror Alfred’s original video. As Teen Vogue’s Tayo Vero explains, “what started out as a fun, lighthearted trend has turned into a new game of who can do the worst impression of an “African.”
So, if you’re gonna try to make your own video for the “Don’t Leave Me” challenge, please, avoid putting on an African accent. That’s not what makes this funny.
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