Meme Goddess Kifurai Explains Money Cat and Other Heater Memes You've Never Heard Of

Every Indonesian has received a message like this at least once in their lives:

The SMS message would always end with some demand telling you to send it to ten other people right away in order to avoid a curse or bad luck. Some people fell for it. Others dismissed it right away. And before cell phones were around, it was pieces of paper, covered in Arabic words to lend an air of authenticity to the freaky stories, that urged whoever found it to make 20 copies or risk dying in a week's time. To this day I think it was all a scam done by some copy shop owner to get help his business out.

Looking back, it's sorta weird that my childhood was so filled with anonymous death threats. But I guess I should feel lucky to be alive 15 years later.

Kifurai is a master of a different kind of chain letter. She posted an image of a chubby white tabby covered in coins to her Tumblr with a note saying that reposting Money Cat will bring you financial good luck. And the image apparently took off—or so she told us.

VICE: Why VICE? Why did you want us to interview you?
Kifurai: From what I understand, VICE started off as a punk zine that covered underground stuff, things not covered by the mainstream. Since the meme community is pretty much the underground today… I thought why not? I've read other VICE articles on Mardial, Semiotika, so I thought you guys would be interested in this stuff.

What the hell is this Money Cat meme?
It's a variation of a super popular 'you've been visited by…' meme. In the early days of the internet, there were lots of chain messages demanding the recipient forward the content. It's always 'If you don't forward this, your parents will die' kind of stuff. The 'you've been visited…' meme is the other side of the same coin. It's mostly lighter stuff like 'if you share this, you will get wealth/ confidence/ luck/ power, et cetera. You can find these memes on image-based internet forums, and now its creeped into Tumblr as well Money Cat itself is one of those Maneki-Neko you see in the front of stores.

So what would you like to talk about?
I was thinking you would ask me why this meme was shared 130,000 times and reached 5 million people. And about why so many people left testimonials on it. Do the citizens of the internet really buy into this stuff? Is this why it's so easy to spread hoaxes and fake news in Indonesia? Ahaha.

So why do you think this meme shared 130,000 and seen by 5 million people?
It's funny, I think people were attracted to the promise of 'instant wealth' after sharing the meme. Plus, it happens to be an image of a cat, so it's safe and it doesn't offend the religious bunch. The organic testimonials also helped since people on the internet would easily click share just to get some recognitions from their friends. To get more likes. To be seen as current. It's too easy. I'm sure many share it just for shits-and-giggles. However, I might have actually experienced Money Cat for real. I don't know if it's just a placebo effect or whatever, but I did experience it.

You did?
After I first shared the meme on Tumblr, a few hours later my dad handed me a €50 note. It's weird since my dad rarely gives me money, unless it's for my birthday or something. A friend was suddenly given Rp 500,000 from another friend as a commission on a photoshoot, even though it was just supposed to be a fun project. There were heaps more On one of the posts, someone posted a letter from Toys 'R Us saying they had received $130. Someone else found money on the street. Someone had their college debt erased. One guy even had a lawsuit cancelled.

So Money Cat is more about luck. Do you believe in those 'if you don't share this, something bad will happen to you …' messages?
When I was young, I would be scared every time I received an email like that. But I was home every day anyway, so I just ignored them. I didn't believe them because there were no testimonials! Hahaha. (There was a time when YouTube comments were full of chain messages. Such a dark time!) Plus now we have Immunity Cat Omega, which counters all chain messages.

Did you post Money Cat a lot?
Nah, I just did it recently. My Facebook page is meme-based. Since Money Car was gaining traction on Tumblr, I thought why not spread it on Facebook so more people can enjoy the fortune it brings.

Why do you think so many people left testimonials?
Serious answer: the placebo effect. Funny answer: we're all in this one giant troll scheme. Haha. I don't know, joining in the whole thing and leaving testimonials as if you have experienced the effect of Money Cat is thrilling. You're part of something big. Plus, who doesn't want to be blessed by a cute cat? At least you can show off.

Do you think people really bought it?
From some of the accounts I stalked, most shared it for shits-and-giggles, a 'nothing to lose' attitude But some do actually believe it, especially if the cat in the meme happens to be a calico car with its right hand up. In the East Asian tradition, like in China and Japan, it's a symbol of wealth and luck. Hence the Maneki-Neko placed in front of stores. Polytheists still believe in the blessings of sacred animals. But there are a lot of people who got angry and claimed that Money Cat was nothing but hoax. Most of them were Americans from the South or Republicans for some reason.

Wait, Southern Americans and Republicans?
I checked their profiles. Most of them lived in Alabama or Texas. Their timelines were full of pro-Trump, anti-immigrant, football-loving, pro-gun sentiment. Typical Republican Southerners. Not all of them were negative though. A person from Indiana wrote the caption 'I got a gun' after sharing my post.

What about Indonesians?
Surprisingly the impact of Money Cat was minimal in Indonesia. I don't know why it's getting more traction abroad. Those who shared it in Indonesia were mostly my fans. Some don't think too much about it, but some took my testimony to heart. (Sharing a picture of a cute cat on your timeline won't hurt anyone either) I think many people were just afraid of being seen as worshipping something other than God.

So you're a meme goddess?
I'm a little proud of that. Haha. Many have been called 'Princess Meme,' 'Meme Queen,' or even 'Miss Internet.' But most of them just throw up jomblo jokes or funny pictures with Impact captions instead of truly capturing the essence and beauty of the meme. Those who jokingly called me 'Meme Goddess' are big names in the meme world, people like VNGNC, Mardial and some anonymous accounts on Twitter. One time, I was also exchanging messages with FrankJavCee, the Meme Lord.

What's the essence of memes?
Memes are not unfunny pictures someone forced to be funny by adding a caption or some impact font. Memes also don't have to be viral. Memes are funny and beautiful when they avoid the trap of looking like someone 'forced it to be funny' just so it's accepted by a mainstream audience (RIP Om Telolet Om). Memes aren't even always comedy. When you spread ideas or concepts—even when it's ironic—and it resonates with people in a small circle, then it's a success. It's even better if it's a recycling of an already existing meme.

Why did Om Telolet Om fail to sustain itself?
Om Tolelot Om started off interesting since it had gotten some traction among producers (for some reason, producers, here in Indonesia or abroad, are very perceptive to memes). It got exploited right away on Instagram. It got overused and overshared. Within a day, Om Telolet Om was exploited by official accounts (government and commercial brands) so they can appear 'current.' When a meme is adopted by the corporate world, it loses its soul and people start to lose interest. It had a massive potential, but it ended up dying really fast because of overuse.

Will this interview boost your reputation as a 'meme goddess'?
A little perhaps? Haha. All these accolades are nothing more than jokes. So when the media covers something, it is somehow validated a bit more. But it's fine the way it is. It's just a product of the internet.

This article originally appeared with the headline "We Asked Indonesia's 'Meme Goddess' Kifurai to Interview Herself About 'Money Cat'"