Mukbangs gained popularity in the 2010s for their quirky entertainment purpose: being “magical eating fantasies.” The genre’s interactive live-streamed videos capture content creators eating normal quantities of food while talking to their audience. With over 4.3 million TikTok videos, #mukbang has become a global phenomenon.
Mukbangs originated in South Korea to reduce feelings of loneliness and provide “virtual compensation” for sharing a meal with another. People usually tune into mukbangs to avoid feeling like they are eating alone.
“I watch mukbangs at least twice a day whenever I’m hungry. For me, it’s the eating sounds that are satisfying. I know that the creators may be exaggerating how they eat with the sounds they make, but I don’t really mind, because the excessive eating sounds just make the meal look more appealing,” junior Ruby Valdez said.
When the trend globalized in the mid-2010s, both the portion sizes and views skyrocketed.
Now, popular mukbangers like Nicholas Perry, known as Nikocado Avocado, and Candy Godiva, or Hungry Fatchick, have garnered millions of subscribers for eating disturbingly large amounts of food.
“If you look at Nikocado Avocado’s thumbnails, it’s almost revolting because of how it seems like he’s throwing up the food he’s eating,” sophomore Leila Semichi said. “People still watch, though, because the sight of someone stuffing their face is not a usual one.”
Viewers have become concerned about the health of mukbangers who sometimes ignore healthy eating habits.
“If it means I have to watch people eat themselves to death, I don’t plan on ever watching mukbangs,” senior Semisi Tuipulotu said.
“People are just stuffing their faces with food for views when it was initially something meant to help people relax,” junior Shayne Porter said. “People literally die from consuming that much food, so I wonder if these creators ever get worried about their health and say enough is enough.”
Trending all over platforms such as TikTok, Youtube, and Instagram is the unexpected weight loss of Nikocado Avocado. As a way to prove that people will consume any content if it’s taboo, risky, or disgusting enough, Perry conducted a social experiment to examine the number of people willing to watch him eat his life away. After reaping the benefits of his views and merch purchases in exchange for his posting of overly portioned consumption, Perry’s final message was, “I’m always two steps ahead,” signaling he’s outplayed his viewership of over 48 million who have watched his exit from the mukbang community.
The initial use of mukbangs to decrease feelings of loneliness and help its audience eat is being transformed into watching creators perform gluttonous acts for views and money.
“I liked it better when content creators had cute setups and ate slowly like they were actually enjoying the food because now it seems like they’re suffocating by downing gross portions,” Porter said.
“It’s not surprising that content that once started as a wholesome message has become not that wholesome over time because money became a factor. I’m just surprised that in the end, students are still watching,” Valdez said.
Mukbangs continue to be a trendy phenomenon among both students and adults. Many viewers enjoy the adrenaline high and the feeling of observing a rare sight, no matter how uncomfortable, disgusting, or dangerous a video’s content is.
