Where is ‘The Saxophones are Getting Louder’ TikTok Trend From? LA Content Creator Explains

Why are the saxophones getting louder on TikTok? The soundbite has been slapped on many trending videos on the platform, but hardly anyone knows where it originated from. Alia Pyatt (@magicalblackgirlalia), a content creator from Los Angeles, explained the trending sound’s origins and the tragic story behind it.

“People have used it to mean that the situation is escalating and taking a turn for the worse,” Pyatt told TikTok. Some social media users also use the soundbite to show that a situation is intensifying in comedic ways. Essentially, it’s often used lightheartedly online—even though it’s meant to make it seem as if a situation is getting worse.

But Pyatt mentioned the 1991 film, Boyz n the Hood, by John Singleton, as the sound’s origin. For those who haven’t seen the film, the explanation behind the soundbite is a spoiler.

“Towards the end of the film, Ricky has just made his dreams come true. He’s been offered a scholarship to go to college. He’s about to make it out of the hood,” Pyatt said. Overall, it seemed to be a success story.

That was until the saxophones started to get louder.

“In the scene, the background saxophone music started swelling ominously,” Pyatt explained. She continued, “Just as the music reaches its climax, Ricky is gunned down in a drive-by shooting.”

What made the scene even more disturbing was that Ricky was not part of a gang. In life, he was an excellent student who seemed to have a clear way forward. His death was abrupt, and the scene of him being carried home while covered in blood was a grotesque sight for many young people who’d watched the movie back in the day.

Giving a TikTok trend credit where it’s due

“Because of this movie, the ‘saxophones are getting louder’ phrase [was] brought to us by Black Twitter,” Pyatt said. The phrase was then transferred over to TikTok, along with the corresponding music from the movie. It was then used to showcase people’s wild encounters caught on camera.

“I’ve seen many people questioning the origins of the trend, and while many of the comments direct people back to the movie, many also write it off as a silly internet trend,” the content creator said.

Boyz n the Hood is a classic in the Black community, according to Pyatt. Erasing the context behind the viral soundbite would be disingenuous, especially when it involves the gruesome drive-by shooting. Although Ricky is fictional, using the trend for a situation that doesn’t carry the same intensity doesn’t sit well given the context of the sound.

One TikTok user commented, “It’s the “bye Felicia” all over again.” Many people would not know that the phrase also comes from a 1995 film classic, Friday. But that’s what trends do—oftentimes, the origins are diluted, and then they’re applied in irrelevant contexts.

Another person wrote, “Saw a video that said “when the saxophones are getting louder but in a good way”… HELLO?” Basically, the trend has reached Jet2Holidays levels of overused, with some social media users playing the sound over their shopping videos.

Evidently, there are those who are over the trend, with a commenter telling Pyatt that they would “block” a sound on TikTok if they could. With the brutal pop culture history that comes with the soundbite, hopefully, people would become even a bit more mindful when using it.

(featured images: Netflix)

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