You’ve seen it. You've probably even used it. That specific, slightly cocky, undeniably catchy caption: i graduated call me big fish. It’s everywhere. TikTok, Instagram, LinkedIn—yes, even the suit-and-tie crowd on LinkedIn—has been flooded with students tossing their caps and claiming their new status. But what’s the deal? Why did this specific phrase become the go-to anthem for the Class of 2024 and 2025? It’s more than just a trend; it’s a vibe shift in how we celebrate finishing school.
Where "I Graduated Call Me Big Fish" Actually Comes From
Let’s get the facts straight first. This isn't some ancient proverb. It’s a lyric. Specifically, it’s from the song "Tequila Shots" by Kid Cudi, released back in 2020 on his album Man on the Moon III: The Chosen. The actual line is "I graduated, call me big fish." Cudi, known for his vulnerability and growth, was using the metaphor to describe moving on to bigger things, leaving the small pond of his past struggles behind.
Memes have a weird way of hibernating. The song came out years ago, but it took a specific intersection of social media trends and a desire for "main character energy" to make it blow up in the graduation space recently. It’s short. It’s punchy. It fits perfectly in a 15-character caption.
Honestly, the phrase works because it rejects the typical, sappy graduation clichés. People are tired of "The best is yet to come" or "On to the next chapter." Those feel like Hallmark cards. "Call me big fish" feels like a flex. It says you’ve outgrown the system that held you for four years. You're too big for the tank now.
The Psychological Hook: Why We Love the Big Fish Energy
There’s a real psychological reason why this resonates. Graduation is a terrifying transition. One day you’re a student with a clear schedule, and the next, you’re an unemployed adult looking at a scary job market. Claiming you're a "big fish" acts as a sort of "fake it till you make it" bravado. It builds confidence.
When a student posts i graduated call me big fish, they are signaling a power dynamic shift. In high school or college, you are a small part of a massive institution. You follow rules. You take tests. By calling yourself a big fish the second you get that diploma, you're reclaiming your agency. You’re the one in charge now. It’s the ultimate "main character" moment.
📖 Related: Daily Number for Pennsylvania Explained (Simply)
TikTok played a massive role here. The audio clips of Kid Cudi’s voice, often slowed down or remixed, provide the perfect soundtrack for those cinematic slow-motion videos of graduates walking across a stage or popping champagne. It’s about the aesthetic as much as the words.
The Evolution of Graduation Captions
Think back ten years. Graduation captions were almost exclusively quotes from Dr. Seuss or Ralph Waldo Emerson. Very "inspirational." Very polished.
Then came the "Done." or "C’s get degrees" era—the era of irony.
Now, we are in the era of the i graduated call me big fish style. It’s a mix of both. It’s confident but self-aware. It’s short. It’s "Internet-speak." It’s lowercase on purpose. Writing in lowercase is a stylistic choice that signals a certain level of chill. "I graduated" (capitalized) feels like something your mom would post on Facebook. "i graduated" (lowercase) feels like you're too cool to care, even though you clearly worked hard for the degree.
Dealing with the "Small Pond" Reality
Here’s the nuance nobody talks about: being a big fish is great until you realize how big the ocean is.
👉 See also: The Blue House Poem: What You’re Actually Looking For When You Search This
I’ve talked to plenty of recent grads who used the caption and then felt a weird crash a month later. You feel like a big fish on graduation day. Then, you start an entry-level job where you're basically plankton. That’s the irony of the meme. It captures a fleeting moment of peak confidence before the reality of being a "small fish" in the corporate world hits.
But does that make the meme bad? No. It makes it a necessary celebration. You should feel like a big fish for a minute. You finished! You survived the late-night study sessions, the overpriced textbooks, and the soul-crushing finals. If you can’t call yourself a big fish when you graduate, when can you?
How to Use the Trend Without Looking Like a Bot
If you're planning to use i graduated call me big fish for your own post, there's a right way and a wrong way.
The wrong way is just pasting the text and calling it a day. That’s low effort. The right way involves the right visual pairing.
- The "Dump" Post: Use it as the first slide of a 10-photo carousel that shows the messy reality of college—the coffee cups, the library naps, and finally, the cap and gown.
- The Video Transition: Start with a clip of you looking stressed in the library and transition to the "big fish" moment.
- The LinkedIn Pivot: If you're bold enough to use it on LinkedIn, pair it with a reflection on what "big fish" means to you—growth, ambition, and readiness for the "ocean" of the professional world.
Impact on Pop Culture and Music Discovery
It’s fascinating how Kid Cudi’s discography keeps getting rediscovered by Gen Z. This isn't the first time an older track has become a modern anthem. It shows that the themes of growth and self-actualization are universal.
What’s interesting is that most people using the phrase don’t even know it’s a Kid Cudi lyric. It has detached from the artist and become a piece of the cultural lexicon. It’s public domain "cool." This happens with the best memes—they lose their origin story and become a shared language.
But for the music nerds, hearing that line brings a certain level of respect back to Man on the Moon III. It reminds us that Cudi was tapping into a feeling that would eventually define a whole generation of graduates.
What’s Next After the Big Fish?
Trends move fast. By next graduation season, we might have a totally different "required" caption. But the sentiment behind i graduated call me big fish is likely to stick around in some form. We want to feel significant. We want to feel like we’ve conquered something.
The "big fish" isn't just about the degree. It’s about the transition from being told what to do to deciding what to do. It’s about the freedom that comes after the final grade is posted.
Actionable Steps for New Graduates
If you just posted your "big fish" photo, here is what you actually need to do next to keep that momentum going:
💡 You might also like: What Country Has the Largest Breasts? The Science of Size Explained
- Update the Digital Paperwork: Your "big fish" energy should reflect on your LinkedIn and resume. Don't just post the photo; update your "About" section while you still feel that post-grad glow.
- Network Outside the Pond: Reach out to three people in the industry you want to enter. Tell them you just graduated. Use that "big fish" confidence to ask for an informational interview.
- Manage the "Post-Grad Blues": Understand that the high of graduation fades. It's normal to feel like a "small fish" again in a few weeks. Keep a folder of your wins—including your graduation photos—to look at when the job hunt gets tough.
- Audit Your Subscriptions: Now that the student ID is expiring, check what services you're still paying for. Don't let your "big fish" bank account get drained by "small fish" oversights.
- Clean Your Socials: If you’re entering a conservative field, make sure the "big fish" posts are the rowdiest thing on your profile. Keep the celebration, but maybe hide the 3 a.m. party videos from sophomore year.
Being a big fish is a mindset. Graduation is just the starting gun. Now go find a bigger pond.