NEWPORT, Ky. — No matter what you’re watching on TV or where you go, it likely feels like the phrase “6-7” follows you everywhere.
It’s popular among kids, but for most adults it begs the question: What does “6-7” mean?
Believe it or not, a big part of the viral meme is thanks to one Northern Kentucky basketball phenom.
Kansas basketball commit Taylen Kinney was born and raised in Newport. His family owns Riverfront Pizza in Covington, where Kinney spent time bussing tables and washing dishes.
Since then, Kinney has earned a reputation as one of the best basketball prospects in the country.
Learn how Kinney played a role in the viral meme in the video below:
Kinney played two years at Newport High School before moving to Atlanta to play in the Overtime Elite basketball league.
So where does he fit into the “6-7” madness?
Let’s start at the beginning. In December, rapper Skrilla dropped a song called “Doot Doot,” which included the now-famous phrase. That song eventually became the anthem for the viral meme.
A couple of weeks after the song came out, the social media team at Overtime posted a video of Kinney in which they asked him to rate his Starbucks drink on a scale of 1-10.
Kinney glanced at his teammate standing next to him before ranking the drink “like a 6-7” while moving his hands up and down in a juggling gesture.
For some reason, that video blew up on social media.
“They recorded me and I said it and then it just happened, I just blew up,” Kinney said. “I don’t know why.”
After the video went viral, every time Kinney was featured in an Overtime social media post, he inevitably worked those numbers into the video.
That's basically the story behind the madness of the meme we see today.
Kinney has since been dubbed "Mr. 6-7", which is even noted on his Wikipedia page. Since that first video, his social media following has skyrocketed.
"I went from 200,000 to a million (followers) on TikTok," Kinney said.
Here's the big question everyone is trying to figure out: what does it mean?
"It don't mean nothing," Kinney said. "It's just two numbers."
Kinney's mom, Mikelle Gearding, also has no idea what to think of the phrase.
She said she was even shocked to find out that "6-7" was named Dictionary.com's word of the year. According to Dictionary.com, the phrase could mean “so-so" or "maybe this, maybe that".
"It was just him being goofy and it blew up," Gearding said.
Gearding said she, too, has no idea why it's gotten so popular.
"I don't think anyone understands the craze behind it necessarily," Gearding said.
Still, no matter what she does, those numbers seem to follow her everywhere.
"We'll randomly be walking and I hear little kids say '6-7' nonstop," Gearding said. "Half of the time, they have no clue what it is. They just hear other kids say it."
It's not just kids, either. Other celebrities and athletes have also joined the fun. It's even been used by college and NFL players as touchdown celebrations.
"It was even on NFL Sunday and South Park who had a whole episode of it," Gearding said.
Despite all of the "6-7" mania, Kinney's view of himself hasn't changed.
"I'm a basketball player," Kinney said.
Kinney was ranked the No. 17 recruit prospect in ESPN's 2026 class and received offers from schools like Kansas, Kentucky, Indiana, Arkansas and Louisville. Ultimately, Kinney decided in September to commit to Kansas.
Kinney said he's looking forward to getting to Lawrence to start his new chapter in his basketball journey.
"Just starting a new grind," Kinney said. "Getting better. Getting ready for the level after that."
While Kinney is primarily focused on basketball, the phrase "6-7" continues to follow him everywhere. Still, he's not worried about it following him to Kansas.
"It's too late," Kinney said.
He's leaning into the journey now. In fact, Gearding said they're close to getting his "6-7" brand waters into convenience stores soon.
"Those will be in stores around Northern Kentucky, probably in the next week," Gearding said.
