Wide Putin

Where the original footage comes from

The basis of the meme was the broadcast of Vladimir Putin's inauguration on May 7, 2018. In one continuous shot, the president walks through empty Kremlin corridors before heading out to his car. Even then, the recording spread online because of its solemn, unhurried gait, and English-speaking users overlaid the Bee Gees song “Stayin' Alive” on it.

The picture from the collection is a blurred frame: a figure in a dark suit and tie, a red carpet, a light hall with lamps. The horizontal stretch gives the viewer the feeling that the person has spread out and become wider than the space around him.

How the “Wide” version appeared

According to English-language reviews, an early version with the stretched figure was posted in February 2020 in one of the Telegram channels, and in May 2020 the version that became the most famous was uploaded to YouTube. After that, the video spread to Discord, where subscribers commented on it with the phrase “It's him.” By June 2020, the clip and its variations had gathered tens of thousands of views, and from then on the wave kept growing.

Reportedly, VKontakte included “Wide Putin” among the main memes of 2020. Exact places and figures are best treated as estimates: sources disagree on the details.

Music and mechanics

The accompaniment is the piece “Song for Denise” performed by Piano Fantasia, released in 2015. It is a calm piano piece, not phonk or bass, as is often mistakenly written. Its tenderness and deliberately serious delivery create a contrast with the absurdly stretched figure.

The meme quickly became a playground for editing: the figure was stretched further with each turn, stretched several times in a row, made into hour-long versions, had cartoon and game characters substituted in, and then other well-known people were also turned into “wide” versions. For the viewer, the humor works through anticipation: they know the melody and wait for the figure to appear on screen.

Usage examples

Captions are not required: the meme more often travels as a video. But if you need a still image, these variants will do.

“Me when I finally finish work on Friday at 5:59 PM.” The walking figure looks like a confident stride toward the finish line.

“My answer to ‘how are you?’ when everything is going according to plan.” The caption emphasizes confidence and unhurried calm.

“Call link: everyone is silent, but one person still walks in as if they came to give a presentation.” Irony about a grand entrance.

How to use the template

The meme is best received as a short insert or transition where the “ceremonious” ending of an absurd story is needed. Don't use it for insults or political slogans: it lives as a formal joke about appearance and editing, not as a statement about a real person. Use neutral captions about a confident walk, waiting, or a sudden appearance, and the frame will keep its light tone.

If you are editing your own video, pay attention to the rhythm: the meme depends on smooth movement and unhurried music, so abrupt cutting ruins it. A good option is to keep the long shot and make only the stretch and a caption in the corner of the frame funny.

In a static picture without sound, the joke is noticeably weaker: recognizability comes from the melody, and many people see only a blurred figure in the frame. So when publishing an image, it helps to add the words “wide” or “walking” so the viewer immediately recalls the music.