Kamala Harris jokingly recalls how the viral “We did it Joe” meme came to be

Vice President Kamala Harris stopped by the Essence Festival of Culture last weekend to chat with Emmy-winning actress Keke Palmer about an array of topics, including the overturning of Roe v. Wade and the historic-turned-hilarious moment she learned she would be the next vice president of the United States.

“We did it Joe!” became a viral phrase and internet sensation in November 2020 after Harris was filmed speaking on the phone with President-elect Joe Biden after news broke they’d won the presidential election. During a fireside chat with Palmer from the New Orleans Ernest N. Morial Convention Center, she recalled how the popular meme came to be.

“So you’ll remember the election happened, but it took a while for it to be declared,” she said with a pause before continuing the story.

Harris said she and her husband, Douglas Emhoff, worked out that morning and upon their return home, she went upstairs to take a shower.

“I’m going to give you all kinds of information you weren’t expecting,” she joked with the audience.

“And I got a text and it said, ‘They declared the race.’ Well, I ran downstairs, I didn’t even turn off the shower,” she joked.

Harris recalled running out of the house in search of her husband, who inadvertently ignored her frantic waves for attention due to the music in his headphones. He even returned the wave, not realizing the exciting news his wife had to share.

“And then the president called, Joe Biden called. And so that meme is from my husband standing there videotaping me having the call with the president,” Harris said.

The celebratory video quickly became a widely circulated meme and the topic of discussion for weeks.