Kris Jenner's image spreads in Chinese social media good luck trend

The cult of hard work in a digital version

The mechanism of this trend was explained by Marcelo Wang, a creator on the **TikTok** platform, who introduces Chinese slang and culture to Western audiences on a daily basis. According to him, Jenner's popularity stems from the fact that she is perceived as one of the hardest-working businesswomen in the United States. For China's Generation Z, "cosplaying" Kris Jenner — that is, stepping into her persona in the digital sphere — is a humorous yet hopeful way to attract fortune.

The scale of the phenomenon is impressive. On the **RedNote** platform alone, which has a base of approximately 300 million users, about 99,000 posts related to Jenner were recorded, generating a total of 52.9 million views. Users are not limited to standard photos of the star. Edited graphics circulate online depicting Jenner in various professional roles — from "Kris the lawyer" to "Kris the teacher." Each of these incarnations is meant to help achieve specific life goals, showing how deeply Western pop culture intertwines with local needs for success.

From Douyin to X — a viral that knows no borders

Although the trend was born in China, its echoes are beginning to be heard in the West. On the **X** platform (formerly Twitter), reports are already appearing from people who have picked up the Chinese custom. One user even claims that he managed to pass a difficult exam thanks to setting Jenner's image as his profile picture. This is a classic example of "magical thinking" in the digital age, where a meme becomes a psychological tool intended to build self-confidence and optimism. Kris Jenner herself did not remain indifferent to her new role in Asia. On Sunday, the celebrity commented on one of Marcelo Wang's videos, using her iconic quote from the show "Keeping Up With the Kardashians": "You’re ALL doing amazing, sweetie!!!!". This brief interaction only fueled interest in the trend, directly connecting the global media icon with her new army of fans in China.

It is worth paying attention to the **RedNote** platform, which has become the main hub for this phenomenon. Last year, the service saw a rapid increase in the number of users, partly due to people migrating from TikTok for fear of a potential ban of that app in the US. This shows how dynamically the social media landscape is changing — a platform that was originally niche is today dictating trends that can transform the image of an American celebrity into a symbol of luck for millions of people on the other side of the globe.

A new form of soft power and digital talismans

This phenomenon sheds new light on how modern "soft power" functions. Traditionally associated with diplomacy and official cultural exports, today it manifests through grassroots trends and memes. Jenner's persona, despite being embedded in a very specific, American reality TV context, has been completely deconstructed and reassembled by Chinese internet users to fit their own aspirations and sense of humor.

• Number of posts: Over 99,000 on the RedNote platform in just three days.
• Reach: Over 52.9 million views of content related to the trend.
• Main platforms: Weibo, RedNote (Xiaohongshu), Douyin.
• Key message: Kris Jenner as a symbol of diligence and financial success.

This phenomenon proves that in the era of global communication, media figures cease to belong to a single cultural circle. They become raw material from which users around the world build their own narratives. The popularity of "lucky Kris Jenner" is not just a passing fad, but a signal of a deeper change — young people are looking for new points of reference and authorities, even if their choice seems ironic or accidental on the surface. In a world where economic success is the highest value, a figure who built an empire from nothing (or at least from skillful image management) becomes a natural object of worship in digital reality. It can be expected that in the near future we will witness more such image "takeovers." The line between a meme and real influence on social behavior is becoming increasingly thin. Kris Jenner in the role of a Chinese deity of success is just the tip of the iceberg in the process of creating a new, global digital mythology, in which reach and bank balance become the new indicators of prosperity.