How REDnote’s Surging Popularity is Rewriting Global Digital Boundaries
Nan Feng Chuang, January 16, 2025
Reporter: Lu Ming | Interns: Lai Dingmeng, Song Jiali | Editor: Xiang You
After a surge of new American users flooded REDnote (Xiaohongshu), the platform’s native users jokingly remarked, “Suddenly, REDnote became Little Western Book.” It’s indeed a curious phenomenon.
On this Chinese social platform, a group of Americans have come to call themselves “cyber refugees,” cautiously greeting Chinese netizens with their photos and videos. These diverse faces quickly received a warm welcome from the platform’s native users, even with a brief self-introduction or an impromptu video, receiving thousands of likes and friendly comments.
Asta, who had only joined REDnote two days earlier, was wearing a self-sewn Western classical dress and displayed it on the platform. Within 24 hours, she gained more than 20,000 followers, saying, “Yesterday, I only had 1 follower.”
Across the Pacific Ocean, REDnote, once a niche platform, has now become the number one downloaded app in the United States. It even lacks an official international version or an English name. European countries have followed suit, and REDnote has rapidly climbed on multiple app rankings.
Across the Pacific, screen to screen, through third-party translation apps and human translation tools, netizens from both countries have begun an interactive frenzy.
Exchanging “cat taxes” (sharing pet cat photos), helping with Chinese names, assisting with English homework, challenging translation software with tongue-twisters, and learning slang and internet memes together — it’s a joyful, lively exchange.
A Trump meme (“Leaving Trump”) made both countries’ netizens laugh out loud. AI-created images of the Terracotta Warriors embracing the Statue of Liberty exemplified the abstract keywords of REDnote for the year.
Both sides are intrigued by this sudden cross-cultural, cross-language, and cross-timezone interaction. Chinese netizens started to dust off their rusty English, receiving positive feedback from foreign netizens, many of whom enthusiastically said, “I want to learn Chinese.” After the home-and-away role reversal, it has unexpectedly broken the ice between cyber communities, propelling this phenomenon into a “one family under the sky” experience.
Thirteen new users shared their initial motivations and experiences, providing a slice of observation into this cyber spectacle.
1. Why REDnote?
Rock, an American pastor, became a new REDnote resident on January 13, sharing a 20-second video. In the video, his plump frame, with a white beard, laughs exaggeratedly and humorously, speaking incomprehensible words. Despite many Chinese netizens not understanding what he was saying, his resemblance to Santa Claus and his contagious laugh led to over 10,000 likes within 24 hours.
Rock laughed and explained that many Americans, including him, turned to REDnote to protest against the US government’s arbitrary ban. REDnote had become the most downloaded app in the US app store.
Rock told Nan Feng Chuang that he doesn’t often use social media, and the ban didn’t affect his life directly. However, he joined REDnote as an act of protest against the US government. “In my country, we should have freedom of speech and expression, but they are depriving us of our rights. The government uses social networks as scapegoats. They hate TikTok because they can’t control it or the people who use it. They claim that TikTok steals data, but the US companies that really control our data are the ones behind the government. So, I’m using a Chinese app to get back at them.”
“I no longer trust what the US government says about other countries. I’ve always been interested in Eastern culture, and I think this is an interesting way to understand Chinese culture and the Chinese people,” Rock explained.
This is a common initial reason. Some even posted saying, “I probably won’t post anything, just here to show my protest.”
Why did they choose REDnote instead of other mainstream US social apps?
“Pinterest is now full of ads, we hate that software. Instagram is full of angry old people and sexist people,” Gina, a new user, told Nan Feng Chuang. In the US, Gina is an actress and TV host.
However, platform atmosphere is not the only factor. Compared to other apps that entered the US market earlier, REDnote is niche and easy to sign up for, seeming less involved with commercial interests and more unexpected. What’s more, they were also disillusioned with their homegrown social media giants.
Many US users, in their eyes, felt that although REDnote was similar to Instagram and X, the latter were owned by Mark Zuckerberg and Elon Musk, who they saw as proponents of the policy ban. “Facebook wants to maintain its monopoly, and many people are moving to REDnote as an act of resistance against the government,” said Sue.
2. Home-and-Away Role Reversal
Unexpected Cyber Icebreaker
The American protest action unintentionally opened a window for cross-cultural exchange, creating an unprecedented role reversal. In this temporary English and Chinese corner, the two groups began to get to know each other.
“At first, we came here to tell our government that we can choose Chinese friends and apps if we want, and they can’t control us. But once we arrived, this turned into the loveliest, most wonderful community. When ordinary people from both countries get to know each other, I’m in awe of what could happen. If we could decide, we would live in peace,” Nina, a herbalist, shared her first experience in the Chinese community.
In one video, Nina said that in the past 24 hours, entering this Chinese community, which she had never been to, made her think differently. The hotpot, milk tea, and the customs shared in the comments were more vivid and three-dimensional than she had ever understood about China. She was excited about this.
Nina believes that many Americans, like her, “are starting to realize that we are not the only country in the world. Americans only account for 4% of the global population, but we act as if we’re involved in 100% of everything that happens.”
Almost every interviewee was astonished by the warm welcome, the enthusiastic answers, and the rocket-speed follower growth.
Rock is one of them. He said, “Maybe it’s because there aren’t many people like me, laughing so foolishly and looking like Santa Claus. This is why I decided to stay on REDnote for a while and continue sharing my popular dog and white beard.” He even posted a picture of himself dressed as Santa Claus, attracting many Chinese netizens who wanted gifts.
He still fondly recalls the interaction and believes that it will help eliminate some Americans’ misconceptions about the Chinese. “Honestly, I used to think that Chinese people lived dull and depressed lives, but many of the people I’ve met are cheerful and outgoing,” Rock told Nan Feng Chuang.
His comment section has become a playground for native users, who share memes and jokes. Some posted English fill-in-the-blank challenges, others joked about paid naming services, and some scrambled comment text to create challenges for others. Some invited others to download shopping apps for group discounts…
A Shared Love for Fashion and Wedding Topics
One of the hot topics, regardless of national borders, is the love for traditional clothing and beauty. Asta, for instance, gained nearly 70,000 followers in two days by posting 9 videos of herself wearing vintage Western dresses. She received nearly 300,000 likes, quickly growing her audience. One comment in both languages said, “I’m so happy! It feels like I can connect with the world without leaving my country.” Among the onlookers, Chinese users shared their Hanfu photos as well.
Wedding topics also transcend borders. Sapna, a single American girl, had already planned her wedding in detail, from the process to the dress and hairstyle. She shared her plans in a video, asking “Is anyone else like me, or am I crazy?” Her post received enthusiastic responses, quickly gathering 40,000 likes and over 7,000 comments.
One popular comment read, “Chinese comedian Xiao Lu once said, ‘Marriage is a two-person matter, but the wedding is my project,’” Sapna replied using “XSWL” — a Chinese internet slang she learned on REDnote, asking, “Did I use it right?” Netizens laughed and supported her.
She posted a clip of herself singing the Chinese song “Bu Ran.” In the clip, she is singing with her eyes closed, seemingly without lyrics in front of her. One user commented, “I was half asleep, then I opened my eyes and a foreigner was singing ‘Bu Ran’ to me.” When asked how she knew this song by Chinese artist Mao Buyi, she replied that she first heard it while watching the Chinese drama Ashes of Love, and the song deeply moved her.
Conclusion: New Connections and Conversations
The process of communication and integration is like a little horse crossing a river, exploring cautiously, with some amusing cultural and language barriers still in the way. When someone complimented Sapna as “Niu” (a term meaning “awesome” in Chinese slang), she responded, “I don’t know if this means I did something well, or if I’m being bullied.” She was also unsure whether a compliment about her interesting eyebrows was meant as a genuine praise or mockery. However, these doubts quickly faded away as more and more users explained the meaning to her, and she ultimately understood that these comments were sincere compliments.
Sarah, a heavy user of short video apps, spent three days exploring REDnote. She saved many Chinese recipes and was eager to recreate them at home. She was still thrilled by a comment she came across in the comment section, which read, “This feels like my first time seeing the outside world,” to which Sarah added, “For me, this is also my first time being here.”
It was a chance encounter, but it revealed how cultural exchanges were happening more subtly and quietly than we imagined. There’s no need to ask how long this honeymoon period will last or whether the platform users’ diverse personalities will blend seamlessly.
Even if this is a fleeting moment, at this very moment, many people have crossed the fog and caught a glimpse of the other side of the ocean. Every individual is alive, and understanding, trust, and recognition can emerge through open communication. Among ordinary people who work hard and love life, the most goodwill is gathered.
(Note: The names “Rock,” “Nina,” and “Sue” are pseudonyms.)
DoDoBird Insights
The development of the internet has gone through stages 1.0 and 2.0, and we’re now in an era of 3.0, where industries are empowered and undergoing dramatic changes. The original intention behind the creation of the internet was to break down barriers and boundaries. However, with the emergence of one super app after another, the information silo has become even more intense, wrapping itself around every individual. The United States has always had absolute influence over the world, and people in the US seem to think they understand the entire globe. But ironically, this is exactly what the information silo wants you to believe — that you know everything.
In my own 10+ years of using both domestic and international consumer apps, I’ve come to a clear realization: China’s mobile internet products and their user experiences are far ahead of the global curve, even surpassing foreign competitors. The concept of a product manager, originally from Silicon Valley, has blossomed in China and reached new heights. I once wished I had enough influence to show the world China’s tech landscape, its internet, its brands, and its products. I wanted them to know just how exceptional we are.
Unexpectedly, after TikTok’s ban in the US, when I was deeply pessimistic about China’s future communication with the world, something interesting happened. Over the past couple of days, REDnote saw over 700,000 new users, with many regular users from the US and celebrities and users from other countries flooding in. Elon Musk’s mom joined, NBA’s Miami Heat’s spiritual leader Dwyane Wade joined, and even the Mayor of Italy appeared on REDnote to answer Italian users’ questions. Chinese users woke up one day to see a sea of foreign faces on the app. What’s happening is magical. Americans want to learn Chinese, Chinese are testing out the rumors about America, and the cultural collisions between Chinese and American users are becoming harmonious and interesting. REDnote has become that ideal, beautiful version of the internet in the 3.0 era.
Maybe after Trump’s administration, the ban will be lifted, and TikTok might come back to life, but what has happened now has already opened Pandora’s box. It has given ordinary people from both the US and China a new perspective. We all just want to freely and equally communicate and pursue happiness. It’s not really that political.
Therefore, DoDoBird will continue to push for the healthy development of the quality second-hand clothing industry. Despite facing many malicious speculations and competition, we will persist in our core mission. We hope to genuinely and beautifully connect with everyone around the world, whether they like it or not. This is simply who we are.
- #GlobalCommunication
- #CrossCulturalExchange
- #REDnote
- #DigitalCulture
- #SocialMediaRevolution
- #CulturalCollisions
- #DoDoBirdInsights
- #TechInnovation
- #MobileInternet
- #ChinaTech
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