6-7, Skibidi and the Soundtrack of a New Generation

By John Millen

Last week on the pickleball court, my partner casually called out the score: “Six–seven.”

Just for fun, I started yelling like a wild adolescent. “Ahhhhhhhhh!”

A guy on the next court paused, looked over, and said, “You sound like my grandson!”

I’m OK with that because I like to have fun just about everywhere.

But it occurred to me that I had absorbed a piece of the communication style of today’s youngest generation—often referred to as Generation Alpha.

And if you’ve spent any time around kids, grandkids, or even just the internet lately, you’ve probably seen (or heard) it too.

What’s going on here?

Generation Alpha—kids born roughly from 2010 onward—are growing up in a world saturated with short-form video, algorithm-driven content and rapid-fire cultural remixing.

Their communication style reflects that environment.

Instead of long, structured conversations, they often communicate through:

• Sudden bursts of sound

• Repeated phrases with no obvious context

• Inside jokes that seem to come out of nowhere

• Call-and-response reactions triggered by specific words or numbers

Say “six–seven,” and someone might yell.

Say “Ohio,” and it might get a reaction.

Drop a word like “skibidi,” and you’ll either get laughter…or confusion.

It feels random. But it’s not.

It can be context-related. For instance, skibidi, according the Cambridge Dictionary, can mean “cool” or “bad” or have no meaning at all, just a joke.

What is this kind of communication called?

There isn’t one perfect label, but a few concepts get us close:

Meme-based communication

Words and phrases aren’t used for their literal meaning—they’re signals tied to shared cultural moments. If you know, you know.

Reactive communication

Certain triggers (like “6–7”) produce almost automatic responses. It’s less about thinking and more about participating.

Absurdist humor

Much of Gen Alpha humor is intentionally nonsensical. The randomness is the joke.

Phatic communication

Communication used to create connection rather than exchange information. (Think: “what’s up?” with no real answer expected.)

Put simply, they’re not trying to say something meaningful.

They’re trying to feel something together.

Why do they do it?

At first glance, it’s easy to dismiss this as noise.

But there’s something deeper going on.

• It’s social glue — these reactions signal belonging

• It’s low-effort connection — no cleverness required

• It’s shaped by their environment — short-form video rewards speed and repetition

• It’s a rebellion against structure — a little chaos, on purpose

• It’s fun — and that part matters more than we think

A quick reality check

Every generation has had its version of this.

Slang.
Inside jokes.
Things that made no sense to outsiders.

Are you hip to what I’m saying?

What’s different now isn’t that it exists—it’s the speed, scale and randomness.

So what do you do with it?

Since I’m pretty sure I have no Gen Alpha readers, for those you in other generations here are a few ways to navigate it:

• Don’t overreact — it usually makes it worse

• Get curious — even if the answer is “it just is”

• Learn the patterns — it’s not as random as it sounds

• Meet them halfway — awareness builds credibility

• Model clarity — they still need it when it matters

We’ve never had so many generations with completely different communication styles, so my main message is simple:

Go with the flow.

And when you hear “6–7,” you know what to do.