Keyboard Cat began with footage filmed in the 1980s by Charlie Schmidt, showing his cat Fatso appearing to play an electronic keyboard. The clip was uploaded to YouTube in 2007 and became widely known in 2009, when it was used to play people off the stage after embarrassing or failed moments, in the style of a television send-off. From there it spread through reaction videos, remixes and social media edits, and it remains a shorthand for a light-hearted, anticlimactic ending. Its short version keeps only the most recognisable part of the tune for quick edits.