Hotel Lobby AI Trend
Two people. One orange booth. Bars.
Past its peak. Add your own twist.
The Hotel Lobby AI trend uses AI to replace Quavo and the late Takeoff in their 2022 A COLORS SHOW performance of "Hotel Lobby (Unc & Phew)", the one in a bright orange booth, with two other faces: friends, celebrities, characters or animals. It took off on TikTok in early September 2026 after a version with two cats went viral, and by September 27 Complex counted hundreds of thousands of Hotel Lobby AI versions. Quavo reposted the original on September 23, while some fans criticized the trend because Takeoff was killed in 2022.
Who's in it?
What does Hotel Lobby AI Trend mean?
A Hotel Lobby AI video hands the original duo's chemistry to any two people. Swapping in an unlikely pair is the joke: two cats, Barack and Michelle Obama, Walter White and Jesse Pinkman. The orange wall and the two microphones stay; only the faces change.
Posted with a friend, a partner or a parent, the Hotel Lobby AI format says "we're a duo," the way Unc & Phew were: Quavo is Takeoff's uncle, and the name means uncle and nephew. Some fans, though, see a Hotel Lobby AI meme of a performance by an artist who has died as disrespectful, and the trend carries that argument with it.
Why did Hotel Lobby AI Trend take off?
Complex says the Hotel Lobby AI trend took off after a two-cat version went viral, and templates such as Summrs turned each new version into a two-photo job. With one orange wall and two microphones, every swap is instantly recognizable.
The original was already famous: HotNewHipHop calls it one of the most iconic COLORS performances ever, and COLORS had reposted it in 2025 and 2026. Quavo's repost on September 23 and the backlash over Hotel Lobby AI memes of Takeoff drew more coverage.
Where did Hotel Lobby AI Trend come from?
The Hotel Lobby AI trend starts with a 2022 performance. Quavo and Takeoff, recording as Unc & Phew, released "Hotel Lobby" on May 20, 2022, and performed it on A COLORS SHOW, the German music platform's series filmed in a minimal studio. COLORS first posted the orange-booth video in June 2022. Their only duo album, Only Built for Infinity Links, followed on October 7, 2022. Takeoff was shot and killed in Houston on November 1, 2022.
Complex dates the Hotel Lobby AI trend to early September 2026, when videos of two cats in the booth went viral on TikTok. Apps such as Starrd, Summrs and CapCut templates let anyone map two photos onto the performance, and versions with the Obamas, Walter White and Jesse Pinkman, two Spider-Man actors and soccer stars followed.
Quavo reposted the unedited COLORS video on September 23, calling it the original. By September 27, Complex counted hundreds of thousands of Hotel Lobby AI versions, along with criticism over consent and Takeoff's death.
- COLORS shares Quavo and Takeoff's A COLORS SHOW performance of "Hotel Lobby (Unc & Phew)", filmed in a bright orange booth.
- Hotel Lobby AI versions spread on TikTok after a version with two cats in the booth goes viral.
- Quavo reposts the unedited COLORS performance across his accounts, calling it the original.
- The Tab publishes a Hotel Lobby AI how-to built on a Summrs template that needs two photos.
- Complex reports hundreds of thousands of Hotel Lobby AI versions, and fan criticism over consent and Takeoff's death.
Popular versions of Hotel Lobby AI Trend
The two cats
The Hotel Lobby AI version that started it, per Complex: two cats in the orange booth, recreating the performance. It went viral on TikTok in early September 2026.
Famous pairs
Some videos cast a pair people already know as a duo. Complex lists Barack and Michelle Obama and Walter White and Jesse Pinkman, and The Tab mentions Barack Obama and Shrek among the September swaps.
Athletes and superheroes
Complex lists soccer stars Erling Haaland and Jude Bellingham and two Spider-Man actors, and Black America Web described a clip with Tom Holland's Spider-Man and Willem Dafoe's Green Goblin in the booth.
Friends and family duos
Summrs pitches its template as a way to put yourself in the performance, and The Tab's steps take photos of any two people: room for a Hotel Lobby AI duo of you and a friend, a partner or a relative.
How to post Hotel Lobby AI Trend on TikTok
- Pick two photos, one per person. The pairing is the joke.
- Post your Hotel Lobby AI video on TikTok; most versions run on the original "Hotel Lobby" audio.
- Tag the other person, or send the Hotel Lobby AI clip to them first.
Questions about Hotel Lobby AI Trend
What is the Hotel Lobby AI trend?
The Hotel Lobby AI trend is an AI meme that puts two new faces in place of Quavo and Takeoff in their 2022 orange-booth performance of "Hotel Lobby (Unc & Phew)" on A COLORS SHOW. Versions star friends, celebrities, fictional characters and animals.
Where did the Hotel Lobby AI trend start?
The Hotel Lobby AI trend spread on TikTok in early September 2026 after a version with two cats went viral, per Complex. COLORS released the performance in June 2022.
What song is in the Hotel Lobby AI trend?
It uses "Hotel Lobby (Unc & Phew)" by Quavo and Takeoff, from their 2022 album Only Built for Infinity Links. Most Hotel Lobby AI versions keep the COLORS audio; HotNewHipHop notes the song stays the same in every edit.
What does Unc & Phew mean?
Unc & Phew is the duo name Quavo and Takeoff used in 2022: Quavo is Takeoff's uncle, so it means uncle and nephew. Every Hotel Lobby AI version borrows that setup.
Is the Hotel Lobby AI trend based on a Migos song?
Not exactly. Quavo and Takeoff were members of Migos, but they released "Hotel Lobby" as the duo Unc & Phew in 2022, during what HotNewHipHop calls the post-Offset Migos era.
How do I do the Hotel Lobby AI trend?
Pick two photos, one per person, and upload them to a template. The Tab's how-to uses the Summrs Hotel Lobby template, which needs a free account; Complex also names Starrd and CapCut templates. Then save the Hotel Lobby AI video and post it on TikTok.
Who is in the most popular Hotel Lobby AI videos?
The casts named in the coverage are two cats, Barack and Michelle Obama, Walter White and Jesse Pinkman, Erling Haaland and Jude Bellingham, and Spider-Man with the Green Goblin, per Complex and Black America Web. The Tab also embeds a Shrek version.
What did Quavo say about the Hotel Lobby AI trend?
Quavo reposted the unedited COLORS performance on September 23, 2026, writing on Facebook that he and Takeoff were "viral again" with "the original." Per Complex, he has not condemned the Hotel Lobby AI trend.
Why are some people upset about the Hotel Lobby AI trend?
Takeoff was shot and killed in Houston on November 1, 2022, and some fans find Hotel Lobby AI memes of him disrespectful. Others object to using people's faces and work without permission, Complex reports.
Does your Hotel Lobby AI version use Quavo and Takeoff?
No. Our Hotel Lobby AI version recreates the format with you and one other person, without the artists: the two of you trade verses of an original rap over an original beat in a bright orange booth with two microphones.
How much does it cost to make the Hotel Lobby AI trend?
Reading is free. Making your own costs 10 credits for a video (credits start at $9.99 for 10), and a render that fails is refunded.
Sources
- Complex: Quavo and Takeoff's "Hotel Lobby" Performance Has Become a Viral AI Meme: Here's What's Going On
- The Tab: Here's exactly how to do that Hotel Lobby AI trend from TikTok
- Black America Web: Quavo & Takeoff's COLORS "Hotel Lobby" Performance Trends
- HotNewHipHop: Quavo Gives The Public A Kind Reminder As AI "Hotel Lobby" Spoofs Go Viral
What changed on this page
Updated Oct 15, 2026
- Page rewritten with dated sources.
- Page expanded: origin story, popular versions and more questions, with sources.
- New AI video examples made with this page's own template.
- Tightened the page to the site's 1,200–1,600-word standard; no facts changed.
Examples are made with AI, using AI-made people.
