Getty/Twitter
Three years ago, a white and gold and/or black and blue dress divided Twitter, but now two simple words have ignited a national disagreement. Is it yanny or laurel?!
The debate hasn't sucked in just you and your friends, though, as Hollywood stars have become fully immersed in the discussion since the audio clip in question started going viral on Tuesday afternoon when YouTuber Cloe Feldman asked her followers to weigh in. Like most things on the internet, however, it appears the debate started on Reddit earlier this week.
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View StoryWhat do you hear?! Yanny or Laurel pic.twitter.com/jvHhCbMc8I
@CloeCouture
According to the Redditor that introduced this audible oddity to the world, the recording comes from the Vocabulary.com listing for "laurel," which is defined as "a wreath worn on the head, usually as a symbol of victory."
So there you have it...it is laurel. But why do some people hear yanny?
The New York Times spoke to Dr. Jody Kreiman -- a principal investigator at the voice perception laboratory at the University of California, Los Angeles -- who explained that "the acoustic patterns for the utterance are midway between those for the two words."
"The energy concentrations for Ya are similar to those for La," the scientist said. "N is similar to R; I is close to L."
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View StoryThat is why some users on Twitter realized that when you change the pitch of the audio file, you will be able to hear different words.
Ok, so if you pitch-shift it you can hear different things:
@xxv
down 30%: https://t.co/F5WCUZQJlq
down 20%: https://t.co/CLhY5tvnC1
up 20%: https://t.co/zAc7HomuCS
up 30% https://t.co/JdNUILOvFW
up 40% https://t.co/8VTkjXo3L1 https://t.co/suSw6AmLtn
But honestly, who cares about science. We hear what we want to hear these days, and there were plenty of famous ears that heard yanny and wanted the world to know, while others don't understand how it could be anything but laurel. See the reactions from Hollywood below.
Team Yanny
It's Yanny.
@StephenKing
Yanny!!!
@TheRyanAdams
This is really weird. How is anyone hearing Laurel? Is this a trick thing like the blue and gold dress? https://t.co/jr3k0oJIiI
How do people even hear Laurel??! This is blue dress/gold dress all over again.
@melissafumero
It's Yanny you deaf fucks
@Nic_Hamilton
It's YANNY
@BebeRexha
I truly do not understand where Laurel comes from. I only hear Yanny. This is not a bit, I am so confused https://t.co/1rdGD3r5cZ
@ikebarinholtz
Down with Laurel, Thanos is Team Yanny pic.twitter.com/Zx9y4ztr8B
@RottenTomatoes
Where does @JimOHeir land on Yanny vs. Laurel? pic.twitter.com/v8zlYLDLMm
@peopletv
Team Laurel
Literally everything at my show just stopped to see if people hear Laurel or Yanny. I hear Laurel. https://t.co/efWRw1Gj0L
@TheEllenShow
it's so clearly laurel. I can't even figure out how one would hear yanny.
@chrissyteigen
THE FUCK IS GOING ON ITS SO BLATANTLY LAUREL AND TRUMP IS SO EVIL AND THE DRESS WAS ACTUALLY BLACK AND BLUE LIKE NOT AN OPINION LIKE IT WASSSSS BLACK AND BLUE. AND TRUMP IS ACTUALLY DUMB, LIKE, THESE ARE FACTS WHY ARE WE DISCUSSING LIKE ITS NOT OK I NEED TO SLEEP NOW GOOD DAY SIR
@chloebennet
Laurel or Yanny - @LiamPayne via his IG story 😂 pic.twitter.com/tWeYHJXuPf
@liam93pro
We're team Laurel all the way. https://t.co/uTPBwB3X9C
@HowToGetAwayABC
UPDATE: My wife also hears 'Yanny'. So that's both my wives, on screen & off, who are nuts.
@piersmorgan
It's LAUREL, ffs. https://t.co/BWJbjXoBBZ
Undecided
5:30 - Yanny 9:30- Laurel What...is...happening?
@StephenAtHome
I 100% hear two different voices: a higher-pitched “Yanny” and a lower-pitched “Laurel”. You? https://t.co/NZDb0xv81I
@JamesGunn
I heard Yanny all day and now I'm hearing Laurel on the same device and I can't hear Yanny anymore. I guess I'll just go fuck myself.
@kumailn
If you wanted to know whether I hear Yanny or Laurel here's your answer. 😎☕️ pic.twitter.com/xnrIby2kmd
@Kyle_MacLachlan
Trying to hear both Yanny and Laurel. #Portlandia pic.twitter.com/NNZ3Upv6Rd
@IFC
I could only hear Yanny at first.
@JJWatt
Then @DerekWatt34 told me about the high/low pitch and now I can only hear Laurel haha https://t.co/dv58tIt6YV
More Reactions That Made Us LOL
My GPS keeps telling me to turn left on Yanny Canyon pic.twitter.com/ttaR1wVpYI
@DavidDobrik
Me after hearing both pic.twitter.com/bJOHV7OJ3A
@briyaass
bisexual culture is hearing both laurel and yanny
@marianastrensch
We've renamed the dogs Laurel and Yanny pic.twitter.com/1usnDV14sQ
@MauraJudkis
Life's too short to sit on your yanny and rest on your laurels
@hayleyghoover
call me by your yanny
@tyvid5
guys help me out, does this dress say yanny or laurel pic.twitter.com/Tl2lfZKYBS
@azalben
Rex
