Is it just me, or does he look kind of like Danny Gonzalez?
Ned Flames, known by his stage name Fox Szn (pronounced "fox season") is a musician best known for his song "Circus". The song became a viral hit on TikTok, appearing in thousands of videos.
However, Ned Flames does not actually exist. Fox Szn is merely a fake persona of Danny Gonzalez that he created for his video "I Made A Viral TikTok Song"
. In the video, Danny attempts to create a new song that will become viral on the app by having the song check every box for a TikTok hit. To hide his identity, he formed the Fox Szn persona, although his fans quickly realized that he was actually Danny.
Singles:
- 2020 — "Circus"
- 2024 — "Nepo Baby"
Tropes:
- Animal Motif: He makes two puns in "Circus" calling himself a fox, which was the inspiration for his alias.
- Bait-and-Switch: In "Nepo Baby", Ned describes how hard it was to get to the top, describing being an immigrant who worked difficult jobs, only to follow up with "That's what my daddy's life was like I assume".
- Cliché Storm: Invoked. "Circus" is purposely made to be the most generic TikTok song imaginable in order to go viral. Danny created it by looking at what trends he could find among viral songs.
- Fake Band: While not a band, Fox Szn is a fake musician.
- Forced Meme: Fox Szn exists because Danny tried to make a song that could become a viral TikTok meme, using quotable lyrics and easy-to-follow dances. He gets an impressive amount of views and videos, but not enough to go "viral" by his definition, and his fanbase sees through his disguise very quickly, confounding the experiment.
- Funny Background Event: In the background of one of his TikToks for "Circus", a baby doll falls out of a tree with no explanation.
- Nepotism: "Nepo Baby" reveals that Ned is a nepo baby who only got a career in music because his father is a wealthy record executive.
- Older Than They Look: Despite looking rather young and being played by a 29-year-old, "Nepo Baby" reveals that he is 45.
- Paper-Thin Disguise: Ned Flames isn't an especially convincing disguise, as he's just Danny with a fake goatee, sunglasses, a hat, and different clothes. His fans very quickly realized it was him.
- Shout-Out: The lyrics to "Circus" feature references to popular TikTokers Addison Rae and Bryce Hall.
- Sir Swears-a-Lot: Both of his singles feature copious amounts of swearing, especially the chorus. This is due to the fact that swearing is extremely common in viral TikTok songs, and Danny wanted to include most of the words that appeared often in viral hits in his song.
- Spoiled Brat: Although an adult, Ned acts like a spoiled child in "Nepo Baby". He grew up rich and pampered and he gets angry that anyone would suggest that he is a nepo baby, despite him obviously being one.
- Take That!: "Nepo Baby" is a Take That to musicians who only have careers because of their wealthy parents.
