It’s been years since the infectious kids song “Baby Shark” wiggled its way onto everyone’s computer screens in 2016. And since it went viral in 2018, eventually charting in the Billboard Hot 100 top 40 the next year, the absurdly catchy dance-along hit has gained a number of high-profile fans — including Cardi B.
So much so, Cardi and her husband Offset, along with their daughter Kulture Kiari and Wave Set, have all been incorporated into the Baby Shark cinematic universe. Not only did the famous family get sharkified in a 2022 episode of Baby Shark’s Big Show, but they also reprised their roles in 2023’s Baby Shark’s Big Movie.
And if you think that a children’s program isn’t cool enough to warrant attention from someone known for her give-no-f–ks raps, think again. She might be the woman who coined the phrase “bring a bucket and a mop for this wet a– p—y,” but she’s also a longtime vocal supporter of the small-but-mighty oceanic hero, and she has the social media track record to prove it. In fact, the lyrics to “I Like It” could be changed to “I like dollars, I like diamonds, I like stunting, I like shining — and most of all, I like Baby Shark.”
So, in celebration of Cardi’s unabashed passion for the series, as well as her numerous contributions to the Baby Shark canon, keep reading for a full timeline of the outspoken Grammy winner’s yearslong love for “Baby Shark” (doo-doo doo-doo doo-doo!).
Cardi shared a screenshot on Twitter of the day’s trending topics, which included the Deadpool 2 soundtrack, Ed Sheeran, Baby Shark and the rapper herself. “Why am i trending ?” she wrote. “I LOVE YAAAAA”
Less than a week after she was on the trending with the viral children’s song, Cardi — who had just given birth to her first child, Kulture, in July — tweeted out some “Baby Shark” lyrics. The post prompted a response from fellow parent Jimmy Fallon, who tweeted, “Welcome to parenthood.”
Among then 6-month-old Kulture’s top tracks were her mom’s “I Like It” and “Taki Taki,” as well as “Mi Gente” by J Balvin and “the whole baby shark mixtape.”
Cardi shared an OOTD video on Instagram, in which she’s strutting in her backyard as if it were a runway as “Baby Shark” plays in the background. She begins lip-synching along at the “Mommy Shark” lyrics and sashays away.
“The way Kulture tried to pull my dermal off my throat,” Cardi tweeted about her daughter’s antics, before jokingly adding, “No baby shark for her for a week.”
Kulture’s punishment didn’t go on for too long, as the toddler was back jamming to her favorite bop a few weeks later.
“It’s crazy how God not only gives you a kid that looks like you but with the same energy and personality,” Cardi wrote on Instagram. “I saw my cousin posted this earlier and I thought it was soo funny.”
The rapper guest starred on the April 15, 2022, episode of the animated preschool series as Sharki B, and was joined by husband Offset (voicing Offshark) and then 3-year-old daughter Kulture (Kulture Sharki). The press release described Sharki B is “the biggest star in the seven seas — flashy, awe-inspiring, and ruthlessly fun — but always 100% herself and fin-spires other fishies to do the same.”
In the episode, Baby Shark and his best friend, William, meet Sharki B and learn “The Seaweed Sway,” the viral song-and-dance craze she created. Ahead of the episode, “The Seaweed Sway” was included on the compilation album Sing, Dance & Sway the Nick Jr. Way.
Cardi, Offset, Kulture and — making his franchise debut – the couple’s son, Wave, were all featured characters in Baby Shark’s first ever “major ocean picture.” Joining a cast of guest stars that also includes ENHYPEN and Lance Bass, Cardi and Offset reprised their roles from Baby Shark’s Big Show! — Sharki B and Offshark — while Kulture and Wave voice Kulture Sharki and Wavey Shark.
The foursome’s roles in the Dec. 8 Baby Shark movie were previewed in a November trailer, which finds the project’s titular character summoning the courage to rescue the ocean from an evil pop star named Stariana. “Good luck!” says Offset’s aquatic alter-ego toward the end of the two-minute trailer, with Cardi’s character telling Baby Shark, “You got this!”