Goodbye 2026, Welcome 2027: The 120-Year-Old Picture Behind the Meme
Why we picture the old year handing over to the new one, from the 1906 New Year Baby cover to the rainy highway hug, and how to make yours from 1 selfie.
Pick a scene and make your own Goodbye 2026 video
Each scene is a ready-made version of this trend. Choose the one that fits you, upload one photo and get the video. No prompt, no editing.
In this article
Two signs over a highway. 2026 on the left. 2027 on the right.
Rain. Two versions of you.
One hug. Then 2027 picks up a suitcase and drives away.
Make your own Goodbye 2026 Welcome 2027 video from 1 selfie. You play both years. Open the studio →
The meme is new. The picture behind it is 120 years old.
The old year meets the new year
People have long drawn the year as a person.
The new year is a baby. By December, that baby is an old man. Then he hands over to the next baby.
That is Baby New Year: a baby in a diaper and a top hat, with a sash showing the year.
The 1906 cover
The look we know was made popular by an illustrator, J. C. Leyendecker.
On December 29, 1906, he painted a New Year Baby for the cover of The Saturday Evening Post.
He kept coming back to it. The Post ran 322 of his covers. His last one, on January 2, 1943, was a New Year Baby too.
From magazine covers to your feed
Every December the same handover shows up online.
"Goodbye [this year], welcome [next year]" posts fill Shorts, Reels and TikTok.
The year changes. The feeling doesn't: half sad, half hopeful.
Our version
TrendSwap's template swaps the baby and the old man for you.
- You and your future self stand under the 2026 and 2027 signs in the rain.
- You walk together and hug as lightning hits the wet road.
- 2027 takes a silver suitcase and drives off. 2026 watches.
All from 1 clear selfie.
Why it works
Saying goodbye to a year is hard to put into words.
A hug in the rain says it in four seconds.
And it is you on both sides: the one who made it through, and the one who goes next.
4 year-end ideas
Each clip stars one person from one photo. Make one for a friend? Use their photo (with permission) and send it before midnight.
The Midnight Post
Post it at 11:59 p.m. Let 2027 drive away right on time.
For the Friend Who Had a Year
Make their 2026 hug their 2027. Send it with one line.
Moving Away
New city, new job? The suitcase says it for you.
The Year-in-Review Ending
Put it last in your 2026 recap. End on the hug.
With TrendSwap's Goodbye 2026 Welcome 2027 AI Video Generator you upload one selfie and get the clip with audio. Step by step: how to make the Goodbye 2026 Welcome 2027 video.
Related memes
Goodbye 2026
Your 2026 and 2027 selves share one last embrace on a rainy highway.
Related Guides & Tutorials
How to Make the Goodbye 2026 Welcome 2027 Video (One Selfie)
Explore the year-end highway sign scene, where 2026 hugs 2027 in the rain, and make your own video from one selfie.
David Lee
How to Make the W Chews Video With AI (No Prompt Needed)
W Chews means a win, L Nibbles a loss. Explore the food-verdict meme and make a video with a portrait and a food photo.
David Lee
How to Make the Like JENNIE AI Video (One Photo)
Explore the Like JENNIE dance trend and make a video starring a person or pet in front of a group of backup dancers from one photo.
David Lee