When LeBron James originally posted a picture to his Instagram Story in 2018 of himself shirtless near a pool with the caption, “Smiling through it all!” “I can’t believe this is my life.” It’s safe to assume he had no idea it would become a viral enough reaction meme to inspire a hit pop song in 2024, but according to rising star Gracie Abrams, it has true.

Abrams, who rose to fame this year as the opener on Taylor Swift’s Eras Tour, posted an Instagram Story on Tuesday that is just the latest confirmation that a line in “That’s So True” – her first-ever Top 10 Song on the Billboard Hot – included 100 charts – was inspired by a LeBron contribution so iconic that even his own son recreated it this summer.

We know that.

What lyric gave Gracie Abrams the idea?

Abrams begins “That’s So True” by singing the following lines (emphasis mine):

I could go and read your mind

Constantly think about your stupid face

I live in your glass house, I’m outside, uh

Looking into big blue eyes

Just did it to hurt myself and make me cry

Smiling through it all, yes, that’s my life

So what does this have to do with LeBron?

Well, in February 2018, James posted the above photo and caption of himself smiling and leaning his head back to laugh for dramatic effect in response to a Fox News host Laura Ingraham telling him to “Shut up and dribble.” However, over the years, it has become a pretty common response that people use online when they can’t help but laugh at a shitty situation. Apparently, this is how Abrams himself originally became aware of the meme.

How do we know that LeBron James inspired Gracie Abrams’ poetry?

On Tuesday, December 10, Abrams posted a video to her Instagram Story featuring a lighter with dazzling rhinestones on one side… and the now nearly 40-year-old NBA star’s picture and caption on the other, all in one Meaning of “My humble self”. to ask the only logical question:

As it turns out, the answer is yes! Abrams admitted this while testing an early version of “That’s So True” in front of an audience during her “Secret of Us” tour with her co-writer and best friend Audrey Hobert in June:

From this video:

Hobert: “We just list him as a co-writer, LeBron James. Oh my God, you love LeBron from Trainwreck…you loved him in that.”

Abrams: “Yeah… I liked that he did that. Also, but mostly Audrey and I would send this (meme) back and forth when we were really sad to each other, and then during Corona, I think it was my birthday? …She made me a huge blanket with this picture on it. Like the entire ceiling was just that photo… and his big smile.”

Hobert probably didn’t know that she wanted to literally envelop her friend in the intro to her biggest song yet when she created this blanket, but hey, sometimes inspiration comes from an Instagram caption-turned-meme if you watch it on least expected.

But if all that still isn’t enough to convince you of the lyrics’ origins, then consider that we also know, based on her Instagram account, that Abrams, who was born and raised in Los Angeles, is at least an occasional Lakers star. Fan is:

Does that play a role here? Probably not. It was just worth it to put it on the record.

But anyway, if you’ve read this far, we have a treat for you here at SB Nation: the next time you argue with your dad about LeBron being better than Michael Jordan, you can tell him “Did MJ do that.” ever done?” “An Instagram story became such a viral reaction image that it inspired a Gracie Abrams song?” He probably has no idea what that means, but if he stays silent in confusion, that’s what I think it means after that you win. You’re welcome.