A new wave of online speculation is sweeping across social media, with users revisiting some of pop music’s biggest hits and linking them—at least in theory—to one of the most notorious scandals of the past decade. On platforms like TikTok and Instagram, fans and conspiracy-minded creators are dissecting music videos from stars like Justin Bieber and Katy Perry, claiming certain lyrics, visuals, and recurring themes may hint at connections to the Jeffrey Epstein files. While no official evidence ties the artists or their songs to the case, the viral chatter has ignited intense debate online.
Much of the attention has centered on Justin Bieber’s 2020 track Yummy. The glossy music video shows Bieber seated at a banquet table surrounded by wealthy-looking adults while young performers move through the room. Some viewers have focused on the repeated use of the word “yummy” in the song’s lyrics, claiming the term appears numerous times in documents related to Epstein. Those claims remain unverified, but the imagery of lavish dining and the mix of adults and younger performers has fueled unsettling interpretations among certain corners of the internet.
Katy Perry’s 2017 hit Bon Appétit has also become a magnet for online theories. The music video features elaborate culinary visuals and playful food metaphors, with Perry appearing as the centerpiece of an extravagant dining experience. Critics on social media have zoomed in on suggestive lyrics and scenes involving food preparation and presentation, arguing that the imagery takes on a darker tone when viewed through the lens of the Epstein scandal. Like the Bieber theories, however, these claims are rooted entirely in speculation circulating online.
The viral discussion hasn’t stopped with those two songs. Some internet sleuths have even revisited Sia’s 2015 video for Elastic Heart, which features actor Shia LaBeouf and dancer Maddie Ziegler performing intense choreography inside a cage-like structure. While the performance was originally praised for its artistic symbolism, a new wave of social media commentary has interpreted the visuals as representing troubling power dynamics between adults and children. Again, these interpretations have no confirmed link to any criminal investigation.
TikTok has played a major role in spreading the theories. Short clips highlighting specific moments from music videos have racked up millions of views, with creators layering commentary, screenshots, and dramatic editing to suggest hidden meanings. Similar discussions have spread across X and Instagram, where hashtags connecting pop culture moments to the Epstein files continue to trend and spark heated debate among users.
Experts say this type of online reexamination is a common phenomenon when major scandals capture the public’s imagination. Shana Redmond, an English professor at Columbia University, previously explained that conspiracy theories often emerge as people try to make sense of complex power structures and disturbing real-world events. In many cases, viewers project broader societal anxieties onto familiar pop culture artifacts, turning music videos and lyrics into clues for narratives that may or may not exist.
Jeffrey Epstein, the financier who died in jail in 2019 while awaiting trial on federal sex trafficking charges, remains a central figure in global conspiracy discussions. As interest in his case resurfaces with the release of documents and renewed media coverage, internet users appear increasingly eager to revisit older entertainment content through that lens. For now, however, the claims linking Bieber, Perry, or other pop stars to the Epstein files remain unproven speculation circulating online.
