We Fell in Love in October: the TikTok Trend and Song Meaning

“we fell in love in october” is a song by girl in red, the Norwegian artist Marie Ulven, released on November 21, 2018. Every October 1, TikTok brings it back: people post their girlfriend, boyfriend or the photos from when they met, and single people post that they are still waiting to be posted. It has turned into a sort of autumn Valentine’s Day. If you want your video to reach past your friends that day, TikTok views help it clear the first hurdle.

Where does the song come from and what do the lyrics mean?

A single from November 2018

girl in red is Marie Ulven, born in 1999 in Horten, Norway. “we fell in love in october” came out on November 21, 2018, as a double single with “Forget Her”, on AWAL. So it was released in November, not October.

The lyrics are short: a cigarette on a roof, a girl she thinks is pretty. Then the line that gives the song its title, “we fell in love in october, that’s why I love fall”. And the chorus every TikTok user knows by heart: “my girl, my girl, my girl, you will be my girl”.

A queer love song, told plainly

According to comments from the singer quoted by Auralcrave in 2022, she wrote it in 2015 about her first relationship with a girl, after breaking up with a boyfriend. In July 2019 she told Paper magazine that writing love songs about girls was “the most natural thing ever” for her, “just like a normal love song”. In 2021 she told Attitude she never came out at one specific moment: she was simply living openly as a queer person.

By mid-2020, according to Wikipedia, “do you listen to girl in red?” was circulating on TikTok as a discreet way of asking a girl whether she liked girls. The song is not a manifesto. It tells a love story without apologizing for it.

girl in red has played along with the ritual herself. On October 5, 2022, she posted a TikTok on her own sound with the caption “sending you good fall vibes and hoping you fall in love before october passes you by”. That was a nod to “October Passed Me By”, the sequel to the song, released in mid-October 2022. As of October 8, 2026, the video has 11.9 million views and 1.7 million likes.

What do people post on October 1?

As soon as the calendar flips to October 1, people post a video set to the song. A few versions come back every year.

The couple version first. A slideshow of your girlfriend or boyfriend, often in autumn photos, timed to the “my girl, my girl, my girl” chorus. Couples who actually met in October turn it into an anniversary post, with a picture from the first date. At first it was mostly couples of girls; according to Soapcentral, the trend widened in 2024 to boyfriends and even dads posting their daughters.

Then the single version, which is the funniest. You film yourself looking wistful, with on-screen text along the lines of “it’s October 1 and I’m still waiting to be posted to this song”. That is exactly what the French account @deschosesquonressent did on the evening of October 1, 2026, at a restaurant terrace. Metricool picked it for its roundup of the month’s trends. As of October 8, it had 45,300 views and 7,261 likes.

Last comes the “message to the universe” version. Just autumn footage and the idea that October isn’t over yet. Metricool sums up the mood well: for some it’s an anniversary, for others a small wish sent to the universe.

Why does it come back every year?

Because the date is in the title, so the song syncs itself to the calendar. It only takes a few accounts posting it on the 1st for everyone else to follow.

The numbers back this up. On Spotify, according to data compiled by kworb, the song has returned to the global chart every autumn since 2021, and to the US chart since October 2020. On September 30, 2026, it was No. 138 on the daily global chart with 1.30 million streams. On October 1, it jumped to No. 58 with 1.73 million. As of October 7, 2026, it had passed 1.79 billion Spotify streams, by far girl in red’s biggest track.

On TikTok, the ritual was already set by 2023: on September 25 that year, Parade counted 7.1 billion views on “October 1”, with girl in red’s song on the top posts. The format is also very easy, with no choreography and photos you already have. And couple posts get tagged and shared between friends, which brings in TikTok likes from well beyond your followers.

It’s also a gentle trend. Nobody gets mocked, and even the single version laughs at itself. In a feed full of drama, that’s a relief.

How do you make your video, step by step?

1. Pick your version: couple, meeting anniversary, single and waiting, or a simple autumn edit. One per video.
2. Gather your images: six to ten photos or short clips are enough. Warm tones work well, red leaves, sweaters, late afternoon light.
3. Find the sound: search “we fell in love in october” in the sounds tab, or tap the spinning disc at the bottom right of a trend video. Pick the version credited to girl in red.
4. Choose the section: the “my girl, my girl, my girl” chorus for a couple, the title line for an anniversary.
5. Add short text: “October 1”, the date you met, or for singles “still waiting to be posted to this song”.
6. Ask first: before posting your partner, check they are fine with it.
7. Post on the right day: October 1, or within the first week at the latest. After that, the sound goes back to being just an autumn song.

Autumn edit ideas: the same photo taken every year in the same spot, or a walk through the leaves that ends on the other person’s hand.

Which hashtags, and when should you post?

Trend videos mostly carry #wefellinloveinoctober, #girlinred and #october1st, often with #fall or #autumn. Couples of girls also use #wlw. A niche hashtag tied to your content, your city or your style brings in TikTok followers who are more like you than #fyp ever will.

Here, the day matters more than the hour. Streams start climbing on September 30 and peak on October 1. Prepare your video ahead of time and post it on the morning of the 1st. No public study gives a time slot for this trend, so check the Analytics tab on your account and post when your followers are online.

What can brands do with it?

October 1 is a date you can plan for, which is rare with trends. On October 1, 2024, Sony Music Ireland’s TikTok account posted its own video on the track with #october1st and #girlinred. A florist or a café launching its autumn menu can do the same: a seasonal edit on the chorus, with text for couples or for the people still waiting.

Two cautions. A queer love song is not neutral background music: using it while erasing what it is about can upset the community that carried it. And check that the sound is available for business accounts before you build a campaign on it.