The Rio De Janeiro Instagram Filter is a purple and pink Instagram Stories filter named after the Brazilian city, which meme creators started using around 2022 to make screenshots look deliberately low-brow and over-edited. It became the signature look of the Papyrus Irony trend that peaked in late 2023.
Origin
Nobody knows who first used the Rio De Janeiro filter ironically. The earliest documented example is a post by Instagram user @schassisirony on May 12th, 2022, referencing Ibo Eshak, which pulled roughly 1,400 likes over the following year[4]. That summer, on July 11th, 2022, Instagram user @slayworldalbania uploaded what is currently the first known meme to actually spell out the words "Rio De Janeiro" on the image, though it only picked up 32 likes.
- Platform: Instagram (viral spread on Instagram and X)
- Creator: Unknown
- Date: 2022
Overview
The Rio De Janeiro Instagram Filter is a purple-and-pink color filter available in Instagram Stories, named after the Brazilian city[3]. Meme creators started slapping it onto random screenshots to make posts look intentionally crusty, moldy, and overshared, and the effect became one of the recognizable calling cards of a broader ironic aesthetic that sat next to Hood Irony[3].
The filter grew into the signature look of the Papyrus Irony trend that got big through 2023 and 2024. Along with the color wash, creators typically tilted or skewed the screenshot at an exaggerated angle, and that over-editing itself became a topic of online discourse. Other Instagram city filters, such as Melbourne, Buenos Aires, Tokyo, and New York, also got pulled into the same trend[3].
How It Spread
Instagram account @left4rat picked up the bit at the end of July 2022. Their first tagged use, posted on July 30th, 2022, featured Kendall Jenner and reached about 2,300 likes[2]. A week later, on August 7th, 2022, the same account posted another Rio De Janeiro edit built around the Kanye West and Pete Davidson drama that hit more than 15,700 likes[2].
The format kept ticking along through late 2022 and early 2023 in the hands of a small circle of Instagram accounts, then jumped in visibility across October and November 2023. On August 16th, 2023, X user @haterperson6714 reposted a tilted, filtered screenshot of a tweet reading "yessss tilt that screenshot fuckkk now add a filter mmm" (originally from the since-deleted @teamslvp), pulling roughly 16,000 likes in three months.
On October 11th, 2023, X user @JUUOSWAGATRON posted the caption "dude they put rio de janiero in my drink" over a purple drink, gaining about 2,300 likes in a month[1]. Instagram artist @infinite._.draws later painted that tweet by hand, and the painting got heavy repost circulation across Instagram in November 2023.
How to Use
To do the Rio De Janeiro Instagram Filter bit, people typically take a screenshot (of a tweet, a chat, or any image), run it through the Rio De Janeiro filter in Instagram Stories to give it the pink-purple wash, and tilt the image at a hard angle before reposting[3]. The joke often includes the words "Rio De Janeiro" scrawled somewhere on the frame or referenced in the caption, and swapping in another city filter like Melbourne or Tokyo is a common variation.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is Rio De Janeiro Instagram Filter?
It is a purple and pink Instagram Stories filter named after the Brazilian city that meme creators use to make screenshots look ironically low-brow and over-edited[3].
Where did Rio De Janeiro Instagram Filter come from?
The earliest known ironic use came from Instagram user @schassisirony on May 12th, 2022, though the exact originator of the trend is unknown[4].
What does Rio De Janeiro Instagram Filter mean?
It is a visual shorthand for the Papyrus Irony aesthetic, signaling that a screenshot is intentionally crusty, moldy, and overshared[3].
How do you use Rio De Janeiro Instagram Filter?
Take a screenshot, apply the Rio De Janeiro filter in Instagram Stories, tilt the image at an exaggerated angle, and often add the words "Rio De Janeiro" to the frame[3].
Is Rio De Janeiro Instagram Filter still popular?
Usage peaked across October and November 2023 and slowed after that, with the format now mainly referenced as part of the broader Papyrus Irony wave[2].
