Comedian Heo Kyung-hwan looked back on the long history of his viral catchphrases and spotlighted the newly trending, meme-level line "Iri dulkkimnikka."
On the 19th, Heo announced on his YouTube channel that he would "do a catchphrase event" and took time to catalog the many lines he created over the years. From familiar ones like "It's there~," "Isn't this exactly the taste?," "If you're curious, 500 won," and "Jaijai, you punk" to the recent hot phrase "Iri dulkkimnikka" that's blowing up on MBC variety show Hangout with Yoo, he listed 11 signature lines in total, even surprising himself.
Heo noted that "Iri dulkkimnikka" was something he "just tossed out," but explained that Yoo Jae-suk quoting it frequently across shows helped it surge in popularity. "I'm really grateful that senior Yoo Jae-suk has been using it a lot lately," Heo said, adding, "If you try it a few times, it's pretty funny," once again expressing his thanks.
He also candidly revealed how each catchphrase was born. His first big line, "It's there~," came from the Bongsunga School corner back in 2007. Struggling to find ideas during a character meeting, Heo confided in Jung Bum-gyun, and a spontaneous offhand remark became the "seed of a trend," he recalled.
Another line, "Let's say we did it—one-two," carried a bittersweet backstory. "Nothing was working for me at the time. I made it expecting people wouldn't laugh," he said. "I did it for three to four weeks, and the reactions were so flat that I even told the PD, 'I can't keep doing this.'" Contrary to expectations, the phrase later got a second life as a nostalgia-triggering meme.
Heo openly acknowledged the mixed reactions he's received over the years. "I heard everything from 'He's spamming catchphrases,' 'That's all he's got,' to 'It's because he's from Gyeongsang Province,'" he admitted with a laugh. "But once I passed ten of them, people started calling me a 'catchphrase factory.'" He even shared that juniors have asked him to "make one up" for them, summing up his philosophy: "Catchphrases ride on momentum."
He also revealed a personal favorite that never took off. "'You could've easily avoided that' is one I really like, but it didn't trend," he said, joking, "Don't think it's dead—if people don't know it, it's new," sending the room into laughter.
Recently, Heo has been actively appearing on multiple variety shows, including Hangout with Yoo, Running Man, You Quiz on the Block, and My Little Old Boy.