Chicken Jockey, Slushie Fights, and the Netflix Wake-Up Call

What Minecraft Movie Madness Taught Me About My Kids—and Myself"

“Chicken Jockey!”

If you don’t have an 11-year-old or a 14-year-old, those words probably sound like nonsense.

Even if you do, you might still be confused—until you find yourself standing in a movie theater as chaos breaks loose and someone’s flinging popcorn like it's the Hunger Games.

I haven’t seen the Minecraft movie yet. But I’ve seen the videos. I’ve read the posts. I’ve watched clips of actual riots in theaters when this one line gets dropped.
And I know if I walked in cold—without context, without a clue, I’d be shocked. Probably mad. Maybe even judgmental.

I’m a dad to two kids who would 100% be part of that moment if I let them go. And that means I can’t afford to be shocked.
I need to be curious.

Netflix and the Not-So-Fictional Gut Punch

Last weekend, I binge-watched Adolescence on Netflix.
What I thought was going to be background noise turned into a mirror I wasn’t ready to look into.

It wasn’t just the storyline that hit—it was how the kids communicated. Their fears, frustrations, inside jokes, signals. Emoji-speak. Slang. Subtle cues that meant everything to them—and nothing to the adults around them.

There’s this scene where a dad misses a vital clue. Not because he’s neglectful.
Because it wasn’t written in adult.
It was written in teen.

It crushed me because I’ve got two kids who speak that same language fluently. And unless I put in the effort to stay curious, to ask dumb questions, to watch what they watch, scroll where they scroll...
I’ll miss it too.
Not just the content. Them.

"Chicken Jockey" Is More Than a Meme—It’s a Message

That ridiculous phrase has now become a cultural landmine.
It’s been remixed into 10-hour YouTube loops. It’s triggered spontaneous cheers, chaos, and even police calls. And while it’s easy to roll our eyes and say “kids these days,” the truth is: this is how they claim culture.
This is how they bond.
This is how they say, this belongs to us.

If you're not paying attention, it just looks like noise.
But if you listen—really listen—you’ll hear something else underneath:
Belonging. Identity. Play. Initiation.

It’s not just a theater stunt. It’s adolescence in action.

Marketers: Know Your Knows

Marketing isn’t just about data and personas. It’s about really understanding who your audience is, how they think, what they say, and how they feel.

That includes knowing when they’re laughing… and when they’re using laughter to mask something else.
It means knowing what a “chicken jockey” is, even if it makes zero sense to you.
Because if you don’t? You’re not just missing the trend. You’re missing the kid.

Parenting Is a Language Game

Here’s what I’ve learned lately—and believe me, I’m still learning it every single day:
Being a dad isn’t just about setting rules, driving to practice, or asking how school was.
It’s about learning their world.
Their shows. Their platforms. Their games. Their memes.
It’s about realizing that Minecraft isn’t just blocks—it’s their mythology.
That “rizz” isn’t gibberish—it’s social currency.
That 💀 doesn’t mean death—it means something’s so funny it “killed” them.

It’s about showing up with candor, asking questions with curiosity, and growing through it all with collaboration.

Parenting, like marketing, isn’t about shouting over people. It’s about speaking their language.
And being willing to admit when you don’t know it yet.

What Adolescence (the show, and the life phase) Reminded Me

No moral cleanup at the end. No neat bow.
Just this:
If you’re not listening, you’re not learning.
If you dismiss what matters to them because it seems “stupid” to you, you don’t just miss the joke—you miss the human behind it.
And when they need you most, you’ll be the last to know.

So yeah, I still haven’t seen the Minecraft movie.
But I will.
Not because I love the game. Not because I’m dying to hear “Chicken Jockey” in surround sound.
But because they love it.
And if they’re showing me what matters to them—even if it’s weird or chaotic or wrapped in meme nonsense—then I want to be there. Watching. Learning. Listening.

Because showing up matters.
Even when you don’t know the words yet.

The Marketing Accountability Council
We don’t just market to audiences—we learn their language.
And we parent the same way.