What is the meaning of the phrase "you do you"?

The phrase "you do you" is an idiomatic expression that is mainly used in informal, primarily US English. It is often used to convey the idea that someone should do what they believe is best, what brings them joy, or what aligns with their personality [1]. The phrase encourages individuality and self-expression, suggesting that each person should make choices and live their life according to their own preferences and values.

Origins and Usage:
The phrase "you do you" is believed to have originated as a variation of the expression "do your thing," which has been in use since at least 1841 [3]. It gained popularity in the 1960s during the free-spirited, hippie counterculture. In the early 2000s, "you do you" or "do you" spread through Black slang, potentially as a shortened version of the longer expression "you do you and I'll do me" [3].

Semantic Properties:
The phrase "you do you" bridges the meanings of a generic invitation to behave as one desires, such as "do what you want" or "help yourself," and a directive to be true to one's authentic self in a more abstract sense, like "be yourself" [2]. The interpretation of the phrase can vary depending on the context. It can be synonymous with "be yourself" or imply that someone is better at being authentic than others [2]. It can also be used as a passive-aggressive insult or simply as a general invitation to act as one wishes [2].

Syntactic Properties:
The phrase "you do you" follows a specific syntactic pattern. It involves a personal pronoun or proper name as the subject of the verb "do," followed by the direct-object version of the original pronoun or name [2]. For example, "I do me" or "You do you" [2]. The main verb "do" can be inflected for tense and aspect using inflectional morphology or modal verbs [2].

Examples:

1. "I just had to cut her off. You do you. I do me." [2]
2. "Don't be mad cuz I'm doin' me better than you doin' you." [2]
3. "You do you. Don't worry about what others think." [3]

Learn more:

1. YOU DO YOU | definition in the Cambridge English Dictionary
2. You do you | Yale Grammatical Diversity Project: English in North America
3. do you Meaning & Origin | Slang by Dictionary.com