Alpha Pookie / Paul Karpov

About

Paul Karpov, also known as Alpha Pookie or @alpha.pookie, is an American TikToker and Instagram user from Minneapolis, Minnesota, who's most known for his intentionally cringe videos. Karpov gained a large following on TikTok in 2022 and 2023. Many of his most viral videos included him screaming catchphrases in public spaces, "nodding" akin to the Laker Brady trend and playing parodies of social justice warriors, such as in one video where he wrote "racism is lowkey bad" on his face with Sharpie. Inherently, his nickname uses the slang terms "alpha" and "pookie." Physically, Karpov has bleach-blonde hair and blue eyes, often using his face for comedic effect. He started posting content in early 2022.

Online History

Alpha Pookie posted his first TikTok^[1] video on January 18th, 2022, which used the song "Pushin' P" and gained roughly 101,400 plays and 24,300 likes in one year (shown below, left). Alpha Pookie's page (@alpha.pookie) went largely viral after a TikTok^[2] he uploaded on February 6th, 2022, gained over 13.2 million plays and 2.8 million likes. The video joked about the then-recent Russian Invasion of Ukraine (shown below, right).

In February 2022, he had a series of similarly viral TikToks^[3][4] that banked on his alleged Russian ethnicity, making jokes about Vladimir Putin by calling him "Vladdy Daddy" in one video which received over 12 million plays (shown below, left). In March 2023, he started to go viral for following the Can You Record a Video For Me? trend, such as with a TikTok^[5] posted on March 18th, that gained roughly 4.5 million plays and 806,600 likes in one year (shown below, right).

Going into late 2022, Alpha Pookie's content became increasingly character-based, as in, he'd often play an intentionally cringe character in a one-man sketch. For instance, on August 16th, 2022, he posted a TikTok^[6] in which he did a "Try Not to Laugh" challenge, reciting notorious TikTok sounds like Chrissy Wake Up, among others. The video gained roughly 7.7 million plays and 495,300 likes in one year (shown below, left). On February 19th, 2023, he posted a TikTok^[7] in which he had Sharpie covering his face, reading "Racism Is Lowkey Bad," gaining roughly 6.8 million plays and 720,900 likes in six months (shown below, right).

On Instagram

On June 23rd, 2022, Alpha Pookie uploaded his first post to his Instagram^[8] @karpovsofficial, gaining roughly 1,200 likes in one year. In early 2023, his posts started to received more engagement, such as an Instagram^[9] post on March 27th, 2023, in which he recreated a Chief Keef photo, gaining roughly 19,500 likes in five months (shown below, left).

Following

By August 11th, 2023, Alpha Pookie had amassed roughly 970,500 followers on TikTok^[10] and roughly 137,000 followers on Instagram.^[11]

Search Interest

External References