#RIPJoeRogan

About

#RIPJoeRogan, also known as RIP Joe Rogan, refers to a series of fake internet death hoaxes surrounding comedian, podcaster and UFC commentator Joe Rogan. Over the years, several instances of people on social media either claiming or falling for death hoaxes with Rogan have appeared alongside the use of the hashtag “#RIPJoeRogan,” particularly on Twitter. Often during UFC post-fight conference live chats, viewers can also be seen spamming the chat with messages claiming Rogan is dead in an attempt to troll people. The first hoax appeared online around 2010, but they have continued popping up over the years, with another in 2020.

Origin

The exact first hoax of Joe Rogan’s death is unknown, but meme-related tributes claiming he had died appeared at least as early as 2010. One of the earliest examples comes from YouTuber^[6] JShore131, who uploaded their video “R.I.P. Joe Rogan (1967-2012)” on May 26th, 2010. The clip (shown below), received over 147,000 views, 210 likes, 1,800 dislikes and 550 comments.

Spread

The use of the hashtag #RIPJoeRogan appears online with fake death hoaxes as early as 2014, though the exact origins are unknown. On January 5th, 2014, The Internet Chronicle^[1] published a satirical obituary claiming Joe Rogan had died of an apparent DMT overdose in an article titled “Joe Rogan Dead at 46” (seen below).

Later that day, after #RIPJoeRogan trended on Twitter, Joe Rogan addressed the hoax on his own Twitter^[2] account and said, “I'm alive as fuck, SON.” The tweet (shown below) also shared the article and received over 175 likes and 122 retweets.

Several other hoaxes claiming Joe Rogan had died continued to appear in the following years, with another surfacing in 2018. On April 21st, 2018, following the death of actor Verne Jay Troyer, Redditor^[3] Suibu posted a meme (seen below, left) depicting Troyer lifting weights on the /r/JoeRogan subreddit under the title, “RIP Joe Rogan,” receiving over 451 upvotes. On June 21st, 2018, Twitter^[4] user sonny_antonelli posted a satirical eulogy of Rogan (seen below, right) that claimed he had died from a marijuana overdose.

On January 26th, 2019, Instagram^[5] user themmaholes, a podcast on MMA/UFC, uploaded a video of themselves reacting to the news of Rogan’s fake death alongside the caption, “We've just received word that @joerogan has passed away. A great soul, and a hell of an entertainer. #RIPJOEROGAN 1967-2019 You will be missed.” The video (shown below) received over 1,000 views and 70 likes.

On July 13th, 2020, during a Just Chatting livestream by Twitch^[7] streamer bobbyfeeno, several users began posting in his chat the Joe Rogan had died, and despite some users pointing out that it was just a meme, he initially fell for the hoax and appears to search for news of his death shortly after. The clip received over 2,600 views. On August 9th, 2020, Twitter^[8] user MommaLizbian tweeted another example of a fake tribute to Rogan (shown below), receiving 300 likes in roughly 48 hours.

Search Interest

External References