Author: Day, Blockchain Plain Language
In recent years, the meme sector in the cryptocurrency industry has risen sharply. With the inadvertent or intentional support from prominent figures like Elon Musk, memes have become a mainstream track and a hot narrative in crypto. Many crypto influencers, represented by Vitalik Buterin (V神), have transitioned from initial skepticism to a more neutral stance, acknowledging the value of memes.
Recently, the popular meme “Spicy Chicken” Pepe has reached a market value of over $4 billion, peaking at more than $7 billion during this meme market cycle. To this day, many still find Pepe somewhat enigmatic. Today, let’s explore how Pepe has come to prominence step by step…
01
Pepe’s Meme Culture
Looking at the development of Memecoins, most use materials with certain historical roots or inherent popularity on the internet as carriers, and Pepe is no exception. Its name comes from the character Pepe the Frog created by American cartoonist Matt Furie, first appearing in his work “Boy’s Club”.
The comic started serializing on MySpace in 2005 and concluded in 2010, gaining some attention on the internet. Among the four characters, the frog Pepe (phonetically Pepe) was one, winning affection with its cute image and humorous expressions. If you are more involved in blockchain, you will also see other three names (Brett, Andy, Wolf) related to Memecoins on various chains, most of which have been hyped up for a while.
Pepe’s path to fame is similar to that of many internet sensations: it initially gained popularity on subculture forums like 4chan and other niche communities, then caught the attention of social media influencers (KOLs), exploding in popularity on cultural forums such as Myspace, Gaia Online, and 4chan in 2008, and becoming one of the most popular viral images on social platform Tumblr in 2015.
On social networks, the cost of reproduction and dissemination is relatively low, and Pepe’s emoticons and internet memes covering all emotions can quickly spread and resonate among netizens. Initially a character expressing happiness, it gradually evolved into a symbol of sadness and desolation through internet users’ secondary creation and reinterpretation. This transformation is related to the popularity of self-deprecation and self-deprecating humor in internet culture.
People find resonance in Pepe’s sad image and use it as a way to express inner emotions, especially for self-deprecation and expressing life’s difficulties and setbacks. This emoticon pack is widely used, becoming one of the important symbols in internet culture. The Sad Frog is also popular in Chinese internet culture, selected as one of the “Four Kings of Despair”, becoming an important symbol for expressing negative emotions and miserable feelings.
Pepe’s image on the internet has evolved into a rather complex and multifaceted phenomenon.
In 2015, the Sad Frog became associated with racial speech and the U.S. presidential election, used to spread extremist messages. Some supporters of Trump adopted Pepe as their emblem, associating it with anti-political correctness and anti-establishment sentiments. This led to Pepe being misunderstood as a symbol of “Alt-right” and racial hatred.
This misunderstanding further exacerbated the negative impression of Pepe’s image, prompting its creator, Matt Furie, to end it all and kill Pepe to prevent further tarnishing.
In fact, even though the Sad Frog “died”, it still remains popular among netizens, serving as a widely used emoticon pack. Everyone can freely use it to express inner emotions, including sadness or frustration.
02
Pepe Token
Thanks to the rapid rise in popularity of Pepe the Frog and extensive media exposure, Pepe Token (PEPE) was born in April 2023, quickly becoming one of the objects of investment for many cryptocurrency enthusiasts. In just one month, PEPE’s market value exceeded $400 million, entering the top 100 in cryptocurrency market capitalization.
PEPE was created in opposition to the complex token economic models of the “Dog Series” Memecoins. It aims to return to the entertainment spirit of Memecoins, thus avoiding complex operations such as pre-sales, burns, and taxes in its token economics. PEPE aims to surpass other Memecoins and become a leader in the Memecoin field.
In addition, PEPE also draws inspiration from the former U.S. President Trump’s campaign slogan “Make America Great Again”, adapting it to “Make Memecoins Great Again”.
PEPE’s market operations adopt some strategies to attract the attention of the cryptocurrency community, including implementing tax-free policies, rewarding long-term holders with redistribution systems, and implementing deflationary mechanisms to maintain token scarcity. PEPE is closely linked to MAGA (Make America Great Again) culture and attempts to translate this development into narrative momentum for token growth.
Currently, PEPE’s development has exceeded the team’s expectations. After its launch on BN, it began to rise again, with its market value recently breaking through $7 billion, followed by a recent decline. This recent surge should also have some connection with Trump’s cryptocurrency remarks. From the above understanding, we can see that Pepe’s development is also connected to Trump to a certain extent.
