Rapper Travis Scott has sky-rocketed to fame in the years since he released his debut studio album, Rodeo, in 2015. He’s collaborated with Drake, had two children with Kylie Jenner, and performed for tens of thousands of fans at his sold out Astroworld shows.
In addition to all of that, he’s also the star of several memes.
Holding the microphone meme
According to Know Your Meme, a photo of Scott holding a microphone stand over his head was posted in August 2017 and it went viral in November of that year. In the picture, Scott’s mouth is open and he’s yelling, with flames erupting in the background.
The meme signifies complete chaos. For example, what students do when their teacher leaves them alone in the classroom for a split second.
Scott’s posture in the photo—arms raised above his head while holding the microphone stand—has been compared to photos of characters like Spongbob’s alter ego DoodleBob, Plankton, and FiddleSticks.
Astroworld memes
At a 2021 Scott concert in Houston, TX, ten people died during a crowd crush incident. The tragedy became the subject of many memes that referenced the deceased being crushed, stomped on, or survivors fleeing the scene. Memes saying “I survived the Travis Scott Astroworld Concert, 2021” also circulated in the wake of the tragedy.
Other memes combined the deaths of the people who attended the Houston concert with the death of rapper Juice Wrld, who died in 2019: “Imagine going to Travis Scott’s concert and waking up at Juice Wrld’s concert.” The implication of the meme is people who died at Scott’s concert would be able to see Juice Wrld perform in some sort of afterlife.
Astroworld video memes
After the death of ten of his fans, Scott posted a black and white video on Instagram saying he was devastated to learn of what had happened and that he was working with local authorities to identify victims. He also says that whenever he’s seen issues in the crowd at his concerts in the past, he’s been able to help, and asks fans to pray for those who lost their lives. During the video, Scott repeatedly touches his face and the top of his head, seemingly in distress.
Many found the video disingenuous, however, and meme’d the rapper’s video. Screenshots of Scott’s post now signify when you fake a sincere, heartfelt apology for something you don’t really feel bad about.
“Travis Scott got on IG and sounded like me when I call out of work,” a tweet about the video reads.
“My mom: Did you take the chicken out of the d*mn freezer like I asked you? Me:” a meme says, alongside screenshots from Scott’s video.
One YouTuber even recreated the entire video without “the lies”: In it, he says “I just wanna… You know…” and then lays down and falls asleep.
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Source: https://www.dailydot.com/irl/travis-scott-memes/