Memes

What does the ‘Those Who Know ๐Ÿ’€’ meme actually mean?

But do we ever really know? ๐Ÿ’€๐Ÿ’€๐Ÿ’€

Photo of Rebecca Leib

Rebecca Leib

A two panel side by side image. On the left a young person stands near a shelf. The words, 'Hawk 1: What's 1+1?'. On the right side the same person but their face is now covered with a scary illustration. The words 'Those who knows: skull face' on it.

The use of the Those Who Know ๐Ÿ’€ meme began as a way for Sigma malesโ€”a group of online loners who think of themselves as evolved โ€˜alphaโ€™ menโ€”to communicate cultural superiority. Over time its use has become increasingly ironic, signifying the over-saturation of Sigma culture, cringe, and brainrot, or the decline of intelligence via the internet.

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@those_who_know_ those know who โ˜ ๏ธ #meme #fyp #brainrot #skibidi โ™ฌ original sound โ€“ Sigma Ligma

What does the Those Who Know meme mean?

Initially born from the rise of Sigma male culture and the People Who Donโ€™t Know vs. People Who Know meme, Those Who Know ๐Ÿ’€ meme is a catchphrase whose text and imagery indicates that a specific cross-section of individuals (usually fellow Sigma males) will understand the contents and thus the joke, or the meaning of the meme.

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An image of the Joker with fire behind him, over which is a 'Those Who Know' caption, a skull and a message of 'why so serious' underneath
@Kyler-17Him/Youtube

Those Who Know ๐Ÿ’€ memes often use phonk edits (a base-heavy music subgenre that creates a dark and intense mood, common in Sigma content) and the catchphrase itself concludes with a skull emoji (or multiple skull emojis) to give it a sardonic sense of humor, mocking those not in on the joke.

@titan.speakerman_techtok #capcut #lobotomy #joker #jonkler #fyppppppppppppppppppppppp #fyp #sigma #aura #brainrot โ™ฌ original sound โ€“ ๐™ˆ๐™ช๐™ก๐™ฉ๐™ž๐™ซ๐™š๐™ง๐™จ๐™–๐™ก

The actual meaning of the meme is somewhat abstract but alludes to Sigma superiority over the general public. Over time, however, the memeโ€™s use took on an ironic meaning, making fun of Sigma terminologies and various other popular online trends.

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@brunito.fut #fyp #fypใ‚ท #brainrot #mango #sigma #skibidi #ohio โ™ฌ original sound โ€“ brunito.fut
@swagboygabe06 Get it? Its hawkโ€ฆ.tuahโ€ฆ.๐Ÿคฃ๐Ÿคฃ๐Ÿคฃ๐Ÿคฃ๐Ÿคฃ๐Ÿคฃ๐Ÿคฃ#hawk #tuah #sigma #brainrot #skibidi #hauntedmound #draingang โ™ฌ Mangos โ€“ Tiktok Version โ€“ LDRR

Why are the memes always creepy faces showing that they know something?

The images paired with the Those Who Know ๐Ÿ’€ caption are typical of the Sigma universe; the most popular are The Jonkler, Trollge, and Lightning Eyes Patrick Bateman. These characters serve as avatars for how Sigma males perceive themselves: scary or creepy loners who are more disturbed but more clever and intelligent than the general public.

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@pc0182846 #CapCut #thosewhoknow #fyp #viral #jbando #Meme โ™ฌ original sound โ€“ ๐ŸงŒ๐ŸงŒ๐ŸงŒ

Why is one of those creepy faces the Jonkler? What does the Jonkler have to do with any of this?

The Jonkler (a humorous play on the Batman character The Joker) is Sigma male royalty, and more than some of the other more abstract/cartoonish characters in the Sigma universe, embodies the Sigma narrative by way of his own mythology: a brilliant loner who follows his dreams, gets knocked down by the world and decides to become a diabolically evilโ€”yet humorousโ€”agent of chaos.

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The People Who Know / People Who Donโ€™t Know connection

The Those Who Know ๐Ÿ’€ meme is a shortened variation of an earlier comparison meme series, People Who Donโ€™t Know / People Who Know, or Mr. Incredible Becoming Uncanny meme template.

This meme depicts two images of Pixarโ€™s The Incredibles patriarch Mr. Incredible: one, an original still from The Incredibles 2, and the other: a blown-out, black-and-white version of the character that makes him seem sickly or pained.

These comparison memes depict the original Mr. Incredible as being idiotic and naive, and the black-and-white Mr. Incredible as being weathered, knowledgeable, and all-knowing. Soon, a shortened version of this comparison meme became the โ€œpeople who knowโ€ catchphrase, and evolved into Those Who Know ๐Ÿ’€.

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Two photos: one of Mr. Incredible from the movie, next to a heavily filtered, black and white version. Under these photos are the captions 'people who know' and 'people who don't know'
u/HARSHSHAH_2004

Origin and spread

According to Know Your Meme, The earliest appearance of the People Who Donโ€™t Know / People Who Know comparison meme was in 2021 by Redditor Dapper_Dildo. The meme was subsequently shortened by users @kotakibaat and @tsvkota, who on Dec. 23rd, 2023 took the โ€œPeople Who Knowโ€ meme and changed it to โ€œThose Who Know.โ€

This was the beginning of the meme as a separate entity. Similar memes continued in 2024, evolving into the phrase + skeleton emoji format โ€œThose Who Know ๐Ÿ’€,โ€ and gaining a new ironic use.

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An Instagram post of Patrick Bateman on the bottom and dancers on the top, with caption 'Those Who know'
kotakibaat/Instagram tsvkota/Instagram

Meme basics:

  • Meme Creator: @kotakibaat and @tsvkota (and various others)
  • Meme Type: Sigma Male, Brainrot, Cringe, Ironic
  • First Appearance: Dec. 23rd, 2023
  • Origin Source: Instagram
  • Used to Convey: Sigma pride or Irony, mockery, brainrot
  • Peak Popularity: Oct. 24th, 2024
@xxyurrxx2 #simga #fypใ‚ท #mogged #thosewhonowmeknow #phonk #stillwater โ™ฌ aura. โ€“ rudyy ๐Ÿ‡ฎ๐Ÿ‡น๐Ÿ‡ฌ๐Ÿ‡ท
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Cultural context

The Those Who Know ๐Ÿ’€ meme signifies a common evolution of contemporary meme culture: a meme is made, shortened, co-opted, and overused by the Sigma community, and eventually made to ironically poke fun at Sigmas and internet culture, as a whole.

@racevideosdaily Those who know at 0:34โ˜ ๏ธโ˜ ๏ธ #brainrot #mangos #thosewhoknow #winterarc #fyp #rge #on โ™ฌ original sound โ€“ racevideosdaily
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