Gangster SpongeBob or Gangsta SpongeBob is a genre of SpongeBob SquarePants memes and fan art depicting the character in gang outfits and poses. The idea of the anthropomorphized sponge dressed as a gangster can be traced back to a single YouTube video that later became the basis for a meme.
The depiction of such a sweet, sappy, and lovable character depicted as angry, cocky, or threatening grabs attention, resulting in several surges in the meme’s popularity over the years.
What is the origin of Gangster SpongeBob?
The identity of the original Gangster SpongeBob fan artist is unknown. The earliest dated post found that contains the images of the character drawn as a gang member is on YouTube, in a video uploaded on November 10, 2007 by user littleviper3.
The footage shows several blurry depictions of SpongeBob in various gang-related outfits, from a suit and pimp hat holding a fist full of cash to a bandana and sneakers holding a gun. Some of the drawings include titles such as “ThugBob.”
Gangster SpongeBob spreads
More images of Gangster SpongeBob began to appear online in 2008, including on old Photobucket accounts, as people recreated the drawings from the YouTube video or dreamed up their own versions.
On September 12, 2008, YouTube account OniS1986 posted a video titled “SpongeBob rap” that contained a still image of the first fan art depiction of the rough and tough version of Mr. SquarePants from his original appearance.
Going into the 2010s, more images fitting this genre were created and posted on emerging social media platforms. Someone created a “Gangsta spongebob” Facebook page on September 18, 2011, which remains up to this day but purged of all posts. Twelve images remain in the page’s photo gallery.
How did it become a meme?
It wasn’t until 2019 that Gangster SpongeBob started to appear as more of a meme rather than a simple bizarre image that would occasionally cross your dashboard like a jump scare. On September 18, 2019, a newer depiction of the character appeared on one of Reddit’s more terrible subs as part of a “he will never X” meme format.
Gangster SpongeBob made his way to TikTok as early as the year 2020. On October 22, 2020, one TikTok user created the account @gangster_spongebob and posted their first video showing the classic fan art of SpongeBob in the green suit with a handful of cash under the audio of WhoHeem’s track “Lets Link.”
@gangster_spongebob #gangsterspongebob ♬ Lets Link – WhoHeem
You can now find the angry sponge as merchandise, decorating t-shirts, posters, and even bedspread if you look hard enough.
Gangster SpongeBob meme examples
More SpongeBob Squarepants memes:
- ‘Imma head out’ is the latest SpongeBob reaction meme
- SpongeBob has money problems in his latest popular meme
- Evil Patrick is your favorite new SpongeBob meme
- The best SpongeBob SquarePants memes on the internet
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