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Memes

How the ‘I Bought a Property in Egypt’ meme mocks hustle culture

And what they do for you is they give you the property.

Photo of Lindsey Weedston

Lindsey Weedston

Man talking with text 'i bought a'(l), People inside home under construction with text 'property in egypt'(r)

The I Bought A Property In Egypt meme uses a short clip of an influencer speaking the phrase to mock “hustle culture” and its figureheads. The clip spread on TikTok in December 2024 after one user took it from a YouTube video, and others soon mixed it with other, stranger video memes to make the brain rot content younger users love.

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As we entered 2025, two of the more popular combos mixed this with the Chopped Chin gag from Instagram and the Eye of Rah meme and TikTok trend as the first memes of the new year.

Meme basics:

  • Meme Creator: @cameastyreels
  • Meme Type: Video meme
  • First Appearance: Dec. 1, 2024
  • Origin Source: TikTok
  • Used to Convey: Mockery of hustle culture
  • Peak Popularity: Jan. 2025
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Google Trends report for the term 'I bought a property in Egypt.'
Google Trends

What is the I Bought A Property In Egypt meme?

The video clip shows hustle culture influencer Cam Easty, full name Cameron Eastwood, saying “I bought a property in Egypt, and what they do for you is they give you the property.” The clip cuts off there to make a point that these types often have little useful advice to give, but make themselves appear smart with fast talk and flashy visuals.

@cameastyreels Turning my real estate dream into reality 🏡💸 #investmentproperty #dreamscometrue #realestateinvesting #financialfreedom ♬ Cameasty – Cameasty.Reels
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The statement in the five-second clip is amusingly repetitive because obviously, the seller would give you the property you purchased. Although the original video says more, TikTokers jumped on the clip to mock influencers who earn money by pretending to be financial gurus who can make you rich if you follow their advice.

TikTok users turned the single sentence into a meme with reenactments, sludge videos, and other brain rot content that paired well with the original joke.

Who is Cam Easty?

Cameron Eastwood started his money-making journey with affiliate marketing on TikTok, according to a May 2024 profile on Forbes. From there, he began making his financial advice content on TikTok and YouTube, where he often offers to put people in contact with those who might sell them an “opportunity” if they comment with a specific word.

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In May, he started selling a “mentorship program” to his followers promising that he can show them how to make £40,000 per month on TikTok. He now touts himself as a “Full Time Egypt Property Mogul” on his Instagram profile, where over 210,000 users follow him. He had over 816,000 followers on TikTok.

Meme origins and spread

Cam Easty posted his YouTube video about buying property in Egypt to turn it into an Airbnb on Aug. 12, 2024. On Dec. 1, the TikTok account @cameastyreels posted the short clip that would become the “I Bought A Property In Egypt” meme and gained over 11.8 million views.

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On Dec. 21, a new Instagram account called @i.bought.property.daily began posting daily videos of the Easty clip combined with footage from that driving game popular in sludge content. Back on TikTok, users started posting reenactment videos, such as the one by @morkrhymeswithshark on Dec. 29.

@morkrhymeswithshark

😂😂😂 dukbasl

♬ Cameasty – Cameasty.Reels

Meme combos

As 2025 began, two other memes in the brain rot genre appeared and began mixing with the “I Bought A Property In Egypt” clip. The first was the Chopped Chin meme, which shows WNBA player Renee Montgomery dancing in her seat at a basketball game next to her cousin. People feel that the chin of this young man is “chopped,” meaning ugly or badly shaped.

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The second was the Eye of Rah trend, which shows TikToker @lilbotheme edited to reduce his red hair to one straight braid and turn him into a cyclops. The edit was likely meant to make fun of the user’s unusual hairstyle.

At the dawn of the new year, TikTok became cluttered with sludge videos combining these three figures, crowning them the first batch of video memes for 2025.

‘I Bought A Property In Egypt’ meme examples

A TikTok video showing a model skeleton with a foam head.
@qualshtastic/TikTok
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I bought a property in Egypt meme showing a desert river.
@qualshtastic/TikTok
I bought a property in Egypt meme referencing Chopped Chin.
@qualshtastic/TikTok
Two men dancing next to each other while sitting on a couch.
@shlatfish/TikTok
I bought a property in Egypt meme showing the Chopped Chin pair in an Egypt themed hotel.
@shlatfish/TikTok
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