TikTok is facing a rare meme drought. Inside the Great Meme Depression of 2025

People with a healthy limit on their screen time probably haven’t noticed—but there’s been a meme shortage this March. On TikTok, some have declared a full-blown “Meme Drought,” dubbing it the “Great Meme Depression of 2025.” The panic began on March 10, when user @goofangel posted a video titled “TikTok Great Depression March 2025.” He says, “Nine days into March and we haven’t had a single original meme.” The post quickly racked up nearly a million views and clearly struck a chord, if the comments are any indication. @goofangel #tiktok #brainrot #brainrotquiz #funny #unemployment ♬ original sound – goofangel “October to February was an insane run,” one commenter reminisced, recalling a time when everyone was “holding space” for “Defying Gravity” and—who remembers when everyone collectively joined Red Note for a minute? “Does the millennial burger restaurant count?” another asked. “Subaru’s kinda funny, but not laughing funny, yk?” someone else added. But as @goofangel pointed out, the “I Call Patrick Subaru” meme actually originated in 2021. The Great Meme Depression soon became a meme itself, as TikTokers flooded the platform with meta-commentary. “How the Great March Meme Drought will be described in history books,” one user posted, alongside a slideshow of images from the Great Depression circa 1929. Another creator shared a video featuring TikTok influencers’ faces captioned: “When mfs say they grew up poor but never had to live through the Great Meme Depression.” @de.novo12 Worst than a recession

Mar 26, 2025 - 09:45

TikTok is facing a rare meme drought. Inside the Great Meme Depression of 2025

People with a healthy limit on their screen time probably haven’t noticed—but there’s been a meme shortage this March. On TikTok, some have declared a full-blown “Meme Drought,” dubbing it the “Great Meme Depression of 2025.”

The panic began on March 10, when user @goofangel posted a video titled “TikTok Great Depression March 2025.” He says, “Nine days into March and we haven’t had a single original meme.” The post quickly racked up nearly a million views and clearly struck a chord, if the comments are any indication.

@goofangel
#tiktok #brainrot #brainrotquiz #funny #unemployment ♬ original sound – goofangel

“October to February was an insane run,” one commenter reminisced, recalling a time when everyone was “holding space” for “Defying Gravity” and—who remembers when everyone collectively joined Red Note for a minute? “Does the millennial burger restaurant count?” another asked. “Subaru’s kinda funny, but not laughing funny, yk?” someone else added. But as @goofangel pointed out, the “I Call Patrick Subaru” meme actually originated in 2021.

The Great Meme Depression soon became a meme itself, as TikTokers flooded the platform with meta-commentary. “How the Great March Meme Drought will be described in history books,” one user posted, alongside a slideshow of images from the Great Depression circa 1929. Another creator shared a video featuring TikTok influencers’ faces captioned: “When mfs say they grew up poor but never had to live through the Great Meme Depression.”