# Performative male meme and contests

> A TikTok caricature inspired contests, including a San Francisco gathering of hundreds.

- Owner: null
- Kind: Meme & format
- Sector: Culture (no sector)
- Seed date: 2024-12-16
- Milestone date: 2025-08-22
- Date basis: Documented milestone; not a measured attention peak.
- Spread Score: 51 (Notable), v1.3
- Mechanics: Creator relay, Real-world spectacle, Platform jump, Press loop, Controversy

## Summary

A joke about a performative mustache became a TikTok template. The meme grew to include matcha and tote bags, and contests drew crowds in multiple cities.

## Timeline

- 2024-12-16 — @highslip (X) — @highslip posted a joke about a performative mustache.
- 2024-12-17 — @ketobykeke (TikTok) — @ketobykeke used the performative phrase template to joke about men’s cologne.
- 2025-05-06 — @rawrted9 (TikTok) — Riley posted the first part of a series rating performative guy things, including drinking matcha.

The full timeline, metrics and sources are on the case page, or via the Pro API (https://howitspread.com/mcp#api).

Canonical URL: https://howitspread.com/cases/performative-male-meme-2025

Cite as: How It Spread (2026). “Performative male meme and contests.” Case HIS-01908. Spread Score v1.3: 51/100. Updated 2026-10-28. https://howitspread.com/id/HIS-01908