"Chill guy" also known as "My new character" is a digital artwork and internet meme first posted by artist Phillip Banks on Twitter on October 4, 2023. The artwork consists of an anthropomorphic dog wearing a grey sweater, blue jeans, and red sneakers, giving off a "chill" expression by smirking with his hands in his pockets. While the artwork had some success after publishing, it only became viral about a year later on August 30, 2024, when a user on TikTok created an edit with the artwork, combining it with other popular memes at the time. In the following days gained tens of millions of views, attracting the attention of larger corporations including the Atlanta Hawks and AMC Theatres, who used the artwork in their promotions.
| Chill guy | |
|---|---|
 The original artwork posted by Banks in 2023 | |
| First appearance | October 4, 2023 |
| Created by | Phillip "philb" Banks |
| In-universe information | |
| Nickname | "My new character" |
| Species | Dog |
| Gender | Male |
The artwork became viral a second time on November 20, 2024, primarily on TikTok, notably resulting in a meme coin inspired by the artwork named "CHILLGUY" made by anonymous creators, rapidly rising in value to a market cap of $488 million, made even more popular by a post by Salvadorian president Nayib Bukele on Twitter in support of the coin. The resulting popularity of the coin which had not been approved by the original creator Banks, led him to legally copyright the artwork and issue takedowns of "unauthorized merchandise and shitcoins" trying to make a profit, not including fanart or brands using it in the trends. Following the announcement, the coin dropped to about half of what it was worth, and Banks was subsequently doxxed, prompting him to set his Twitter account to private to avoid further harassment.
According to some media outlets,[1][2][3] the meme likely resonated online as it was regarded as a playful but relatable piece which encourages people to seek self help, remain stress-free, and approach life with a "laid-back attitude".
Description
The artwork consists of a brown dog with a human figure, wearing grey crew neck sweater, blue jeans, and dirty red Converse shoes.[1][2][4][5] He is smirking with his hands in his pocket, with the caption written by Banks that he is a "chill guy".[4][5] His design was misreported to be based on a cross between the 1990s American cartoon Arthur and the character "Charlie" from the American adult animated television show Smiling Friends,[1][2][3][6] but according to Banks, he was not based on anything in particular.[7][unreliable source?] As for the character's name, Banks commented on September 2, 2024, on Twitter he disliked the use of the name "my new character" for the artwork as opposed to "chill guy", which was his original intention for the piece.[2]
History
On October 4, 2023, artist Phillip Banks posted the original image on Twitter with the caption "my new character. his whole deal is he's a chill guy that lowkey doesn't give a fuck".[4] He later posted the same artwork on Instagram Reels.[4] The artwork was used in a number of memes following its publishing, inspiring Banks to create an additional piece he called "Unchill gal" or "My old character" based on Chill guy, for which he drew with an opposite color pallet as well as more serious and less-carefree expressions.[1][3][5][6] The artwork only became viral later on August 30, 2024, however, when a TikTok user under the username "blitzerzz" made created an edit with the artwork, utilizing other memes at the time including the Roddy Ricch song "Ricch Forever", and the American adult animated sitcom Family Guy.[4][5] Another edit made on TikTok on September 4, 2024, using a quote from the American television series Dexter, gained over 4.5 million views, and a repost the following day gaining over 13.8 million views.[4] Similar edits in the following days using chill quotes from other mainstream televisions saw similar success with million of views, especially on TikTok and some on Twitter.[4][8] According to the Indian English-language newspaper Times Now News, the meme likely resonated online because it was a playful but relatable piece which "encourag[es] people to focus on themselves", remain stress-free, and approach life with a "laid-back attitude",[1] alongside other relatable self help.[2][3] Between the two social media platforms, the original posts by Banks have received over 100 thousand likes, and over ten thousand reposts.[4] Cosplay and fanart of the character also appeared online, which helped encourage some Halloween costumes in the year.[1][3][5][6]
On November 20, 2024, the artwork made a third major resurgence online, in part due to a meme coin inspired by the artwork named "CHILLGUY" reaching a $488 million market cap for trading on the platform Solana.[9] The meme coin, which was launched two months earlier in September[10] by anonymous creators[11][12] dramatically increased in value from it's market cap of $10 million on November 18,[9] becoming the seventh largest trading meme coin from Solana.[10] The coin, being driven by a post of the artwork by El Salvadorian president Nayib Bukele on Twitter,[11][13] social media trends, and a fear of missing out, a number of those associated in cryptocurrency have stated the coin's value is likely to drop significantly.[11][12] This popularity was credited to the creation of "Chill Girl" on November 17 by TikTok user "stopscrolling_22", which features Chill Guy with superimposed long hair,[14] and sudden spike of memes using the artwork primarily on TikTok, this time with a focus on male mental health.[9][15] Large corporations, including the video game franchise Halo,[16] UFC heavyweight fighter Jon Jones,[16] American basketball bracket March Madness,[15] American football channel NFL on CBS,[15] American rapper Sexyy Red,[16] and European distributor for Sprite, all used the artwork in their own posts.[15]
Despite the success of the artwork, Banks wrote on his Twitter account "I don't endorse or consent to my art being used to any crypto related things. Please leave me alone."[9] He made a similar reel on Instagram soon after about the same topic.[15] Soon after, Banks wrote that he had legally copyrighted the artwork, and that he'd be issuing takedowns of "unauthorized merchandise and shitcoins" trying to make a profit off the artwork,[11][13][16] clarifying this did not mean brand accounts using the artwork as a trend.[13][16] Soon after, Banks set his Twitter account to private in an attempt to avoid harassment, after he claimed he was shortly after doxxed.[16] Following the post, the price of the coin dropped to about half of what it was worth to $220 million, but has since gone up slightly.[16][17]
References
- ^ a b c d e f Bajaj, Yash (September 13, 2024). "My New Character Meme Explained After 'Chill Guy' Dog Goes Viral". Times Now News. Archived from the original on September 26, 2024. Retrieved October 20, 2024.
- ^ a b c d e S., Kaushal (September 13, 2024). "What is the My New Character meme on TikTok? Viral Chill Guy trend explained". Soap Central. Retrieved October 20, 2024.
- ^ a b c d e Kumar, Shivam (September 14, 2024). "'My New Character' Meme Explained: Meet the Viral 'Chill Guy' Dog". The Recent Times. Retrieved October 20, 2024.
- ^ a b c d e f g h Good, Anna (October 9, 2024). "What is the My New Character trend on TikTok?". The Daily Dot. Archived from the original on October 9, 2024. Retrieved October 20, 2024.
- ^ a b c d e Butler, Sinead (September 12, 2024). "What is the 'my new character' trend on TikTok?". Indy100. Archived from the original on September 27, 2024. Retrieved October 20, 2024.
- ^ a b c Byrne, Molly (September 11, 2024). "What is the "my new character" meme on TikTok? 'Chill guy' goes viral". Dexerto. Archived from the original on September 21, 2024. Retrieved October 20, 2024.
- ^ Banks, Phillip (November 27, 2024). "i did not base his design on existing media, and I didn't have anything particularly in mind (but I understand the arthur comparison, I think i almost gave him the same sweater/shirt collar style before I realized that?)". Bluesky. Retrieved November 28, 2024.
- ^ Das, Bornika (September 12, 2024). "My New Character Meme Explained: What Is 'My New Character Is a Chill Guy' Meme? Everything To Know About the Viral TikTok Trend". LatestLY. Retrieved October 20, 2024.
- ^ a b c d Gladwin, Ryan S. (November 20, 2024). "What Is Chill Guy? The Viral TikTok Meme Already Making Crypto Traders Millions". Decrypt Media. Archived from the original on November 20, 2024. Retrieved November 20, 2024.
- ^ a b Young, Sage D. (November 20, 2024). "Chill Guy Meme Shows TikTok's Growing Role in Fueling Rise of Memecoins". Unchained Crypto. Retrieved November 21, 2024.
- ^ a b c d Malwa, Shaurya (November 21, 2024). "Chillguy Creator Threatens Legal Action as Crypto Trenches Scour TikTok". CoinDesk. Archived from the original on November 21, 2024. Retrieved November 21, 2024.
- ^ a b "Chill Guy: A Viral Memecoin Making Waves in the Cryptocurrency Market". Bywire News. November 20, 2024. Retrieved November 21, 2024.
- ^ a b c "Nayib Bukele tweet pumps Chill Guy memecoin amid creator's legal threats". Protos. November 21, 2024. Archived from the original on November 21, 2024. Retrieved November 21, 2024.
- ^ Leib, Rebecca (November 20, 2024). "Watch out chill guys of the internet, I'm Just A Chill Girl is here (and she's extremely chill)". Daily Dot. Archived from the original on November 21, 2024. Retrieved November 20, 2024.
- ^ a b c d e Cross, Greta (November 21, 2024). "What is the 'Chill Guy' meme? What to know about origin, copyright feud and crypto sales". The Cincinnati Enquirer. Retrieved November 21, 2024.
- ^ a b c d e f g Gladwin, Ryan S. (November 21, 2024). "'Just a Chill Guy' Artist Threatens Legal Action Over Surging Meme Coin". Decrypt Media. Archived from the original on November 21, 2024. Retrieved November 21, 2024.
- ^ Kirui, Jared (November 21, 2024). "Chill Guy Meme Coin Soars to $500M Market Cap on TikTok Fame". Finance Magnates. Archived from the original on November 21, 2024. Retrieved November 21, 2024.
