The 31-year-old man behind one of the most beloved memes in recent memory has passed away at age 31.
Brandon ‘Young Busco’ Moore, who famously exclaimed, “What are those?” at a police officer’s chunky boots while his friend, Myesha, was being arrested for public intoxication, died on Sunday, People reports. Busco’s mother confirmed the news in a Facebook post yesterday. “I cant believe that the earth is still moving when I feel as though my world has stopped,” she wrote, per People.
Moore’s cause of death is currently unknown. A candlelight vigil has been scheduled for Friday at 5:30 pm PT in his hometown of Berkeley, Calif.
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The “What are those?” video (see below) initially went viral on now-defunct Vine back in 2015 — and has since spawned countless reinterpretations, a number of which were covered in the Fine Brothers’ React series. The line even appeared in Marvel‘s 2018 blockbuster Black Panther film.
Moore, who leaves behind five children, has said in the past that he regrets not watermarking the meme or putting his face in the video — though it took off so unexpectedly that he didn’t have the foresight to properly capitalize, he has said. He also faced his own legal woes after the meme went viral due to drug problems. Months after he became an online star, he served jail time for probation violation and a narcotics charge, People reports, though he subsequently vowed to clean up his act for the sake of his children.
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