Forward the Original Title‘从表情包到70亿美金市值，Pepe凭什么抢走”山寨”们的”饭碗”？’

In recent years, the Meme track has suddenly emerged in the crypto industry. Driven intentionally or unintentionally by more and more celebrities such as Musk,Meme has become one of the mainstream crypto tracks and popular narratives.Many crypto KOLs represented by Buterin initially did not support it, but now they have softened their attitude and do not deny the value of its existence.

Pepe, the current “hot topic” in the memecoin world, has recently reached a market capitalization of over $4 billion, at its peak even exceeding $7 billion, outperforming other memecoins in this round of market frenzy. Many people are still puzzled about Pepe’s journey to success. Today, let’s delve into how Pepe has evolved step by step…

Pepe’s Meme Culture

Throughout the development of Memecoin, most of them use materials with certain historical origins or a certain degree of popularity on the Internet as carriers, and Pepe is no exception. Its name comes from Pepe the Frog, a character created by American cartoonist Matt Furie and first appearing in his work “Boy’s Club.”

This comic started serializing on MySpace in 2005 and concluded in 2010, gaining some attention on the internet. Among the four characters, Pepe the Frog, with its cute image and funny expressions, won the hearts of many. If you’re more involved in the blockchain world, you’ll find memecoins related to the other three characters (Brett, Andy, and Wolf) on various chains, most of which have experienced a period of hype.

Pepe’s path to popularity is similar to many internet sensations. It initially gained traction in subcultures like 4chan, before catching the attention of social media influencers（or Key Opinioin Leaders, KOLs）and going viral. By 2008, it was popular on platforms like Myspace, Gaia Online, and 4chan, and in 2015, it became one of the most popular internet memes on Tumblr.

On social media, where creating and sharing content is relatively inexpensive, Pepe, with its ability to convey a wide range of emotions, quickly spread and resonated with a vast audience. Initially seen as a cheerful character, Pepe evolved through user-generated content into a symbol of sadness and disappointment, reflecting the internet culture’s trend of self-deprecation and dark humor.

People found solace in Pepe’s melancholic image, using it as a way to express their feelings, especially when dealing with life’s challenges. As a result, the Pepe meme became a ubiquitous symbol in internet culture. In Chinese internet culture, Pepe is often associated with feelings of sadness and frustration, even earning a spot among the “Four Kings of Sadness”.

The evolution of Pepe’s image on the Internet is a rather complex and multifaceted phenomenon.

In 2015, Pepe the Frog became associated with hate speech and the US presidential election, being used to spread extremist messages. Some Trump supporters adopted Pepe as their symbol, linking it to anti-political correctness and anti-establishment sentiments. This led to Pepe being misinterpreted as a symbol of the alt-right and racial hatred.

This misunderstanding further tainted Pepe’s image. To prevent Pepe from being continuously defamed, its creator Matt Furie decided to end it by “killing” Pepe.

In reality, even though “Sad Frog” was declared “dead,” it did not stop its continued popularity among internet users. As a widely used meme, everyone can freely use it to express their emotions, including sadness or frustration.

Pepe Token

Thanks to the rapid rise in the popularity of Pepe the Frog and extensive media exposure, Pepe Token (PEPE) was born in April 2023. It quickly became a popular investment choice among many cryptocurrency enthusiasts. Within just a month, PEPE’s market capitalization exceeded $400 million, placing it in the top 100 cryptocurrencies by market value.

The creation of PEPE was intended as a reaction against the complex token economic models of the “dog series” memecoins. It aims to return to the entertainment spirit of memecoins, thus avoiding complex operations in its tokenomics such as pre-sales, burns, and taxes. PEPE’s goal is to surpass other memecoins and become a leader in the memecoin sector.

Furthermore, PEPE borrowed the slogan of former US President Trump, “Make America Great Again,” and adapted it to “Make Memecoins Great Again.”

PEPE’s marketing strategy focused on attracting the crypto community through tax-free policies, rewarding long-term holders, and implementing a burn mechanism to maintain scarcity. With its close ties to the MAGA culture, PEPE sought to leverage this narrative to fuel token growth.

PEPE’s growth has exceeded expectations, and its market cap recently peaked at over $7 billion. This surge may be partly attributed to Trump’s recent comments on cryptocurrencies. Clearly, there’s a connection between Pepe’s development and Trump’s influence.

Why Pepe took off?

Before Pepe, there were tons of other memecoins, but none reached the heights of Pepe. Let’s break down how it got there:

From the start, Pepe caught the attention of some big whales and teams. By analyzing DEX data, they spotted Pepe’s potential and started accumulating. Plus, some early buyers held related NFTs, suggesting a connection to the core team. And to top it off, the Pepe team blacklisted addresses that bought huge amounts at rock-bottom prices before relinquishing control of the contract.

On Twitter, the buzz around Pepe suddenly spiked on April 17th. Smaller influencers and KOLs started talking about it, and the hype spread like wildfire on social media. Google searches also started climbing, showing that Pepe was gaining wider attention.

Pepe was quickly listed on major CEXs and DEXs like Gate, OKEx, Matcha, and Binance. This led to price surges. But after the Binance listing, some users took profits, and rumors of team dumps and unequal distributions caused a significant drop. After a six-month correction, the anti-VC sentiment fueled the memecoin craze again, and Pepe hit new highs, becoming a potential frontrunner in the memecoin space.

Brief summary:

Team: The team behind Pepe was incredibly strong, with a top-notch marketing team. They collaborated with influential KOLs from the early days and secured listings on major exchanges.

Get-rich-quick stories spread: Stories of early Pepe investors making huge profits spread like wildfire across social media and crypto communities. These tales of overnight wealth attracted a lot of attention and piqued people’s curiosity.

FOMO sentiment: After experiencing the crazy rise of Memecoins such as Dogecoin and SHIB coins, people have been looking for the next potential skyrocketing token.The emergence and rapid growth of PEPE has triggered people’s fear of missing out, fear of missing out on opportunities similar to the hundred-fold and thousand-fold Memecoin. This fear of missing out causes more and more people to buy PEPE, creating a self-reinforcing cycle.PEPE attracted more than 100,000 currency holding addresses in less than a month after its release.

Promotion of CEX/DEX: Trading platforms played a crucial role in Pepe’s growth. Being listed on major exchanges like MEXC, Binance, OKX, and Huobi gave Pepe access to a wider audience and increased liquidity. The fact that Pepe quickly attracted 100,000 unique wallets made it even more attractive to exchanges, leading to a virtuous cycle of growth.

This is all I know about why Pepe became so popular. As you can see, many other memecoins are following a similar path. If you have different insights, feel free to share them.

Conclusion

Twitter KOL neso summarized the key factors driving memecoin growth at different market cap stages, as shown in the image below.

Do you agree with his analysis? Do you think Pepe, with its current market cap of over $4 billion, is still controlled by a small group of people? Share your thoughts in the comments.

Disclaimer：

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