Weird2 min(s) read
Dark truth behind mysterious influencer Jean Phil as millions watch his bizarre videos
An emerging eccentric influencer has appeared out of nowhere and shocked meme-lovers worldwide, but a mystery shrouds the moustached man behind millions of views.
Jean Philanthrope’s videos of himself dancing around Paris wearing a tweed suit and bow tie have racked up millions of views, with one video alone being watched 36 million times.
Who is the mysterious moustached man dancing on the internet?
The star of them is a quirky, tall man with an undeniably striking look: a bleach-blonde triangular bob with an impressive fringe and a handlebar moustache to match.
In his typical content, he shadow boxes or dances in busy streets while looking into the camera, turning himself into something of a meme.
However, it has been revealed that being mocked in Instagram DMs across the world was the aim of the account, as the character is in fact entirely AI-generated.
Tragically, the endearing eccentric character was created as a meme coin, a form of cryptocurrency, and suspicions have surfaced that he is just a marketing ploy for digital money that uses encryption and blockchain technology.
How are memes used in cryptocurrency?
Recognisable characters are often used in cryptocurrency to gain attention on social media.
When the popularity of the meme rises, the price should rise with it, although it is deemed a very unstable form of digital finance.
Dogecoin is a familiar example of a meme coin.
It was originally created as a joke, using the popular meme of a Shiba Inu dog as its logo and branding to give the currency a humorous, internet-driven identity.
Jean Philanthrope has certainly had the desired impact of going viral, as he has appeared in hundreds of videos from other accounts.
However, according to Coinbase, a cryptocurrency exchange platform, the JEANPHIL token surged in price on 20 September to reach a high of $0.02845 the following day, but lost more than 99 percent of its value before the end of the day.
After learning the disappointing truth, people were annoyed that they had been tricked by AI.
One person commented under one of the fake creator’s videos: "Unfollow, I just realized that you're AI. It makes me so depressed. I can’t believe that I was bamboozled."
Another person replied: "I was so disappointed to find out this was AI. I never get tricked by AI. I was tricked by AI."
There is some serious debate over whether memes are the future of crypto, as they can reach such a huge, diverse audience.
In the past, Caitlyn Jenner, Jason Derulo, and Iggy Azalea have all launched meme coins, but were all hit with backlash after their lucrative schemes failed miserably.