No new memes? TikTokers declare March 2025 the start of the ‘Great Meme Depression’

The March 2025 Meme Drought has left TikTokers panicking—to the point that the reaction has become a meme in its own right.

What is the Great Meme Depression of 2025?

“When I’m really old and have grandkids, I’m gonna tell my grandkids about the TikTok Great Depression of March 2025,” @goofangel announced in a video that’s been viewed over 913,800 times. 

To hear it from him, good memes were abundant in February 2025. He specifically pointed to XXXTentacion’s “What’s a Father?” meme and TS PMO, or “basically a whole new language” for people new to abbreviations.

But March, thus far, has failed to provide such a wealth of original online fun.

“Then after peak, we just fall off and then it’s March and there’s nothing new because we’ve already experienced peak,” he continued.

@goofangel #tiktok #brainrot #brainrotquiz #funny #unemployment ♬ original sound – goofangel

This void has been referred to by several names—The Great Meme Depression and the March 2025 Meme Drought, to start. But regardless of labels, the concern is clear. Without memes, what do TikTokers have to talk about?

How are people coping with no new memes?

As it turns out, fretting over the lack of memes has actually morphed into a meme of its own. 

“This has gone on for way too long,” @goofangel said in a follow-up video. “Where are the memes at, bro? It is two weeks into March and we haven’t had a single new meme… This is actually, like, freaking me out.”

Others have taken to creating their own videos in response to the meme drought, all of which highlight (whether intentionally or not) just how reliant certain corners of internet culture have become on memes for connection and joy.

“I understand how those people in the Great Depression felt. This is tragic,” @worley_cd joked. “This is very close to the Great Depression.”

@worley_cd Scrolling TikTok has never been so boring 😭 #fyp ♬ Dust Collector – ybg lucas

@daystormermg27 The Meme Depression #meme #Minecraft #fyp ♬ You Gotta Move – Mississippi Fred McDowell

@mycatmeowsithink YT SHORTS COLOBIZATION MARCH 25TH — GREAT MEME DEPRESSION #slimetok #juggtok #jollytok #ts #pmo #dandysworld #mainstream #💔 #🥀 #dih #underground #sybau #fyp #ytshorts #druski #traproyalty ♬ When Johnny Comes Marching Home – Spirit of America Ensemble

@busybusshow “A person who thinks all the time, has nothing to think about expect thoughts” ahh realization #busybusshow #thegreatmemedepression #fyp ♬ original sound – Very Cool Tutorials

What comes next?

As several commenters across various TikToks pointed out, the speed at which memes come and go has already shifted dramatically in recent years. This may not bode well for the state of memes as a whole. If a trend doesn’t stick around long enough to grab hold of the masses beyond chronically online TikTokers, it’s more likely to fade into obscurity.

“I told y’all the great reset was coming but nobody listened,” wrote @shimofae. “our humor became wrapped in so many layers of irony that it just became absolute nonsense. we’re dawning a new era, and brainrot has died.”

“The lifespan of memes is decaying exponentially,” @uncool.username agreed.

In other words, maybe having a little breathing room in between memes isn’t such a bad thing. Savor the good ones while they’re here—nothing lasts forever.

Internet culture is chaotic—but we’ll break it down for you in one daily email. Sign up for the Daily Dot’s web_crawlr newsletter here. You’ll get the best (and worst) of the internet straight into your inbox.