“Ah sh*t, here we go again.” Oh, the endless meme possibilities that can emerge from such a simple statement.
In true internet fashion, content creators all over the web took a relatable quote that can be applied to a number of situations and ran with it. In this case, we have gamers to thank for the “here we go again” meme’s inception.
How did the ‘here we go again’ meme start?
The “here we go again” meme was taken from a scene in the 2004 game Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas, in which the main character, Carl “CJ” Johnson, finds himself in a crime-ridden neighborhood.
“Ah, sh*t, here we go again,” Johnson says. “Worst place in the world, Rolling Heights Ballas country. I ain’t represented Grove Street in five years, but the Ballas won’t give a shit.”
According to Know Your Meme, the memes began as stationary image reactions on Reddit and Instagram. It didn’t really reach virality until 2019, when now-suspended X (formerly Twitter) user @ChaoticGeekCG created a green screen video edit of the scene.
What followed was a number of miscellaneous sh*tpost edits, gaming jokes, and anime.
How did the meme evolve?
After @ChaoticGeekCG posted the green screen video edit, the rest was history. Another X user, @topherth (whose account is also suspended), was one of the first users on the platform to adapt the green screen video. According to a Medium post, the content creator edited the background to be the album cover of Frank Ocean’s Blonde, with the song “Nights” playing in the background as the song changes beats.
According to Know Your Meme, several other content creators have made viral posts including the meme, too. One post, it reported, uploaded in April 2019, gained over 160 re-posts and 440 likes, but the account has since been suspended.
How can I use it properly?
The meme, usually preceded by the phrase, ‘Oh, sh*t,’ is meant to express apprehension, anguish or deep-seated distress. People tend to use it when they feel like they can’t seem to catch a break in life. The one-liner also perfectly encapsulates the feeling of being upset.
One Urban Dictionary poster gave a more succinct definition: “Here we go again,” they wrote, is “That thing you say when you have to do another annoying thing again like work, school, taking care of your f*cking kids.” Of course, that’s no Merriam-Webster definition, so use the phrase—and meme—at your discretion. There’s really no wrong way to go about it.
Examples of people using the meme in real-time
The meme spread like wildfire when it was first popularized, so there are plenty of examples of people using it then. Here are some of the best examples we could find on X.
this december pic.twitter.com/xgFIR2sLNL
— Rebel Scum Finn (@realtraitorfinn) April 11, 2019
Never been for walking around New York City and…
— Callipo (@TInfiniteSpt) April 10, 2019
ah shit, here we go again pic.twitter.com/8RZEdEZnXB
More recently, however, the meme spread beyond X—to TikTok. Here are some viral “Here we go again” clips we found there.
@twinnmomma15 I wanna be a 5am girly so bad
♬ original sound – Meme God
@manicpixiehomo ♬ original sound – Meme God
@mttmmanny just let it die my brother
♬ original sound – Adrian
The frustration emitted from the “here we go again” meme is easily relatable. The endless possibilities of this statement provide insight into why the internet took the quote and ran with it. Indeed, part of the beauty of the meme is that Johnson’s frustration can be applied to a multitude of situations.
And that, in turn, is why the ‘here we go again’ meme is here to stay.