Many people on Twitter / X are getting really ticked off about a guy they say is "colonizing GIFs" on the platform.

You may have seen him, a man dressed in 18th-century regalia, hitting the griddy, writing with fire or completely replacing comedian Druski and his dance. That's not a time traveler — that's BenJammins.

The notorious GIF creator's blackout-shades and white wig outfit combo has been invading Tenor and Giphy at increasing rates. It's come to the point where people have to scroll through rows and rows of BenJammin GIFs to find their original, unadulterated reaction memes.

So who exactly is BenJammins and how did he end up in seemingly every GIF ever? Let's explain.

Who Is BenJammins, And Why Is He Dressed Like a Founding Father?

BenJammins, real name Ben, launched his Twich streaming career in 2020 after a viral Reddit clip showed him faking a death in Call of Duty: Warzone.

The clip gathered around 17,000 upvotes on Reddit, and Ben claims that it racked up over 100 million views across the internet. The success of the clip is what made Ben, a former finance manager, take up streaming seriously.

I couldn't stop laughing at this death chat reaction after faking my death actually worked byu/Lambeauleap80 inCODWarzone

In a 2022 interview, Ben says that he wasn't funny, entertaining or good at gaming, so he leaned into what he could offer: absurd commitment to a bit.

He was inspired by a T-shirt of Benjamin Franklin wearing Ray-Bans at Walmart, so he came up with a gimmick that played on his own name and created a colonial character who livestreams in full Founding Father garb.

Over time, BenJammins expanded his gaming streams into vlogs, hot tub bits and meme recreations, collaborating with well-known creators like Amouranth and CaseOh. He said that he's not trying to be the best gamer, he's trying to be the most recognizable guy in your feed.

What’s With People Saying BenJammins Is 'Colonizing GIFs'?

Around early 2025, internet users noticed a weird phenomenon: viral reaction GIFs like Druski Dancing and Gunna Writing Fire were supposedly being replaced with recreations featuring a man dressed like a Founding Father from colonial America.

This guy wasn't just mimicking GIFs, he was inserting himself into them using elaborate green-screen setups. He even got NBA player Ja Morant to use one of his GIFs back in November 2024.

As it turns out, a ton of popular GIFs were removed from Giphy (likely due to copyright) sometime in 2022, and BenJammins saw an opportunity.

He bulk-uploaded replacements "for his community," and platforms like Instagram and Facebook defaulted to them. Many on the internet thought it was funny at first but annoying as it dragged on.

Some critics have accused him of "whitewashing memes" and "colonizing GIFs" with tweets like, "how do you whitewash a Druski gif," and, "who tf is this guy," getting hundreds of thousands of likes in the last month.

It got to the point where people made videos complaining about BenJammins "ruining" memes, with Instagram user @ayxdonian writing, "When a meme is lwk [low-key] funny but this guy gets a hold of it."

BenJammins has defended himself amid the backlash, saying, "My community asked me to make some of the removed memes… I don’t have control over who uses them.” He's been very active in clapping back at the hate he gets, mocking how viral the confusion around him has become.

What Does BenJammins Do Besides 'Colonizing' GIFs?

Beyond the GIF invasion, BenJammins has been steadily building a career in streaming by collaborating with other content creators and cashing in on viral moments in recent years.

For instance, he livestreamed a colonial-themed date with streamer and creator Amouranth, complete with a horse and buggy, back in 2023.

After receiving 1776 retweets, Twitch streamer @BenJammins was allowed to take Amouranth on a colonial styled date 😂This included a horse drawn carriage, a photoshoot, and 1700's themed events pic.twitter.com/PplyfwNHRo

— Jake Lucky (@JakeSucky) January 14, 2023

He also once convinced streamer xQc to jump into an ice-cold pool fully clothed, and last year, he even managed to appear in the very first frame of the 2025 Super Bowl broadcast to scribble furiously at the air with his quill.

Say what you will about BenJammins' annoying GIFs, but he does commit to the bit like no one else.

Somehow was the opening shot of the Super Bowl broadcast. Get Jammed on, America. pic.twitter.com/ejMtRsrikg

— BenJammins (@BenJammins) February 9, 2025

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For the full history of BenJammins, be sure to check out Know Your Meme's encyclopedia entry for more information.