Chicago Grip Reaper
Part of a series on Gorilla Grip / Grip / Grippy (Slang). [View Related Entries]
Related Explainer: What Does 'Grip Reaper' Mean? The Slang Term And Meme Explained
About
Grip Reaper, also known as Chiraq Grip Reaper or Chicago Grip Reaper, is a catchphrase used by people to refer to a video featuring former Vine star ChloeLMAO, whose real name is Chloe Woodward. The video features a blonde Chloe wearing headphones and seated on a stoop as they deliver a quirky monologue that ends with "Just kidding! I live in the old city of Chicago [incomprehensible noises]." In 2022, internet users parodied the moniker "Chiraq Grim Reaper," used to describe late Chicago rapper "Lil Reese," and used it to express their amusement at Chloe's quirked up personality and expressing their attraction to Chloe.
Origin
Chloe Woodward is an internet personality and singer who first grew to fame on the now-defunct video-sharing website Vine.[1] They are best known for the Who Is She Vine, where Woodward turns around wearing sunglasses set to the opening riff of "Take On Me."
On August 10, 2020, YouTube[2] account Aimless Memes posted a screen recording of a video featuring Chloe Woodard. The showed an older, now blonde, Chloe sitting on a stoop and saying, "Uhh hey, does anyone want to come over to my house? Oh I forgot you can't! You can't come to my house because no one can ever come to my house because I live in the middle place between World and Time. I'm just kidding guys, I live in the old city of Chicago. Meep Moop Mreaow." The video gathered 4,000 views in over two years (seen below). The original video has since been deleted but was likely posted on Chloe's Instagram[3] @ContraChloe in 2020.
On August 22, 2021, YouTube[4] account Hip-Hop Daily posted a video titled, "Lil Reese: The Grim Reaper of Chicago." The upload received over 1 million views and over 20,000 likes in nearly one year.
On October 16th, 2021, Redditer[5] Jacksfilmsforehead44 posted a meme to /r/memes. The image showed an unassuming-looking young boy with a text overlay that read, "😭😭😭😭😭😭😭dis da chicago grim reaper." The post received 22 upvotes and 17 replies in nearly 10 months. The post was a reference to Chicago rapper "Lil Reese," or "Resse Money Grim Reaper."
2022 Chiraq Grim Reaper
On January 5th, 2022, TikToker[6] @poo.fart.nuts posted a screen recording of the video to TikTok, gathering over 3.3 million views and over 600,000 likes in approximately seven months (see below). The replies to the post are from other TikTokers expressing their attraction to Chloe, as well as TikTokers calling them the "Chiraq Grim Reaper." Many users also call Chloe "the sanest Chicago resident," a tongue-in-cheek jab at their eccentric dialogue.
https://www.tiktok.com/embed/v2/7049938349825641774
On February 13th, 2022, TikToker[7] @bruhwastakenwastaken posted the same video, gathering over 5.9 million views and over 1 million likes in six months (see below).
https://www.tiktok.com/embed/v2/7064296193110691078
The replies to the upload are variations on TikTokers calling Chloe the "Grip Reaper" of Chicago, and saying they "know it be gripping." The word "grip" as used here is a sexual innuendo (seen below).
Spread
On June 16th, 2022, TikToker[8] @bad.art.dude Duetted @bruhwastakenwastaken with a "Beastboy / Guy Holding Up Four" meme, with a text overlay that read, "Never forget the actual choke hold "The Chicago Grip Reaper" had on mfs." The post gathered 4,000 plays and 300 likes in two months.
https://www.tiktok.com/embed/v2/7109709344027020586
On August 3rd, TikToker[9] @eatingworm posted a video remixing the original Chloe video into an Impact Font thumbnail that read, "Is This The Grim Reaper Of Chicago?" with an arrow pointing to Chloe. The post gathered over 2.4 million views and 300,000 likes in two weeks.
https://www.tiktok.com/embed/v2/7127718280147586346
On August 14th, Twitter user @Ter0me[10] reposted the video, gathering 11,000 likes and 559 retweets in five days. The replies to the tweets echo the aforementioned TikTok comments, with users expressing their attraction to Chloe and making jokes about them being the "Chiraq Grip Reaper."
— Published Author (@Ter0me) August 14, 2022
Various Examples
https://www.tiktok.com/embed/v2/7080671793878551854
https://www.tiktok.com/embed/v2/7069868653784796462
https://www.tiktok.com/embed/v2/7080602585966677291
https://www.tiktok.com/embed/v2/7076640844564024618
https://www.tiktok.com/embed/v2/7065807689422589230
https://www.tiktok.com/embed/v2/7040914869767621934
Search Interest
Unavailable.
External References
[2] YouTube – Aimless Memes
[3] Instagram – ContraChloe
[4] YouTube – Hip-Hop Daily
[5] Reddit – Jacksfilmsforehead
[6] TikTok – @poo.farts.nuts
[7] TikTok – @bruhwastakenwastaken
[8] TikTok – @bad.art.dude?
[9] TikTok – @eatingworm