A distorted, memeified version of the Sonic character Knuckles became the main character in a bizarre VRChat meme in the late 2010s, with people making the anthropomorphic echidna echo strange phrases like "Do you know da wey" and "Spit on the non-believer."
The catchphrase "do you know de wey" clearly depicts a Ugandan accent, and the VRChat trend that kicked off the meme accompanied the phrase with various caricatures or stereotypes of African languages, causing many to dub the meme racist.
But even at the height of Ugandan Knuckles' fame, not many people realized that the phrase was directly inspired by an actual Ugandan "Wakaliwood" production called Who Killed Captain Alex. Here's how the saga unfolded.
Where Does The Distorted Knuckles VRChat Model Come From?
The squished Knuckles VRChat model has a complicated origin that's emblematic of the lore that goes behind many modern post-ironic memes today.
Some trace the origins of the phrase "Do you know de wey" to an August 2016 upload in which YouTuber VirtuallyVain shared a clip of himself roleplaying an African gangster in the game Call of Duty: Black Ops, saying lines like, "Follow me, I know the way." Over 10 million views later, this video was likely a major influence on Ugandan Knuckles.
A few months later, YouTuber Gregzilla uploaded a review of the 2013 platformer game Sonic Lost World, which included a parody animation of the character Knuckles. This distorted piece of art gave rise to the "Knuckles Sings" remix series.
As this was happening, fans of Twitch streamer Forsen were in the throes of making repeated jokes about Ugandan warriors while playing the game PlayerUnknown's Battlegrounds, oftentimes stream-sniping his channel to reference various Uganda-related memes.
In September 2017, DeviantArtist tidiestflyer released a 3D model based on Gregzilla's Knuckles depiction.
The meme finally came to fruition in late December 2017 after a slew of Knuckle-suit-donning VRChat users began swarming other players and trolling them by making clicking noises and saying, "You do not know the way."
On December 22nd, YouTuber Stahlsby uploaded a video titled "You Do Not Know the Way" in which a swarm of VRChat players wearing Ugandan Knuckles avatars troll other players by making clicking noises and saying, "You do not know the way."
The line "you do not know the way" is believed to be inspired by a line in the 2010 Ugandan film Who Killed Captain Alex? in which a character says, "He knows the way of using a gun."
What Was The Initial Blowback Against The Ugandan Knuckles Memes?
The creator of the squished Knuckles 3D model put a disclaimer on his original post begging people not to use the version of Knuckles, or any version at all, to swarm and troll other people on VRChat. "[The] community means a lot to me," he said, "and it would hurt me to see the rights of other users taken away and possibly restricted because of how out of hand it can get."
More and more people also began to accuse the Ugandan Knuckles meme of being racist or insensitive as it spread, particularly due to the accompanying "clicking" sounds often heard alongside the catchphrase "do you know de wey." The "click consonant" exists in some East African languages, but it is sometimes referenced to mock or generalize languages of the entire subcontinent.
As the meme spread from VRChat to multiplayer games like Overwatch and esports in general around early 2018, many people defended their use of the meme, saying that it only paid homage to the film Who Killed Captain Alex?
This characterization, however, did not save gaming company Razer from receiving criticism after it posted a meme following the trend, a move the brand had to swiftly backtrack following criticism on Twitter in late January 2018.
What Was The 2021 Ugandan Knuckles Resurgence?
The Ugandan Knuckles meme saw a resurgence on Reddit in late 2021 thanks to the hype surrounding the release of Sonic the Hedgehog 2, with the character notably being voiced by actor Idris Elba.
Inspired by a handful of initial memes, multiple Ugandan Knuckles memes began to ironically reemerge across Reddit in December 2021, but the resurgence ultimately fizzled out rather quickly and has not seen another notable uptick since.
For the full history of Ugandan Knuckles, be sure to check out Know Your Meme's encyclopedia entry for more information.
