Split image of orange cat labeled 'He was the best guy aroundddd' next to a smiling person labeled 'What murdaaa'.

He Was The Best Guy Around

2023catchphrasesemi-active

Published November 9, 2026

He Was The Best Guy Around is a TikTok audio format from a 1992 ABC 7 Eyewitness News interview, in which a New Yorker insisted that convicted mob boss John Gotti was exactly that. Years later it went viral on TikTok in spring 2023, when creators attached it to photos of vicious-but-adorable cats and favorite fictional killers.

tiktok sound trends cats delayed virality memes audio memes tonal whiplash memes

Overview

Posts typically feature a cat lounging or a pet owner showing fresh scratch marks while the 1992 audio plays, insisting the animal is sweet and innocent4. Variants swap in movie villains or anti-heroes the poster admires, from John Wick to Anton Chigurh, with the joke landing on the gap between the audio's defense and whatever carnage is on screen7. He Was The Best Guy Around works because the earnest, straight-faced praise sounds absurd once you see what it is being applied to.

Cat content dominates the sound, often showing bloody hands or torn furniture alongside close-ups of the cat looking angelic6. Some creators also point the audio at themselves, defending friends or relatives with bad reputations, which sits closer to the original 1992 intent3.

Origin & Background

Platform
ABC 7 broadcast (1992) / TikTok (viral spread)
Date
2023

On April 2, 1992, after a jury convicted mob boss John Gotti of murder and racketeering, ABC 7 Eyewitness News interviewed people on the street for a reaction segment. Two New Yorkers insisted Gotti had done nothing wrong, with one declaring he 'was the best guy around' regardless of the charges1. Eyewitness News uploaded the archival footage to YouTube on October 9, 2019, where it drew little attention for several years7.

TikTok user @Madrandombro reportedly turned the clip into a dedicated audio page on March 31, 2023, letting other creators attach it to their own videos7. Their account was later renamed Just Jenna Show and the original upload went down, with archive copies and a reupload by @officialsaarah preserving it2.

How It Spread

TikToker @ihurtkozzi ran an early version of the audio on March 26, 2023, vocally defending someone while the on-screen caption admitted they wanted nothing to do with that person. That video passed 115,000 likes within two months3.

@raymondthecatman pivoted He Was The Best Guy Around toward cats on May 5, 2023, passing 155,000 likes in a single month4. After that post, cat owners took over the sound, pairing shredded forearms or destroyed curtains with the audio defending the culprit5. Accounts like fluffy.frida6 and bjplayallday8 added their own pet versions, anchoring the format to animals that misbehave on camera.

Timeline

1992-04-02

ABC 7 Eyewitness News interviews New Yorkers after John Gotti's conviction, including the pair who defend him on camera.

2019-10-09

Eyewitness News uploads the archival 1992 footage to YouTube, where it sits for several years without much attention.

2023-03-26

TikToker @ihurtkozzi posts an early use of the audio, mocking a vocal defense of someone they actually dislike.

2023-03-31

TikTok user @Madrandombro turns the clip into a dedicated audio page on TikTok.

2023-05-05

@raymondthecatman posts the cat-focused version that passes 155,000 likes and anchors the sound to cat content.

How to Use This Meme

Common convention is to play the audio over a photo or short clip of a cat, pet, or beloved violent character while the on-screen text or visual flatly contradicts the audio's loyalty34. The joke lives in that gap, letting the poster swear by a creature or character whose crimes are obvious in the frame.

Frequently Asked Questions