Sad Linus — A professional-quality portrait of Linus Sebastian in gaming headphones with microphone displaying melancholic expression from January 2020

Sad Linus

2020Reaction imagesemi-active

Published March 31, 2026

Also known as: Sad Linus Tech Tips

Sad Linus is a reaction image pulled from tech YouTuber Linus Sebastian's January 2020 livestream where he discussed potentially retiring from YouTube. The still frame, showing Linus wearing a headset and staring at the camera with a somber expression, blew up on Reddit and iFunny within 24 hours as a go-to image for expressing disappointment, sadness, or disbelief. One Reddit post using the image hit over 85,000 upvotes in a single day1.

linus tech tips memes reaction memes streamer memes youtube culture memes facial expression memes

Overview

The image shows Linus Sebastian, host of the massively popular LinusTechTips YouTube channel, looking directly into the camera with a dejected expression while wearing a gaming headset. The lighting and framing give it a raw, almost confessional quality that made it perfect for reaction image use. People slap it onto situations involving letdowns, bad news, or that specific brand of internet sadness where you're bummed but not surprised4.

Origin & Background

Platform
YouTube (source video), Reddit (meme format)
Key People
chickenfart29, Linus Sebastian
Date
2020

On January 22, 2020, LinusTechTips went live on YouTube with a stream titled "I've been thinking of retiring"4. In the video, Linus announced hitting 10 million subscribers and then opened up about his thoughts on stepping away from YouTube. The stream pulled in over 2.3 million views and 234,000 likes within two days4. Fans immediately latched onto one particular frame where Linus looks especially glum.

The next day, January 23, 2020, Reddit user chickenfart29 grabbed the still and posted it to r/memes with a caption framing the video as an example of "true sadness." That post picked up around 1,900 upvotes at 98% approval in its first day4.

How It Spread

The meme took off fast. On January 23, 2020, the same day as the first post, Redditor PowerPond uploaded the image to r/dankmemes captioned "when you're browsing new and see the same shit 20 times in a row." It exploded, racking up over 85,500 points at 90% approval within 24 hours1. Another Redditor, SpanishGarbo, used the still in a four-panel image on r/linuslore, which pulled 1,400 points at 98% approval4.

iFunny picked it up on the same day, with users creating video edits over the livestream footage2. One popular edit titled "Rest in Peace Linus Tech Tips" paired the footage with emotional music, with commenters noting they "put my phone down for like 5 minutes just listening to the sad music"5. The fan reactions ranged from genuine worry to comedic overreaction. One user described waking up at 4 AM, watching the video, "shed a single tear out of my right eye and passed out for another 2 hours"3.

StayHipp published a roundup article collecting many of the initial memes and fan reactions that had appeared across Reddit and iFunny1.

It's worth noting that this wasn't Linus's first brush with meme fame. Back on May 23, 2019, he had uploaded a close-up selfie to Twitter asking about camera distortion, which became its own exploitable template across Twitter, iFunny, Reddit, and Instagram4. The Sad Linus image built on an existing appetite for Linus Sebastian reaction content.

How to Use This Meme

The template is straightforward. Pair the Sad Linus still with a caption describing something disappointing, frustrating, or mildly tragic. Common approaches include:

- Relatable letdowns: "When your favorite show gets cancelled after one season" + Sad Linus - Internet frustrations: "When you're browsing new and see the same post 20 times in a row" (the original viral use) - Tech disappointments: Given Linus's identity as a tech reviewer, the image works especially well for hardware failures, bad product launches, or tech-related bad news - Multi-panel formats: The image often appears as the final panel in a sequence, delivering the emotional punchline

The headset and direct-to-camera stare give it a personal, intimate feel that works best for first-person disappointment rather than third-person commentary.

Fun Facts

Linus wasn't actually retiring. In the full livestream, he clarified he was thinking about it and wanted to be open with fans, but had no immediate plans to quit3.

The r/dankmemes post using Sad Linus hit 85,500 upvotes in a single day, making it one of the faster-spreading reaction images of early 20204.

The meme spread so quickly that StayHipp had a roundup article published the day after the original livestream aired1.

Derivatives & Variations

Linus Selfie

— An earlier Linus Sebastian meme from May 2019 based on a distorted close-up selfie he posted to Twitter. It became an exploitable template before Sad Linus existed[4].

Video edits

— iFunny users created extended video edits over the original livestream footage, adding dramatic music and reaction cuts. One popular edit paired it with the Dead Island trailer theme[5].

r/linuslore content

— The subreddit r/linuslore became a hub for multi-panel and deep-cut memes using the Sad Linus image[4].

Frequently Asked Questions