The concept predates the viral video. On October 2, 2011, Urban Dictionary user JOHNxRYAN95 created an entry defining "What Are Those?" as a question yelled at someone wearing unkempt or off-brand footwear4. But the meme as the internet knows it started on June 14, 2015, when Instagram user Brandon Moore, who went by the handle @youngbusco, uploaded a video shot at the Berkeley flea market in California7.

In the clip, a woman named Myesha was being arrested for drinking in public. Moore, who said he always had his camera out to document his daily life on Snapchat, turned the lens toward the arresting officer's clunky black work boots and shouted "What are those?!" The officer looked at him, seemingly unimpressed, and walked off12. Within three weeks, the video picked up over 2,300 likes and 1,200 comments on Instagram4.

Moore told Complex in an interview that calling out bad shoes was something he'd been doing since childhood. "I've been doing 'what are those?' forever. It's something I did as a kid to talk about my friend's shoes," he explained. "It was a spur of the moment type of thing with that cop, and, to be honest, I thought he was going to slap me with his night stick"7.

"What Are Those?" became a defining meme of mid-2015 Vine culture and put sneaker shaming into the mainstream internet vocabulary. The phrase landed its own Urban Dictionary entry and became a real-life social interaction that teenagers and young adults used in schools, malls, and public spaces across the U.S. and Canada6.

The meme's reach into professional sports through the Michael Jordan camp incident brought coverage from TIME, ABC7, and other major outlets, marking one of the first times a Vine meme directly confronted a global sports icon in person13. Complex identified the trend as central to sneakerhead culture, noting that "there are few larger signs of disrespect than to question a man for what he's wearing"11.

Moore's death in November 2018 prompted a wave of tributes across social media, with users sharing the original video and remembering him as someone who "changed the world with laughter"4.

Brandon Moore's path to internet fame was unlikely. Born in Berkeley, California, Moore was a father of five who had struggled with drug addiction and time in jail before turning to comedy and Instagram content creation. In his Complex interview, he credited his grandmother's death as a turning point that pushed him to get clean and become active in his kids' lives. "Now I'm here, spreading happiness and joy by making everyone laugh," he said7.

The "What Are Those?" video wasn't even supposed to be a big deal. Moore posted it alongside three other videos from the same day at the Berkeley flea market. "I did not expect for that video to be that big. I have tons of funny videos on my page that I think are way funnier than that one," he told Complex, adding that "the fact that I did that to a police officer made it epic"12.

Once the meme took off, it became a full-blown cultural phenomenon within sneaker culture. Complex described the trend as showing "no signs of letting up," noting that "nobody's safe out here: church-goers, teachers, and even some of your favorite cartoon characters couldn't escape"8. BuzzFeed ran its own roundup of the best examples, declaring that "no part of your outfit is allowed to be slacking"9. The format extended well beyond real-life encounters. Vine users began dubbing the original audio over scenes from movies and TV shows, creating photoshopped versions with cartoon characters, and ambushing friends, family members, and strangers alike2.

Moore also shared a cautionary tale about when the prank went wrong. He once tried it on a homeless man with "what are those?"-worthy shoes. The man kicked the phone out of his hand, then kicked Moore in the ribs. While Moore lay on the ground, the man took money from his pocket and left. "I guess you can call that, when 'what are those' goes wrong," Moore reflected7.

The Meme Documentation blog noted that by late June 2015, the meme had crossed over from Vine to Tumblr and was already evolving beyond its shoe-focused origins. "This meme, however, has evolved so examples of the meme may not necessarily be about shoes but rather some other article of clothing or object," the blog documented2. Moore himself acknowledged this broader application: "What are those is making fun of not only shoes, but anything that you want to insult somebody about. A girl can have a weird hairstyle, and you can point at her hair like, 'What is that,' with the same voice tone and energy"12.

The Michael Jordan incident in August 2015 marked the meme's crossover into mainstream sports media. ABC7 Chicago, TIME, and other outlets all covered the exchange at Jordan's basketball camp, where 17-year-old Bryce Lyle tried to embarrass the Hall of Famer10. Jordan's smooth response, pointing to his unreleased XX9 Lows, became its own viral moment, with TIME noting that "you didn't think you could best His Royal Airness"13.

Tragedy struck on November 25, 2018, when rumors that Brandon Moore had died began spreading on Twitter. Users posted tributes, sharing the original video and photographs of Moore with his children4. Reporter Melissa Colorado confirmed the news that day, and an obituary was posted on EveryDayDevotional4. MTO News reported that Moore "died in his sleep" and that authorities did not suspect foul play4. He was 31 years old. The Heat Magazine later reported that Moore's death was caused by an accidental overdose3.