According to Google, the phrase “Bye Felicia” has appeared on Queerty 1,800 times. Over the last few years, it’s become a ubiquitous hashtag; snappy shorthand to undercut and dismiss Twitter trolls or anyone else on the Internet that is unpleasant or otherwise inadvisable. Which is basically everyone.
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These days, the phrase is inescapable. There are “Bye Felicia” T-shirts; Time magazine has written breathless articles about “Bye Felicia”, and there have been plenty of accusations of cultural appropriation, too. The 2015 biopic Straight Outta Compton invented a distressing origin story for the phrase, which involves fellatio, guns, and an unfortunate woman wearing nothing but a pink thong.
Related: Michigan Judge Tells Antigay Researcher “Bye Felicia”
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In 2014, the phrase was even turned into a dance song called, yes, “Bye Felicia!” by New York DJ Joe Gauthreaux, where it somehow debuted at #5 on the Billboard Dance chart:
So, who is this Felicia, and why exactly should she go away? Well, she’s a character in the 1995 film Friday, and the reason she should scram is because she’s a needy user and super-annoying.
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In fact, the line is really rather underwhelming in its original context. Here it is, in its natural habitat:
So here’s the burning question: Is it finally time to retire the phrase and say goodbye to “Bye Felicia?” Weigh in in the comments below.
BudsYourUncle
Yes please. And also “Yas Queen!”
mmedesevigne
Oh, God, yes! I was over it around the time the earth cooled.
Tracy Pope
When I’ve heard it or read it I’ve always considered it as a helpful hint: “Avoid this person, they’re not bright enough to have a real conversation”.
martinbakman
Qweeny and trite. Dat’s what dat is.
Mmmmmm..hmmmmm
PRINCE OF SNARKNESS aka DIVKID
Silly queeny phrase beloved of fembots.
It is OVAH!
Dave Downunder
Bye Felicia, yas queen and ‘dat’ in place of that. Three of the most over used and cliched terms in the gay lexicon.
Terrycloth
I always thought its always been “Mary” or “Mary Doogan ” .. Or in just old(Er)
UWSguy
More mindless musings from millennials
barkomatic
I can’t remember the last time I heard someone say “Bye Felicia”. Nowadays, it’s been shortened to simply “Bye” with a hand raised in the face of your opponent and said with a strangely southern accent–but just that word though. I’ve heard this in NYC but not sure how widespread that is.
“YASS” was annoying from the very beginning and generally signifies an extremely trivial and immature young guy.
Aromaeus
I’m ready for white gays to stop appropriating and butchering AAVE if that’s what you mean.
QJ201
Never said “Hello” to it in the first place
IDoNotHaveToAgreeWithYou
@Aromaeus: OK. Soon as you stop misappropriating cars, electricity, houses, indoor plumbing, and all the other trillions of things you got from white people.
Bob LaBlah
It originated in the movie “The Adventures of Priscila, Queen of the Desert”. No matter how many times Queerty tries to block my comment it doesn’t change the truth of the origin.