"That was my word": xQc claims he invented the term "brain rot" after Oxford declared it word of the year

Twitch streamer Félix "xQc" claimed during his recent broadcast that he had invented the term "brain rot". This declaration from the streamer comes after it was declared by Oxford as the Word of the Year for 2024. To those unaware, the term "brain rot" is typically used to hilariously describe the effects of viewing low-quality short-form content, most of which is created ironically for this very sole purpose.

Talking about his supposed part in making the word famous, the Canadian streamer said:

"I'm gonna say it. That was my word. I made that... if I say that, I'm crazy."

Further, drawing a comparison with Kai Cenat and the word "rizz", which is often associated with him, xQc said:

"Last year, Kai and rizz, right? I make brain rot... nobody's gonna give me credit. It's cringe but it is what it is."

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xQc claims the term "brain rot" as his own invention as it becomes Oxford's Word of the Year 2024

Brain rot as a term has emerged after the rise of certain memes in the past few years which are often associated with deliberate poor-quality editing, random non-context-based references, or attention-grabbing gameplay being plastered alongside other low-effort content

This content, which is mostly produced ironically, is often jokingly perceived by watchers as negatively affecting their cognitive capabilities, thus "rotting" their brains. Oxford describes the word as:

"Supposed deterioration of a person’s mental or intellectual state, especially viewed as a result of overconsumption of material (now particularly online content) considered to be trivial or unchallenging. Also: something characterized as likely to lead to such deterioration."

Within the clip, Kick and Twitch content creator xQc continued to speak on the topic and reiterated his claim on the word, stating:

"They won't allow me to get the credit... I actually did make the word. I actually did."

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xQc recently opined on the drama involving Twitch streamers Pokimane and FaZe Kaysan following Pokimane's reveal of DMs sent by the latter. Talking about it during his Twitch broadcast, he labeled it "straight-up" harassment by the FaZe member.