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Is Drake fine? #RIPDrake trends as Internet slams rapper’s death hoax: 'Almost gave a heart attack'

A lot of social media users were left bewildered and furious after they saw #RIPDrake trending on Twitter

With fame also comes death hoaxes, conspiracy theories and Internet memes. Celebrities like Paul McCartney, Avril Lavigne, Taylor Swift, Nick Jonas, Will Ferrell, Russell Crowe, Justin Bieber and Barack Obama along with several other notable public figures have been the target of death hoaxes in the past and looks like rapper Drake is the latest who fell prey to a death hoax.

A lot of social media users were left bewildered and furious after they saw #RIPDrake trending on Twitter. One user asked, “WHO TF CAME UP WITH #RIPDrake HAVE WE NOT BEEN THROUGH ENOUGH THIS YEAR? One individual stated, “I AM FINNA COME AFTER WHOEVER STARTED THIS HASHTAG, #RIPDrake !!!!! STOP PLAYING WITH MY EMOTIONS B***HES!!!!!!! I REBUKE THIS HASHTAG IN JESUS’S NAME!!!!!!”  Another expressed, “Bruh, can we stop making things like this trending. This is 2020, we have to stop playing this game. #RIPdrake” One shared a funny video and tweeted, “Drake on his way to ''his'' funeral #RIPdrake”  One user stated, “Whoever created the #ripdrake gotta go, bc I'm freaking out trying to figure out if they bs'ing or if this man is really gone” Another added, “This hashtag almost gave me a heart attack. Y’all play TOO MUCH #RIPDrake”

Drake’s death hoax also trended back in 2015 when 4chan users planned the execution of “Operation Drake,” a hoax aimed at convincing the Internet that Drake had died, as reported by the Washington Post. For the unversed, 4chan is an anonymous English-language imageboard website which hosts boards dedicated to a wide variety of topics, from anime and manga to video games, music, literature, fitness, politics, and sports, among others. 4chan users have been part of various memes on the Internet on several occasions earlier.

The name 4chan made its way to Twitter this time as well, however, it appears they were not involved in the matter. One user allegedly seemed to accept responsibility for this sudden trend and said, “Yo, I don't really know what's going on, but the #RIPDrake thing was a joke between me and a bunch of friends; It wasn't some giant advertising ploy or 4chan thing. I'm sorry to the people it effected and seeing what this became has tought me to think more before my actions.” Another added, “Lol me and a couple of friends did this whole #RIPDrake shit, wasnt 4chan.”

It seems the moderators at Twitter then worked hard to kill the rumor as the description below the trending hashtag #RIPDrake said, “No, Drake is not dead. The rumors arose after users began to share photoshopped images of articles saying the rapper had died.” Though, it still remains unclear who really started it in the first place.