The namesake of the chants is NASCAR driver Brandon Brown. On October 9, he got the checkered flag at the Talladega Superspeedway in Alabama. As Brown was being interviewed by NBC sports reporter Kelli Stavast, there arose from the stands the chant “F**k Joe Biden.
Fearing that the chant might get to her microphone, Stavast tried to recast what was heard. She said to Brown, “As you can hear the chants from the crowd, ‘Let’s go, Brandon’ …” The joke was born … and it went viral over social media and returned to the sports stands.
It is now a euphemism that can be heard on television and radio without raising the ire of the prudent. It is code that was born out of a reporter’s desire to spin away from the truth … and now it has a truth all its own.
No matter what team is playing in what sports, there are almost inevitable cheers of “Let’s go, Brandon.” It was clearly heard in the background of a FOX post game sportscast. It is heard in bars as patrons hold their glasses high to toast “Brandon.” It is usually followed by uproarious laughter.
The advertising premium industry has joined in. “Let’s go, Brandon” is being printed, screened, inscribed and stamped on t-shirts, baseball caps, coffee cups and just about every other conceivable item in the swag catalogue.
Rapper Loza Alexander produced a music video that hit number two on iTunes. He was on YouTube until the censorship gods removed the video based on … medical misinformation?
The chant was recently memorialized in the Congressional Record when Florida Congressman Bill Posey concluded his remarks about the Biden reconciliation bill with “Let’s go, Brandon.”
Since a lot of folks have not heard of this latest social phenomenon – or may have heard the chant and not familiar with its subtext meaning – I consider this commentary a public service. Let’s go, Brandon
So, there ‘tis.