Hulk Hogan was an icon. You’re just an algorithm.

Being an icon in the 80s meant something. It was a status. A symbol. A hard-earned presence in the collective imagination. You couldn’t buy it with likes, you couldn’t hack it with a hashtag, you couldn’t earn it by showing your ass in a bathroom with the “baby skin” filter.

Hulk Hogan was the face of an entire era. Even if you didn’t watch wrestling, you knew who he was. Kids had his toys, adults knew his face, and grandmas might’ve mistaken him for Jesus on steroids – that’s how omnipresent he was.

But he worked for it. For years. Hundreds of appearances. Shows. Sweat. Blood. Reputation. Not with one dumb video like some Instagram airhead showing “how to give the best blowjob.”

Today? You just need to do something stupid. Or pathetic. Or both.

And boom – you’re “recognizable.”

You don’t need talent. You don’t need content. You don’t need a moral compass. You just need a phone camera and a bit of shamelessness. Which isn’t hard nowadays, since practically everyone has a phone – and those phones record in better and better quality. All it takes is pressing “record” and stripping emotionally or literally – and you become a celebrity.

But you’re a celebrity for one scroll. Three swipes up. A moment. As long as it takes someone in a supermarket line to tap “next video.”

You see, being an icon back then was a badge of immortality. Today, being “famous” is a side effect of viral diarrhea that TikTok calls a “trend.”

Hogan had cultural impact. You have impact on the feed recommendations for 36 hours, until the algorithm decides you’re passé.

And no – this isn’t a “back in my day” text.

This is a “because today most of it is absolute crap” text.

Celebrities who do nothing. Influencers with a “lifestyle” based on drinking coffee and taking elevator selfies. Guys telling you how to live because they hit the gym once a week and took six photos with a window view of Santorini.

And then they cry that “the world is toxic” because someone “unfollowed them.”

Hulk Hogan didn’t need followers. He had fans. People who stood in lines, bought tickets, VHS tapes, posters, and fed on his character like kids with Cheetos.

And you? You’re one of tens of thousands of faces that are “everywhere” today and gone tomorrow faster than a fart in a draft.

And no – it’s not your fault. It’s the system that rewards crap just because it floats to the top.

So yes. Hulk Hogan was an icon. You’re just an algorithm.

Do with that what you will. But don’t cry that the world doesn’t remember you when you never left anything worth remembering.