Based

What's in the picture

The picture shows a mock "board meeting." A long polished table sits in a conference room, with a green plaque on the wall reading BASED CORP. In the center sits a drawn green Pepe the Frog in a suit; to the left is a man in a dark suit holding a phone receiver to his ear, next to a cartoon character in a red cap and overalls, and a young man in gray clothing; on the right is a man in a suit and tie, a caricature character in a red suit and yellow vest with his hands raised who resembles the Joker, and a muscular black-and-white "gigachad" silhouette. The image is assembled from various meme characters, so it's not possible to speak of a single "author of the shot."

The word's timeline

What's reliably known is only that the word predates the meme. Before 2010, "based" in American slang referred to people addicted to drugs — it was a negative label. One of the earliest known uses is tied to the album Based Boys by the group The Pack, released in October 2007.

Later, rapper Lil B took the word for himself and dubbed himself "Based God," explaining in a 2010 interview that being "based" means being yourself and not fearing other people's judgments. Different articles describe the project variously as his own album or as an album by the group he was part of, so the details of authorship vary.

Later the word moved beyond music. Around 2014, the phrase "based and redpilled" appeared; in 2018 came the joking "Based Department," where a fictional "department" supposedly grants approval; and in 2020, the ironic "based on what?", used as deliberate feigned confusion. In parallel, Spanish-speaking users picked up the word as "basado."

The Russian "baza"

The word took hold in Russian around 2020–2021. According to one survey of the meme, in Russian "eto baza" ("that's based") is often used ironically, referencing the pseudoscientific lectures of Yuri Rybnikov, functioning as a jokey reaction to an absurd statement. This claim isn't confirmed by other sources; in other cases, "baza" is used seriously too, to mean an "obvious truth" or "the basics."

The meme doesn't belong to one political side, but in English-speaking circles the word is often associated with right-wing circles. So it's worth keeping in mind how a given audience might read it before using it.

How the Based Corp image works

The scene parodies corporate meeting photos: the green plaque supposedly names the "company," and the frog and the other odd characters make up its board. The humor comes from characters out of completely different universes sitting at the same table and formally "making a decision" — approving something, or declaring it "based."

The correct use is a caption where some action or person receives the board's approval.

Example captions

The captions were invented for this montage. "Board's decision: dinner at ten p.m. is ruled based" — an everyday decision elevated to the status of a corporate resolution.

"The Based Department approves: a person turned down an ad for a success course" — a joke about independence with a touch of irony.

"Agenda item: who'll be first to say the coffee's gone cold. Unanimous vote" — a serious format clashing with a triviality.

"When you write 'I'm not coming' in the group chat with no explanation" — the board applauds the independence.

Practical tips

Avoid using the image for political judgments of specific people: the picture works as a lighthearted parody of a "meeting," not as a statement. Trivial matters and personal decisions, where "based" means calm self-assurance, work best. If you're not sure how the word will be read, a brief explanation in the caption will make the joke clear.