Elliot Tebele is an American comedian and entrepreneur who rose to fame for meme-focused content on his @fuckjerry Tumblr and then Instagram accounts, and went on to build Jerry Media, a massive content and advertising company, and What Do You Meme, a multimillion-dollar gaming enterprise. He has also launched the fan-favorite spirits brand, JAJA Spirits LLC, commonly known as JAJA Tequila (pronounced “HA HA”).
Early Life
Elliot Tebele attended York Prep School before going to Hunter College in 2007 and eventually obtained his bachelor’s degree in 2011.
Career
Elliot Tebele had dropped out of college and began working in his brother’s wholesale cell-phone business in Little Ferry, New Jersey. In early 2010, he launched a Tumblr profile called @fuckjerry (because he was half-heartedly watching Seinfeld) out of boredom one day. He originally posted photos of vintage cars, but had a knack for creating relatable and hilarious content which quickly gained popularity on Tumblr and became an instant hit after he moved to Instagram in 2011. It attracted a large fan following that included celebrities like Justin Bieber, Katy Perry, Madonna, Kim Kardashian and Joe Jonas. It was also selected as one of the New York Post's "Funniest Feeds" on Instagram in 2014. The success of his content prompted him to establish the enterprise FJerryLLC which led to the Jerry Media content and advertising company that currently operates a network of Instagram accounts with a total following of approximately 40 million.
Along with FJerryLLC co-founders Ben Kaplin and Elie Ballas, he had started developing the card game What Do You Meme? It started as a kickstarter campaign which had quickly surpassed its funding goal. The game allows players to create their own memes by pairing images with funny captions. It was launched in 2016, when he had about 10 million followers on Instagram. The company has now become a multimillion-dollar gaming enterprise that includes other best-selling games, greeting cards, plush toys and outdoor toys for all ages.
Controversy
Despite all the fame, Elliot Tebele’s career has not been without controversies. His company Jerry Media promoted the failed Fyre Festival and was accused of suppressing concerns of attendees on social media. In 2016, many comedians accused @fuckjerry of stealing their jokes for the game What Do You Meme? without any attribution. He has also been criticized for flooding social media platforms with pro-Bloomberg memes during the 2020 presidential campaign.
Family Life
Elliot Tebele grew up with four siblings named Maurice, Sophie, Michael and Rose. He is married to Instagram star Jessica Anteby, who runs the popular account BeigeCardigan, and they are collectively referred to as the First Family of Memes. They started dating back in 2011 and got married in 2015. They have two daughters together: Colette and Rae. While the internet has given him everything, Elliot is not happy about the fact that it has now become “work” for him. He often tries to stay off the internet and occupies himself in philanthropic work to give back to the community.
