@ThatTallFamily, May 12, 2023
Why do teenagers call everyone bruh?
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Edited by Azizi Powell
This is Part IV of a four part pancocojams series about the use of the words "Bro, "Br'er", "Bruh", "Bruhz" and "Brah" as referents (particularly in the United States).
This post showcases three YouTube videos, information, and comments about the origins and uses of "brah", "bro", and "brah" as referents for females as well as for males.
Click https://pancocojams.blogspot.com/2026/06/amplifying-african-american-influences.html for Part I of this pancocojams series. That post presents excerpts of various internet articles and AI Overview write-ups about the use of those words. These excerpts are presented as a timeline.
That timeline and most of the other posts in this pancocojams series (except for Part IV) strive to amplify the historical and cultural record as a way of helping to correct what I perceive to be the scarcity of details and/or the minimization of the tremendous role that African American culture has had and continues to have on the use of the words "bro" and "bruh" in American English and in the use of the English language throughout the world.
Click https://pancocojams.blogspot.com/2026/06/omega-dear-bscut-feb-20-2008-founders.html for Part II of this pancocojams series. That post showcases three YouTube videos of the historically Black Greek letter fraternity Omega Psi Phi, Inc.. These videos exemplify the singing that Omega Psi Phi Fraternity is known for.
That post also includes selected comments from these videos' discussion threads which document examples of the use of the words "brother", "bruhs", and "bruhz" by members of Omega Psi Phi fraternity and by other commenters.
Click https://pancocojams.blogspot.com/2026/06/uyleesboutique-april-2-2025-remember.html_ for Part III of this pancocojams series. That post showcases two YouTube videos of the character "Bruh-man from the 5th floor", a recurring character in the 1990s television series Martin.
Information about the television series Martin and information about Reginald Ballard, the actor who portrayed the character "Bruh-Man from the 5th floor" are included in this post along with information about that character.
That post also presents comments about that character from the discussion thread for Showcase video #2.
The content of this post is presented for historical, linguistic, and socio-cultural purposes.
All copyrights remain with their owners
Thanks to all those who are quoted in this post and thanks to all the publishers of these showcased YouTube videos.
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PANCOCOJAMS EDITOR'S NOTE
This pancocojams post differs from the other posts in this series because of its lack of emphasis on African American cultural origins or influences for the custom of using "bro", "brah", and "bruh" as referents for females as well as for males.
Read Part I of this pancocojams series for mentions about the historical use of these words as non-gender terms. More specifically, I believe that the non-gender use of "bro", "brah", and "bruh" can be traced to people updating the non-gender word "dude" and to the commercial (Astepro allergy spray) and probably other spin-offs of the 2001 American movie Zoolander.
Although some African Americans, and particularly some young African Americans use the word "bro" and "bruh" as referents for females-including mothers, it seems to me that proportionally more non-African Americans than African Americans use those words as non-gender referents. However, I don't have any data to prove or disprove this.
* I don't think that African Americans in the 2020s use the word "brah" because that word appears to have been stereotyped as "sounding White" while "bruh" is considered to "sound Black".
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SELECTED COMMENTS FROM THE DISCUSSION THREAD FOR SHOWCASE VIDEO #1
These comments are given in no particular order except for replies and are numbered for referencing purposes only.
All of these comments are from 2023.
https://youtube.com/shorts/-9EDx15G-Ig?si=VFnIZkk91WMq1RlK
1.@رقيةرضارفيف
"Brah!"
- Mom:"I'm Not ur
brah."🤣 Like In The Film ,"Excuse Me
Brah." -"Excuse You" (i
think) "And I'm Not ur brah."
Reply
2. @sabrinawilliams8717
"Zoolander."
**
3. @arianesalas5620
"😅lol I say the same thing
as your mom I tell my son that 😂😂. Bro drives me
nuts"
**
4. @Giaaaa28
"Bro my mom says all the time I’m not your bRuH"
**
5. @BTSArmyUrsh
"I say dude"
**
6. @ErenYeager-gp7um
"And wtf is "burh" 😂🤣🤣🤣
calling your dad and mom burh is most
uncommon and non sensible thing i can say 😂"
**
7.@amelieacevedo7865
"Ok we get it yall are tall like bro stop in every one of
your shorts its just saying that your tall WE GET ITTTT like omg stop"
****
SHOWCASE VIDEO #2 - "You're excused... and I'm not your brah" #Zoolander [movie]
@paramountmovies, June 12, 2024
-snip-
Here's an excerpt from an AI Overview write-up about this video clip:
The phrase "I'm not your brah" is a famous quote
from the 2001 comedy movie Zoolander. It is used to reject familiarity, put
someone in their place, or indicate that you are not friends with the person
addressing you.
The Movie Origin
In the film, the fiercely competitive male models Derek Zoolander (Ben Stiller)
and Hansel (Owen Wilson) run into each other at a nightclub.
Hansel: "Excuse me, brah."
Derek: "You're excused... And I'm not your brah."
Derek Zoolander’s delivery of the line is iconic because it
is overly dramatic, petty, and delivered with absolute, serious
confidence.
Cultural Meaning
In everyday life, calling someone "brah"
or "bro" (slang for brother) implies a friendly, casual, and relaxed
relationship. When someone snaps back with "I'm not your brah," they
are doing the exact opposite.It serves a few distinct purposes:
-Setting
Boundaries: You are intentionally establishing emotional or professional distance.
-Expressing
Annoyance: You are letting the other person know you do not appreciate
their casual or overly familiar tone.
-Humorous Comeback: Because of its
pop-culture status, people frequently use it playfully or sarcastically when
lightly ribbing a friend, or as a lip-sync soundbite on social media platforms
like TikTok."...
****
COMMENTS FROM THE DISCUSSION THREAD FOR SHOWCASE VIDEO #2
These comments are given in no particular order except for replies and are numbered for referencing purposes only.
1. @Amzodt, 2025
"little did they know this interaction would become one of
the greatest memes ever"
**
Reply
2. @doubleaa4969, 2026
"I'm pretty sure they know, it was too dramatic to be ignored
by the population."
**
Reply
3. @Amzodt, 2026
"@doubleaa4969 bro
back then they wouldn’t be able to tell it would be one of the most epic scene
in cinema history"
SHOWCASE VIDEO #3 -
Tv Commercials, May 25, 2024 DETROIT
Experience rapid relief with Astepro Allergy Medicine! In
this TV commercial, discover why Astepro starts working in just 30 minutes
while Flonase takes hours. Say goodbye to allergy symptoms and hello to quick
relief. Astepro and Go! Applies to the first dose only. Use as directed for
optimal results.
****
SELECTED COMMENTS FROM THE DISCUSSION THREAD FOR SHOWCASE VIDEO #3
These comments are given in no particular order except for replies and are numbered for referencing purposes only.
1. @calvint9356, 2025
"Why does she want her son to call a nasal spray mom?"
Reply
2.
"He's saying "it's faster bro"... so she responds
it's mom not bro"
**
Reply
3. @coreyrowe4119, 2026
" @korzenik81 the kid
wasn't really calling her bro tho, he was just having fun singing along with
the jingle. Her massive overreaction is just downright cringey to watch. I
change the channel immediately anytime this commercial pops up because of this."
****
SELECTED COMMENTS FROM A REDDIT.COM DISCUSSION THREAD ABOUT THE USE OF THE WORD "BRUH" AS A REFERENT FOR FEMALES
These comments are given in no particular order except for replies and are numbered for referencing purposes only.
All of these comments are from 2025.
https://www.reddit.com/r/Life/comments/1j6q43i/when_did_girls_and_young_women_start_saying_bro/
1. Asleep-Fan8328, 2025 [
"When did girls and young women start saying "bro"?
General Discussion
In the United States, in Canada, in certain countries that
is. When did girls start saying bro?
**
2. [deleted]
"Bro everyone say bro is you 50 years old or sum"
**
3. panamaspace
"Bro, I am 55, bro."
4.
"Bruh"
**
5. TotallyTrash3d
"Over 40.
**
6. Asleep-Fan8328 [OP]
"No way. I'm below 40 and never heard this until very
recently"
**
7. TheHacienda1
"I cringe when I hear "bro" "
**
8. [deleted]
"Bro why do you care dude, how you under 40 complaining over
something so irrelevant dawg chill tf out yo you wanna be addressed as knave?
Cuz I can see that being very fitting for you brother.."
**
9. MagicSpoon102
"As long as she’s cool and not tryna prove something. I think
most guys don’t mind as they can connect or break the ice a little easier."
**
10. Asleep-Fan8328 [OP]
"That's a good point, if they say it to a guy to try to
connect as a friend or something.. still.. but they seem to use it a lot
amongst each other too and it's weird. Honestly never heard it a few years ago
from girls. Not a good trend"
**
11. [deleted]
"It makes intentions known if used the right way.
**
12. AnalyticalNerd-801
"Well before the aster pro commercial. “Aster Pro! It’s
faster, Bro.” That will probably live rent free in my head longer than I’m
willing to admit."
-snip
That Astepro commercial is given as Showcase Video #3 in this pancocojams post.
13.
"my kids started calling me bro about five years ago, so i
now call everyone bro"
**
14. Peskypoints
"Dude was my pop-cultural non-gendered term
**
15. [deleted]
"I was hearing it back in like 2013"
**
16. [deleted]
"I don’t know but I absolutely hate it. There’s something so
masculine about girls saying “bro” or “bruh.” Leave that to the little boys."
**
17. Junior-Towel-202
"What does this have to do with masculinity?"
**
18. bbyxmadi
"Becoming masculine? If saying “bro” to your guy or girl
friends makes you masculine, then I must be a man."
****
This concludes Part IV of this four part pancocojams series.
Thanks for visiting pancocojams.
Visitor comments are welcome.
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