As wrestling legend Hulk Hogan (real name Terry Bollea) and heavy metal idol Ozzy Osbourne passed away, the prices of meme-based cryptocurrencies themed after them saw a dramatic surge.
Hogan died last Thursday at the age of 71; two days earlier, Black Sabbath's lead singer Osbourne passed away at the age of 76. Following the news, speculative developers quickly launched a large number of commemorative tokens, leveraging market sentiment to drive up prices in a short time.
The Ethereum-based "Wrapped Hulkamania (HULK)" token, launched less than 12 hours ago, saw its peak price skyrocket by over 122,000%. Meanwhile, several Hogan-themed tokens on the Solana blockchain, such as "RIP HULK HOGAN" and "Hulk Hogan (Hulk)," also saw their prices rise by more than 138% and 128%, respectively.
The token commemorating Ozzy Osbourne, "Madman (OZZY)," achieved a surge of over 16,800%, with its market value climbing to about $3.85 million. These coins have no direct connection to Hogan or Osbourne themselves and are merely speculative market products.
This is not the first time the death of celebrities has triggered a meme coin frenzy. In April 2024, following the death of former NFL star and felon O.J. Simpson, related meme coins also became popular in the market. In November 2023, the death of former U.S. Secretary of State Henry Kissinger also led to the emergence of vulgar meme coins.
This incident reflects the crypto market's routine of using celebrity effects to create hype, while also reminding investors to be wary of the risks associated with such highly speculative assets.
