We’ve been following the journey of Dude With Sign here at Bored Panda for almost 3 years now, and his account has absolutely blown up since then (even more than it already had!). In 2020, Forbes published a piece featuring Seth, noting that the first Dude With Sign pic was taken in October 2019. Seth’s first sign stated, “Stop replying-all to company-wide emails”. The pic was originally only intended for Jerry Media founder Elliot Tebele’s Instagram account, but it was followed up by another pic of Seth holding a sign stating, “Seinfeld is way better than Friends”, which gained lots of traction online.
Seth and Elliot realized they might have struck gold, and immediately created the Dude With Sign Instagram account. And they were right. The page gained over 4 million followers within its first four months online, and has doubled its following since. The internet can’t get enough of Seth standing on New York corners protesting mundane things, and to be honest, neither can we!
Seth also told Forbes that he started to gain real-life fame from his silly protests being shared on social media. “The corner usually fills up with people within minutes, and everyone has their phones out,” he shared. “When I'm finished, a lot of people will ask to take pictures with me or videos, which is still something to get used to. It's a very strange feeling, but it also kind of cracks me up that people are seeing me as a famous person for holding up cardboard signs.”
As the page grew, more and more ideas for signs started coming in from Seth’s coworkers at Jerry Media. “When creating the protests, we try to come up with something funny that is relatable that people don't particularly talk about,” he told Forbes. “We try to have each of these elements while appealing to every type of person, which is a big part of why I think the account has accumulated as many followers as it has.”
Seth also shared with Forbes that he is originally from a small town in Texas with only 650 residents. It was quite the shock for him to move to New York and amass millions of followers on Instagram, but he noted that he’s been having “the best time”. He started getting sponsorships through the Dude With Sign account and even appeared on The Ellen Show. As of 2020, he told Forbes, “I’m still trying to figure [the future] out. Maybe continue making funny accounts? There are interesting opportunities that I would have never imagined coming my way with this all the time. Right now I’m kind of just riding the wave, dipping my toes in different things. Ellen, for example, was something cool that got me really interested in how television works. I’m just learning, doing my best, and meeting awesome people and I’m confident something awesome will come my way.”
In 2021, Dude With Sign was even invited to visit the White House and pose with President Joe Biden. Seth held up a sign stating, “Let's Look Out For Each Other And Get Vaccinated” while the president stood next to him with a sign reading, “This Dude Gets It, Folks”. While Seth’s signs usually cover topics that are a bit less serious and deal with everyday annoyances, it was great to see him use his platform to encourage people to get vaccinated. That is definitely a cause worth protesting for!
Living in New York City can be overwhelming for anyone, so silent protests might sometimes be the best way to get a message across. There are millions of people moving about the city at all times, and very few people will stop and talk to a stranger. But if Dude With Sign is standing on a corner or outside Starbucks sharing whatever is on his mind, he can somehow grab people’s attention. Seth’s Dude With Sign project is genius because he’s not bothering anyone or causing a scene, but with his blank expression and sunglasses, he still sends a powerful message. (Even if that message is just a complaint about people watching him parallel park.)
Not every Dude With Sign sign is just a minor complaint, though. Occasionally, Seth does touch on social issues like his sign urging Americans to get vaccinated with the president and another sign stating that being a mother should be a choice. He’s also held a sign asking, “We Can’t Buy Baby Formula, But We Can Buy Assault Rifles?” That photo was shared earlier this year, amidst the baby formula shortage in the US. Though the signs seem like a silly way to get a message across, Seth has a massive platform now. So it’s great to see photos touching on real issues every now and then, sprinkled in between all of the hilarious posts.
