Et tu, Bluesky? Imitation isn’t only the sincerest form of flattery – it’s also profitable. Compiled by Nicole Rollender, John Corrigan & Arianna Johnson 1. Bluesky CEO Wears T-Shirt Mocking Mark Zuckerberg And Makes Bank Bluesky CEO Jay Graber walked on stage at SXSW wearing a T-shirt that threw shade at Mark Zuckerberg and, amazingly, sales of those shirts in one day topped the amount earned by the company’s custom domain sales in two years. The newcomer social media company – now with more than 33 million users – sold out of the first batch and continued selling them through March 25. Graber’s black T-shirt with black text was a lookalike for the one the Meta CEO wore onstage in September 2024. Zuckerberg’s tee, which he wore at a Meta event, read “Aut Zuck aut nihil,” a personal rework of the Latin phrase “Aut Caesar aut nihil,” which means “Either Caesar or nothing.” Graber’s not-so-subtle tee proclaimed, “Mundus sine caesaribus” or “a world without Caesars.” Haters (and most likely some lovers) of the Meta (formerly Facebook) founder quickly noticed the shirts. Smartly, Bluesky jumped on the opportunity and started selling the now-sold-out oversize-fit tees for $40. Bluesky noted on the T-shirt product page that all proceeds benefit the AT Protocol developer ecosystem, the open network Bluesky is built on. PHOTO: https://worldwithoutcaesars.com/ PHOTO: https://shop.morganwallen.com/products/get-me-to-gods-country-t-shirt 2. Morgan Wallen Capitalizes On ‘SNL’ Controversy With ‘God’s Country’ Merch After a controversial exit from his Saturday Night Live appearance in March, country music superstar Morgan Wallen began selling branded merchandise that references his only public comment on the bizarre situation to date. At the end of the March 29th episode, when the host and musical guest typically hug and interact with the show’s cast while the credits roll, Wallen walked offstage and off camera, leaving audiences speculating about whether he had issues with SNL. After the show, the “Last Night” singer posted a picture of a private jet to his Instagram story with the caption “Get me to God’s country.” Wallen then began selling a T-shirt and hats with the phrase, priced at $45 each, on his online store. The phrase has sparked internet memes, with even well-known brands like Aldi and Merriam-Webster joining in. Leveraging social media buzz to create branded merchandise has been all the rage in recent years. After all, capitalizing on a pop culture moment with immediate promo products is often a license to print money. 84 • JUNE 2025 • PPAI Community | Buzzworthy
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