# Stop it. Get some help.
**Stop it. Get some help.** is a line from a McDonald's-sponsored anti-drug public service announcement starring basketball player [Michael Jordan](https://www.edgepedia.org/michael-jordan) that premiered on ABC on May 26, 1987, and that became a long-lived internet meme used as an ironic reaction to disapprove of cringeworthy behavior.[1](https://knowyourmeme.com/memes/stop-it-get-some-help) The clip circulated on YouTube and Vine in the mid-2010s and remains documented in meme references a decade later.[1](https://knowyourmeme.com/memes/stop-it-get-some-help)
| Key fact | Detail |
|---|---|
| Original broadcast | Premiered on ABC at the end of the anti-drug TV special *Cracked Up*, May 26, 1987, sponsored by McDonald's[1](https://knowyourmeme.com/memes/stop-it-get-some-help) |
| Speaker | Michael Jordan, addressing teenagers about drug use in a minute-long PSA[1](https://knowyourmeme.com/memes/stop-it-get-some-help) |
| Key line | "Don't do drugs. If you're doing it, stop it. Get some help."[1](https://knowyourmeme.com/memes/stop-it-get-some-help) |
| Earliest digital copy | Uploaded to YouTube by EightiesTV on February 4, 2010[1](https://knowyourmeme.com/memes/stop-it-get-some-help) |
| Viral peak | A June 7, 2016 Vine pairing the soundbite with a grocery-store video drew over 2.8 million views and 74,000 likes in under two months[1](https://knowyourmeme.com/memes/stop-it-get-some-help) |
| Typical use | Ironic reaction video mocking cringeworthy media or expressing disapproval[1](https://knowyourmeme.com/memes/stop-it-get-some-help) |
## Origin and original broadcast
The public service announcement was sponsored by [McDonald's](https://www.edgepedia.org/mcdonalds) and starred Michael Jordan. It premiered on ABC at the end of the network's anti-drug television special *Cracked Up*, which originally aired on May 26, 1987.[1](https://knowyourmeme.com/memes/stop-it-get-some-help) In the minute-long spot, Jordan urges teenagers to stay away from drugs and tells those with substance abuse problems to "stop it" and "get some help."
The transcript of Jordan's appeal reads: "Listen, you got at least three-fourths of your life to go. That's three more lifetimes to you. So don't blow it. Don't do drugs. If you're doing it, stop it. Get some help."[1](https://knowyourmeme.com/memes/stop-it-get-some-help) The closing two sentences, delivered as a short imperative pair, became the part of the spot that later circulated as a soundbite.
## Transition to internet meme
The earliest known digital copy of the original video was uploaded to YouTube by the channel EightiesTV on February 4, 2010.[1](https://knowyourmeme.com/memes/stop-it-get-some-help)
The first known parody remix appeared on Vine: on January 2, 2014, Viner James King uploaded a clip combining an excerpt from Eminem's 2013 single "Rap God" with Jordan's soundbite, the earliest documented use of the PSA in a parody remix.[1](https://knowyourmeme.com/memes/stop-it-get-some-help)
On April 23, 2016, YouTuber Violet Dirge uploaded an isolated clip of Jordan saying "stop it, get some help," with a description explaining its intended use as a "forum weapon"; it gained over 220,000 views in about four months.[1](https://knowyourmeme.com/memes/stop-it-get-some-help) On June 7, 2016, Viner Cringe Based set the soundbite against footage of a man at a grocery store speaking to a box of [Betty Crocker](https://www.edgepedia.org/betty-crocker) "super-moist" cake mix; within two months the video drew more than 2.8 million views, 74,000 likes, and 2,000 comments, while boosting the #getsomehelp hashtag on [Vine](https://www.edgepedia.org/vine-service).[1](https://knowyourmeme.com/memes/stop-it-get-some-help) Throughout June and August 2016, dozens of remixes appeared on Vine, followed by YouTube compilations of notable remixes and parodies.[1](https://knowyourmeme.com/memes/stop-it-get-some-help)
## Usage and formats
The meme functions as a reaction video used to mock cringeworthy media or to express disapproval of others' behavior.[1](https://knowyourmeme.com/memes/stop-it-get-some-help)
It also works as a template for putting down groups, with documented applications aimed at furries, bronies, rednecks, weeaboos, and other online subcultures.[2](https://knowyourmeme.com/videos/153375-stop-it-get-some-help)
## By the numbers
The documented engagement figures trace the meme's spread and persistence. The isolated-clip upload by Violet Dirge drew over 220,000 views in about four months in 2016.[1](https://knowyourmeme.com/memes/stop-it-get-some-help) The Cringe Based Vine reached over 2.8 million views and 74,000 likes in under two months.[1](https://knowyourmeme.com/memes/stop-it-get-some-help)
The soundbite also spread to platforms beyond Vine and YouTube. A Scratch project titled "Stop it. Get some help." received 4,432 project views, 256 hearts, 228 stars, and 41 remixes.[3](https://scratch.mit.edu/projects/139062923/) The Know Your Meme entry documenting the meme was confirmed with 200,169 views as of its last update on May 23, 2025, indicating continued reference to the clip nearly a decade after its viral peak and almost four decades after the original broadcast.[1](https://knowyourmeme.com/memes/stop-it-get-some-help)
## References
1. [Stop It, Get Some Help | Know Your Meme](https://knowyourmeme.com/memes/stop-it-get-some-help)
2. [Stop it. Get some help. | Know Your Meme (video entry)](https://knowyourmeme.com/videos/153375-stop-it-get-some-help)
3. [Stop it. Get some help. on Scratch](https://scratch.mit.edu/projects/139062923/)
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*Topic: Encyclopedia › Arts and culture › Screen and stage › Online creators and internet personalities*
*Initially written Sep 17, 2026 · Reviewed: Oct 25, 2026 · Edited: Oct 15, 2026; Oct 25, 2026 · Last review: Oct 25, 2026*
*Copyright 2026 EdgeChat AI, a subsidiary of Biostate AI.*
License: Edgepedia Community License 1.0, https://www.edgepedia.org/edgepedia/license