The best New Orleans goodbye to NBA All-Star forward DeMarcus Cousins, who left the Pelicans for the Golden State Warriors this week, is also the most snarky.
It’s an image from Neutral Ground News, the satirical online publication based in New Orleans.
I saw it on Facebook and Twitter on Tuesday night, a work of genius in which Cousins was called “Felicia” behind his back.
👋#Pelicans #Boogie #DemarcusCousins #NBA #NBAFreeAgency #NOLA #NewOrleans pic.twitter.com/4msxh2wfKM
— âšœ Neutral Ground News âšœ (@NGN504) July 4, 2018
I didn’t catch the joke until I went to Google, which helped me understand that Felicia, combined with “Bye,” is also meme, a hash tag, a message and an expression with a history going back more than 20 years. I thought maybe it had something to do with actress Felicia Day. Nope.
Bustle.com says Felicia is a character in the 1995 Ice Cube movie “Friday” and the phrase “Bye Felicia” is used in the film.
Urban Dictionary says Felicia is “a random bitch that nobody is sad to see go” and “Bye Felicia” is “an expression used to dismiss someone.”
Dictionary.com defines “Bye” Felicia” as “a dismissive term which can be used in a number of different contexts. Most simply and frequently, it is used as a cold way to bid someone farewell.”
Quora.com says that “Bye Felicia” means I’m done with you or I’m not interested in you or anything you have to say. It is dismissive, whether intended as a joke or an insult. Not everyone finds it funny. It isn’t something that ought to be said at work or school. With our grievance culture, it could easily inspire complaints of anything from hurt feelings to emotional scarring.”
I find it funny in the context of Cousins, and he will never get hurt feelings or emotional scarring from it. Hell, he’s with the two-time defending NBA champions.