Personal Mute

Having a personal mute is a part meme, part insult and part praise that all depends on the context. A personal mute can be said to be a "sidekick" in a way. Most of the arrangements are mutual and are usually some form of roleplaying. They may even be of a romantic nature similar to shipping.
Starting out as an in-house RP meme for the Gator RP Group it spread to other groups and even onto the Twitch Streaming platform, outside of VRChat. This specific article however focuses on mute partnerships inside the Gator RP Group and partnerships outside of this group are encouraged to be listed in a seperate article.
The personal mute meta in 2021 has evolved from being mostly a meme to being a partnership to entertain while live-streaming. It is often described by Roflgator as a way for male streamers to provide VTuber-like "simp content" on their streams without wearing female avatars themselves.
A "personal mute" should NOT be confused with being a "mute" in VRChat, who are simply players who either can't speak or decide not to speak. This article is about the "personal mute" meme.
==Description==
Being a personal mute means that you follow a person around acting and reacting to the person you are following in some manner. You can be quirky, friendly or outright hostile and violent.
Having a personal mute means they follow you around and the arrangement can involve multiple "personal mutes".
The personal mute bond is a partnership, not slavery and any such suggestion is highly frowned upon. It is generally regarded as really bad to engage in ERP with your mute.
==History==
Fitting the definition of a "personal mute" goes back historically as far as VRChat history in 2018 but wasn't cemented until Roflgator coined and popularized the term when he asked Zager to become his personal mute to "act quirky and cute" to his Twitch stream on Mar 4th 2020.YouTube archived VOD - Zager as Roflgators "personal mute" coining of the term Zager as the first "personal mute" would later be rejected as Roflgator replaced her with Dotty.Twitch Clip - Roflgator rejects Zager as his personal mute 
On July 2nd 2020, the elected bricktown president AskJoshy voided all current mute contracts, and the mutes were allowed to re-select their partners or become independent.
Starting July 6th 2020 Rob would host weekly mute adventures with as many mutes as he could muster plus a couple talkers. Together they explored around the varied worlds of VRChat.
On July 24th 2020 Roflgator hosted a mute competition called "Who wants to be a mute for a millionaire?" for Sodapoppin to find his own personal mute.
In July into Aug the personal mute meta spread outside of VRChat into various Just chatting and variety Twitch streamers such as Mizkif and Moonmoon.Twitch Clip - Mizkif wants a personal muteMoonmoon after learning about mutes
On Sept 7th 2020 Rob added a "mute cam" to his Twitch stream webcam with both Blu Haze and Firefox Blue. Breaking the fourth wall of the mute meta.Twitch Clip - The mute meta has breached the fourth wall On Oct 4th 2020 after Roflgators encouragement, Sodapoppin created a similar "mute camera" for his stream with Happy Thoughts.Sodapoppin Twitch Clip - Happy Thoughts thanks subscribers on his stream
Streamer Shroud found out about the mute meta and expressed wanting to acquire his own personal mute partnership after watching Sodapoppins stream.Twitch Clip - Shroud wants to get a mute like Sodapoppin with Roflgators help
On Oct 16th 2020 another mute competition was hosted where MoonMoon was the one searching for his personal mute. During the event Sodapoppin, Vigor and Esfand attended as onlookers.
On Nov 21st 2020, DotTaiga was found to have become mute, and so they took the mute oath and became Moxy's mute partner.
Roflgator hosted Lacari's Mute Contest on April 16th 2021 where Mioshi and Glider won.https://www.twitch.tv/videos/989583634
After having discussions on stream on June 22nd 2021 Roflgator considered how bad the "personal mute" meme had become. Instead of being a stream mascot, which was his intended purpose, players who do not stream started using the bond as a form of negative power dynamic or to collect them as trophies. This causing discomfort for some pairings or it being taken too seriously like real relationships as in not wanting to "cheat" on your mute partner when it's all just a joke in the first place. Admitting he was wrong to push and popularize the meme when it turned into something outside of his control he expressed wanting to abolish it completely.
:Also see: VRChat stream mascot
==Current arrangements==
A list of the current mute partnerships in the Gator RP Group as of 2021. (Currently out of date)
*Roflgator with Kyokeru
*MurderCrumpet with Aeriy and CrazyMango
*IRON＄JEW with Ravnn
*Kasumi with Karynn
*Pokelawls with Tevin (unconfirmed)
*Cyr with Link EZ and Zager
*Bolivardi with Gomoryy
*WillNeff with Dotty
*Bobe with Krispy Creed, MaverickMPM, Sorpi and Yousoro
*Sorry with Aika
*Ruthless Ruby with InYouEndo
*Strippin with Qynoa
*JakenbakeLIVE with The Yishai
*Lawlman with DotTaiga
*Nonautologous with LaserShield
*NovellusDea with Erin~
*SciFri with CorpusVR and Margot The Mute
*Lewissmile with Sunshine 24-7
*Novaruu with Eevi
*AxMan with Tohka_Chan
*ImAReallyBigNerd with NikNakZ
*VeronicaJae with Jensu
*Vincent X with Mabel_Tree and Potehto
*PinkTrilobite with Gap Gap, Lex Go and ZoReee
*Lacari with Glider
*Hamlinz with Mioshi 
*Elisera and Zanven with Kisssmeh
==Past Arrangements==
*Roflgator
**Zager (void April 2020)
**Dotty (void July 27th 2020 due to IRL reasons)
**Firefox Blue (void August 20st 2020)
**Blu Haze (void March 15th 2021)
**Firefox Blue (void April 17th 2021)
*ZMoonRunner
**Dotty (void April 2020)
**Sn0wBreeze (left for Swifterini)
**MaverickMPM (void July 2nd 2020)
*TheBigMeech
**Rogue/StrawberryLuna (stopped turning up to lobbies)
**Link EZ (void July 2nd 2020)
**Chaseyy (mute licence was taken away for speaking)
**Sn0wBreeze (void July 27th 2020)
**Kyokeru
**Eevi (void February 28th 2021)
**Lex Go (void April 13th 2021)
*MurderCrumpet
**Blu Haze (void July 3rd 2020)
**Firefox Blue (void July 3rd 2020)
**Aiden (void Aug 28th 2020)
**BaZhAnG (void Sept 3rd 2020)
**Gap Gap (void Sept 3rd 2020)
**IvoryDevil (void Sept 3rd 2020)
*IRON＄JEW
**Sokkz (void July 2nd 2020)
**CrazyMango (void August 28th 2020)
**Gap Gap (void August 28th 2020)
**Aiden (void December 2020)
**Churrochomp (void March 14th 2021)
*TimTheEnchanter
**Gap Gap (void July 2nd 2020)
*VeronicaJae
**Firefox Blue (void July 2nd-July 8th 2020, void again July 23rd 2020)
**The Yishai (void November 9th 2020)
*Internet Pope
**LaurenLore (traded to Kibby)
*Jadez
**Autistic Bard (void July 2nd 2020)
*Flynn
**Krispey Creed (void July 2nd 2020)
*Bearly
**K7Valkyrie (May 19th-May 26th 2020)
*Bobe
**Protect (stopped showing up to lobbies)
**Tohka_Chan
*Drekwiz
**CrazyMango (Drekwiz didn't frequent the lobbies enough)
*Golly
**CrazyMango (void May 15th 2020)
**Sorpi (void February 28th 2021)
*DrunknDuncan
**CrazyMango (void July 2nd 2020)
*Shrimp
**BaZhAnG (void July 2nd 2020)
**The Yishai (left for VeronicaJae)
*Swifterini
**Sn0wBreeze (void July 2nd 2020)
*SciFri
**Link EZ (void July 8th 2020)
**Glider 
* Blu Haze
** Firefox Blue (void July 8th 2020)
* AxMan
**Tohka_Chan (void July 2020)
* Vincent X
**Tohka_Chan (void July 2020)
** Ravnn (void July 2020)
**LaserShield (void February 28th 2021)
* Surefour
**Sn0wBreeze (void August 7th 2020)
**DjDeyar (void February 28th 2021)
* Oathmeal
**Aika (void November 27th 2020)
*Sodapoppin
**Happy Thoughts (void June 2021)
* MoonMoon
** Qynoa (void January 2021)
* M0xyy
**DotTaiga (void February 26th 2021)
**Erin~ (void February 28th 2021)
* Tamara
**ZoReee (void March 15th 2021)
* Azeila
** Glider (void February 28th 2021)
* Sorry
** Gomoryy (void February 28th 2021)
* LilBunnny
** Gap Gap (void February 28th 2021)
* Jellypeanut
**MaverickMPM (void February 28th 2021)
**Aika (void March 16th 2021)
* Vore
**Kyokeru (void March 15th 2021)
* Bolivardi
** MaverickMPM
* Ruthless Ruby
** Claire
** Mioshi
* Haydttt
** Eevi
* Sur Lee
** Mioshi
* Milan
** Sp1te
** Churrochomp
* The-Wanderer
** 3evee
* TheCommonOddity
** Kyuu Ketsuki
* Gulliblez
** Lezzy_Bean
* Kibby
** LaurenLore
* WatermelonJustice
** Jujibii
* Vicse
** IvoryDevil
==Trivia==
*The term was notably coined by Roflgator but may have been used prior to him calling it that.
**He hosted a Mute Pageant on April 24th, 2020
**Haydttt somehow became the manager keeping track of mute exchanges.
**According to the meme evolution it apparently works a bit similar to Pokémon's.
*Jor Rilla protested against the mute practice during a mute competition, arguing emancipation of mutes and that they all deserve freedom. He stationed himself visibly with a sign saying: "BETTER OFF DEAD THAN OWNED BY LUMPHEAD!"
*A white knight named Flanderson also protests against the practices of keeping personal mutes.
*Some refer to Chipz and Lanfears relationship as fitting the description of a personal mute but Lanfear has strongly rejected the idea saying "I'm not property".
*Zapdec and Kibby are known to trade in personal mutes as some of their Z and K services.
*Wooks is not a mute. He is an Emperor penguin.
==Twitch Clips==
*Introduction to mutes Zager, Rogue and Link_EZ
*Mute Pokemon battle Zager vs Blu Haze
*Flanderson the knight of the mutes
*DotTaiga taking the mute oath
==Gallery==
Mute contract meme by drunkpig.png|Example of a mute contract (this is a meme by Drunkenpig)
Rofl_May_18th_2020_12_Jor_protesting_against_Personal_Mute_contest_while_Dotty_performs_Mute_competition.png|Jor Rilla protesting against the personal mute practice while Dotty dances during a Mute Pageant
Rofl_May_18th_2020_19_Jor_protesting_mute_competition.png|"BETTER OFF DEAD THAN OWNED BY LUMPHEAD!" (Lumphead = Roflgator)
Rofl July 2nd 2020 Mutes.png|The mutes lining up to choose their new partner on July 2nd 2020
Rofl July 3rd 2020 56 Roflgators mute contract w Dotty and Blu Haze.jpg|Roflgators mute contract with Dotty and Blu Haze
Rofl Aug 26th 2020 41 Firefox Blue new mute contract with Roflgator.jpg|MSPaint is a great tool for mute contracts apparently. Roflgators mute contract with Firefox Blue
Category:VRChat Culture
Category:Memes