Mike Fossey Was an Old Twitter Legend Before His Death — Here's What Happened to Him

If you spent any time at all on X (formerly Twitter) in the 2010s, you probably recognize the handle @mikefossey, aka Mike "animaldrumss" Fossey. He was a legend in the early Twitter space, somehow churning out viral tweet after viral tweet.

Although he was banned from app at some point, his legend lives on.

However, in December 2025, Mike's family shared the devastating news that Mike had died, leaving fans stunned and looking for ways to remember the legendary, witty influencer.

Here's what we know about what happened to Mike and how people are choosing to remember him.

Making it big on the internet is hard these days. But it was also difficult back in the 2010s, before social media platforms created an influencer infrastructure, before the world even knew that influencers would be a thing.

And yet, somehow, Twitter user @mikefossey managed it.

He made self-deprecating jokes about his love life, made history jokes, and occasionally called out the pop culture item of the week. And, accordingly, he was worshipped by fans who found him both witty and wholesome.

So, it was a devastated fanbase that learned of his passing in December 2025.

A fan who had met Mike in person shared his obituary to Bluesky on Dec. 30, 2025, writing, "Very sad to say it seems Mike Fossey, aka Mike F. has died. Truly one of the funniest posters of all time and a talented artisan."

They added, "Had been friends online for many years, but I got to hang out a couple times at shows in Boston and he was funny and sweet in real life too."

In Mike's obituary, it didn't explain how he died, only that he had passed away "unexpectedly on Monday, Dec. 22, 2025, at home."

It went on to share that Mike was a painter and called him a "funny and kind person who brought laughter and warmth to those around him." Mike "had a deep love for music and movies, and especially cherished spending time with his family."

Although fans were curious about his cause of death, not having an answer didn't seem to stop them from showing up in droves to offer condolences and support to his family.

Mike's obituary guest book was visited over 25,000 times as of the publication of this article, and dozens of messages were left for his loved ones.

All over social media, the messages were the same: he was a nice guy and he will be sorely missed.

Although Mike was eventually banned from X, his legacy remained in the form of memes left behind from his account.

On Bluesky, one fan wrote, "Oh man, that's awful. His posts brought me much joy over the years. 'It's not clear what move I was trying to do' has rattled in my head for a decade. RIP king."

On his obituary, one fan wrote, "So sorry to hear of Michael's death. Like many people, I never knew him personally but appreciated his wit and humor online for years. His work always made me smile — I'm pretty sure I've got some of it saved on my phone, to send to friends to make them laugh in turn. I'm so glad you were able to spend time with him, even though it was far too brief."

While there are questions swirling around Mike's death, it's wholesome to discover that the internet is, for once, united behind offering their condolences rather than ferreting out the details.