The phrase comes from everyday Russian and Ukrainian street slang, where ty sho is a confrontational way to say what are you doing, and eblan is a vulgar insult for an idiot. Clips of people shouting it circulated for years on Russian speaking social media and gaming streams before being trimmed into a standalone meme sound. Its brevity and harsh tone made it popular far beyond its language, as viewers understand the anger and disbelief even without knowing the exact translation.