JoshuaBlock, also known by his online handle worldoftshirts, is an Americaninternet personality and social media content creator based in New York City. Block is a popular TikToker, with over 4 million followers as of December 2025.[2] As an individual with autism[1][3][4] whose vlog-style content often features spontaneous performances, verbal confrontations, and heavy alcohol consumption,[5][6] Block's digital presence and popularity have drawn controversy as being contingent on exploitative engagement from online audiences.[2][3][4][5]
Block is originally from Patchogue, a Long Island village in New York. He excelled in school, where he participated in cross country and track racing. In 2017, he launched a t-shirt company, "World of T-Shirts", from which his Instagram and Tiktok handles are derived.[1][3] Block joined TikTok in 2019, and has described his early videos on the social media platform as unoriginal and consisting of "silly dances in the bathroom". At the end of 2020 Block says he began regularly going to New York City; during his first trip he bought a wig, a leather jacket, and black pants to create an homage to Michael Jackson’s "Bad" music video.[1]
As Block gradually gained fame on TikTok, at the same time that the platform itself experienced a pandemic-catalyzed surge in popularity,[5] he additionally began giving walking tours around various New York City neighborhoods.[2] By March 2021, he had gone viral with a video featuring his rendition of "Empire State of Mind" alongside a few bystanders, in Times Square.[1][3] However, by 2023, a Daily Beast article covering Block noted that his videos increasingly involved binge-drinking and erratic behavior.[3] Fans began encouraging Block to consume alcohol wherever he went.[7] Nonetheless, Block has pushed back on concerns about his health, stating that he is simply enjoying his life.[3]
Since 2021, Block has typically worked with content partners who have also served as his managers for the duration of a given streaming partnership. These individuals are typically non-disabled older men.[2] Michael Quinn, a fellow TikTok creator and co-owner of the Coney Islandhotdog emporium Feltman's, was Block's streaming partner and manager in 2023.[3] By 2024, this role was held by Jason Itzler, aka "Mr. Based",[2] a former prostitution ringleader and pornographer with an extensive criminal history.[8][9] By August 2025, Itzler had been succeeded by Tony Bame. Aside from these streaming partnerships, Block has also appeared as an invited guest on popular podcasts and YouTube channels.[2]
Besides New York City, Block has visited and made content in other areas of the United States.[3][2][10] He is also well known in Ireland, with large crowds of young people and influencers going to see him during a January 2025 visit to Dublin and Belfast.[7][4]
Controversy
Block has been characterized as a "Lolcow", a usually disabled individual who is exploited and dehumanized by an online audience that perceives them as providing comedic value.[2][5]. These individuals are subjected to mockery and disingenuous support without their awareness; likewise, Block's fanbase largely consists of onlookers with a "morbid fascination" who encourage his behavior for their amusement.[5][3] During his time with him, Itzler labeled several co-streams as "Interactive Reality Shows", which revolved heavily around users' verbal harassment towards Block.[2]
Frequently, Block is strategically provoked into aggressive behavior for online content.[2][7] In October 2025, he was involved in a violent incident outside a bar in Berkeley, California, where he shouted "I hate immigrants", allegedly instigated a brawl, and bit a woman on the hand, who said she planned to file charges against him.[6] In another example, Block, accompanied by Bame and a small entourage, visited the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign in November 2025; there members of a fraternity and other students gave him alcoholic beverages, while others shouted provocative comments at him.[10] Following Block's Belfast visit, which drew large crowds of rowdy young people, Northern Irish politician Peter McReynolds of the Alliance Party condemned the "bullying behavior" against the influencer during a 20 January 2025 session of the Northern Ireland Assembly.[4]
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