SAJ is used to express extreme sadness, disappointment, or emotional pain in Twitch chat. The oversized, teary eyes convey a sense of being overwhelmed with sadness or feeling deeply hurt by something. It's often used in a somewhat humorous or exaggerated way to react to unfortunate events, bad news, or disappointing moments during a stream. The emote can be used both ironically and genuinely depending on context.
Origin
SAJ is a variation of the popular Sadge emote, which itself is derived from Pepe the Frog. The emote features Pepe with extremely enlarged, watery eyes expressing deep sadness or emotional distress. This particular version appears to be a custom emote that gained traction in various Twitch communities around 2020-2021, during the peak popularity of Sadge variants. The exaggerated eye size amplifies the emotional impact of the original Sadge emote, which was created as a sad version of the PogChamp-style Pepe emotes.
When to use
When a streamer experiences a crushing defeat or loss in a game
Reacting to sad or emotional story moments in games or streams
When something disappointing happens, like a stream ending early
Expressing sympathy or shared sadness with the streamer or community
Ironically overreacting to minor inconveniences for comedic effect
During emotional or touching moments that make viewers feel sentimental
