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The story behind BigDenDen, viral creator of ‘I’m From Indianapolis’ social media videos

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The story behind BigDenDen, viral creator of ‘I’m From Indianapolis’ social media videos


Dennis McCray, better known by Indianapolis social media users as BigDenDen, didn’t mean to start his profane catchphrase — a four-letter word stretched a little longer by his unique inflection that punctuates each of his increasingly viral videos.

“It’s S, H, E, T, T, T, T,” McCray, 43, told IndyStar.

The word, now yelled at him from car windows as he walks or worn on shirts by fans, was kept in one of his early “I’m From Indianapolis” videos as an outtake. He messed up the attempted video but ended up leaving in the expletive by mistake.

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In just over a month, McCray’s social media posts have gone from a few thousand plays to tens and hundreds of thousands each. He’s grown to more than 33,000 Instagram followers and 163,000 TikTok likes. He shoots enough clips for two or three videos in a day and aims for three or four posted each week.

McCray previously hosted a food review show, “Breakfast, Lunch and DenDen,” on WHMB-TV 40, and he’s been focused on making social media content for a little over a year. But his first “I’m From Indianapolis” video, posted just after Christmas, accelerated everything.

James Moore, 17, sought McCray out for a photo as he walked near Monument Circle Monday afternoon. The two bantered a bit and exchanged social media information.

“This is all new for me,” McCray said. “I’m like a quiet nerd.”

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‘I’m from Indianapolis’ videos take off on social media

McCray’s videos follow a simple formula: He’s from Indianapolis, he tells the viewer at the beginning, then it’s the meat of the matter, then his catchphrase.

The meat is where it gets interesting. Sometimes, he’s sharing some down-home regional wisdom. Others, it’s a history lesson on a particular building or location.

“The city has changed over the years,” McCray said. “I’m 43. Some places used to be a restaurant and are not a restaurant now. I just want to tell people about that.”

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Malls, restaurants, businesses, the weather and his fellow Hoosiers are all fair game. But, as is often the case with reviews, his takedowns of specific restaurants, businesses or buildings seem to have created the most heat behind him.

Like a video featuring a certain Wendy’s location near Eagle Creek.

“Man, that Wendy’s don’t ever have no food,” McCray said. “They don’t ever be there. They don’t ever do nothing. So I was shining the light on that.”

The video series began after someone accused him of losing his edge due to his tamer television persona, McCray said. So he went off, and a lot of people liked it.

McCray said his videos often result in social media follows from particular brands, and he has yet to receive any major pushback on unfavorable reviews.

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And yes, he really is from Indianapolis. Born and raised in the 49th Street and College Avenue area.

What’s next for BigDenDen

Content creation not yet a day job. McCray takes care of his 2-year-old twins, Jenesis and Myles. But he’s looking to become a global influencer. He’s mixed some sponsored content in with his usual videos. He has a few speaking engagements lined up. He has some opportunities to do stand-up, though he’s still working on what that may look like.

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He plans to keep on grinding in the content mines, as well as stepping up his personal appearances. He has plans to begin speaking in several township schools, which he is looking forward to.

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Probably best to leave out that catch phrase, though.

Rory Appleton is the pop culture reporter at IndyStar. Contact him at 317-552-9044 and rappleton@indystar.com, or follow him on Twitter at @RoryEHAppleton.





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Indianapolis, IN

Indianapolis isn’t known for skyscrapers, but these are the 10 tallest buildings

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Indianapolis isn’t known for skyscrapers, but these are the 10 tallest buildings


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  • Salesforce Tower is the tallest building in Indianapolis, standing at 701 feet with 49 floors.
  • The top three tallest buildings were all completed between 1969 and 1990.
  • One of the top ten, the Signia by Hilton, is currently under construction and expected to be finished in 2026.
  • Many of the city’s tallest buildings have been known by several different names over the years.

While Indianapolis isn’t exactly known for it’s tall buildings, we do have quite a few that tower above the city. The tallest, is visible nearly 10.5 miles outside the city.

These are the 10 tallest buildings in Indianapolis, according to Skyscraper Center.

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1. Salesforce Tower

Salesforce Tower is the tallest building in Indianapolis. It’s located at 111 Monument Circle.

Construction on this building was completed in 1990. The office building boasts 49 floors and towers over the city at 701 feet tall.

It has also been known as the Chase Tower, the Bank One Tower and the American Fletcher Bank Tower.

2. One America Tower

The second tallest building in Indianapolis is the One America Tower. It is located at 200 N Illinois St., has 38 floors and is 533 feet tall.

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The building was completed in 1982 and was previously known as the American United Life Insurance Tower.

3. One Indiana Square

The One Indiana Square building is the third tallest building in Indianapolis at 504 feet tall.

The building was completed in 1969 and has 37 floors. It has also been previously known as Union Planters Bank, Indiana National Bank Tower, INB Tower and NBD Bank Tower.

4. Signia by Hilton Indianapolis

Signia by Hilton, previously known as the Indianapolis Convention Center Hotel, is currently under construction, but is the fourth largest building in Indy.

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The building is set to have 37 floors and be 441 feet tall once construction is complete, which is expected to happen in 2026.

5. Market Tower

Market Tower, located at 10 West Market Street, is the fifth tallest building in Indianapolis at 421 feet.

The building was completed in 1988 and has 32 floors. It has also been known as the Mansur Center.

6. 300 North Meridian

300 North Meridian, which shares a name with its address, is 408 feet tall and has 28 floors.

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The building was completed in 1989 and is the sixth tallest building in Indianapolis.

7. BMO Plaza

BMO Plaza, located at 135 North Pennsylvania St. is 401 feet tall.

The building has 31 floors and was completed in 1988. It has also been known as M&I Plaza, First Indiana Plaza and Marshall & Isley Plaza.

8. JW Marriott Indianapolis Downtown

Perhaps one of the most visually recognizable on this list, the JW Mariott Indianapolis, located at 10 South West St. is the eighth tallest building in Indy.

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The large blue hotel was completed in 2011, stands at 376 feet and has 34 floors. Over the years, the hotel has put giant images on the side of the building to celebrate current events in both sports and pop culture.

9. City-County Building

The City-County Building, located at 200 East Washington St. is the the ninth tallest building in Indianapolis.

The building was completed in 1962 and is 372 feet tall with 28 floors.

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10. 101 West Ohio

The tenth and final building on this list is 101 West Ohio. The building, which shares a name with its address, is 360 feet tall and has 22 floors.

The office building was completed in 1987 and was previously known as Old National Financial Center.

Katie Wiseman is a trending news reporter for IndyStar and Midwest Connect. Contact her at klwiseman@usatodayco.com. Follow her on Bluesky @katiewiseman and X, formerly Twitter, at @itskatiewiseman.



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IMPD reinforces downtown safety as crowds grow with warmer weather

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IMPD reinforces downtown safety as crowds grow with warmer weather


INDIANAPOLIS (WISH) — Indiana Metropolitan Police Department is reinforcing downtown safety as crowds grow with warmer weather.

This comes after a violent weekend that included an early Monday morning shooting, and in a separate incident, an officer and a security guard were hit by an impaired driver.

Police say the shooting that happened Monday near Maryland and Meridian Streets was caused by a fight that broke out at bar in the area and escalated into a shooting at a nearby parking lot. IMPD says a woman has been arrested in connection with the shooting.

IMPD Downtown District Commander Shane Foley says officers were able to take control of the situation quickly.

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“Officers were there when the shooting occured, and then because of their presence, they were able to make a very quick arrest, and arrest another individual for possession of a firearm by a serious violent felon,” Foley said. He says the response from the officers is exactly what he expects to see as the temperatures continue to get warmer.

People who like to spend their time downtown on the weekends say they enjoy that there are things to do, but think the violence is getting out of hand.

“It just gets crazy at night for real, and then, everybody just drinking and stuff and they can’t control their liquor,” Indianapolis resident Schuyler Landrum said.

“Chill out man, you gotta know your limits when you’re drinking because stuff like that can happen. People who don’t go to clubs and stuff, we’re trying to have fun downtown but you guys are getting wild and drunk and stuff, so lets just help each other man,” resident Peyton Bush said.

Officers say they hear the public’s concerns and are doing what they can to prevent incidents before they escalate. Last week, IMPD announced the installation of new public cameras downtown to help assist with monitoring and crime prevention.

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“If you come downtown and you engage in illegal activity, because we have people all over the place, the likelihood of you being arrested is increased. We’re being very proactive with our policing, and if we need to be reactive in making arrests, we’re doing that as well,” Foley said.

People who are frequently downtown say that they hope things get better, but one man says he believes he’s noticed an increase in crime downtown, especially among the youth. “Start thinking before you act, you know? It’s just the way it is,” he said.

“Our officers are working diligently to keep everybody safe. As we have more events, we’re going to have more officers downtown. We want people to not only be safe, but feel safe, visiting, living, working in Downtown Indianapolis,” Foley said.



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Mild temperatures to give way to severe storms in central Indiana | Mar. 9, 2026

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Mild temperatures to give way to severe storms in central Indiana | Mar. 9, 2026


INDIANAPOLIS (WISH) — Mild temperatures are expected Monday, with severe storms possible mid-week.

Flooding threat continues:

Rivers remain elevated across southern portions of central Indiana, where widespread minor to moderate river flooding continues south of Interstate 70. This is likely to persist well into the end of the week, with renewed rain chances moving in Tuesday and continuing into Wednesday.

Today:

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High pressure will keep us quiet across much of the state, with mostly sunny skies. Expect high temperatures to reach the low 70s, which could tie or push very close to the old record in Indianapolis (72° set in 1878).

Tuesday:

Temperatures will be even warmer heading into Tuesday with a strong southerly wind. Highs will reach the mid-70s. The record high for that Tuesday is 74°, set back in 2009.

Strong storms Tuesday/Wednesday:

A cold front will move through the state and trigger scattered showers and thunderstorms late Tuesday night into the overnight hours.

Some isolated strong storms will be possible late Tuesday night. Much of the state is under a Level 2 out of 5 risk for severe storms, with all modes of severe weather in play.

Heavy rain Wednesday:

A second round of showers and thunderstorms will move through on Wednesday. While some damaging wind gusts could occur, the primary concern will be heavy rain and the ongoing flooding risk. Much of the state could see anywhere from a half inch to an inch and a half of rain, with some locally higher amounts that will worsen river flooding in the southern half of the state.

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7 day forecast:

Sharply colder temperatures will move in for Thursday, as highs fail to get out of the 40s. We should see a nice bump in temperatures by Friday and through the weekend, with highs in the mid to upper 50s for Friday and Saturday, and potentially near 60° on Sunday.

The end of the weekend looks soggy, with the potential for a significant cooldown in the wake of our Sunday system early next week.



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