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Tag: Rebecca Black

  • Analyzing “Chinese Food”, The New Hit Internet Song

    Analyzing “Chinese Food”, The New Hit Internet Song

    What are the two best things in the world? Fridays and Chinese food, right?

    Well, Patrice Wilson, the man who wrote Rebecca Black’s “Friday” is back at it again with another hit internet song, this time, about Chinese food. The song is titled “Chinese Food” and is sung by Alison Gold, who is much like Rebecca Black, except with blonde hair.

    A music video of “Chinese Food” was uploaded and published on YouTube yesterday, and has already garnered (as of October 15th, 2013 at 3:22 PST) 1,663,634 views.

    Don’t let the 28,000+:6,000+ thumbs down to thumbs up ratio fool you, “Chinese Food” is a song that reflects on the appreciation of great taste.

    In case you’re one of those “elitists” who thinks they’re too good for real music (and proceeds to listen to lyrics about materialism, lust, and violence), or maybe your mind can’t take another demon curse like “Gangnam Style” or “What Does The Fox Say”, here are some highlights of the music video:


    In the beginning, we see a cook speaking Chinese and using two large sticks to mix noodles on a giant hot plate.


    Enter singer Alison Gold. “After prom night” Gold goes “clubbing”. To which club it is unknown, but apparently they have clubs for kids now, Gymboree, for example.


    After a long day of partying, Gold gets very hungry.


    And when Gold gets hungry, she gets “grumpy”.


    In fact, despite her blood sugar and energy levels running low from the lack of nutrition, Gold gets so grumpy that she wields the power of The Incredible Hulk.


    The only medicine that can assuage the beast that is Gold’s hunger pains is none other than Chinese food.


    How amazing is Chinese food to Gold? “I love Chinese food, you know that it’s true!”


    Is this the look of sheer terror over the fact that some suburbanite just ran into the restaurant and started singing about Chinese food? Or is it the look of opportunity that the restaurant is about to soar in profits due to the enormous appetite of one little girl?


    Because Gold loves fried rice, egg roles, and chow muh muh muh muh mein.


    Move over Iggy Pop, this is what a true appetite of destruction looks like. Gold goes on to marvel in the delight of her feast. “They got broccoli, even chicken wings, make it spicy, and you like it because it’s beautiful and it tastes so so so so good.”


    “I like their egg roles, and their wonton soup, this makes me feel so so good.”


    “Fortune cookies tell the future.”


    Behold, it is her new friend! A furry? A costume enthusiast? We may never know, but Panda Suit was sitting there the whole time, watching.


    It’s a little suspicious how Panda Suit “too” will also find a friend in a restaurant dominated by preteens.


    Sure, you may teach your children to never talk to strangers, but how can you talk to strangers if they don’t speak?


    What hand gestures are you making, Panda Suit?


    Clearly, nothing out of the ordinary, just some afternoon rollin’ in the grass fun.


    Revelations 6:8


    Panda Suit successfully infiltrates the teeny-bopper slumber party…


    …and reveals his secret identity. It’s Patrice Wilson! The same guy from Rebecca Black’s “Friday” video.


    Just talking about Chinese food and enjoying the party.


    That’s not where houses go in Monopoly.


    And even after eating copious amounts of Chinese food earlier this afternoon, the cravings strike again.


    Cravings that are so strong, you’re willing to eat the left over sauces on a bench in the park.


    “I love Chinese food.”


    Don’t mind the cultural insensitivity here; geishas are associated with Japanese culture, not Chinese culture. The video makes up for it by adding subtitles of various other languages and switching it up every five seconds.


    The fun continues until the ultimate ending, which is so powerful, it cannot be bastardized here. 

  • It’s Thanksgiving: Your Holiday-Themed Masterpiece from the Guy That Brought You Rebecca Black

    Well, I thought this might be the new “Friday,” but it didn’t become as popular as I imagined it would. Now, on Friday, we have another candidate to be the next worst song ever.

    Where Rebecca Black sang her way through a typical Friday, getting dressed, having cereal, picking which seat to take in the car – Nicole Westbrook takes us through a typical Thanksgiving. Yes, that means turkey, mashed potatoes, and a reminiscing about the dates of other major holidays. Yes, April was Easter.

    This comes to you from Patrice Wilson, as in the guy who brought you “Friday.” He makes an appearance in the video, as you would expect.

    You gotta hand it to him. He’s doing what he’s doing. Haters gon’ hate. Earlier this year, Wilson even recorded his own song which was dedicated to all the haters out there. It was called “Happy” and you can check it out here.

    [via reddit]

  • Gnesa Wants You To Go a Little Bit Wilder, Channels She Who Must Not Be Named

    Young girls having viral success for songs that you simply have no words for; it’s as American as watching a cat eat an apple pie (the remixed version) on YouTube. Just in case you’ve forgotten that anyone can be a star thanks to the powers of online video and social media, may I present to you the latest viral sensation, Gnesa.

    Some are saying she’s the new Rebecca Black. I don’t know. She seems pretty sure about wanting you to get wilder. Rebecca Black, as you may remember, wasn’t even sure about where she should sit in the car.

    Before you watch, here is one of the YouTube comments for the video:

    “After hearing this I’m off burning my copy of Sgt. Pepper’s!”

    With that, here is “Wilder” by Gnesa:

    [via BuzzFeed]

  • Rebecca Black Supports Mexican Presidential Candidate Enrique Peña Nieto

    Rebecca Black, the dodgy Internet pop sensation that everyone loves to hate, has decided to bring her support to Mexican presidential candidate Enrique Peña Nieto. Confused? Don’t be. According to the Los Angeles Times, Black is half-Mexican, which means she’s qualified to endorse the man on his political quest to lead the nation. Okay, you’re free to be as confused as you please, because I’m right there with you.

    “I personally think that it is very important for youth and teens to be so involved in politics,” Black stated during the press conference. “Even though I’m only 14 and won’t be able to vote for another four years, you don’t want to be 18 and not know anything about what you are going to vote about.”

    Since Black doesn’t speak Spanish, her thoughts and feelings had to be translated to those in attendance. Her mother, who speaks the language, stays by her side throughout the entire video. Truthfully, the whole thing feels like some sort of bad joke, though I’m not entirely sure at whose expense.

    “This girl is not Mexican, she is not well informed (on the country’s politics) and for the PRI to believe that because she is famous, young people will follow (her views) is almost offensive,” entertainment reporter Astrid Capon said in her videblog. I’m sure this sentiment is shared with countless others.

    Is this some sort of ultra-bizarre publicity stunt to help support Black’s latest single “Sing It”, which hit iTunes on May 7th? Honestly, it’s anybody’s guess at this point. If you’re curious to hear what the teenager’s latest musical endeavor sounds like, investigate the video embedded below.

  • “Friday” Producer Gets “Happy” With Official Sequel To Rebecca Black “Hit”

    Well, at least Patrice Wilson has a sense of humor about the whole “Friday” cultural brainfart. The only problem is that his sense of humor has led him to record another terrible song. Oh well, it’s Friday – which means that by Saturday morning you’ll be H-A-P-P-Y. Or something like that.

    You remember Patrice Wilson, right? He’s the guy who produced the YouTube Hall of Fame “Friday” video which shot young Rebecca Black to internet stardom. He also makes an appearance in “Friday,” as the guy rapping in the car.

    His new song, “Happy,” is dedicated to all the haters out there. Kind of.

    After “Friday” and all the negativity surrounding it, Patrice Wilson realized that the world has a lot of anger and hate. All we need is a smile on our faces to reunite as one.Spread the word and share the love!!!! Get H-A-P-P-Y.

    After a two-minute self-deprecating intro, the song begins. It’s autotuned. There’s a shocked mailman, questionably young cheerleaders, a yoga class, a magic engagement, police malfeasance, racial stereotypes, and it all ends with a nice representation of the typical “hater.” Yeah, I watched the whole thing.

    Check it out below:

    Did you ever think “Friday” would qualify as ear bleach?

    [h/t Mashable]

  • 8 Year Old Hardcore Girl > Rebecca Black

    8 Year Old Hardcore Girl > Rebecca Black

    If Rebecca Black’s first video had this much effort, class, and style, it’s doubtful she’d be the laughing stock of the YouTube nation. Sure, Black took that attention, both the negative and positive, and capitalized off of it, but she’s still something of a punchline instead of a respected artist.

    I doubt the same will be true for Juliet, the 8 year old from Australia who shows the world she can rock out with the best of them, regardless of her youthful age. While Juliet may not hit the viral status Rebecca Black had, she’s driving in the same neighborhood, already amassing over four million views since the video was posted yesterday, January 19, 2012.

    Another thing that separates the younger Juliet from Miss Black is the fact people seem to like her song. As of this posting, “My First Hardcore Song” has over 61,000 likes and under 3000 dislikes. Contrast that to Black’s “Friday,” which has over 100,000 likes, but almost half a million dislikes. In fact, one could argue Black’s popularity was based on how horrible her debut song was, regardless of her immaturity.

    Juliet is much younger, and while her subject matter may be largely restricted to the affection she feels for her pets, she didn’t just present it in a sugary, disposable pop music format. No, instead, Juliet elected to go hardcore, and with the help of producer Rob Sharpe, we get the following gem:


    If you’re really feeling Juliet’s work, you can let people know by buying one of her t-shirts. As for the song, it will soon be available on iTunes. Until then, however, you can enjoy the YouTube as much as you’d like.

  • Latest Google Zeitgeist Proves 2011 Belonged To Rebecca Black

    Google year-end Zeitgeist for 2011 has gone live, and besides boasting a new look, complete with new, more interactive presentation of its findings; and while the new shine improves the look and feel, their findings are what we are really after.

    After a quick glance, there’s one thing crystal clear about the year that was — it belonged, almost solely, to Rebecca Black. Sure, 2011 saw the death of Steve Jobs and the world reacted swiftly. Nevertheless, to give you an idea of how much more popular Black was over Jobs, while Black was the top-rising search query in the world, Steve Jobs came in ninth, and it’s clear a great deal of these queries came after his passing.

    When comparing the popularity ranges for Black and Jobs, it’s important to keep the time period of their Google popularity in mind. When Rebecca Black was burning the Internet down, Jobs was still alive and because of that, analysis of that time period shows Black as the clear leader in regards to popularity:

    Black versus Jobs

    The reason for her popularity is simple. Black had the most disliked video ever on YouTube, and while there have been some changes to the numbers thanks to the takedown and reposting of the infamous video, Black’s mark on popular culture is undeniable. The infamous video that started it all, or, well, the reposting of it:


    That made her such an Internet star, YouTube wisely kept her around.

    Fast forward to the death of Steve Jobs, and queries for his name increase in popularity at an exponential rate, but it’s not enough of an overall performance to supplant Black’s overall popularity. That said, he was more popular than her after he passed:

    Steve Jobs

    While Jobs may not have surpassed Rebecca Black on an overall basis, his products had a strong showing as well. The iPhone 5 was the sixth and the iPad 2 was tenth. Much like search for Steve Jobs, the search for the iPhone 5 were “seasonal,” meaning they weren’t consistent throughout the year. However, right before the iPhone 4S came out, the queries for the iPhone 5 increased rapidly:

    iPhone 5 queries

    Of course, the Google Zeitgeist for 2011 was not all Apple and Rebecca Black. In fact, the second fastest rising search, according to Google’a calculations, belongs to Google’s social networking hub, Google+. While the initial reception of Google+ was off the charts — yay, a real Facebook killer emerges! — the hype has come back to earth, but man, what a fast and furious ride it was:

    Google Plus

    If you move the slider to the beginning of the year, the searches for Google+ are non-existent. Clearly, the key to making the Google Zeitgeist is, when you hit, hit really, really hard and don’t necessarily worry about the long tail, at least in regards to Zeitgeist popularity.

    Other surprises included a third place appearance by Ryan Dunn, who’s popularity was also driven by his unfortunate death. Following Dunn is Casey Anthony, proving that polarizing criminal trials have a strong Internet presence as well. Google has also produced a video celebrating this year’s Zeitgeist, a three-minute celebration of the year that was, at least through the eyes of Google searches:


    Finally, here are some additional findings you may find interesting. The fastest falling search term in 2011 was Myspace. Hey, at least they’re still relevant, right? The fastest-rising query in Google News belonged to Hurricane Irene.

    The most popular athlete in the eyes of Google’s Zeitgeist was Manny Pacquiao, with Tiger Woods and LeBron James close behind. In the world of music, Adele was so popular, she made the overall Zeitgeist top 10, coming in at number seven. As far as songs go, Lady Gaga won the day with “Born This Way.”

    This year’s version of the Google Zeitgeist is incredibly comprehensive, so I would suggest taking some time and checking out for yourself because this article is only the tip of the iceberg. There are a large number of top 10 lists, ranging from fastest risers in Google Maps to the top queries in pop culture.

    With that in mind, any thoughts on the latest year-end list from Google? Any surprises or disappointments? Let us know what you think.

  • Rebecca Black Holds YouTube Q&A, You Guessed It, On A Friday

    On Friday, 11/11/11, internet sensation and indecisive seat-chooser Rebecca Black sat down for an exclusive Q&A session, sponsored by YouTube.

    The Q&A session was based on over 3,000 questions submitted by fans from all over the world. Ms. Black asked her fans to submit questions for the session via Twitter. She also announced her Q&A session was ready for viewing on Twitter:

    @MsRebeccaBlack
    Rebecca Black    Hey guys(: check out my Q&A when I was at @YouTube! 😀 http://t.co/GhOTaRAa 22 minutes ago via Twitter for iPhone · powered by @socialditto

    Check out the entire video below:

    Black just released her new song, “Person of Interest,” on November 15th. It already has over 1.5 million views, although the votes and comments aren’t entirely positive. That shouldn’t be anything new to the young internet star, who took a good dose of criticism and flak over the song that made her famous, “Friday.” By the way, that song has over 172 million views on YouTube.

    Here’s her new song:

  • SOPA, Google X & New Rebecca Black

    SOPA, Google X & New Rebecca Black

    Today’s video round-up features the Vice President discussing SOPA, and Next Media Animation discussing Google X (Google’s top secret robot lab). And I know you’ve just been dying to see more Rebecca Black videos.

    View more daily video round-ups here.

    Vice President Joe Biden talks about Internet Freedom:

    Next Media Animation takes on Google X:

    New Rebecca Black. It’s amazing as you think:

    Finally, a robotic bear pillow that tries to keep you from snoring:

    Siri argument:

    Shatner loves fried turkey:

    While my ukulele gently weeps:

    This guy was named “world’s worst person of the day” by The Daily What. It’s hard to really call this a “top video”, but people should see what an asshole this guy is.

    Two girls dressed like Super Mario Bros. playing its theme:

  • Viral Content Can Be Tricky, But Awfully Rewarding

    Most, if not all content creators want their work to get noticed. Whether it’s on a viral basis or something more — full blown popularity — when it comes to the web content, having other people see and respond to your work is about all you can ask for. So what determines viral-worth content? What makes a picture/site page/video become a meme?

    This very topic was discussed by Robert Knorpp at the BlogWorld expo, and thanks to his presentation, we learn one of the biggest keys has to do with inspiring others to react. To drive this point home, Knorpp used to examples: Rebecca Black and the Volkswagen/Darth Vader Super Bowl commercial. Both pieces of content inspired a great deal of reaction, granted, not all of it was positive, but the reaction was the key to these videos living a long life, at least in relation to an Internet lifespan.

    From Knorpp’s perspective, the fact that both of these pieces inspired others to react was the key to their extended shelf life. Granted, a great deal of the reaction to Rebecca Black’s content was of the mocking variety, but the fact remains, such reactions are what directly led to her popularity.

    It’s almost like the Marilyn Manson approach to publicity, that is, no pub is bad pub.

    Of course, if the reaction concerns a product you are trying to sell, you don’t want the reaction to be in the vein of “this is the worst thing ever,” which comprised a great deal what Black’s videos had to face. With that in mind, the reaction of the Darth Vader/Volkswagen commercial is what web marketers should be shooting for, but then again, not everyone can get George Lucas’ approval to use his stuff in their commercials.

    To Knorpp, the key isn’t necessarily good content, but content that inspires others to react in a creative manner. The key is balance. Don’t just make a Rebecca Black style of video to promote a widget being sold, because if people actively hate the item, it’s doubtful they’ll be spending much money on it. That being said, good content is a great starting point, just be aware of the reaction it will inspire.

    Of course, because of the nature of viral popularity, the content creators have little to no control over the reaction they’ll be greeted with, so be aware of trends, both negative and positive, but at the same time, don’t just copy other people’s work. Create your own piece that’s worthy of becoming viral, or as Knorpp says, keep your audience in perspective when creating this type of content.

    For 5 years, WebProNews has partnered with BlogWorld and New Media Expo, the world’s first and largest new media conference, in an effort to broadcast how new media can grow your business, brand, and audience. Stay tuned to WebProNews for much more exclusive coverage.

  • Rebecca Black, No, The Other Rebecca Black: A Facebook Identity Problem

    Rebecca Black wants you to know that she’s not Rebecca Black.

    In fact, the “about” information on her page reads in all caps: I AM NOT THE SINGER!!!!

    Rebecca Black’s Facebook page tells you that she is an “ACSM Certified Personal Trainer with a passion for changing people’s lives through fitness.” She is a fitness bikini model who has participated in multiple competitions since she completed her “personal weight loss journey” that she began in 2008.

    Of course that is not an accurate description of the Rebecca Black you might know, the teenager responsible for that little YouTube-driven pop culture phenomenon known as “Friday.”

    TMZ talked to Rebecca Black the bikini competitor recently:

    Black (bikini) tells TMZ … sometime in the past week, her friend list on Facebook exploded from 800 friends to 73,000 … and she had no idea how it happened. Black started getting emails from upset fans of the singer — accusing her of intentionally hijacking the 14-year-old’s page … but Black (bikini) claims she never tried to steal anyone’s identity.

    She claims that Facebook is to blame for this mix up, saying that they merged her account with the YouTube sensation’s account without her permission.

    That accusation is unconfirmed. What is true is that when you search all results for “Rebecca Black” on Facebook, Black (bikini) is the very top page. She currently has 72, 374 likes. Right below her is the fan page of Rebecca Black (Friday). She currently has 59, 920 likes. Given, there are dozens of other pages devoted to Rebecca Black (Friday) like “Rebecca Black is a disgrace to music” and “That awkward moment when Rebecca Black doesn’t know which seat to take.” And those pages also have 25 thousand and 265 thousand likes, respectively.

    But they are all below Miss Black’s (bikini) page. 59,000 likes does seem a little low for the Rebecca Black (Friday) page. Maybe Facebook did cause Black (bikini) some unnecessary grief.

    Here are a couple of pics from Black’s (bikini) Facebook page –

    …And here’s Black (Friday) hipstered up for your amusement –

    I’m not sure how people could have mixed up the two pages, unless they really weren’t paying attention.

    Having a common name in the world of social media can be a pain. But most of the time on Facebook, the “celebrity” name is displayed at the top of search results. For instance, a search for the common name of “George Bush” displays all President George W. Bush pages in the top 10 results. Similarly, a search for the common name of “Michael Jordan” displays pages about the basketball player first.

    Have you ever had any name mix-ups on social media? Let us know in the comments.

    UPDATE: Rebecca Black (bikini) made a pretty funny appearance on TMZ live.

    About her now-famous name:

    She’s had reservations cancelled because they thought it was a prank and had to show her ID at Panera because they didn’t believe it was her real name.

    She also says he’s sick of the Friday references: “I now hate that song, and that day Friday.”

    About the guys commenting on her posts on Facebook: People making comments assuming I’m a 14 year old girl are kind of creepy.”

    According to Black, a popular YouTube song is not in here future: “I work out and I look pretty. Singing is not my forte.”

    Perhaps the best quote from the interview deals with her inability to get any info from Facebook about everything: “I could probably get a hold of Barack Obama before i could get a hold of someone from Facebook.”

  • Rebecca Black: The Inevitable Return

    She’s back!!! The girl with the most disliked video ever returns with her next rendition, and much like the “Friday,” it has a bunch of views and bunch of dislikes. Apparently, the new music generation likes to listen to stuff they don’t like, which makes one wonder how bands like the Beatles and Rolling Stones would do in today’s world of instantaneous trend birth and death. Would they even have a chance to enjoy their popularity before a new Rebecca Black song hit YouTube?

    It’s doubtful.

    Nevertheless, here we are, another Rebecca Black song is in the books and the Twitters and blogs of every color are reacting, giving her the publicity that apparently escaped the would-be next “star” from the ARK Music Factory, Lexi St. George. To wit, the information on YouTube reveals that Black’s second song was uploaded on July 18th, and it already has over 1 and half million views. Meanwhile, Lexi St. George, who actually won a competition to record her song, only has over 200,000 views.

    What does this mean? I have no idea, except for the fact that when Rebecca Black does, well, anything, people react. Granted, a great deal of the reaction is for poking fun and disliking her work, but the fact remains, all that attention makes Black a viable celebrity, and like any good marketer knows, she strikes while the iron is hot — or at least is quite good at getting the viral fires burning, even if many of the respondents are there for the laughs.

    Anyway, the video in question:


    Much like “Friday,” Black’s new song, “My Moment,” is innocuous fluff intended for the same type of person who would follow Justin Bieber’s Twitter account, and there’s not a thing wrong with that. Not every recorded song in history has to be a “Paranoid Android” or resonate with a generation the way Nirvana’s “Nevermind” did.

    Is Rebecca Black, or any of that tweeny-bopper stuff for me? Nope, but then again, I’m not the intended audience.

    It should be noted I’ve never listened to “Friday” in its entirety either. Normally, I don’t make it past the first 20 or so seconds, but I just had to hear the chorus. Just once. As it stands, this writer’s definitely happier with the new Beastie Boys video that hit the tubes yesterday. Different strokes for different folks, and all that.

    Speaking of different strokes, as it is wont to do, Twitter reacted with aplomb to Black’s new video, although, the reaction has led to a question: Rebecca Black is not a trend on Twitter, although, the amount of responses concerning her name far outnumber most of the current Twitter trends. Is Rebecca Black too polarizing to be considered a trend, even for Twitter?

    As you can see, the Twitterverse is decidedly mixed on its reaction towards the new song:

    @ManWigs
    Bling Bling NaRim    Rebecca Black’s new song really isn’t any worse than the usual drivel out there. #upgrade 1 minute ago via web · powered by @socialditto

    @ellyloveely
    Nor Elliyana    Just heard Rebecca Black’s new vid, it’s not bad. Better than Friday actually but she’s working for the fame she got from Friday -_-‘ 4 hours ago via Mobile Web · powered by @socialditto

    @margie324
    Margaret Stahl    I kind of think this is worse than “Friday,” just because she seems pretty conceited. http://t.co/cZPNhVL 4 hours ago via web · powered by @socialditto

    @LadyMonroex3
    ♥Tera’je Moore♥    Rebecca Black got a new song out ! I like it ! Can’t front Friday was my ishhh 4 hours ago via Twidroyd for Android · powered by @socialditto

    @monte0508
    Jennifer Montenegro    Yep. Made it :50 before I had to stop listening to Rebecca Black’s new song. 4 hours ago via web · powered by @socialditto

    @itsmecameron
    cameron     Rebecca Black is really cute. Her new song isn’t bad. So adorable. ☺ 4 hours ago via UberSocial for BlackBerry · powered by @socialditto

    @HulkSmash_09
    Intellectual    #stfu Rebecca Black … Talking bout being bullied by the world 4 hours ago via Twitter for iPhone · powered by @socialditto

    @ItsSimplyTee
    Tee    Rebecca Black getting interviewed on the news & she’s talking about being a artist….YEAH RIGHT!!! That’s not music!!! 4 hours ago via web · powered by @socialditto

    @JeremyKamaa
    Jeremy    Rebecca Black’s new song isn’t that bad.. 5 minutes ago via web · powered by @socialditto

    @lovexmaymay
    Mehran    she made money? RT @iiQuoteSwag: Rebecca Black donated all the money she got from “Friday” to Japan. Think twice before hating on someone 5 minutes ago via Twitter for iPhone · powered by @socialditto

    Granted, it was a little easier to find the tweets that are against the idea of Rebecca Black, but there was some positive, something “Friday” didn’t seem to enjoy much of. Whatever the case, do you welcome your new music overlord or are you waiting patiently for her trend to go the way of the dodo?

    Lead image courtesy.

  • Beastie Boys Debut New Video on Funny or Die

    Although the Beastie Boys previously used MTV’s online arm to promote their return, they’ve turned to another, perhaps more popular outlet to promote their new music video for the song “Don’t Play No Game That I Can’t Win.” Instead of using YouTube’s Vevo or MTV, the Beastie Boys turned to Funny or Die to debut the video. What does this say about modern marketing, even if you’re with an incredibly popular group that sells out arenas all over the world?

    From this perspective, it means you cast you’re lure where the fish are. It’s really that simple and it’s that same mentality that explains why so many companies and businesses are comfortable sending potential traffic to Facebook. Go where the people are, and it’s pretty obvious Funny or Die has a substantial following. Their original content says as much. The question is, can they be an effective music marketer?

    Considering there are over 4000 Facebook likes on the page, and already over 75,000 views of the video, which launched yesterday, that answer sounds like a “yes.” Granted, those aren’t Rebecca Black numbers, who’s new video/song already has over 1 million views, but over 100,000 dislikes. It, too, was launched yesterday. Of course, the Beasties don’t have quite the Twitter reach Young Miss Black does, and it’s highly doubtful people aren’t watching Beastie Boys videos just to hate on them.

    Speaking of videos, the Funny or Die release of the video attached to the “Don’t Play No Game That I Can’t Win” song is a little over three minutes long, and it’s an absolute gem, thanks in large part to the direction of Spike Jonze, the same person who directed previous Beastie Boys videos like “Sabotage” and “Sure Shot.” Jonze is once again on-point as he uses action figures to tell the story:


    There’s also an extended version of the video — over 11 minutes long — and it was debuted today:


    I don’t know about you, but I’d love it if a Yeti had my back like that.

    Oddly enough, the YouTube/Vevo extended version only has a little over 300 views, although, that could simply be a case of slow updating on YouTube’s part. Nevertheless, when compared to the popularity of the aforementioned Rebecca Black, it’s a little dejecting; but then again, you can probably count the number of tweens with the necessary attention span to last 11-plus minutes of a music video on one hand. It could also be a case of these same youngsters being completely oblivious to the likes of the Beastie Boys.

    Nevertheless, the new video has at least one fan, and he’ll be enjoying this video long after the initial hype has died down.

    As for this new era in marketing, how viable is releasing unrelated content to a site in order to promote your work? Or is this a case of the Beastie Boys resonating with the Funny or Die crowd, and because of that, it’s more of a natural partnership than it first appears?

  • Rebecca Black’s Friday Gone From YouTube

    Say it ain’t so!

    It looks like, at least for right now, you are going to have to rely on parody videos to get your “Friday” fix, as the official video has been pulled from YouTube.

    The much loved, much hated viral sensation had over 167,000,000 views at the time of its disappearance. The official video, hosted by ARK Music Factory, is no longer available and will instead show you the all too familiar “meh” face along with the explanation “This Video is no longer available due to a copyright claim by Rebecca Black.”

    So it looks like Miss Black herself took the video down. Earlier in the week, TechCrunch happened upon the official video when it was being presented as a $2.99 rental. It didn’t stay that way for very long though. It’s possible that it was simply a glitch at YouTube, but it’s also possible that ARK Music set it up that way to either turn a profit or get people talking about the video again. Pulling the video altogether would also be quite the PR stunt. We’ll have to see if that’s what this is.

    YouTube has given the same generic statement to both TechCrunch and Mashable, saying –

    YouTube takes copyright infringement very seriously. When we receive a complaint alleging that a video infringes another person or company’s copyrights, we remove that video. Users who believe that a video was removed in error can appeal the copyright takedown.

    Awesome, thanks for the info YouTube.

    Of course, this now begs the question – What in the hell are we going to do to celebrate the weekend at the workplace? For instance, your annoying office-mate is no longer going to be able to blast it at full volume at soon at 5:00 rolls around. What will step up to fill the viral void left by this removal?

    For now, all we have are the parodies. And this one with improper lip-reading is by far the best (Rebecca Black says Nazis). Enjoy.

  • Rebecca Black: Viral Elite, Here to Stay

    Rebecca Black: Viral Elite, Here to Stay

    In case you guys didn’t know, IT’S FRIDAY, FRIDAY, FRIDAY, it’s the end of the week.  And that gives us a little latitude to delve into the silly, possibly inane parts of the interwebs.

    Over on the official YouTube trends blog, a case is made for the staying power of Rebecca Black.  She just doesn’t seem to show any signs of slowing down her reign as viral queen.  At the writing of this article, Miss Black’s official video for “Friday” is about 200K shy of 90 million views.  And this doesn’t even do the phenomenon justice, as thousands of parody videos as well as analytical breakdowns (of which seat she should choose) have drawn millions of additional views.

    The reason why Rebecca Black went so epically viral is not too hard to figure out.  The “Friday” video has what it takes to make a viral impact: it was irresistibly shareable with friends through social media.  But why has she stayed in the national consciousness for so long? YouTube has a couple nifty charts to show us the extent of how popular she remains, as compared to Ted Williams, the “homeless man with the golden voice.”

    Both searches and views of the “Friday” video unsurprisingly receive a boost on Friday.  The video corresponds to a certain day of the week, and has become an ironic way to announce that end of the work week all over the world.  It is the dream of any viral video.  In the same vein, YouTube trends mentions that the Bone-Thugs-N-Harmony song “1st of tha month” gets a huge spike in views…you guessed it…the first of every month.  Score one for the Black viral team, as we all know that the quickest way to keep something relevant is to associate it with something timeless and popular (see Gary Glitter and Sports).

    Why else has this become so popular?  Why has it stayed more popular than the adorable “baby laughs and mom ripping paper” or the above graphed “homeless man with radio voice?”  YouTube trends posits that it is directly attributable to its musical nature.

    It’s a song.  And songs have the ability to become stuck in your head – even songs as unbearably horrible as “Friday.”  Think about it.  “Double Rainbow all-the way” was awesome, but it really took off when it got its own song (23 million views).  Antoine Dodson was popular, but it didn’t achieve infamy until it was made into the “bed intruder song” (78 million views).

    So this Friday, let us celebrate our ability as a society to propel even the most asinine, vacuous drivel to worldwide popularity.  Because honestly, it’s a wonder we can all have such a far-reaching, shared experience, no matter how much you regret it afterwards.

    (Just in case you forgot what we’re talking about)

  • Even Negativity Brings Fame On YouTube and Twitter

    If you know the story of Justin Bieber, he gained his fame due to a talent scout discovering him on YouTube. Could Rebecca Black be the next sensation to follow in Bieber’s footsteps? Google+Reader”>Her video has already reached 9 million views on YouTube, mostly due to negativity. She already has a rather lengthy Wikipedia entry, detailing her rise in fame.

    Michael J. Nelson, a comedian, was the first to poke fun at the song. On March 11th, the day the huge view spike hit, Nelson tweeted this:

    @michaeljnelson
    Michael J Nelson    Let this be on your lips as you head into the weekend http://youtu.be/CD2LRROpph0 (it also answer the ? “what’s the worst video ever made?”) 4 days ago via TweetDeck · powered by @socialditto

    Later, the viral based Comedy Central show, Tosh.0 poked fun at the song titled “Friday”:

    Rebecca Black: “Are you sure these are the lyrics you want me to sing?”
    Producer: “What are you talking about?”
    Rebecca Black: “This part where I just kinda slowly explain the ordering of the days of the week?”
    Producer: “That’s the hook, baby! We breakin’ it down for the kids! They gonna know those days!!”

    On Monday, ‘Friday’ became available to download on iTunes. For $0.99, you can own the now huge YouTube sensation. The song has received over 550 ratings, and is averaging 2.5/5 stars.

    Currently, Rebecca Black is trending high on Twitter and the YouTube views show no sign of slowing down. The true question now remains, will her success continue? The song was produced by a legitimate company, by the name of Ark Music Factory. Though her song is trending due to its widely accepted awfulness, will it lead to bigger thinks for Black?

    I won’t keep you in suspense any longer. If you haven’t listened to the song yet, here’s the YouTube video.

    (WARNING: the song is extremely catchy. If you’re caught singing it, expect laughter coming your way).