[pullquote_right]Nothing is more powerful than a video whose time has come.[/pullquote_right]
These words bring back haunting reminders of the KONY 2012 video that went viral on YouTube and resulted in a ridiculous amount of conversation on issues in Africa, the legitimacy of the KONY movement, and the power of the media. This video was not alone, of course, and joined by a few other important offerings, represents in the waning days of 2012, the content that people across the world deemed important enough to watch, re-watch, and share.
You can use YouTube Vanced, a popular modded version of YouTube on android. This app includes adblocking, true AMOLED dark mode, and a lot more features that can improve your viewing experience.
Here’s a look back at the most important videos of 2012 as judged by YouTube views. (This list is edited based on mature content in some of the top 10 videos of 2012)
08. Felix Baumgartner (31,217,061)
Aside from having a cool name, Felix Baumgartner’s jump from space had the world keyed in. Whether you watched it live or waited for the hype to be shared on your Facebook news feed, a man doing a supersonic free fall to earth was one giant leap for humanity, worthy of over 30 million views.
07. Facebook Parenting (36,121,641)
A parent decided to take his disciplinary actions to the Internet and while this resulted in waves of controversy of whether he was justified in his actions, one fact remained – people watched it, shared it, and watched it again. With almost 35.5 million views as of this writing, no one will forget how embarrassing this was for this troubled teenager who insulted her parents on Facebook. Oh, and we won‘t forget her dad shooting her laptop with his handgun either.
06. Dubstep Violin (40,136,499)
This was definitely a year for Dubstep. Violin Dubstep though? Well Lindsey Sterling, the ballet dancing, violin player performing a song called Crystalize in what looks like the inside of a glacier was apparently just too cool not to watch and share. With almost 39 million views, it’s Dubstep Violin to the world.
05. Push to Add Drama (40,781,110)
TNT knows Drama, and their 1:46 short film featuring a button in the middle of a town square with the words “PUSH TO ADD DRAMA” written above it is one of the funniest videos of the year. I literally won’t explain in words what went on when people stopped to “push the button”. That would spoil the surprise.
04. Call Me Maybe (64,773,667)
Like it or not, this song by Carly Rae Jepson was beyond popular. While we all got over saturated on the radio and in clubs and parties, somehow the team of Justin Bieber, Selena. Ashley Tisdale and more was enough to grab the attention of tweens across the planet. With almost 55 million views, this song and these kids are beyond popular.
012 (95,354,831)
Now this was controversy. The video that was mentioned at the start of this article now has comments disabled as the arguments surrounding the legitimacy of this charity movement became downright cruel. That said, it was an incredible production and with almost 100 million views is worth a re-watch, some research and if nothing more, a welcomed perspective on the fact that life happens across the planet in different ways.
02. Somebody That I Used To Know (358,094,942)
Gotye came out of left field and dropped a mega hit upon the world. Of course, just as with Carly Rae Jepson’s “Call Me Maybe” it took another spurt of star power to take it to the next level. A group simply known as “Walk of the Earth” performed a cover of this powerful track using a single guitar and five players. Confused? Then you’re not one of the 140 million people who watched it on YouTube. Awesome.
01. Oppa Gangnam Style! (1,010,321,921)
If you were alive over the past few months then you already knew that a Korean pop star by the name of PSY and his popular ‘Jockey Dance” was the most amazing phenom of 2012. With people across the planet mimicking the dance routine in clubs everywhere, and the song going viral faster than a medieval plague. Gangnam Style is, in a word, ridiculous.
Uploaded to YouTube on July 15, 2012, the video (as of this writing) has a whopping 1 Billion plus views and counting, Yep… a pudgy Asian guy, doing a funky dance was worthy of 1 Billion views on YouTube, proving that no one has any idea of how to really make a mega-hit.
Excuse me now while I practice my Gangnam Style for the New Year bash.
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