Latest news with #LazySunday
Daily Mirror
13 hours ago
- Entertainment
- Daily Mirror
‘We drank to excess and had debauched sex parties – but one drug split the band'
Sir Rod is getting the band back together for Glasto's Legends slot. But the last time Rod, Ronnie Wood and Kenney Jones played in the Faces, they were more famous for their partying than hits It will have been 55 years since old Faces Sir Rod Stewart and Ronnie Wood were on stage together, when they reunite for the Legends slot on Glastonbury's Pyramid Stage next weekend. Back then, they were in the Faces with drummer Kenney Jones, before Rod left for his solo career and the band split in 1975. In the 1970s, the Faces were just as well known for their drinking, drug-taking and debauchery with groupies in the 'Party Room' as they were for their hits. And their concerts were either brilliant or shambolic, depending on the amount of alcohol and drugs they'd consumed Yet, despite this excess, Sir Rod, 80, Ronnie, 77, and 76-year-old Kenney are still going strong. In the five decades or so since they played hits like Stay With Me and Had Me A Real Good Time, the faces of the Faces have changed… a lot. Originally called the Small Faces, the line-up in 1969 was guitarist singer Steve Marriott, bassist Ronnie Lane, drummer Kenney Jones and organist Jimmy Winston, who was replaced by Ian 'Mac' McLagan on keyboards. Very much a 1960s pop band, they mimed along to their charttoppers like Sha-La-La-La-Lee, Itchycoo Park and Lazy Sunday on Top Of The Pops and were popular with teenyboppers. But they were also getting a reputation for their acid trips and hard partying, especially when hanging out with The Who and Rolling Stones. In his 2018 autobiography Let The Good Times Roll, drummer Kenney recalls a six-date tour where the late Keith Moon provided the outrageous entertainment back at the hotel. He writes: 'Lying on my bed, beginning to drift off, I heard a strange scratching sound coming from beneath the desk up against my wall. Got to be mice, I thought. 'The noise grew louder. As I got up to investigate properly, there was a loud crunch, followed by an explosion of dust and clattering of bricks., 'I bent down to take a look under the desk, and found myself staring into the bulging eyes of Keith. 'Fancy a drink, Ken?' Another time Keith was told to move his purple Rolls-Royce when he arrived at a hotel and drove it straight through their front door, right up to the desk. 'He threw the keys at the startled receptionist and said, 'Can you park this please.' The Small Faces fell apart when lead singer Steve Marriott, fed-up with trying to shake off their pop image, walked off stage on New Year 's Eve in 1968, yelling: 'I quit,' and formed Humble Pie with Peter Frampton. When the remaining members of the band met Rod in a pub in 1969, he was a fresh-faced 24-year-old singer known as 'Rod the Mod'. He and guitarist Ronnie Wood quit the Jeff Beck Group to join Ronnie Lane, Mac and Kenney, and dropped the Small to rename themselves the Faces. Kenney recalls the band being great mates who loved to play pranks on each other. 'We were like naughty boys whenever we had the chance,' writes Kenney. 'One of the things you learned from the very early days of touring with the Faces was never fall asleep on a plane. 'Ronnie Lane made that mistake. Once. When we were coming back from Scotland on a private jet, he received the butter treatment – knobs of it delicately placed in his hair while he snoozed.' But it was the sex-parties the Faces became infamous for while on tour. ''Party back at our hotel!' Rod's announcement at the end of gigs wasn't the least bit subtle,' writes Kenney. 'It was an invitation to the girls looking for some fun. How many Faces, roadies and girls could we pack into one motel room? Answer, well over a hundred. 'It was a huge pain if the party formed in your room. So we paid for an extra suite, and designated it the 'Party Room'. 'After each gig, we could take our time, have a shower, get changed and one by one make our way to the Party Room. The fans would be there already, and it really was a case of walking in, having a few drinks, taking your pick of the girls and disappearing to your own room. 'An hour later, the others were most likely back at party HQ for a second sitting.' But their hedonistic reputation soon spread. 'When playing gigs in southern US states, we'd be met at the airport by the Country Sheriff plus a police escort,' writes Kenney, saying the police were protecting innocent citizens from the excesses of rock and roll. Ronnie, now 77, also wrote in the Faces' biography: 'We were the sponsors of Holiday Inn and Marriott, and anywhere we could get banned from. We used to call them the Holiday Out. 'We used to check in as Fleetwood Mac – no hotel chain would have the Faces because of the damage and madness that went on. 'Half the audience would come back with us to the hotel. We would party with whoever was there and they'd all end up staying with us.' In 1973, a disenfranchised Ronnie Lane quit the Faces, and was replaced by Japanese bass player Tetsu Yamauchi. 'Testsu was talented… but he was basically a bottle of Teacher's whisky on the stage. You just lifted his head and filled him with scotch.' But all good things come to an end, according to Kenney, who recognised by 1975: 'We were drifting apart. Rod was spending more time on his solo career, and when we did get together, drink and drugs were adversely impacting our performances more than before. Where previously we'd all been half cut on stage, now we were screwing up. 'Booze played its part, but it wasn't the primary problem. When we were together, the alcohol intake was pretty even across the band – bucket loads. 'Drugs, coke specifically, was the real issue. Rod wasn't interested and neither was I. But Mac and Woody, they were all over the white powder, which would keep them up for days.' In 1975, Rod moved to LA with his girlfriend Britt Ekland. 'We now had a transatlantic gap adding to our problems. Telephone calls took an hour to step up. 'Then Woody announced that the Stones had asked him to fill in for Mick Taylor, who'd quit,' writes Kenney. That September, the band and wives and girlfriends reunited in Hawaii. But a mix-up at the hotel caused a falling out with an Aussie singer and her husband manager, and the Faces played a joke on them before Rod and Britt checked out to let them have their suite. 'Messing with hotel rooms was a Faces speciality,' says Kenney. 'Rod and Britt's suite was the target. The telephone was dismantled, dimes put in the lamp socket, so they would blow when turned on, towels down the loo, the bed rigged to collapse as soon as someone sat on it.' A punch-up afterwards in the hotel lobby had the police turning up, and the band legged it for the airport. But the hi-jinx were getting out of hand - with Mac even chopping up Steinway pianos with an axe on stage! 'When it finally came, the split was unavoidable. Rod loved being a Face, but having to deal with Mac and Woody being out of their trees all the time eventually became too much.' Many of the old Faces are no longer here. Sadly Ronnie Lane died in 1997 after a long battle with multiple sclerosis. Dogged by cocaine and alcohol addiction for years, Marriot died, aged 44, in a house fire in 1991, and keyboardist Mac died in 2014 following a stroke. Meanwhile, Kenney replaced his old mate Keith Moon in The Who in 1978 after his death, Ronnie stuck with the Stones, and Rod went on to be one of the best-selling solo artists of all time. The Faces reformed a number of times before finally coming together again in 2015 at Rod's private 70th birthday party. In a birthday speech, Rod said: 'Being in the Faces was a mad and brilliant time for all of us and although we don't have Ronnie and Mac with us any more, this is our chance to remember them and say Had Me a Real Good Time.' Then in 2021 Jones, Stewart and Wood announced they were recording new music for an album due to be released in 2026 – their first in over 50 years. Rod also revealed recently that he was reuniting with Ronnie and Kenney to work on a new documentary. Rod himself looks set for a busy 80th year, as he embarks on a world tour. He says: 'I enjoy going on tour now more than ever, at this ripe old age of 80. "I'm doing seven concerts in Vegas and then I am around the world. You have got to be fit to do it. "I would probably die if I didn't do it. I have seen so many guys that have to give up and retire and they have nothing to wake up in the morning for." Their Faces may be a bit wrinklier now, but Rod, Ronnie and Kenney are still rocking!
Buzz Feed
15-06-2025
- Lifestyle
- Buzz Feed
27 Beautiful Nordstrom Products Under $100
A solid perfume by Chloé for a woody, floral fragrance you can reapply on the go. Unique notes of cardamom, lemon, rose, and vetiver make for a blend that will have everyone asking: What are you wearing? Price: $75 A Le Creuset demi tea kettle crafted with a carbon-steel composition known for its durability. This nifty little kettle will be in tip-top shape for decades, perfect for brewing a cup without taking up a ton of space. Price: $84 (available in nine colors) A Diptyque hair mist worth it for the gorgeous keepsake bottle alone, but packaging aside: Those fine rose mist keeps hair smelling decadent even on the fifth dry shampoo day. Price: $76 A dainty (and personalized!) jewelry box to store all of your baubles with a hint of elegance. Bonus points? It prevents necklaces from tangling, which yes, please. Price: $25 (available in 27 styles) A Marc Jacobs cosmetics case to house the dozens (upon dozens) of beauty products you insist on bringing with you to the office, to dinner, etc., for touch-ups. Price: $95 (available in eight colors) A lush faux-suede tote to make morning commutes to the office seem, well, slightly less bleak. Stuffing a laptop and keys into this every morning? Total luxury. Price: $99 (available in three colors) A pour-over set if you're sick and tired of spending a small fortune on your morning brew. This chic set will save you a ton of money in the long run — and you won't have to compromise on taste. Price: $49.99 (originally $85, available in two colors) A fragrance diffuser ideal for larger spaces and app-compatible, meaning it can be controlled with the touch of a button (no getting off the couch needed). And the best part? It can store two fragrances at once. Toggle as you see fit. Price: $79.99 A pair of Adidas Tokyo kicks, a refreshed reissue of the version everyone was wearing in the '60s. Good luck choosing just one colorway: Sky blue and solar green is our top pick. Price: $90 (available in sizes 5-11 and six colors) A waffle-weave robe made from a quality organic cotton that will last eons without showing signs of wear, i.e. it will feel just as luxurious next year as it does today. Price: $98 (available in sizes XS–L and two colors) A limited-edition candle trio featuring Replica's three most iconic fragrances: Jazz Club, Lazy Sunday, and Bubble Bath. Price: $85 A silicone strap watch in the running for the title of 'Your Everyday Staple' — and honestly, it's probably already won. It checks all the boxes for a divine accessory: comfy, stylish, and functional. Price: $79.99 A cotton knit dress meant for prancing through the Italian countryside, wicker basket filled with grapes in one hand and a glass of vino in the other. Price: $47.70+ (originally $79.50 and in two colors) Ana Luisa pearl huggies to zhuzh up everyday outfits with an air of elegance — even if you are wearing the same white crewneck and black leggings for the fourth day in a row. Price: $65 A subtle freshwater pearl necklace for a keepsake accessory you'll wear every. single. day. The design is slightly statement-y to make a splash but dainty enough that it won't overwhelm your outfit. Price: $84 (originally $120) A Fishwife Tinned Seafood Co. gift set with two best-selling smoked-fish varieties: rainbow trout and Atlantic salmon. It even comes with matches and a pop-top candle to keep your room from smelling, erm, fishy. Price: $49.99 A Marc Jacobs passport holder to house your most important travel documents in one chic package, i.e. you won't be searching your overstuffed duffel in a panic every five seconds looking for a boarding pass. We recommend bright pink for easy spotting. Price: $95 (available in three colors) Chic rectangular sunnies with an under-$20 price tag for the irresponsible folks who have lost, broken, or sat on every single pair of sunglasses they have ever owned. Price: $15 A Slip pure silk pillowcase so luxurious, lying in bed all day will feel equal parts fancy and comfortable. Plus, sleeping on this gorgeous thing can reduce bedhead, extend your blowout, and prevent hair breakage — all while you're catching up on some much-needed shut-eye. Promising review: "So glad I bought this pillowcase. It really works to keep my hair smooth while I sleep. It is also very soft and cozy." —Brentwood MomPrice: $89+ (available in two sizes and 10 colors) A mug and warmer set perfect for slow drinkers who prefer their caffeine hot, hot, and hot, even if they poured it hours ago. This coaster heats to roughly 130 degrees *and* doubles as a wireless phone or earbud charger. Price: $98 A striped stoneware mug to add a touch of whimsy to your daily cup of joe, the perfect way to jumpstart any morning and brace yourself for a day full of meetings. Price: $28 (available in six colors) A leather wallet to replace the lipstick-stained one you've been carrying around with reckless abandon since freshman year of high school and/or college. Either way, it's time to move on. Promising review: "Excellent quality and holds my ~six cards and a little cash with no issues. Love the clip so I can put my car keys on it." —MakaylaHPrice: $69 (available in eight colors) Hourglass Ambient Lighting Blush — it looks like a piece of artwork, and while you may be tempted not to use it as a result (we've been there), rest assured, you should. This melts into your skin for an illuminating finish that stays put for hours on end. Promising review: "This powder blush is wonderful. Highly pigmented and easily buildable. Not shimmery, just a quiet natural glow to skin." —CandiePrice: $48 (available in six colors) A trio of chain link bracelets with a delicate and dainty design for daily wear. Friends, meet your newest everyday stack. They're excited to join the family. Promising review: "Wow!! This is such a pretty set and the quality and details are perfect!" —Jodimc1234Price: $50 Platform slides about to become your new warm-weather go-to. They're a trendy alternative to the flip-flops you've been wearing with every outfit since *checks calendar* 2007. Price: $49 (available in women's sizes 6–11 and in two colors) A canvas duffel bag to a) replace the tattered weekender you've had since high school and b) send your siblings a message. Price: $45 (available in three colors) A tube top about to become your "going out" top and by going out, I mean heading to dinner at 7 p.m. and arriving home promptly by 10 p.m. to complete your nighttime skincare routine and watch another true-crime doc. Price: $45 (available in women's sizes XXS–XL)
Forbes
14-06-2025
- Entertainment
- Forbes
NYT ‘Connections' Hints And Answers For Sunday, June 15th
Looking for Saturday's NYT Connections hints, clues and answers instead? You can find them here: Lazy Sunday is here and frankly I might have to just relent today and actually be lazy for once. After all, it's also Father's Day. As a dad, I get to do whatever I want on Father's Day. I can stay in bed all morning. I don't have to clean or take care of plants or pets. I can make others do the cooking and chores for me. I get to pick the movie we watch or the games we play. I am the king of my domain! But first, before we get to all that, we have some Connections to make. Happy Father's Day to all you dads out there who, like me, will actually probably do quite a bit on their special day. Connections is the second-most popular NYT Games puzzle game outside of the main crossword itself, and an extremely fun, free offering that will get your brain moving every day. Play it right here. The goal is to take a group of 16 words and find links between four pairs of four of them. They could be specific categories of terms, or they could be little world puzzles where words may come before or after them you need to figure out. And they get more complicated from there. There is only one set of right answers for this, and you only get a certain number of tries so you can't just spam around until you find something. There are difficulty tiers coded by color, which will usually go from yellow, blue/green to purple as difficulty increases, so know that going in and when you start linking them together. You pick the four words you think are linked and either you will get a solve and a lit up row that shows you how you were connected. If you're close, it will tell you that you're one away. Again, four mistakes you lose, but if you want to know the answers without failing, either come here, or delete your web cookies and try again. If you want to play more puzzles, you can get an NYT Games subscription to access the full archives of all past puzzles. These are the hints that are laid out on the puzzle board itself, but after that, we will get into spoiler territory with some hints and eventually the answers. Today's Connections Screenshot: Erik Kain Alright, the full spoilers follow here as we get into what the groups are today: The full-on answers are below for each group, finally inserting the four words in each category. Spoilers follow if you do not want to get this far. The Connections answers are: Today's Connections Screenshot: Erik Kain I screwed up on one guess today, which I think is the first time since I've been handling the Sunday Connections Guide that I've done that. I'm just that good (or that lucky). I guessed LANGUAGE / NUDITY / SMOKING / CURSES, which frankly is as good as ACTION for a Connection if you ask me. In fact, CURSES or swear words are one of the main considerations for how a movie is rated. Call it a headfake or a cheap shot, but I replaced that with ACTION and it worked. I wasn't sure what the purple words were but it made sense once I got them. A bubble bursts or pops, you can call your dad 'pop' (happy Father's Day!) and some people call SODA pop (weirdos) and of course, pop-culture is just POPULAR culture. I sort of wish CONNECTIONS would give us more than 16 words, with a couple of options that don't fit at all, which would make getting that last row a bit harder. Maybe that's masochistic of me. In any case, that's a wrap, folks! How did you do on today's Connections? Let me know on Twitter, Instagram, Bluesky or Facebook. Also be sure to subscribe to my YouTube channel and follow me here on this blog. Sign up for my newsletter for more reviews and commentary on entertainment and culture. FEATURED | Frase ByForbes™ Unscramble The Anagram To Reveal The Phrase Pinpoint By Linkedin Guess The Category Queens By Linkedin Crown Each Region Crossclimb By Linkedin Unlock A Trivia Ladder
Time of India
24-04-2025
- Entertainment
- Time of India
YouTube turns 20: From 'Lazy Sunday' to 'Hot Ones'
Live Events The video is short -- just 19 seconds -- and not particularly compelling. A viewer would be forgiven for clicking away before it grainy footage, uploaded on April 23, 2005, of a man standing in front of the elephant enclosure at the San Diego Zoo -- "All right, so here we are in front of the elephants" -- does not look like the sort of thing that would touch off a video yet, two decades after that inauspicious start, YouTube is now a cornerstone of the media ecosystem. It's where people go for music videos and four-hour-long hotel reviews. It is a platform for rising stars and conspiracy theorists. It's a repository for vintage commercials and 10 hours of ambient noise. It has disrupted traditional television and given rise to a world of video creators who make content catering to every imaginable niche every YouTube video you have watched, there are hundreds of millions you will never a look back at some of the biggest moments in YouTube first video uploaded on YouTube is titled "Me at the zoo," and it shows one of the platform's founders, Jawed Karim, admiring the elephants at the San Diego Zoo. Karim founded YouTube in February 2005 with Chad Hurley and Steve Chen, but left the venture in "Saturday Night Live" music video "Lazy Sunday" was perhaps the first YouTube video to go viral. The video, featuring the cast members Chris Parnell and Andy Samberg rapping about cupcakes and movie snacks, was immediately uploaded by fans after it aired December 17, 2005. The spread of bootleg clips prompted NBC Universal to ask YouTube to remove the clip and other NBC footage for copyright reasons in February swiftly became a home for viral hits, which in 2006 included "Flea Market Montgomery," "Charlie the Unicorn" and "Evolution of Dance."Viacom, Microsoft and Yahoo expressed interest in buying YouTube, attracted by its growing audience. In October 2006, Google announced that it was acquiring the platform for $1.65 billion."Chocolate Rain," "Charlie Bit My Finger," "Shoes" and "Leave Britney Alone" were among the YouTube videos that caused a stir in did home videos of a little Canadian kid with a big voice, who was building a small legion of fans. Crucially, they also attracted the interest of the R&B singer and songwriter Usher, and an aspiring music manager, Scooter Braun. Braun signed the kid, Justin Bieber, and Bieber Fever DeVore Sr. posted a video of his 7-year-old son, David, after a tooth extraction to share with family, but the video of the loopy and screaming child, "David After Dentist," shot around the younger David said in an interview on Tamron Hall's talk show in January that learning he was famous "came to me in pieces.""I was 7 when it first happened, and a week later we were in New York for the first time," he crabs. Tapping fingernails. Whispering the names of items on a grocery receipt. For some, these sounds trigger a brain-tingling sensation now recognized as Autonomous Sensory Meridian Response, or ASMR, a term coined in was already filled with terrible songs by amateurs when a music video for "Friday," by 13-year-old Rebecca Black, caught the attention of the public and was eviscerated by armchair critics is still making music and working as a DJ. This spring and summer, she is a guest on Katy Perry's tour and on the Solid Pink Disco tour headlined by drag artist Trixie Mattel."Kony 2012" did not fit into an existing mold for viral content. It was 30 minutes long, created by a nonprofit group, Invisible Children, and was about a Central African warlord, Joseph yet, the video had 100 million views only a week after it was released, with help from celebrity supporters including Bieber, Kim Kardashian and Oprah Winfrey."Kony 2012" ultimately had a mixed legacy, and Kony's location remains unknown. A hearing on the war crimes and crimes against humanity charges against him is scheduled for Sept. 9 at the International Criminal Court at The a South Korean singer and rapper, released a music video for his song "Gangnam Style" in July 2012, and by the end of that year it had become the first video on the internet to reach 1 billion views. In 2022, Psy told The New York Times that the song's success haunted him."The songs are written by the same person, the dance moves are by the same person and they're performed by the same person. Everything's the same, but what was so special about that one song?" Psy said. "I still don't know, to this day."The musician T-Pain was for years best known, and often criticized, for hits that leaned heavily on Auto-Tune. That changed when he appeared on NPR's Tiny Desk concert series, singing beautifully without digital effects in a performance that silenced his online Tiny Desk series, which began in 2008, continues to produce pop culture moments. In the past year, popular Tiny Desk performances have included Doechii and Ca7riel & Paco Amoroso.A popular YouTube genre is unboxing, which features people taking cellphones, makeup, vacuum cleaners and other products out of their packaging and describing them in clinical of the most successful creators of unboxing videos is Marques Brownlee. He has unboxed items including an original, sealed iPhone, a PlayStation 5 and AirPods Max headphones. After years of reviewing technology for a growing audience, he graduated from college and became a full-time YouTube creator in May 2015. Today, he has 19.9 million subscribers and is a respected voice on consumer world domination of "Baby Shark" began quietly, when a video of the song was posted on YouTube in November 2015 by SmartStudy, a Seoul-based company that produced children's videos under the Pinkfong remixed the song, adding a new beat, and dropped the inescapable version of "Baby Shark" in June 2016. In November 2020, it became the most viewed YouTube video ever. At 15.8 billion views, it still videos dominate YouTube's most-watched lists, but none have topped "Despacito" by Luis Fonsi, featuring Daddy Yankee. The video was filmed in Puerto Rico, where both artists are from, and is the most watched music video on YouTube. It is also one of the most watched videos ever, with more than 8.7 billion all social media platforms, YouTube has been in a constant struggle to determine what content it will allow. In 2018, it joined several other companies in removing most posts and videos from the right-wing conspiracy theorist Alex Jones and his website, prominent voices who have been restricted on the platform include President Donald Trump and Andrew Tate, an influencer known for his misogynistic views and ostentatious displays of wealth. (YouTube reversed its suspension of Trump's account in March 2023.)Countless video call gaffes were lost to history during the coronavirus pandemic. One that was preserved featured a Texas lawyer, Rod Ponton, who could not figure out how to turn off a Zoom filter that made him look like a gray cat with sad eyes when he joined a virtual hearing in civil forfeiture case. "I'm here live," Ponton told the court. "I'm not a cat."Ponton has since embraced his brush with internet fame. "It did let everybody have a moment of humor and a moment of sanity during the dark days of the pandemic," he told the Times this year. "I'm glad it happened, even at my expense."Jimmy Donaldson, better known as MrBeast, created a YouTube account when he was in middle school, in 2012. He eventually found success with a video format that involved giving money to people in need, and he has for years been one of the most popular creators on the platform. His most popular video is "$456,000 Squid Game In Real Life!" from November once an audio-only medium, are now frequently recorded on video and posted on the final quarter of 2023, 16 of the top 30 podcasts were available as filmed videos, according to a Times analysis of data published by Edison Research. In the same period two years earlier, seven of the top 30 podcasts were available as filmed videos."Hot Ones," the interview show in which guests sample increasingly spicy hot sauces on chicken (or vegan) wings, had several hit episodes by the time Conan O'Brien, a fixture of traditional television, made an unhinged performance -- he appears to come unglued as he swigs sauce straight from the bottle -- had "Conan O'Brien" trending online for days. "Many of my friends went online and thought I died," he interview shows are now a recognized stop on the celebrity PR circuit, with "Chicken Shop Date," hosted by Amelia Dimoldenberg, producing its own set of viral moments.
New York Times
23-04-2025
- Entertainment
- New York Times
YouTube at 20: From ‘Lazy Sunday' to ‘Hot Ones'
The video is short — just 19 seconds — and not particularly compelling. A viewer would be forgiven for clicking away before it ends. The grainy footage, uploaded on April 23, 2005, of a man standing in front of the elephant enclosure at the San Diego Zoo — 'All right, so here we are in front of the elephants' — does not look like the sort of thing that would touch off a video revolution. And yet, two decades after that inauspicious start, YouTube is now a cornerstone of the media ecosystem. It's where people go for music videos and four-hour-long hotel reviews. It is a platform for rising stars and conspiracy theorists. It's a repository for vintage commercials and 10 hours of ambient noise. It has disrupted traditional television and given rise to a world of video creators who make content catering to every imaginable niche interest. For every YouTube video you have watched, there are hundreds of millions you will never see. Here's a look back at some of the biggest moments in YouTube history. YouTube Begins The first video uploaded on YouTube is titled 'Me at the zoo,' and it shows one of the platform's founders, Jawed Karim, admiring the elephants at the San Diego Zoo. Mr. Karim founded YouTube in February 2005 with Chad Hurley and Steve Chen, but left the venture in 2006. Lazy Sunday The 'Saturday Night Live' music video 'Lazy Sunday' was perhaps the first YouTube video to go viral. The video, featuring the cast members Chris Parnell and Andy Samberg rapping about cupcakes and movie snacks, was immediately uploaded by fans after it aired on Dec. 17, 2005. The spread of bootleg clips prompted NBC Universal to ask YouTube to remove the clip and other NBC footage for copyright reasons in February 2006. Google Buys YouTube YouTube swiftly became a home for viral hits, which in 2006 included 'Flea Market Montgomery,' 'Charlie the Unicorn' and 'Evolution of Dance.' Viacom, Microsoft and Yahoo expressed interest in buying YouTube, attracted by its growing audience. In October 2006, Google announced that it was acquiring the platform for $1.65 billion. Bieber Fever 'Chocolate Rain,' 'Charlie Bit My Finger,' 'Shoes' and 'Leave Britney Alone' were among the YouTube videos that caused a stir in 2007. So did home videos of a little Canadian kid with a big voice, who was building a small legion of fans. Crucially, they also attracted the interest of the R&B singer and songwriter Usher, and an aspiring music manager, Scooter Braun. Mr. Braun signed the kid, Justin Bieber, and Bieber Fever ensued. Is This Real Life? David DeVore Sr. posted a video of his 7-year-old son, David, after a tooth extraction to share with family, but the video of the loopy and screaming child, 'David After Dentist,' shot around the internet. The younger David said in an interview on Tamron Hall's talk show in January that learning he was famous 'came to me in pieces.' 'I was 7 when it first happened, and a week later we were in New York for the first time,' he said. A.S.M.R. Eating crabs. Tapping fingernails. Whispering the names of items on a grocery receipt. For some, these sounds trigger a brain-tingling sensation now recognized as Autonomous Sensory Meridian Response, or A.S.M.R., a term coined in 2010. Friday, It's Friday! YouTube was already filled with terrible songs by amateurs when a music video for 'Friday,' by a 13-year-old named Rebecca Black, caught the attention of the public and was eviscerated by armchair critics online. Ms. Black is still making music and working as a D.J. This spring and summer, she is a guest on Katy Perry's tour and on the Solid Pink Disco tour headlined by the drag artist Trixie Mattel. 'Kony 2012' 'Kony 2012' did not fit into an existing mold for viral content. It was 30 minutes long, created by a nonprofit group, Invisible Children, and was about a Central African warlord, Joseph Kony. And yet, the video had 100 million views only a week after it was released, with help from celebrity supporters including Mr. Bieber, Kim Kardashian and Oprah Winfrey. 'Kony 2012' ultimately had a mixed legacy, and Kony's location remains unknown. A hearing on the war crimes and crimes against humanity charges against him is scheduled for Sept. 9 at the International Criminal Court at The Hague. 'Gangnam Style' Hits a Billion Psy, a South Korean singer and rapper, released a music video for his song 'Gangnam Style' in July 2012, and by the end of that year it had become the first video on the internet to reach one billion views. In 2022, Psy told The New York Times that the song's success haunted him. 'The songs are written by the same person, the dance moves are by the same person and they're performed by the same person. Everything's the same, but what was so special about that one song?' Psy said. 'I still don't know, to this day.' Tiny Desk Redemption The musician T-Pain was for years best known, and often criticized, for hits that leaned heavily on Auto-Tune. That changed when he appeared on NPR's Tiny Desk concert series, singing beautifully without digital effects in a performance that silenced his online critics. The Tiny Desk series, which began in 2008, continues to produce pop culture moments. In the past year, popular Tiny Desk performances have included Doechii and Ca7riel & Paco Amoroso. Unboxing A popular YouTube genre is unboxing, which features people taking cellphones, makeup, vacuum cleaners and other products out of their packaging and describing them in clinical detail. One of the most successful creators of unboxing videos is Marques Brownlee. He has unboxed items including an original, sealed iPhone, a PlayStation 5 and AirPods Max headphones. After years of reviewing technology for a growing audience, he graduated from college and became a full-time YouTube creator in May 2015. Today, he has 19.9 million subscribers and is a respected voice on consumer technology. 'Baby Shark' (Doo Doo Doo Doo Doo Doo) The world domination of 'Baby Shark' began quietly, when a video of the song was posted on YouTube in November 2015 by SmartStudy, a Seoul-based company that produced children's videos under the Pinkfong brand. Pinkfong remixed the song, adding a new beat, and dropped the inescapable version of 'Baby Shark' in June 2016. In November 2020, it became the most viewed YouTube video ever. At 15.8 billion views, it still is. 'Despacito' Unseats 'Gangnam Style' Music videos dominate YouTube's most-watched lists, but none have topped 'Despacito' by Luis Fonsi, featuring Daddy Yankee. The video was filmed in Puerto Rico, where both artists are from, and is the most watched music video on YouTube. It is also one of the most watched videos ever, with more than 8.7 billion views. Testing Free Speech Like all social media platforms, YouTube has been in a constant struggle to determine what content it will allow. In 2018, it joined several other companies in removing most posts and videos from the right-wing conspiracy theorist Alex Jones and his website, Infowars. Other prominent voices who have been restricted on the platform include President Trump and Andrew Tate, an influencer known for his misogynistic views and ostentatious displays of wealth. (YouTube reversed its suspension of Mr. Trump's account in March 2023.) 'I'm Not a Cat' Countless video call gaffes were lost to history during the coronavirus pandemic. One that was preserved featured a Texas lawyer, Rod Ponton, who could not figure out how to turn off a Zoom filter that made him look like a gray cat with sad eyes when he joined a virtual hearing in civil forfeiture case. 'I'm here live,' Mr. Ponton told the court. 'I'm not a cat.' Mr. Ponton has since embraced his brush with internet fame. 'It did let everybody have a moment of humor and a moment of sanity during the dark days of the pandemic,' he told The Times this year. 'I'm glad it happened, even at my expense.' MrBeast Does 'Squid Game' Jimmy Donaldson, better known as MrBeast, created a YouTube account when he was in middle school, in 2012. He eventually found success with a video format that involved giving money to people in need, and he has for years been one of the most popular creators on the platform. His most popular video is '$456,000 Squid Game In Real Life!' from November 2021. Please Watch This Podcast Podcasts, once an audio-only medium, are now frequently recorded on video and posted on YouTube. In the final quarter of 2023, 16 of the top 30 podcasts were available as filmed videos, according to a Times analysis of data published by Edison Research. In the same period two years earlier, seven of the top 30 podcasts were available as filmed videos. Conan Melts Down on 'Hot Ones' 'Hot Ones,' the interview show in which guests sample increasingly spicy hot sauces on chicken (or vegan) wings, had several hit episodes by the time Conan O'Brien, a fixture of traditional television, made an appearance. His unhinged performance — he appears to come unglued as he swigs sauce straight from the bottle — had 'Conan O'Brien' trending online for days. 'Many of my friends went online and thought I died,' he said. Chicken-based interview shows are now a recognized stop on the celebrity P.R. circuit, with 'Chicken Shop Date,' hosted by Amelia Dimoldenberg, producing its own set of viral moments.
