By: Gillian Marcus
YouTube Rewind is a series of videos that serve to recap the given year’s most popular YouTube clips and songs. First released in 2010, these videos have highlighted the most influential videos of the year and other cultural phenomenons. In 2011, for example, the center focus for YouTube Rewind was Rebecca Black’s famous single “Friday” and its music video, which was the #1 YouTube video of 2011. Just like all of its predecessors, this year’s YouTube Rewind video has a theme involving a blast to the past – but with a twist.
Featuring YouTubers such as Zoella, PewDiePie, Miranda Sings, Markiplier, Grace Helbig, Tyler Oakley, and IISuperwomanII, this year’s YouTube Rewind has had over 45 million views. At the beginning of the video, YouTube incorporates a rainbow backdrop that symbolizes the recent legalization of gay marriage in the United States. Songs such as Justin Bieber’s “What Do You Mean”, OMI’s “Cheerleader”, and, of course, Silentó’s “Watch Me (Whip/Nae/Nae)” were all integrated into this year’s video. The YouTube Rewind video was actually named “Now Watch Me 2015”! “The Whip” scene featured a variety of YouTubers, who danced to the song dressed in different costumes symbolizing different years in history. The scene begins in 1925, where the people are wearing old-fashioned suits and dresses. Other years included were 1955, 1965, and 1985 – all of which brought us up to 2015. In addition to “The Whip”, YouTube also incorporated a reenactment of Shia Labeouf’s famous “Just Do It” motivational speech. YouTubers like Miranda Sings and Joey Graceffa angrily shouted English, while other YouTubers translated the speech into Japanese and Spanish among other languages.
Another part of the video featured Markiplier walking down a dark and scary “Five Nights At Freddy’s” hallway with other YouTubers scattered throughout the hall while “I Can’t Feel My Face” by The Weeknd was playing in the background. “[The scene] opens up with this skeleton thing behind the wall over here, and I go down the hallway and act scared,” said Markiplier. The scene ends when a giant animatronic “Five Nights At Freddy’s” bear scares them off. Shortly after that, a dance battle ensues between two teams: the White and Gold and the Blue and Black, an obvious reference to the popular striped dress from early in 2015. Suited in snazzy outfits, YouTubers like iJustine, Ricky Dillon, and Bethany Mota danced to “I Can’t Feel My Face” by The Weeknd.
In addition to celebrating the most popular videos and songs of the year, YouTube also celebrated its ten year anniversary, featuring reenactments of old, classic videos such as “Charlie Bit My Finger” performed by danisnotonfire and AmazingPhil and “The Evolution of Dance” performed by Good Mythical Morning and its original creator Judson Laipply.
Various “Easter Eggs” can also be found throughout the video (which I discovered while constantly pausing after every scene), which are basically bonus clips from your favorite YouTubers. You can find them by scrolling over specific time frames where you will see boxed windows; clicking on these windows will take you to another page that has the bonus clips.
This year’s rewind video featured over 130 different YouTube channels and included many skits and reenactments of the most popular videos on the Internet. All in all, the 2015 YouTube Rewind certainly was an entertaining blast to the past.
