Dead Meme: Number One meme

History The song originally had the working title called "Villain Number One" before it was changed to "We Are Number One". During production there were many lyrics that were cut from the final version. These lyrics first surfaced to the public when it was revealed by Máni during the live stream that Stefán Karl held on Facebook on 11 December 2016, at the Icelandic studios where the show was filmed.[5] These unused lyrics were released to the public on SoundCloud by user 8847444 on 13 December 2016.[6][better source needed] Internet popularity Two years after the LazyTown episode aired, "We Are Number One" became an Internet meme due to Robbie Rotten's performer Stefán Karl Stefánsson having announced that he had been diagnosed with bile duct cancer.[7][8] A campaign was created by Mark Valenti, head writer for LazyTown, on the crowdfunding platform GoFundMe[9] to pay for Stefán Karl's living costs while he was too unwell to work, and the creators of these parodies used their videos to raise awareness for the campaign.[10][11] As of 20 December 2016, the campaign had surpassed its $100,000 goal.[12] To thank the contributors, Stefán Karl held a live stream on Facebook on 11 December 2016, where he performed "We Are Number One" with the other actors (Björn Thors, Bergur Þór Ingólfsson, Snorri Engilbertsson) from the original music video[13] which was later uploaded to his personal YouTube channel.[5] Internet memes The song gained popularity in September 2016, when the first remix was uploaded onto the bait-and-switch YouTube channel SiIvaGunner, disguised as an actual song from the video game Kirby Super Star Ultra.[3][14] Various parodies have been subsequently uploaded since, most prominently by the YouTuber and disk jockey Grandayy,[13] as well as proper cover versions by bands such as comedy punk group The Radioactive Chicken Heads.[15] Typically, these parodies take the form of the original music video edited in some irregular and often highly complex way. A common title format would begin with the phrase "We Are Number One but...", followed by a list of changes from the original, for instance "We Are Number One but it's 1 hour long" or "We Are Number One but it's co-performed by Epic Sax Guy". Due to the extent of modification and resulting length of the title, they would occasionally be placed in the video description.[10] This type of remix was common in 2016, particularly during the year's waning months; a The Verge article described "We Are Number One" and other, similar remixes as "weird solipsistic creation[s]".[16] It has been deemed the 2010-2019 "Meme of the Decade" in Grandayy's video "Grandayy's Meme Awards 2019."[17] Alternative versions The official LazyTown YouTube channel has posted several videos relating to the song, including an hour loop of the original song, an instrumental version, a reversed instrumental version, every "one" being replaced by "The Mine Song" (another song from the series, also with numerous parodies, which later became an internet meme in November 2016), a compilation of the songs with other well-known songs from the series (however, in PAL speed) and the full episode that the song appeared in, "Robbie's Dream Team" from 2014.[13] The original tracks (otherwise known as the "stems") used in composing the song were released shortly after.[18] source:https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/We_Are_Number_One