YouTube confirmed that Rick Astley's 1987 hit song "Never Gonna Give You Up" has officially surpassed 1 billion views on the platform.
The catchy song became a part of internet culture in the early 2000s thanks to the Rickroll meme, and its popularity helped the video reach a new milestone.
YouTube Confirms Rick Astley's Song Has Hit 1 Billion Views
Astley posted a video on his personal Instagram account and thanked everyone for their support for his music stating that what happened is "amazing, crazy, wonderful."
Since numerous music videos have crossed over 7 billion views in the past few years, especially videos from famous artists such as Justin Bieber, Ariana Grande, and BTS, hitting the 1 billion mark is not as prestigious as it once was.
However, the new milestone shows that the Rickroll prank has stayed strong throughout the years.
According to a report from Billboard, the music video hit daily views of 2.3 million on April Fools Day. There have also been "Fortnite" emotes and 4K remasters of the Rickroll video.
In 2008, Rick Astley Rickrolled the Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade. The meme was also used when the San Diego Padres pranked the Boston Red Sox just when the people thought they were about to sing "Sweet Caroline."
In 2016, Rick Astley released his album titled 50, which debuted number 1 in the United Kindom.
Astley announced that he would be celebrating the good news by releasing a limited 7-inch vinyl record of all of his 80s songs, according to BBC.
History of Rickrolling
Rickrolling began in 2007 on online chat forums such as Reddit and 4chan, where users would post links that directed those who click it to a video of Rick Astley's "Never Gonna Give You Up." This was when Rickrolling was born.
Rickrolling was supposed to be an evolution of an earlier famous prank called duckrolling, where people were sent an image of a duck on wheels with the song "The Picard Song" by DarkMateria, according to Forbes.
Since its release, Rickrolling has evolved. Students have pranked their teachers by handing out exam papers with a printed screenshot of Rick Astley's music video.
Protestors have blasted the song using boomboxes while they were in the middle of a heated debate with Scientologists.
Banners that contained the video link in binary code were also hang up in public places. In London's Liverpool Street train station, hundreds of people did a Rickroll flash mob.
Even celebrities were in on the prank. Numerous A-list stars have participated in and been subject to their own Rickrolls.
In 2015, the Foo Fighters Rickrolled through crowds of Westboro Baptist Church members known for their hate speech.
In the same year, hacking group Anonymous Rickrolled ISIS by playing "Never Gonna Give You Up" during the terrorist group attempt at recruiting people online.
Famous characters like The Muppet's Beaker have had the Rickroll treatment too.
The most famous celebrity who got Rickrolled would have to be former President Barack Obama, who made a prank parody called "Barack Roll."
The parody has been watched more than 7 million times, and it features a mix of Obama saying Astley's lyrics while he and TV host Ellen DeGeneres danced.
Other Rickrolled that happened in politics included Republican John McCain, a tweet from the White House, and a video of the Oregon Houses of Parliament. They dropped Astley's lyrics into their parliamentary discourse.
Related Article: 'Super Mario Maker' Course Takes Rickrolling To The Next Level
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Written by Sophie Webster
