Numa Numa (video)
Internet meme

Gary Brolsma in the video

"Numa Numa" (/ˈnuːmə/) is an Internet meme based on a video by American vlogger Gary Brolsma made after the song "Dragostea Din Tei", released by Moldovan pop group O-Zone in 2003. Brolsma's video, entitled "Numa Numa Dance", was uploaded to the website Newgrounds on December 6, 2004 under the username Gman250, showing Brolsma's lip-syncing of the song with lively dance moves. The video's title is derived from the Romanian words "nu mă nu mă" occurring in the refrain of O-Zone's song, which was the first Numa Numa-themed video to gain widespread attention.

Numa Numa Dance has since spawned many parody videos, including those created for the New Numa Contest, sponsored by Brolsma, which promised US $45,000 in prize money for submissions.[1] His original video was named 41st in the 2006 broadcast of 100 Greatest Funny Moments by Channel 4 in the United Kingdom.[2] The video was featured on Channel 4's Virtually Famous,[3] and ranked No. 1 in VH1's "40 Greatest Internet Superstars" in March 2007.[4] The Viral Factory estimated that the video had been viewed over 700 million times by November 27, 2006.[5]

History

On Newgrounds, Numa Numa Dance has since earned over 8,000,000 views, from which it has been reposted to hundreds of websites. A 2006 BBC report claimed that Numa Numa Dance was the second most-watched viral video of all time, with 700 million views accumulated, losing out merely to the "Star Wars kid", based on page impression figures collated by viral marketing company The Viral Factory.[6] Brolsma received mainstream media's coverage from ABC's Good Morning America, NBC's The Tonight Show with Jay Leno, VH1's Best Week Ever, with Numa Numa having been listed as No. 1 on VH1s Top 40 Internet Superstars.

The New York Times said that Brolsma was an "unwilling and embarrassed Web celebrity" however.[7] He cancelled media appearances, but reappeared in September 2006 with a professionally produced video, New Numa or Numa Numa 2[note 1], featuring a song dedicated to him by the Variety Beats.[8][9] This video, hosted on YouTube, marked the start of the "New Numa Contest", which promised US $45,000 in prize money and a US $25,000 award to the winner.[10] On May 23, 2008, Brolsma was featured alongside other internet celebrities in the MV of Weezer's song "Pork and Beans",[11] from their self-titled 2008 album Weezer.

On December 5, 2014, Brolsma uploaded a video entitled Numa Numa 10-Year Reunion to the Newgrounds. The video featured his lip-syncing of several songs, including Shake It Off by Taylor Swift, Don't Think Twice, It's All Right by Bob Dylan and Firework by Katy Perry. Both the original video and 10-Year Reunion video have been deleted by the moderation team of the Newgrounds over music licensing issues.[12][13][14] Brolsma later stated in an interview, "...I found Dragostea Din Tei in another (I believe it was Japanese) flash animation with cartoon cats".[15]

On April 1, 2017, Brolsma uploaded the original video to his own YouTube channel.[16] On November 20, 2022, an emote based on the viral dance was released in Epic Games' Fortnite: Battle Royale as a collaboration with Brolsma and O-Zone. On May 11, 2023, the video was permanently deleted from the original channel, formerly Numa Networks – now named the Dork Daily, on livestream due to threats of a copyright strike from Brolsma.[17][18]

On 11 August 2023, Brolsma released a remake of his 2004 video on his YouTube channel.[19] As of 17 October 2024, the remake has accumulated 1,771,125 views.[20]

Gary Brolsma

Gary Brolsma
Brolsma in 2006
Born
Gary William Brolsma

(1986-01-14) January 14, 1986 (age 38)
Saddle Brook, New Jersey, US
Other names
  • Gman250
  • The Numa Numa Guy
Notable work"Numa Numa Dance"

Gary William Brolsma (born January 14, 1986)[21] is an American vlogger and musician who gained worldwide attention after posting the Numa Numa Dance video in 2004. He made appearances on ABC's Good Morning America, NBC's The Tonight Show and VH1's Best Week Ever. A 2006 story in The Believer explored the song's spread and global homogenization, while arguing that Brolsma's video

singlehandedly justifies the existence of webcams... It’s a movie of someone who is having the time of his life, wants to share his joy with everyone, and doesn’t care what anyone else thinks.[22] In 2007, he was voted the Number 1 Internet Icon by VH1 in their 40 Greatest Internet Superstars list, beating the Star Wars kid who placed at Number 2.[4]

On October 15, 2007, The New York Times reported that Brolsma had collaborated on a video with lonelygirl15's Glenn Rubenstein, Chad Vader's Aaron Yonda and Matt Sloan as a part of Canon's Battle of the Viral Video Superstars.[23] In 2008, Brolsma released his first album, Weird Tempo.[24] In 2019, he released his second album, Haunted House of Pancakes.[25]

Notes

  1. ^ Not to be confused with the Dan Balan remix of the song released in 2018.

References

  1. ^ "Gary Brolsma & New Numa!". New Numa. Archived from the original on December 30, 2006. Retrieved January 9, 2021.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: unfit URL (link)
  2. ^ "Channel4 - 100 Greatest FUNNY MOMENTS". channel4.com. Archived from the original on June 22, 2007. Retrieved July 2, 2007.
  3. ^ "Virtually Famous Series 1, Episode 6". British Comedy Guide. Archived from the original on November 26, 2020. Retrieved January 9, 2021.
  4. ^ a b "Numa Numa voted #1 by VH1". April 10, 2007. Archived from the original on December 12, 2021. Retrieved January 9, 2021 – via YouTube.
  5. ^ "Star Wars Kid is top viral video". BBC News. November 27, 2006. Retrieved May 24, 2010.
  6. ^ "Star Wars Kid is top viral video". BBC News. November 27, 2006. Retrieved July 1, 2007.
  7. ^ Feuer & George (2005)
  8. ^ Gary Brolsma & The Numa Story
  9. ^ Jasso, Silke (May 9, 2021). "What Happened to the 'Numa Numa' Guy?". Rare. Retrieved May 5, 2023.
  10. ^ "Viral video legend Gary Brolsma returns with "New Numa" and $45,000 in prizes for other viral enthusiasts" (Press release). Jaeter Corp. August 28, 2006. Retrieved July 12, 2007.
  11. ^ Weezer - Pork And Beans (Closed Captioned), December 13, 2009, retrieved January 11, 2023
  12. ^ "Newgrounds Wiki - Numa Numa". Newgrounds.com. Retrieved April 26, 2021.
  13. ^ "Numa Numa Dance". Newgrounds. Archived from the original on November 18, 2012. Retrieved April 11, 2007.
  14. ^ "Numa Numa 10-Year Reunion". Newgrounds. Archived from the original on December 8, 2014. Retrieved April 11, 2007.
  15. ^ "Gary Brolsma & The Numa Story". Gary Brolsma & New Numa!. Retrieved July 3, 2007.
  16. ^ "Numa Numa". YouTube. April 1, 2017. Retrieved July 20, 2023.
  17. ^ Khonke, Peter (May 12, 2023). "The original viral Numa Numa video has been removed from YouTube and it's time to riot". We Got This Covered. Retrieved July 20, 2023.
  18. ^ Deleting Numa Numa Video (internet history)
  19. ^ "After nearly 20 years, the 'Numa Numa' guy brings back his iconic dance (to promote his music)". Tubefilter. August 21, 2023.
  20. ^ "Numa Numa (2023)". YouTube. August 11, 2023. Retrieved October 15, 2024.
  21. ^ Feuer, Alan; George, Jason (February 6, 2005). "Internet Fame Is Cruel Mistress for a Dancer of the Numa Numa". The New York Times. Retrieved November 28, 2007.
  22. ^ The Believer – The Syncher, Not the Song. Believermag.com (December 6, 2004). Retrieved on January 18, 2012.
  23. ^ Callender, David (October 15, 2007). "In a City Far, Far Away From Hollywood, the YouTube Tales of a Lesser Vader". The New York Times. Retrieved November 28, 2007.
  24. ^ Gary (October 21, 2008). "CD Baby". Retrieved October 21, 2008.
  25. ^ ♫ Haunted House of Pancakes - Gary Brolsma. Listen @cdbaby, archived from the original on November 17, 2019, retrieved November 17, 2019
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