YouTube has released its official list of the most watched videos of 2011. Mirroring the results of Google’s Zeitgeist — which revealed the most searched terms of 2011 – the official video for Rebecca Black’s Friday heads up a top ten made up of music videos, adverts and, of course, cats.
The world’s most popular sharing platform has some pretty impressive stats behind it. For instance, 48 hours of video were uploaded every minute in 2011 and YouTube received more than 3-billion views a day. Despite the fact 70% of its traffic comes from outside the US, the majority of the top trending videos still come from America.
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1. Rebecca Black Friday — Official Music Video
Try even looking at the title of this entry without the chorus once again emerging from the deep, dark place you’d tried to bury it. Go on, I dare you.
2. Ultimate Dog Tease
No facial dialogue and a voice dubbing over the jaw movements of a dog. 74-million plus hits. Guess the best pleasures can really be the most simple.
3. Jack Sparrow (feat Michael Bolton)
The guys from Lonely Island have always been pretty funny, but Michael Bolton definitely steals the show in this video.
4. Talking Twin Babies Part 2
Riveting dialogue, action sequences, stainless steel kitchen appliances and twin babies, what more could you want from a viral video?
5. Nyan Cat (Original)
Nyan Cat proves that all you need for a viral sensation is 8bit graphics, a little bit of synth and the word “Nyan” on constant loop.
6. Look At Me Now — Chris Brown ft. Lil Wayne, Busta Rhymes (Cover by @KarminMusic)
Karmin is made up of Amy Heidemann and Nick Noonan, who are engaged. This synth driven cover propelled them to viral fame and brought the song to an audience who’d probably never heard it before.
7. The Creep (feat. Nicki Minaj & John Waters)
Lonely Island’s second entry in the top 10 paid homage to the art of creeping in a way that no one else could (or would).
8. Maria Aragon — Born This Way (Cover) by Lady Gaga
Justin Bieber and Grayson Chance both made their names when they were spotted on YouTube. The 11-year-old Maria Aragon is well on her way to following suit, having already recorded an album in in the Philipines, where her family is from. The video went viral after Lady Gaga tweeted it out to her millions of followers.
9. The Force: Volkswagen Commercial
Number nine on the list was also the most watched advert in 2011. Cute kid, Darth Vader outfit, Volkswagen Passat. You know the drill by now.
10. Cat mom hugs baby kitten
Once again proving that cats plus the internet equals a massive win, this video takes cute to a whole other level. I may be speculating here but I’m pretty sure this takes YouTube’s unofficial award for the cutest video in the top 10.
Honourable mention has to go to “Mountain Biker gets taken out by BUCK – CRAZY Footage — Only in Africa”, known to many as Buck Norris. It topped the most watched sports list and was also the most watched video in South Africa, its country of origin.
