The internet existed in 1996, but nowhere near what we know today. Not everyone owned a home computer. Cell phones were bricks, coverage was patchy, and only executives used them. There was no social media, YouTube, or TikTok. When something took society by storm, it was through television, radio, and a truly widespread societal shift.
And what should I discover while revisiting some old YouTubers I used to follow but a One Hit Wonderland review from Todd in the Shadows exploring Macarena, what this phenomenon was and where it came from. The Macarena was probably the biggest and most obnoxious of these pre-internet memes. I still occasionally joke about that dance craze as I check my pockets and belt for my EDC essentials. Keys, wallet, Leatherman, phone.... HEY, MACARENA!
Now, fads come and go on a weekly basis. This... this was huge. Like the stale boomer memes that won't die, the Macarena was embraced by old farts who wanted to be hip long after the cool crowd was done with it. But it turns out there's a lot more to the story and even the song itself. Who were Los del Rio, and what was the story of this dance craze that took the world by storm before "viral hit" was even a term that existed? Todd in the Shadows will tell you everything!
And now that #$%@#% song is stuck in your head again after all these years, too. Ha! But I hate Achy-Breaky Heart even more than this, I guess. I wrote about the stuff I actually liked from that era a few weeks ago.
