Top Songs and Viral Videos of Class of 2012

Whether or not you are a senior, there will always be certain events, trends and fads that are strongly associated with each school year. Each person has a different and unique set of high school experiences, and the HiLite staff has done its best to compile the top songs and viral videos that capture a wide range of artists and topics that are reminiscent of this year at Carmel High School — in the form of Pinterest “pins,” no less. Years from now, which one of these will spark memories of the 2011-2012 school year?

Top Songs

The following pins of songs have been on the top 100 chart the longest this 2011-2012 year, according to Billboard.com.
Years from now, will “Party Rock Anthem” remind you of the Neon Dance during the winter? Will “What Makes You Beautiful” by One Direction bring forth memories of Carmel spring break or the anticipation of summer — the transition to warmer weather and a not-so-dark morning walk up the trail? Or perhaps you’ll just remember how annoying these songs were back in your high school days.

EVA RINALDI / SOURCE

1. “Party Rock Anthem,” an LMFAO hit featuring Lauren Bennet and Goonrock. 56 weeks on billboard charts.

2. “Moves Like Jagger,” a Maroon 5 and Christina Aguilera collaboration. 43 weeks on billboard charts.

3. “Paris,” a Jay Z and Kanye West collaboration. 36 weeks on billboard charts.

4. “Give Me Everything” by Pitbull. 34 weeks on billboard charts.

5. “Rolling in the Deep” by Adele. 33 weeks on billboard charts.

6. “We Found Love,” a song by Rihanna ft. Calvin Harris. 30 weeks on billboard charts.

7. “It Will Rain” by Bruno Mars. 27 weeks on billboard charts.

Top Viral Videos

In this school year, new Youtube stars were born, and Internet classics continued their legacy of hilarity. Some sparked national movements; many dealt with current events such as the upcoming presidential election; still others were filmed just for the purpose of pure entertainment.
Just be thankful that another “Friday”-type video didn’t dominate Youtube this school year. Whether they be shared via Facebook or word of mouth, from honey badgers to Halloween candy challenges to laptop shootings, these viral videos have spread like wildfire.

ROBERT RAINES / SOURCE

1. Kony 2012: From passionate support to weary skepticism, this powerful  30-minute video evoked strong responses from audiences nation-wide to stop Joseph Kony…for a few days. Over 89 million views.

2. Strong: With over 750,000 dislikes, Rick Perry’s campaign video surpassed even Rebecca Black on the infamy scale. Over 8 million views.

3. Jimmy Kimmel’s YouTube Challenge: In this episode, parents were challenged to convince their kids that they’d eaten all of their Halloween candy, and post the reactions to YouTube. What resulted was a mildly sadistic compilation of kids crying and insulting their “sneaky” parents. Over 30 million views.

4. Honey Badger: Like a bizarre, slightly profane at times clip from Animal Planet, this video informs us all about the honey badger. How does the honey badger feel about his success and overnight YouTube fame? Honey badger don’t care. Over 43 million views.

5. Facebook Parenting: In an unforgettable message to rebellious teens, this father puts a stop to his daughter’s insulting Facebook posts once and for all by putting nine bullets into her laptop. Over 33 million views.

6. “Sh** Girls Say”: Similar to Honey Badger in terms of profanity, the viral video inspired a hurricane of entertaining spin-off videos.

7. Abby Wambach’s header goal against Brazil: If I wanted to be punny, I would say this girl really got her head in the game. But wait, I just said it. Over 350 thousand views.