OH PLEASE GOD NO: Crazy Frog is Back and Just as Annoying as Ever
OH PLEASE GOD NO: Crazy Frog is Back and Just as Annoying as Ever
DYOR Dave
Remember a time when you could buy a ringtone from a TV ad? I can’t even remember the last time I heard anyones ringtone besides my grandparents. While looking back on that era with romantic nostalgia can bring back fond memories, there’s a certain naked blue creature that dominated the era, and if you thought 2021 couldn’t get any worse, I’ve got some bad news for you. He’s back.
Crazy Frog first burst onto the scene in 2005 with the hit “Axel F,” featuring a blue frog with clearly visible, although tiny genitalia as well as insightful lyrics such as “Ring ding ding ding bem bem bem” and “Baa aramba baa bom baa barooumba.” Now, the Swedish animated character has returned with a new song and video, “tricky.”
Despite the newest single coming almost 20 years after his debut, there is amazingly almost zero musical development, with yet another recycled Euro-dance track remixed and released as a “new song.”
With more rings than my calls to Centrelink and more dings than Buddy Franklin’s car going down New South Head Road, this song is exactly what we’ve come to expect from the animated creature who was originally called “The Annoying Thing.”
As well as the new music, Crazy Frog has also expanded into another industry that is home to similarly ugly animated animals. Yep, you guessed it, there is now official crazy frog NFT’s. And what do you get when you cross a universally hated frog with another widely despised trend? Death threats sent to social media accounts of course!
The Crazy Frog Twitter admins have had to deal with an expected amount of hate, forcing them to post a long thread in which they stated “We, the social media guys, don’t have any control over NFT’s… The creator is the producer. He’s in charge and we just follow.”
Hello, everyone. We would like to start this message by acknowledging that while we appreciate all the valid criticism toward NFTs, sending us death threats and other nasty things to our email isn't cool or productive. 1/9
— Crazy Frog (@TrueCrazyFrog) December 13, 2021
It wasn't hard to work out the true feelings of their social media team
It’s not the first time that Crazy Frog has caused a stir on Twitter. In July of 2020, a photo was posted to the account showing what may be a lovely sight to some, but very triggering to others. The frog was shown hanging from a noose in a post that was deleted almost as soon as it was posted, alongside the caption “goodbye world.” An apology was quickly posted, but it’s fair to say that their reputation was already beyond repair.
Crazy Frog was first invented in 1997 by 17-year-old Swedish student Daniel Malmedahl, who recorded himself imitating the sound of a two-stroke engine. It wasn’t until Erik Wernquist discovered the sound in 2003 that the iconic image was created, at that time called “The Annoying Thing.” After gaining popularity through file sharing and peer-to-peer downloads, ringtone company Jamba discovered the character and bought the license, changing the name to “Crazy Frog” and relentlessly marketing it all around the world.
Since then, he has released three albums of “ring-ding” filled remixes and even earned the title of 25th most played Youtube video of all time, with Axel F sitting at just over 3 billion views. He’s also released video games, a documentary and even toured the world, including Australia in 2005. And in case you were wondering, yes, the live incarnation is somehow even more disturbing than the animated version.
While the future is still unwritten for everyone’s most hated naked blue CGI creature, one thing is for sure. We haven’t seen the last of the Crazy Frog, and it’s anyone’s guess as to what he’ll deliver us next.
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