Why was the Macarena so successfull in the US?

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When euro pop is largely regarded with deep suspicion there.

― Alan Trewartha, Thursday, 25 April 2002 00:00 (twenty-three years ago)

please please tell me now.

― Alan Trewartha, Thursday, 25 April 2002 00:00 (twenty-three years ago)

The Latin population and influence of same.

― Dr. C, Thursday, 25 April 2002 00:00 (twenty-three years ago)

Because people are morons.

― Dave225, Thursday, 25 April 2002 00:00 (twenty-three years ago)

>When euro pop is largely regarded with deep suspicion there

The average USer doesn't know how to dance. The Macarana came with an easy to learn dance to go with it.

― fletrejet, Thursday, 25 April 2002 00:00 (twenty-three years ago)

because of the overabundance of great drummers

― mark s, Thursday, 25 April 2002 00:00 (twenty-three years ago)

Two words: Al Gore.

― Judd Nelson, Thursday, 25 April 2002 00:00 (twenty-three years ago)

sexy video

― briania, Thursday, 25 April 2002 00:00 (twenty-three years ago)

Because it was a bloody excellent and catchy tune!!! It could even overcome US citizens deep suspicion of euro pop, it was that good!!

― Old Fart!!!!, Thursday, 25 April 2002 00:00 (twenty-three years ago)

what does euro pop have to do with anything?

― Tracer Hand, Thursday, 25 April 2002 00:00 (twenty-three years ago)

see 'why does the media love crap' thread

― Ron, Thursday, 25 April 2002 00:00 (twenty-three years ago)

yeah but Ron the Macarena was one of the increasingly rare cases of the media actually reporting and playing catch-up on a musical phenomenon instead of engineering it.

i suspect one reason for its popularity was the huge base of Latino freestyle fans who were ready for something totally casual and fun after years of increasingly trance-ish latin club music. but freestyle is something i know NOTHING about.... (new thread alert)

― Tracer Hand, Thursday, 25 April 2002 00:00 (twenty-three years ago)

I don't think the two are really comparable. The Macarena was an old style novelty dance. Euro pop is a whole genre, I guess.

Euro pop is horrible to dance to, in my opinion; or more to the point, it doesn't inspire me to dance.

― DeRayMi, Thursday, 25 April 2002 00:00 (twenty-three years ago)

What exactly is Latin freestyle?

I am used to seeing the word freestyle applied to salsa to mean dancing without a partner, but I take it that Latin freestyle is related to house somehow??

― DeRayMi, Thursday, 25 April 2002 00:00 (twenty-three years ago)

i honestly don't know, it was popular in Oz too in 96, but in argentina we were dancing to the techno macarena in 93.

― Queen G, Thursday, 25 April 2002 00:00 (twenty-three years ago)

Okay I've thought about this some more and I've decided that the Macarena was popular because of the very last beat of the chorus where everybody in the studio summons up a big gruff "OI!"

Knowing this maybe the real question is why the Macarena wasn't more popular in Australia.

― Tracer hand, Thursday, 25 April 2002 00:00 (twenty-three years ago)

it was more an "aiiii" than an "oi" though, which changes EVERYTHING.

― Alan Trewartha, Thursday, 25 April 2002 00:00 (twenty-three years ago)

as in "aiiii! a balrog! a balrog is come!"

― mark s, Thursday, 25 April 2002 00:00 (twenty-three years ago)

DON'T GO THERE mark s.

― Tracer hand, Thursday, 25 April 2002 00:00 (twenty-three years ago)

mmmm! balrog cum!!

― i went there, Thursday, 25 April 2002 00:00 (twenty-three years ago)

oh thank god. i though you were going to talk about hobbits rhythmically putting their hands on their own asses and turning about.

― Tracer hand, Thursday, 25 April 2002 00:00 (twenty-three years ago)

I think you all should congratulate me on the Herculean amount of willpower it took for me not to take this setup and run with it.

― Dan Perry, Thursday, 25 April 2002 00:00 (twenty-three years ago)

You are an angel in disguise, Dan. Now go wash your brain out with soap -- and scrub hard.

― Ned Raggett, Thursday, 25 April 2002 00:00 (twenty-three years ago)

The same reason that the Electric Slide is still played at weddings and shit clubs... and the same reason the absolute garbage Mr. C the Slide Man's "Cha-Cha Slide" gets any attention whatsoever. I wonder how many line dancing songs don't get this much play...

― Stuart, Thursday, 25 April 2002 00:00 (twenty-three years ago)

The average USer doesn't know how to dance. The Macarana came with an easy to learn dance to go with it.
Reminds me of an interview from the 70s. Gloria Gaynor said of Disco: "Well, we had to invent Disco, because the rhythms of Funk and Soul are too sophisticated for white people to dance to."
Heh.

― Lord Custos II, Thursday, 25 April 2002 00:00 (twenty-three years ago)

twenty-one years pass...

I dunno when yall last listened to the entirety of the Macarena, but it is 30 years old and kind of tremendous

― Florin Cuchares, Saturday, 17 June 2023 11:36 (two years ago)

what was she supposed to do? He was out of town... and his two friends, were soooo fine

― boxedjoy, Saturday, 17 June 2023 11:41 (two years ago)

I listened to it a lot when the Songs That Explain the 90s podcast did their episode about it, and can confirm that it sounds great in 2023

― The king of the demo (bernard snowy), Saturday, 17 June 2023 11:43 (two years ago)

I like the original better, not the Bayside Boys remix with the non-sequitur lyrics about Nicarino

― the manwich horror (Neanderthal), Saturday, 17 June 2023 14:05 (two years ago)

The Todd in the Shadows episode on it is easily one of his best

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=33MGYUouEE4

― Ned Raggett, Saturday, 17 June 2023 15:01 (two years ago)

AY-YaH!

― brimstead, Saturday, 17 June 2023 16:42 (two years ago)

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