“Partying, Partying, Yeah!”

“Oh my god, this is a joke!” was the first thing I said when my friend showed me “Friday” by Rebecca Black on YouTube. A song about eating cereal, picking where to sit in an oversized convertible with a 13-year-old driving, and partying outside under a fake tree with a random guy rapping in a car, has got to be a joke. I mean, the lyrics are literally, “Yesterday was Thursday, today is Friday. Tomorrow is Saturday, and Sunday comes afterwards.”

No matter how stupid this song is, it’s still a sensation. Everyone and their mother know about Rebecca Black. The music video has over 70 million views on YouTube, numerous parodies and remixes, and a lot of opinions. Miley Cyrus is jealous, saying, “You shouldn’t just be able to put a song on YouTube and go out on tour.” But Lady Gaga thinks Black is a “genius.” So what do we think?

Clearly it’s a cheesy song, but it’s also insanely addictive. “Partying, Partying, Yeah!” is probably playing through half of Fairfield University students’ heads; now you probably have it in your head, too. My neighbors are actually singing the lyrics at the top of their lungs as I type…and they’re 19-year-old guys. Now that’s saying something!

Does a catchy tune make a great artist? Maybe, but Rebecca Black should not be given a lot of credit. She did not even write the song. Instead, everything about “Friday” was created by Ark Music Factory, an independent record label created for discovering and recruiting young singers. Patrice Wilson, the creator of Ark Music Factory and the random rapper in “Friday,” wrote the song and provided the music and video for a fee of $2,000, which was paid for by Black’s parents. Ark Music Factory even refined her voice for the song.

But Wilson claims that the point of the song was not for people to enjoy it. Rather, it was “to create something that was really simple but something that sticks in people’s heads; to have people say, ‘I hate this song, but I’m still singing it.” So even though she has received some backlash from YouTubers saying that they hope she cuts herself and has an eating disorder, Black still sees “Friday” as an accomplishment, because it will be stuck in every hater’s head.

I wonder how all those original and talented artists struggling for fame feel when they’re stomped on by a tween who gets immediate stardom after Mommy writes a big, fat check. Luckily, this song is losing people’s interest, and it’s on to the next Charlie Sheen scandal. But because of this one hit wonder, who’s to say that more semi-talented tweens aren’t going to come out with songs called “Monday,” “Tuesday,” or “Wednesday?” This is a turning point for the Internet which proves that anyone can put something online and become an instant celebrity. A baby named Charlie, a teen with a love for “World of Warcraft,” and Harry Potter puppets are all famous. I cannot wait to see what upload becomes famous next week.