Quem Inventou Baby Shark?
What is this earworm and where did it come from? Who is behind this viral hit — and what kind of cash are they rolling in now that everyone and their kid knows the song? Who are those kids, and who came up with that brilliant key change?
“Baby Shark,” that wholesome children’s song that’s somehow become an anthem for toddlers, families, marquee celebrities and groups of complete strangers from Indonesia to Indiana. “Baby Shark,” that viral earworm/mom group in-joke/meme/marketing craze circling the globe in innumerable, unlimited permutations.
It broke into the Billboard Top 100
Maybe using a nursery rhyme to examine humanity’s changing relationship with technology is treading too close to the abyss, but in the vast “Baby Shark” discourse, there’s one moment that Gold says really caught her eye. In October 2018, an adorable video of a little girl asking her Amazon Echo to play “Baby Shark” captured hearts around the world (it also, according to Google trends, coincided with a significant spike in “Baby Shark” searches).
“Only in Lebanon would a song like ‘Baby Shark,’ which is now being played at every crowd gathering, become the anthem of a revolution,” Rabih Alameddine wrote in an opinion piece for The New York Times (via Common Dreams).
Soon “Baby Shark” was everywhere. The song inspired a cereal flavor, sparked an onstage musical production, and soundtracked proper hand-washing technique during the COVID-19 pandemic.
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“These nursery rhymes prepare children for language,” she says. “They’re fun and they create a world-to-lyric connection, where kids can recognize real-life themes like family.”
“Baby Shark” has even gone on to fuel demonstrations. In 2019, protests ignited across Lebanon against the country’s government, and the children’s tune was not far behind, becoming a rallying cry in the streets.
Truth #2: ‘Baby Shark’ Is Kid Catnip
But there's definitely more than meets the eye to one of the catchiest tunes ever to grace your YouTube feed. So where did it come from? Was it the brainchild of a mad genius or a fancy corporate executive? Is there a specific formula that the composers followed to deliberately torment parents around the world? Now that the song has cemented itself as the most-watched YouTube video of all time (and the other contenders would need to score a few billion more views to catch up), it's time to explore the origin story of "Baby Shark."
“That part is so important,” says Gold, of the simple hand motions that accompany the song. “Children are making sense of the physical experience and managing big feeling and controlling themselves, according to their abilities, in a way that they can feel good about.”
Oh, and repeat they do. Ask any parent with young children about “Baby Shark” and their eyes glaze over, haunted by months of constant backseat singalongs and Saturday morning “Baby Shark” marathons so tedious they should be outlawed under the Geneva Convention.
Baby Shark's creator has big plans for the brand
So what happened to Johnny Only while the song was going viral? What was it like to watch a production company take your tune and spin it into viral gold? He doesn’t remember exactly when he recognized Pinkfong’s version, “but when it started to become popular, I thought that it was very similar to my song.”
So where's the money coming from? Approximately 70% of SmartStudy's revenue comes from digital sales, such as in-app purchases. The remainder comes from physical sales, such as merchandise. And as for the future? The company is planning to release short videos on Netflix, including a cartoon series and a musical in North America. Furthermore, they may work with Amazon and Google to develop games.
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You might also have questions about the intro to the song, which sounds a lot like the super famous "Jaws" theme song. But believe it or not, what you hear is an entirely different song from an entirely different composer. "In addition to the upbeat rhythms and fresh melody, Dvorak's New World Symphony has been added to the beginning of the song to emphasize the tension before the shark family shows up," Oh continued. There you have it, a recipe for success.
It’s not the first viral internet hit to do so, and Billboard wasn’t its first conquest — the song has already hit the UK Top 40, and was only the third song produced by a Korean artist to do so, after international mega-hitmakers Psy and BTS.
When humans of the far future study the culture of their ancient ancestors from the year 2019, it’s going to be pretty hard to avoid the topic of “Baby Shark.”
The song’s 100-year history includes dismemberment, deceit and a legal battle over domain: doo doo doo doo doo
“Lebanese people love to dance and love to party,” Khalek added, “so it makes sense that protests would turn into a big festive party with sound systems and, in some cases, DJs blasting old songs, new songs, the national anthem, and various chants against corrupt officials.”
It wasn’t until 2015 when the South Korean educational brand Pinkfong released its version that “Baby Shark” exploded into the public ear. It caught on quickly, spreading across the internet like wildfire. Then came the “Baby Shark” dance, a hand-clapping choreography that quickly became just as inescapable as the tune.
The popularity started in Indonesia
It’s a little terrifying to consider, if you’re a parent. Those thousands of “Baby Shark” videos are shocking in both their breadth and specificity, in their deft algorithmic delivery of a bored toddler’s every hunt-and-peck wish. There’s Baby Shark featuring Elsa from “Frozen.” Baby Shark Christmas carols. Live-action Baby Shark. CGI Baby Shark. All of them, over and over again, in a kaleidoscope of colors, characters and creators. If a child were at the helm, searching for whatever ideas pop into their impressionable minds, they could fall into an eternal “Baby Shark” viewing hole and never come out.
If you haven't heard the viral song that's broken the internet, you're missing out on a true cultural phenomenon. And if you have heard it, it's likely already playing on a repeat loop either in your head or in your house right now. In any case, the song is seemingly everywhere, entertaining both kids and adults alike with its ear-wormy goodness.
They tried not to make it annoying
It’s been a while since we have seen a cultural moment so global, so richly interdisciplinary as this, the era of “Baby Shark.” In this moment, a multitude of psychologies, theories and human truths unfold. But not a single one of them can properly explain why “Baby Shark” has become the megalodon it is.
“Even before children can speak, they know how to communicate for a certain melody to be played over and over again,” Gold says. “It’s a way of calming and organizing young brains.”