‘Mr. Trololo’ Edward Hill Owns YouTube With A 1967 Vocaliz Song
It is not often that Russian videos go viral, so when this one came about, I just knew I had to write about it. Mr. Trololo (a.k.a. Edward Eduard Hill) is owning YouTube with close to two million page views and 13,000 comments in just three months.
The guy has it all. He is:
a) Russian
b) a good singer with vocals that just make you want to jump up and sing along
c) quite animated in his singing style
The song titled “I am very happy for I am finally coming home” was performed back in 1967, hence the funny hairstyle and stage design. A native of Smolensk, 75-year-old Hill is still alive and well. Russian paper KP.ru reports that Hill found out about his Internet fame through his grandson. Hill says the original song had the lyrics, but the words were scrapped. Apparently, the lyrics were about an American cowboy singing along as he readies to see his lover Mary on his way home to Michigan. No wonder the lyrics were dubbed "inappropriate" by the Soviets, and the song was only a given a go if it was to be simply hummed. Yet, Hill still made it fun. Believe it or not, Hill’s animated style was quite revolutionary back in the Soviet times when any sort of emotion was not generally compatible with singing on national television. The song was quite popular in the USSR, but it never enjoyed the kind of popularity that it does now.
The love for Mr. Trololo throughout the world comes through in dozens of parodies posted on YouTube in recent weeks. Even 2010 Oscar winner Christoph Waltz could not resist Hill’s charm and conjured up his own version of Trololo.
There is now a petition for Hill to go on a world concert tour, which has already been signed by over 900 people. Asked if he would go on a world tour, Hill says he would give it a thought. And, if you just can’t get enough of Mr. Trololo, you can download his ring tone on your phone. Domain trololololololololololo.com is already offering it. Hill also has his own Facebook fan page and a T-shirt service that offers Trololo themed gear.
The truth is that Eduard Hill does have an amazing voice and personality. And, to prove that he does not just hum along, here is one of my favourite songs of his that I think shows his vocal range and that unmistakable singing style quite nicely.