Gary Brolsma
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| Gary Brolsma | |
| Background information | |
|---|---|
| Born | January 14, 1986 Saddle Brook, New Jersey, U.S. |
| Nationality | American |
| Internet activity | |
| Web alias(es) | The Numa Numa Guy |
| Period active | 2004-Present |
| Host service(s) | Newgrounds |
| Meme | Numa Numa |
| Official site | www.newnuma.com |
Gary Brolsma (born January 14, 1986 in Saddle Brook, New Jersey),[1] also known as simply The Numa Numa Guy, gained worldwide attention after posting onto the Internet, near the end of 2004, a webcam video of himself miming to the song "Dragostea din tei" by Moldovan pop band O-Zone. It was known as Numa Numa, after a phrase in the song, and became an Internet phenomenon watched by millions of people, leading to mainstream media exposure for him. He initially withdrew from the attention, but returned with a band and a new video New Numa in the late summer of 2006 and began to do interviews. The Numa Numa video has been made famous for Brolsma's entertaining arm moves and facial expressions.
Contents |
[edit] History
Brolsma has created variants of the Numa Numa video since it became popular. One version also contains some puns, among them pictures of feta cheese during the lyric "fericirea" (happiness) and a LEGO representation of Bob Ross during the singer's words: "sunt eu, Picasso" (it's me, Picasso). Other versions include a showdown between him and Angry German Kid getting angry at his computer. The video also had a cameo by the Star Wars kid.
He made appearances on ABC's Good Morning America, NBC's The Tonight Show, and VH1's Best Week Ever, but then became uncomfortable with the amount of attention.[citation needed] He stopped taking phone calls from the media; he cancelled an appearance on NBC's Today Show on 17 February 2005; and he did not cooperate with The New York Times for their 26 February 2005 article about him.[citation needed]
A story in The Believer (June/July 2006) explored the song's spread and global homogenization, while arguing that Brolsma's video "singlehandedly justifies the existence of webcams . . . It’s a movie of someone who is having the time of his life, wants to share his joy with everyone, and doesn’t care what anyone else thinks".[2]
Gary's video inspired singer/songwriter Dan Balan, formerly of O-Zone to re-create Dragostea Din Tei, as a new single "Sugar Tunes Numa Numa". He appeared in a New York City signing event at an F.Y.E. store on June 29, 2007.
He was voted the Number 1 Internet Icon by 40 Greatest Internet Superstars on VH1, beating the Star Wars kid at Number 2.
He set a record in the Guinness World Records 2008, for the original Numa Numa video. The Starwars Kid clip is the most popular ever with an estimated combined 900 Million views, followed by Gary Brolsma dancing to the tune of Numa Numa (Dragostea din tei) with 700 Million views.
He also has shows that he uploads on a schedule. These shows are Rock That Ride, Bill Cafe, Bob And Rob Save A Buck, Soap Atthetic and The Kristy Storms Show.
[edit] Other media
Gary was featured in a Geico commercial lip-syncing the Mysto & Pizzi version of "Somebody's Watching Me" for one of their commercials in 2009.
Gary recently appeared in the video for the Weezer single "Pork and Beans", singing along with the band while doing the Numa Numa dance.[3]
Gary has appeared in episode 1204 (#171) of the animated series South Park, "Canada on Strike". It was first broadcast on April 2, 2008. The episode parodies the 2007–2008 Writers Guild of America strike and popular Internet videos.
Gary also made a video promoting the Discovery Channel's National Body Challenge, which he stated he was joining.[4] In it, he parodies, among other things, the Atkins Nutritional Approach and Star Wars kid.
Gary also appeared in the music video for the Barenaked Ladies song "Sound of Your Voice", which featured a compilation of YouTube celebrities.
Gary once had a small part on The War at Home when Dave was talking about him,[5] giving his distinctive "Aló" to a person on the phone in a short scene.
On October 15, 2007, The New York Times reported that Brolsma had recently collaborated on a video with lonelygirl15's Glenn Rubenstein, as well as Chad Vader's Aaron Yonda and Matt Sloan, as a part of Canon's Battle of the Internet Superstars.[6]
On October 21, 2008, Gary finished his first musical album, entitled Weird Tempo. He has been working on the CD for the past 2 years since releasing his last Numa 3 video. The album is a mix of electronic beats with rock influences.[7]
On October 28, 2008, Gary was featured in the original Numa Numa video on the CBS series NCIS.
[edit] Future Work
Gary plans to appear in the first consumer generated Super Bowl Commercial, known as MySuperAd, sporting the Numa Numa Dance.[8][broken citation]
[edit] References
- ^ Feuer, Alan; George, Jason (2005-02-06). "Internet Fame Is Cruel Mistress for a Dancer of the Numa Numa". The New York Times. http://www.nytimes.com/2005/02/26/nyregion/26video.html. Retrieved on 2007-11-28.
- ^ The Believer - The Syncher, Not the Song
- ^ YouTube - Pork and Beans
- ^ National Body Challenge : Discovery Health
- ^ YouTube - Numa Guy on The War at Home
- ^ Callender, David (October 15, 2007). "In a City Far, Far Away From Hollywood, the YouTube Tales of a Lesser Vader". The New York Times. http://www.nytimes.com/2007/10/15/business/media/15chad.html. Retrieved on November 28, 2007.
- ^ Gary (10/21/08). "CD Baby". http://www.cdbaby.com/cd/garybrolsma. Retrieved on 2008-10-21.
- ^ Posted by MySuperAd.com (2007-12-25). "Mysuperad". http://mysuperad.blogspot.com/2007/12/mysuperad-has-been-long-process-and-was.html. Retrieved on 2008-08-05.
[edit] External links
- Newgrounds.com - Numa Numa Dance - Numa Numa Dance where it was originally submitted.
- NewNuma.com - Gary Brolsma's Official Website
- Gary Brolsma's YouTube profile - Gary Brolsma's YouTube profile
- Gary Brolsma's CD Weird Tempo - Gary Brolsma's CD, Weird Tempo
- Barenaked Ladies - Sound of Your Voice - Gary in Barenaked Ladies - Sound of Your Voice
- Internet Fame Is Cruel Mistress for a Dancer of the Numa Numa - New York Times Article
