13 Classic Viral YouTube Videos from the ‘00s You Forgot You Were Obsessed With
A definitive, accurate, not-at-all-biased ranking.
Please slip into your comfiest checkered Vans, because we’re about to take a long trip down memory lane, all the way back to the early-to-late aughts, when your life consisted of velour tracksuits, custom-covered flip phones, and a near-constant stream of loud, obnoxious references to these 13 hugely viral YouTube videos, below.
Get ready for a big ol’ dose of oh-my-god nostalgia and to mutter, "wow, I feel old," approximately 100 times to yourself.
13. Peanut Butter Jelly Time
“Peanut butter jelly with a baseball bat.”
VIEWS: 27.7 million
12. Evolution of Dance
From Elvis’ “Nothin' But a Hound Dog” to Outkast’s “Hey, Ya!” this clip was straight-up magic.
VIEWS: 300 million
11. Salad Fingers
“The feeling of rust against my salad fingers is almost orgasmic.” Still terrifying. Still hate this.
The ultimate daily digest for women of power, purpose, and style.
VIEWS: 31 million
10. Mr. Trololo
Yes, this song has been stuck in your head for almost a full decade.
VIEWS: 26.4 million
9. Mortal Kombat Theme
That time the comedy duo Smosh created a super grainy music video for Mortal Kombat, and the internet lost its collective mind.
VIEWS: 29.3 million
8. Muffins
“Imaaaginary muffin!”
VIEWS: 27.7 million
7. Very Scary Car Driving
You to your friends: “No, no, it’s fine; I promise. Just watch it.”
VIEWS: 9 million
6. Potter Puppet Pals
“It’s a pipe bomb!”
VIEWS: 160.4 million
5. Numa Numa
When lip-synching to O-Zone’s “Dragostea Din Tei” could get you viral. Fact: This video still holds up. And I hate myself.
VIEWS: 26.7 million
4. Badger, Badger, Badger
“Snake! A snake! Oooh, it’s a snake.”
VIEWS: 24.3 million
3. Charlie the Unicorn
"It's a leopluridon Charlie!"
"A MAGICAL leopluridon!"
VIEWS: 30.3 million
2. Shoes
“Shoes. Shoes. Shoes. Oh, my god, shoes.”
VIEWS: 62.3 million
1. Chocolate Rain
Just…no words needed.
VIEWS: 145 million
Chloe Metzger is the deputy beauty director at Cosmopolitan, overseeing the editorial content and growth strategy of the hair, makeup, and skin space on digital, while also obsessively writing about the best hair products for every hair type (curly girl here; whattup), and the skincare routines that really, truly work (follow her on Instagram to see behind-the-scenes pics of that magazine life). She brings nearly a decade of writing and editing expertise, and her work has appeared in Allure, Health, Fitness, Marie Claire, StyleCaster, and Parents. She also has an unhealthy adoration for Tom Hanks and would like to please meet him one day, if you could arrange that. Thanks.