Talk:Rickrolling/Archive 1

brickroll
Were no strangers to walls!

We stick real Close, WITH CEMENT!

Building some houses that are, Really tall!

You wouldnt get this from any other brick!

i, Just want to make you a giant house,

Gotta keep you, Under a roof!

Never gonna brick u up

never gonna let u down,

I cannot run around, im a brick O.o

site: yougotrickrolled.com

Western countries only?
I checked jp.youtube.com (Japan) and tw.youtube.com (Taiwan), which do not redirect featured videos to Never Gonna Give You Up, so apparently the joke is limited to western countries. Will I require sources, as some Wikipedian purists are gonna nag about Original Research (Wikipedia, this is why I hate you), or is this considered obvious enough to just add this info? Vindictive Warrior (talk) 19:00, 1 April 2008 (UTC)
 * Last night (USA time) it was the other way around, with some of the international sites having the joke but the US site being normal. I think they set it up so that the joke would be active during April 1st local time.  So, since it's already April 2 in East Asia, the Japanese and Taiwanese sites are back to normal. Dave 6 talk  19:58, 1 April 2008 (UTC)

Inclusion of podcast, is it notable?
I removed the following line from the article with the reasoning "Is this section now an indiscriminate list of times the song is used on podcasts?".

On the April Fools' Day episode of the music review podcast Have You Heard (episode 17), after discussing Rick Astley's reaction to rickrolling, the hosts rickroll their audience by repeatedly cutting to the song throughout the episode.

It appears to be a non-notable podcast with a relatively small number of episodes and doesn't have a wiki article. My edit has since been reverted, though I'd like to discuss. What makes this "active participation of the phenomenon" notable? AtaruMoroboshi (talk) 14:00, 2 April 2008 (UTC)


 * Notability guidelines do not apply to content within articles, only topics for articles themselves. Still, I don't think the podcast belongs in this article. Z00r (talk) 01:40, 3 April 2008 (UTC)

So...what about Carson Daly?
Are we allowed to mention Carson Daly's Rickroll attempt on his show or is Anonymous still pissed at him for taking credit for the meme? --293.xx.xxx.xx (talk) 08:27, 3 April 2008 (UTC)


 * Carson who?--Father Goose (talk) 08:38, 3 April 2008 (UTC)

gamefaqs april's fools
www.gamefaqs.com —Preceding unsigned comment added by 24.203.200.166 (talk) 17:22, 1 April 2008 (UTC)
 * This has nothing to do with Rick Rolling. Doshindude (talk) 01:44, 7 April 2008 (UTC)

XKCD Verification
In response to the "Verification Needed" referring to XKCD comic #389, I plugged the music from the comic into Finale NotePad, and sure enough, it's the intro to the song, "Never Gonna Give You Up." I'm new to verifying anything on Wikipedia, so I don't know what should happen next... 72.71.241.7 (talk) 14:32, 3 April 2008 (UTC)Rob
 * We ask you to get a shrubbery. --293.xx.xxx.xx (talk) 07:57, 4 April 2008 (UTC)

Reuters
This has made Reuters, nice. Cirt (talk) 05:43, 5 April 2008 (UTC)

ALSO NOTE The article seems to claim the youtube prank was setup as a promotion of sort to increase songs being bought or what not? someone check that? And add it to this article? sorry, in a rush. cheers Nesnad (talk) 16:45, 6 April 2008 (UTC)
 * It seems to me that the article is saying that the youtube prank was allowed as a promotion. That is, youtube and others did it as a prank, but they likely got permission from the copyright owners of the Never Gonna Give You Up video first, and the owners of the video/song allowed it as they're making money from increased sales due to rickrolling.  --Xyzzyplugh (talk) 19:30, 8 April 2008 (UTC)

Considering the very point and purpose of Rickrolling it's possible that they're allowed because they are an effective parody and so fall under fair use. Garonyldas (talk) 22:23, 8 April 2008 (UTC)
 * Your definition of a parody is wholly incorrect. How is putting up an original, copyrighted video -- in its entirety without any changes -- a parody? It's not. The act of linking to it, even if the people that followed the link thought they were getting it, does not make it a parody. So, technically, you would need the copyright holder's permission to do this and, technically, all the millions of views of the Rickroll video were, in effect, violating copyright. —Preceding unsigned comment added by 99.231.8.188 (talk) 14:08, 9 April 2008 (UTC)


 * After some thought, I agree that parody is the wrong term, and feel compelled to mention that this is all speculation. My point was that the context of the video adds something to its original purpose, which may qualify under fair use. Of course, I'm not a lawyer and am only familiar with fair use in the vaguest sense. In any case, at this point the video itself is not usually a standalone, but part of the cultural phenomenon that is Rickrolling, which is why we've got this article. Also, I've never heard of Rickrolling being done for profit, so...that's something too. Considering that this was about the posted article, it sounds like cooperation was sought from the copyright holders so that the Youtube April Fools prank could be carried out without having to worry about upsetting the artist. Garonyldas (talk) 20:33, 9 April 2008 (UTC)

Uploaded with permission? Are you kidding me? Hell no it was never uploaded with permission. The only recent approval of it being there is Rick Astley's rubberstamp of opinion, which doesnt mean anything btw 210.243.112.139 (talk) 03:48, 11 April 2008 (UTC)


 * Did you even read the article? Garonyldas (talk) 05:00, 11 April 2008 (UTC)


 * Timesonline.co.uk discusses rickrolling the NY Mets DigitalC (talk) 05:11, 11 April 2008 (UTC)
 * Philadelphia weekly covers the rickroll DigitalC (talk) 07:59, 11 April 2008 (UTC)

This page should redirect
The page should redirect to Never_Gonna_Give_You_Up, the portion of the article which actually explains the Rickroll.  Zchris87v  23:45, 25 March 2008 (UTC)
 * Makes sense to me. --Onorem♠Dil 00:03, 26 March 2008 (UTC)
 * May need to be updated, if the section title changes, but otherwise sounds good. Done. – Luna Santin  (talk) 02:40, 26 March 2008 (UTC)

No210.243.112.139 (talk) 03:43, 11 April 2008 (UTC)

Actually this page should redirect to http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oHg5SJYRHA0 —Preceding unsigned comment added by 91.9.209.139 (talk) 05:56, 12 April 2008 (UTC)

Olympic Torch?
I removed the following from the article - this section was commented out. I've made note in the edit summary.

''I'd like to add to this section a little bit before having it show up in the actual article, it's kinda short, even though I think it was a notable sighting, there's just not enough information available aside from the Youtube videos. does anyone have anything else or any more information to add?''

''On April 9, 2008, the torch of the 2008 Beijing Olympics was rickrolled as it passed through San Francisco on its way around the world. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kTTK8YpTBFg http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=k5AVqL13gvQ''

AtaruMoroboshi (talk) 04:54, 12 April 2008 (UTC)

"Photoshopped"
Follow the link to "photoshopped" and it specifically says it is slang. This leads me to believe that a term such as "digitally edited" would better. —Preceding unsigned comment added by 137.112.144.234 (talk) 05:47, 12 April 2008 (UTC)
 * "Photoshopped" is a commonly accepted neologism - the link leads to part of the photo manipulation article, so I think it's fine. AtaruMoroboshi (talk) 05:58, 12 April 2008 (UTC)

Potential Sources
BBC News - April 1 2008. SomeNonaSaint (talk) 11:13, 1 April 2008 (UTC)

LA Times interview with Rick: 75.57.190.1 (talk) 18:15, 1 April 2008 (UTC)

Fark comment thread with link to "Muppets Blooper Reel":  —Preceding unsigned comment added by 212.254.35.75 (talk) 22:37, 3 April 2008 (UTC)


 * news.com c/net article "All your baseball are belong to Rick Astley" AtaruMoroboshi (talk) 18:05, 14 April 2008 (UTC)

London, 11th April train station incident
From BBC news - "Fans of pop star Rick Astley descended on London's Liverpool Street train station for a "flashmob" event."--h i s  s p a c e   r e s e a r c h 08:15, 12 April 2008 (UTC)

also mentioned here, in a great article about rickrolling. See under reuters for two more sources that may have been overlooked. timesonline.co.uk2 DigitalC (talk) 01:29, 13 April 2008 (UTC)

I took this out when I converted the April Fool's day section to a list. The text is still there in comments if it is deemed notable enough to have it's own section. Wcudmore (talk) 16:09, 14 April 2008 (UTC)
 * It's back after some reverts. Needs moving into its own section.  It's noteworthy enough due to the size of the event and the number of people required to pull it off.Wcudmore (talk) 16:53, 14 April 2008 (UTC)

Dates
Widespread by May 2007? How widespread? I've only seen it outside 4chan in the last couple of weeks. 88.109.27.103 (talk) 21:38, 13 April 2008 (UTC)
 * Did you check the google trends link? Your personal anecdotal experience regarding this meme is not sufficient to change that date in the article AtaruMoroboshi (talk) 22:33, 13 April 2008 (UTC)

Origin of the rickroll
I seem to recall a sentence or two talking about the family guy episode Meet the Quagmires which first aired May 20, 2007 but it's not there anymore. The episode finished with a "Never gonna give you up" montage and I think it was that episode that reminded people of the song and led to it being used as a rick roll. People who saw the episode recalled that scene when they were rickrolled and ensured the rickroll comments stayed alive.

Similarly, shouldn't the Meet the Quagmires article be changed to indicate it led to the rickroll phenomena rather than being an homage to it.

So is that part of the origin, or were rickrolls around before that episode? (keep in mind that the episode would have been produced several months before airing so I don't know about it being a homage to the rickroll phenomena).--Will2k (talk) 18:52, 1 April 2008 (UTC)
 * Family Guy generally doesn't create jokes like this; it comments on them. The article itself says "By May 2007, the practice had become widespread", which definitely fits with your example. I'd be happy to see the link put back in, if it can be sourced. EVula // talk // &#9775;  // 19:13, 1 April 2008 (UTC)
 * Family Guy couldn't have commented on the joke, as it takes about six months to create an average cartoon episode. Either Rick Roll'ing was inspired by the episode, or it was an incredible coincidence.  —Preceding unsigned comment added by 68.50.42.250 (talk) 18:58, 6 April 2008 (UTC)
 * You say that as if there isn't a third possibility. It's quite possible that the episode was inspired by the phenomenon, and not the other way around. Family Guy is fairly well known for its social commentary and parody or imitation of existing culture, so it's unlikely that it was pure coincidence. Garonyldas (talk) 22:15, 8 April 2008 (UTC)
 * Rickrolling comes from 4chan's /v/. The Family Guy episode was a complete coincidence, as it was aired after the GTAIV trailer came out (a fake link to the trailer was the first Rickroll).65.6.213.12 (talk) 03:41, 2 April 2008 (UTC)

It came from 4chan's /v/ —Preceding unsigned comment added by 201.217.122.158 (talk) 23:41, 1 April 2008 (UTC)

You mean ebaumsworld, yeah? --MAdaXe (talk) 12:53, 2 April 2008 (UTC)
 * No. 4chan originated this one; Ebaums stole it. —Preceding unsigned comment added by 67.160.44.175 (talk) 21:24, 5 April 2008 (UTC)


 * Proof that Rickrolling predates the Family Guy episode: the episode in question aired on May 20th of 2007.  The term Rickroll appears on the following usenet message on May 14th of 2007.  http://groups.google.com/group/wowshamanclass/msg/d1f5ee8243f122e5?dmode=source --Xyzzyplugh (talk) 17:58, 7 April 2008 (UTC)

Although it impossible to verify now it did indeed start on 4chan's /v/. Upon the release of the first GTA4 trailer the servers got so much traffic they crashed for a short time. During the down time someone asked if the video had been uploaded to youtube yet. One Anonymous posted the link to "Never gonna give you up" which went from a few hundred hits up to a few thousand later that day. Later on the video was deleted I believe because of copy right issues and if the original video wasn't deleted you could mark the swift change in comments from reminiscing Astley fans to "OH ONDORE" and "The niggers in GTA4 sure can jump high" and other 4chan style comments. It's sad to see family guy getting the credit for the phenomena but I guess that's just one more of wiki's short comings. TheRedCometMS06 (talk) 18:30, 12 April 2008 (UTC)

Well, apparently some Australian news report now incorrectly credits Family Guy with this meme. Apparently they're above researching on Wikipedia. 68.231.214.169 (talk) 03:57, 15 April 2008 (UTC)

CNN video
http://www.cnn.com/video/#/video/showbiz/2008/04/11/west.uk.rick.rolling.itn

Note: the video erroneously state the meme began with family guy. AtaruMoroboshi (talk) 03:32, 12 April 2008 (UTC)


 * We should incorporate this into the article in a way that insults CNN. 68.231.214.169 (talk) 03:59, 15 April 2008 (UTC)

Semi-Protect
I've put in a request to semi protect this page. AtaruMoroboshi (talk) 16:10, 15 April 2008 (UTC)

April 1st, 2008 and YouTube featured videos
Can people please stop adding this info in to this article without sources, or just adding a link to YouTube as a source? This is a violation of WP:OR. We need a mention in a WP:RS/WP:V secondary source to add this to the article, and I'm sure there will be mention of it at some point soon. Cirt (talk) 05:32, 1 April 2008 (UTC)
 * Well, a valid source is required, but I'm not surprised that there isn't one: it just happened. However, it's fairly easily verified by going to the site. *shrug* It's something that can be fully/properly addressed in a couple of days. EVula // talk // &#9775;  // 05:37, 1 April 2008 (UTC)
 * I added it to a new External links section - hopefully someone will remove the blatant violation of WP:OR in the text. Cirt (talk) 05:38, 1 April 2008 (UTC)
 * The only problem with putting in a citation for this is that YouTube has not made a press release or anything for this (and they shouldn't be expected to as that is the nature of an April Fools joke). We can verify this personally by clicking on one of the featured videos on YouTube but that is all the citation that will be available until a news source reports on this joke (very likely since there is usually a story about Google's April Fools joke and this will probably be mentioned in anyn such story as YouTube is a part of Google). Diemunkiesdie (talk) 07:22, 1 April 2008 (UTC)

well, youtube has rickrolled the masses. If that isn't a good enough reason to keep this article, nothing is. 71.8.72.63 (talk) 06:03, 1 April 2008 (UTC)

Can someone verify if the World of Warcraft April fools joke uses the Chord progression of "never going to give you up" and is, infact, also a rick roll? —Preceding unsigned comment added by 207.170.54.70 (talk) 19:44, 16 April 2008 (UTC)
 * World of Warcraft Bard Class - April Fools Joke uses Rick Roll Chords?

Can someone please remove this cite? YouTube is not an adequate cite for YouTube itself - Can we just write an entire article on YouTube and source it solely to YouTube links and YouTube videos? No, we can not. The same applies here, and this is why a cite to YouTube for something happening on YouTube isn't really the best cite. Cirt (talk) 07:29, 1 April 2008 (UTC)
 * YouTube is not an adequate cite for YouTube
 * Geezus dude, don't get your panties in a bunch. I only added the "cite" because someone over on the Google hoaxes page used it. I'm sure there will be plenty of news stories about this tomorrow, so there will be suitable cites for this thing. As for now, I don't think anyone is going to challenge this "fact" just because I didn't add the "appropriate citation." If it makes you happy, I found a news story about the UK YouTube april fools day joke... I can add that one if you like? Naah, who cares about the UK? --ErgoSum88 (talk) 08:34, 1 April 2008 (UTC)
 * No, please, what is this cite you have about the UK YouTube hoax? I'd certainly like to add that to the article.  Cirt (talk) 08:35, 1 April 2008 (UTC)


 * Here you go... and no, its not a rickroll. --ErgoSum88 (talk) 08:46, 1 April 2008 (UTC)
 * , thanks! I replaced the direct cite to YouTube with that cite you just gave, hope that's okay with you.  Cirt (talk) 08:52, 1 April 2008 (UTC)
 * No problem. Although this page seems to be getting a lot of attention right now, so good luck to you. --ErgoSum88 (talk) 08:57, 1 April 2008 (UTC)
 * Thanks. At least the AfD is over.  Cirt (talk) 08:59, 1 April 2008 (UTC)
 * Best AfD ever. Z00r (talk) 10:01, 1 April 2008 (UTC)
 * Hehe. Cirt (talk) 10:14, 1 April 2008 (UTC)

"Browser Crashing" Rickroll
Just now I've commented out the link on the page to the "Original Browser Crashing" Rickroll. I don't really consider it responsible to link that site, regardless of its potential encyclopedic value. Mendaliv (talk) 12:57, 13 April 2008 (UTC)


 * It doesn't crash my browser, but it is really annoying. Even with disabling Javascript from moving the window around it takes a while to get passed all the messageboxes to exit the page. However if it is decided that it is useful to include in the article as it is the origin, it should probably have some sort of warning. Bill (talk 13:25, 13 April 2008 (UTC)


 * Is that internetisseriousbusiness.com you're talking about? I agree that it's not a good idea to link to it.--h i s  s p a c e   r e s e a r c h 14:07, 13 April 2008 (UTC)
 * I removed this external link along with a couple other. AtaruMoroboshi (talk) 22:34, 13 April 2008 (UTC)
 * Well, that answers my question. Yeah, it's a bad idea to link to it, but shouldn't it be mentioned? I think it's pretty significant.147.226.231.172 (talk) 05:19, 16 April 2008 (UTC) Lurker
 * If we can find a good encyclopedic source that mentions this method of rickroll, I think we'd be good to include a link to that source. But as to actually linking to sites like internetisseriousbusiness... I rank that as just barely better than putting a link to an IM virus infection page in an article about IM viruses. And about the same as putting a direct link to an active phishing website in an article about PayPal. Mendaliv (talk) 07:15, 16 April 2008 (UTC)

Cleanup on April Fool's Section.
I think the best way to handle the cleanup is to give each April Fool's instance a single sentence in a bulleted list.

The April 11 flash mob should be moved into it's own sub-section as it isn't really an April Fool's Day rick-rolling.Wcudmore (talk) 15:58, 14 April 2008 (UTC)
 * This section should not be a list. It should be prose, not bulleted. I am reverting your change. We can discuss how to further improve the section here on the talk page, because it does need cleaning. AtaruMoroboshi (talk) 16:11, 14 April 2008 (UTC)
 * Are you saying that the reverted version is harder to read than the previous? This section is merely a list of "sightings in the wild" on April first.  Since it is a list, it should look like a list.  Don't attempt to make something that is clearly a list of single small points into prose.  It just doesn't work, and ends up sounding like a 9 year old reciting the plot of a t.v. show. Wcudmore (talk) 16:20, 14 April 2008 (UTC)
 * No, I don't recall saying that. However, WhatI am saying is that the section needs to be re-worked into several cohesive paragraphs, and expanded. Putting a bulleted list in the middle of an article doesn't make sense in this case. There are several different types of instances that occurred as well, across the spectrum of the internet and traditional media.AtaruMoroboshi (talk) 16:26, 14 April 2008 (UTC)
 * While I was typing the last response, you reverted my edits. Please dicuss here. No consensus has been reached, and I ask that you respect this discussion before you make changes to the article AtaruMoroboshi (talk) 16:27, 14 April 2008 (UTC)
 * I have reverted the changes you made to the previous non-bulleted version. Please do not revert again until others can discuss this here on the talk page. And a consensus can be reached. Thank you. AtaruMoroboshi (talk) 16:29, 14 April 2008 (UTC)

We are dealing with several small incidents here. I doubt that any single one is noteworthy on it's own (Leaving the noteworthiness of this entire article to another discussion altogether.) I do not think that this sub-section is worth expanding. For Example: "Social blog website LiveJournal announced on the same day that they would be adding a new member to their Advisory Board, linking members to the journal "rickastley", which contains a Rickroll." is a single, complete description of an instance of RickRolling that really shouldn't be expanded. The Scientology, and New York Mets RR are both significant in their importance (Scientology) and Scope (Mets) and warrant their own subsections. The AfD RR's are all small, and short lived incidents, that go to support the larger point of the sub-section which is simply "On AfD 2008, a bunch of stuff happened. Here are some examples: list here."

In order to prove this larger point, a list is the appropriate way of providing evidence. Expanding these small points is not worthwhile, nor would it improve the quality of the article. Take a look at the history (Go back to one of the reverted edits) and ask yourself the following questions:
 * 1) Which version is easier to read?
 * 2) Which version is gets the point across more clearly
 * 3) Which points would be worth expanding beyond what is already there?

Certainly the list could benefit from some re-writing after the fact, but it seems clear to me that listing examples of AfD RickRolularity is the best way to go. Wcudmore (talk) 16:42, 14 April 2008 (UTC)
 * I'll post a response to you about this in a bit. I did want to note it may be confusing to use "AFD" as it also stands for Articles for Deletion - for a moment there I wasn't sure what you were talking about. AtaruMoroboshi (talk) 18:08, 14 April 2008 (UTC)
 * I removed a youtube link for the E! Talk soup line. It violates wp:copyvio. AtaruMoroboshi (talk) 18:14, 14 April 2008 (UTC)
 * How can a link be copyright violation? It's not like Wikipedia is hosting it. I think that's a bit overzealous.  Is there a policy on this issue? Wcudmore (talk) 18:22, 14 April 2008 (UTC)
 * Right. In addition to wp:copyvio, please see wp:Copyrights. AtaruMoroboshi (talk) 18:30, 14 April 2008 (UTC)
 * Ok. wp:Copyrights 1.2 is unclear on the whole Youtube phenomenon. On the onehand it approves linking to copyright material in citation, but also cautions against using material that is illegally hosted. Linking directly to an 'E!' clip would be fine. However, seeing as E! doesn't host archives of this show, it's likely that the Youtube link is the only way to reference this item.  My feeling is that the copyright owner has a clear path of redress via Youtube, and that Wikipedia is not exposed to significant liability by linking to a youtube video even if it is infringing.  Without the youtube citation, the item needs to go unreferenced, and therefore deleted.Wcudmore (talk) 18:50, 14 April 2008 (UTC)
 * The question is whether the rights owner (E!) approved the posting of the content to youtube. It's likely they did not. To err on the side of caution, I still believe the link shouldn't be there. Additionally, I think a reliable written source would much better serve as a reference. Perhaps you can find one?AtaruMoroboshi (talk) 19:00, 14 April 2008 (UTC)
 * I found this:http://www.afterelton.com/blog/lylemasaki/i-heard-a-rumor-rickroll-homophobia but I doubt it's up to reliability standards. Wcudmore (talk) 15:41, 17 April 2008 (UTC)

Back to the original discussion: I'll point you at the goatse page as an example of a bulleted list in a similar context.Wcudmore (talk) 18:53, 14 April 2008 (UTC)
 * I'll have to visit that article when I'm home ;-) AtaruMoroboshi (talk) 19:00, 14 April 2008 (UTC)
 * The article itself is safe for work. Just don't click any links. Wcudmore (talk) 19:01, 14 April 2008 (UTC)

This still needs cleaning up. At the very least, the second paragraph should be split into 3 independent paras. Right now, it deals with 3 unrelated instances. The subsequent paras each deal with one instance each. I will not be doing this until some consensus is reached as to what to do with this section. Wcudmore (talk) 15:36, 17 April 2008 (UTC)
 * Feel free to edit the actual content. Current discussion regarding the format of the section should have little bearing on the content. Also, It's April Fools' Day, watch the apostrophe. I'm pretty sure I missed it a couple of times, and fixed it in the article. AtaruMoroboshi (talk) 16:22, 17 April 2008 (UTC)

E! "The Soup" incident. - Citation Policy.
I'm having problems referencing this incident. There are many posted videos of the actual incident which would be excellent citations. However AtaruMoroboshi feels that these should not be used for copyright violation reasons. He may have a point, but this limits us severely. All other references I can find are blogs. Why are we forced to choose unreliable secondary sources when perfectly good primary sources exist. I also take issue with AturuMoroboshi's (Good Faith) assertion that a published citation is better than a link to the actual event.

If we cannot resolve this citation issue, this incident needs to be removed from the page, which is unfortunate as it goes to the ubiquity of the Rick Roll. Wcudmore (talk) 16:06, 17 April 2008 (UTC)
 * To clarify. I think in this particular instance, as it is of broadcast television, it's best the link is not placed. For the same reason clips of anime from youtube, shouldn't be used as references. I understand your concern, and we'll have to get others who are normally involved in removing potential copy violation involved in the dialog. Additionally, I do not assert published written work is better than video - this is a specific instance, where I believe a TV rip of an event that happened on a pay cable entertainment channel uploaded to youtube may have copyvio issues. AtaruMoroboshi (talk) 16:20, 17 April 2008 (UTC)
 * I recognize your concern, and acknowledge that removing the link is a good-faith edit. I also agree that we need to appeal to higher authority to resolve this issue.  I do feel that if we can't go with the youtube link, we're stuck with nothing but unreliable blog posts and comments in forums.  Perhaps that means that the incident is not notable enough for inclusion. The difference between this issue and the anime issue is that here we are merely trying to document that it happened, and there is no more reliable source than the video of it happening.  How do we get the higher deities involved in this?Wcudmore (talk)  —Preceding comment was added at 16:29, 17 April 2008 (UTC)
 * Pray? I Know there's a formal process -- I'll have to dig around. AtaruMoroboshi (talk) 16:32, 17 April 2008 (UTC)
 * I have prayed. Media_copyright_questions Wcudmore (talk) 16:54, 17 April 2008 (UTC)

A little known fact... TV shows can be used as a primary source. Simply make a cite that shows you saw the episode, thats good enough. Most people seem to assume you need a secondary source when dealing with events of television shows, but that is false. Read WP:PSTS: "Examples of primary sources include archeological artifacts; photographs; historical documents such as diaries, census results, video or transcripts of surveillance, public hearings, trials, or interviews; tabulated results of surveys or questionnaires; written or recorded notes of laboratory and field research, experiments or observations, published experimental results by the person(s) actually involved in the research; autobiographies, original philosophical works, religious scripture, administrative documents, and artistic and fictional works such as poems, scripts, screenplays, novels, motion pictures, videos, and television programs." Therefore, this information need only be cited from the actual episode. --ErgoSum88 (talk) 17:09, 17 April 2008 (UTC)


 * You said: "Simply make a cite that shows you saw the episode, thats good enough."WP:PSTS says: Unsourced material obtained from a Wikipedian's personal experience, such as an unpublished eyewitness account, should not be added to articles. It would violate both this policy and Verifiability, and would cause Wikipedia to become a primary source for that material. Which is correct? (Thanks for the response) Wcudmore (talk) 17:18, 17 April 2008 (UTC)


 * If this is just citing an episode of a TV show as an example and not providing any critical analysis (original research), then the Cite episode template can be used. Bill (talk 17:21, 17 April 2008 (UTC)
 * I'd support using the Cite episode template, in lieu of directly linking to a youtube video . AtaruMoroboshi (talk) 19:52, 17 April 2008 (UTC)
 * I'll get around to it in a bit. Got marking to do now. Wcudmore (talk) 22:51, 17 April 2008 (UTC)

Wcudmore took my words a little too literally. What I meant was, create a cite showing that the information was taken directly from the episode... like the "cite episode" template above. Drawing on personal experience is not the same as citing something which in essence means "you" personally read the book, website, or watched a tv episode upon which you are drawing the information from. Its true, you can't "cite" personal experience, however, reading a book or watching an episode is a personal experience upon which you can draw from to cite sources... there is a difference. But I'm sure you all figured that out by now. --ErgoSum88 (talk) 23:55, 17 April 2008 (UTC)

RESOLVED —Preceding unsigned comment added by Wcudmore (talk • contribs) 18:04, 21 April 2008 (UTC)
 * Yes, ErgoSum88 cited the episode. Thanks Ergo. AtaruMoroboshi (talk) 18:11, 21 April 2008 (UTC)

Cleaning up....
This page needs ALOT of cleaning up.... the london rick roll could be expanded upon... not to mention that last sentence in the mets section is a personal view not a fact —Preceding unsigned comment added by Pauleo1 (talk • contribs) 03:44, 19 April 2008


 * The last sentence in the Mets section is a direct quote from the article that is sourcing it. It's a description from a reliable source. Bill (talk 02:52, 19 April 2008 (UTC)

The marching band addition is very light on details. How did they Rick Roll? Did they publish a fake URL and have everyone use their cellphone browser or did they play the song at half time? I'm deleting it for now. Wcudmore (talk) 17:26, 21 April 2008 (UTC)
 * I reworded your "This is garbage!" comment to "Temporarily commented out, unit further details can be added." I think it's best to keep neutral wording when in article even if it is commented out. Also, it may be difficult for anyone to source the article, if they are unaware the section is commented out. For that reason I'm posted it here so it can be sourced AtaruMoroboshi (talk) 17:51, 21 April 2008 (UTC)

"On April 19, 2008, the Stanford Marching Band rickrolled UC Davis's Picnic Day."


 * Good point. I apologize for the strong language.

Updating
Whoever locked this page has now created a lag in information about what events are getting rick rolled. For example, On April 11th. (Yes thats 10 days ago) The Dallas Mavericks Organization Rick Rolled there fans. And still NOTHING was said about this on the page. Not to mention the london flash mob rick roll could have been written about further. This page has not been hijacked by vandals but by the wikipedia users themselves. The lag of information should be corrected
 * You are free (and encouraged) to edit this page if you create an account. xenocidic (talk) 15:44, 21 April 2008 (UTC)
 * If you take the time to look at the edit history you can see clear and systematic vandalizing of the page by anonymous editors. That is why the page was semi-protected, it's temporary, and unfortunately commmon with these types of articles. Not withstanding, you have several options to still further contribute to the article. You may 1) create an account to begin editing 2)Post additional content here in this talk page and ask for someone else to integrate into the article. Cheers. AtaruMoroboshi (talk) 15:49, 21 April 2008 (UTC)

Origin - removed content from lead
I've temporarily removed the following unsourced statement from the lead: "The prank originated when Rockstar Games first released the trailer to the game Grand Theft Auto IV on their website in March, 2007. Due to the game's anticipation, the site received very high traffic, including most of the users from 4chan's video game forum, /v/, and went down. Someone on /v/ posted a Youtube to the Rick Astley song 'Never Gonna Give You Up,' saying the trailer had been recorded and posted there. The joke quickly became a meme and was constrained to 4chan for a brief period."

Was this actually the case? If so, hopefully someone can produce some sources and then it can be reintroduced to the article. AtaruMoroboshi (talk) 17:50, 17 April 2008 (UTC)


 * I found this article from The Guardian that states 4chan is the source, but it doesn't specify the exact details of the first use. Bill (talk 18:01, 17 April 2008 (UTC)
 * Thanks. There are a couple of sources in article that support the statement that it originated at 4chan already. My concern is specifically with statement about the circumstances in which rickrolling arose. AtaruMoroboshi (talk) 18:10, 17 April 2008 (UTC)


 * I don't know how how likely it will be to find a source for this, since nobody on 4chan kept a comprehensive, detailed thread archive when it happened. However, this is how it originated, as I was on /v/ when it happened. I just wish I could find proof. mattlittlej (talk) 18:12, 17 April, 2008 (UTC)
 * That's unfortunate, because I think it's good information if it were verifiable. Maybe, I'll take a look at some other 4chan meme articles and see how they handle it. AtaruMoroboshi (talk) 11:52, 18 April 2008 (UTC)


 * If there's little dispute as to that being its origin, leave it in, but leave it with a cn. Consider it eventually verifiable but presently unverified.--Father Goose (talk) 20:15, 18 April 2008 (UTC)
 * I'm not disputing the meme origin is 4chan. That has been established, and is currently sourced in the article. The portion of the statement that has not been verified are the specific circumstances in which it arose. As, mattlittlej said, it may be difficult to ever source that, since there is no archive of 4chan. Because of that, I hesitate to support reintroducing it into the article AtaruMoroboshi (talk) 20:21, 18 April 2008 (UTC)
 * There's a Gawker.com article that says that /v/ is the origin and has pretty much the same description as above, but it says the info is from the Encyclopedia Dramatica. Normally Gawker can be used as a reliable source, but it's basically just repeating info from a Wiki. Bill (talk 20:39, 18 April 2008 (UTC)
 * The recent fox news article clarifies the circumstances in which the meme arose. An editor has already sourced this information AtaruMoroboshi (talk) 18:53, 22 April 2008 (UTC)

Rickrolled via phone. I would like to add this entry. www.PrankDialer.com
[www.PrankDialer.com] lets you Rickroll a friend via a phone. I added this entry, but it was locked up. Please let me know if it's acceptable to add this entry.--Thedisturbance (talk) 18:40, 20 April 2008 (UTC)
 * First off, kudos for bringing this to the talk page rather than simply putting it back in. That's very admirable. However at the present time I don't think that can be considered a notable inclusion in the article. Perhaps if it were reported on by a reputable news source... Though perhaps I am wrong, let's see what others think. xenocidic (talk) 18:43, 20 April 2008 (UTC)

Prankdialer was up there, and it was removed around the time we redid the Sightings section. The primary reason was that it was include in the April Fools' day section, and it wasn't an April Fools event. As far as the citation goes, I think a link to Prankdialer.com is sufficient to prove the existence of the product. However, any mention of dates or use would need to be backed up by a third party source. I think this is a better example of a rr than some of the stuff up there. Wcudmore (talk) 18:03, 21 April 2008 (UTC)
 * I suggested a citation would be needed to prove the notability of it, not the existence. xenocidic (talk) 18:07, 21 April 2008 (UTC)
 * Notability guidelines do not apply to content within articles (the guidelines only apply to topics for articles). See WP:N and WP:NNC. Z00r (talk) 04:59, 22 April 2008 (UTC)
 * Interesting, thanks for that. I'll try and find an appropriate location in the article for this type of rickrolling. xenocidic (talk) 12:50, 22 April 2008 (UTC)

I tucked it into Rickroll, tweak as desired. xenocidic (talk) 12:56, 22 April 2008 (UTC)
 * Notwithstanding the scope of the notability guidelines, I think maybe we should still evaluate whether to include this information. I lean towards keeping it out, as it is just one fleeting example of many websites that have appeared as a result of the meme. I've also encountered rather humourous rickrolls on YouPorn, friend linked me honestly ;-), but I don't think those warrent an entry either. On the other hand prankdialer.com did make its rounds on digg/fark/reddit. AtaruMoroboshi (talk) 13:03, 22 April 2008 (UTC)
 * Edited my above comment, I think I'm ok with this going into the article. I did however, remove the inline external link for the website. The section can refer to the website by name, but inline external links are messy and not recommended. It could possibly be put as link the external links section though. AtaruMoroboshi (talk) 13:12, 22 April 2008 (UTC)
 * I'm fine with that. xenocidic (talk) 13:16, 22 April 2008 (UTC)

Sightings section and Notability.
This section is growing out of control very quickly. Leaving aside the April Fools section which will be resolved separately, there are several changes that need to be made.
 * 1) April Fools  should be its own section (format aside). Non-AfD links need to be moved out.
 * 2) April 11 subway(tube) RR is significant, and should be turned into it's own sighting. (Justification: 500 people involved.)
 * 3) April 4 'E!' sighting is likely not significant enough for its own section. -- I can't see this being expanded beyond what it is.
 * 4) EYU Basketball, Pittsburgh Pirates - Combine these two under "Sighting at Sporting Events"
 * 5) "Radio" Change to  "Radio and Television" Move the April 4 'E!' incident here.
 * 6) XKCD I'm not sure what to do with this one.  Allowing it to stay means that every one gets to put their favourite link up as a subsection.  However, the inclusion of a RR reference doesn't make it notable. Perhaps it could go under Radio and Television, renamed to "Mass Media".

The following should remain unchanged (as far as being sections go) Furthermore, We need to develop a guideline as to what a suitable RR for inclusion here is. The number of people rolled is a factor. Wcudmore (talk) 17:48, 14 April 2008 (UTC)
 * 1) Scientology.  This has political notability.
 * 2) New York Mets.  This is significant due to the massive response it got on the web and its success.
 * 3) April Fools. Needs Cleanup, being discussed elsewhere but this section should show that RR-ing was a big phenomenon on April 1 2008.
 * With regard to the Pittsburgh Pirates game, it was just recently added, and I couldn't find any news coverage associated to it. (edit: I've cn tagged it)  xkcd, is significant I think. It's a notable source which has on several occasions referred in detail to rickrollings. Also, it is good representative sample of the overall impact and the increasing ubiquity or rickrolling. AtaruMoroboshi (talk) 17:56, 14 April 2008 (UTC)

I made the changes as mentioned. (Exception -- moved Mets into Sporting Events) There were some edit conflicts. Check your recent changes. Wcudmore (talk) 18:09, 14 April 2008 (UTC)
 * Thanks. I saw. AtaruMoroboshi (talk) 18:16, 14 April 2008 (UTC)

Also left xkcd as is, but I think the lower-case title makes the page look bad. Any suggestions as to how to fix that? Wcudmore (talk) 18:10, 14 April 2008 (UTC)
 * Officially, xkcd does not feature capitalization . I'm not sure what the wp:MOS has to say about it but, thexkcd article itself is lowercase AtaruMoroboshi (talk) 18:22, 14 April 2008 (UTC)
 * I think the flash mob should be incorporated into a section which speaks to "public gatherings" - the scientology section could also go there. AtaruMoroboshi (talk) 18:13, 14 April 2008 (UTC)
 * I'm not so sure about that. Scientology was a protest with social significance.  The flash mob was just a prank.  I think Scientology is notable enough to warrant it's own sub-section.  I'd leave it for now, perhaps it can be changed later when there are more incidents.Wcudmore (talk) 18:17, 14 April 2008 (UTC)

Should we perhaps separate the True Rickrolls from other Astley inspired shenanigans? The loosest definition of a rr would be playing "Never Going to Give you up" when something else is announced. I'm not sure if all of the events listed have the required element of surprise. In particular, I think a marching band playing a song that has recently become popular due to an internet meme is not a good example. Even the NY Mets section is doubtful. If we keep on the current path of including every reference, are we going to have to publish the playlists of every 80's radio station in the world? Wcudmore (talk) 18:00, 21 April 2008 (UTC)

On April 24, 2008 Sydney radio stations in Australia (which included Nova FM, 2Day FM, Mix and Triple M) began simulating the song at 1:15 am.

Is this significant enough to be included in the article? The only way of verifying the information is via their podcast (which currently has not been updated) - (RovingOnline (talk) 04:14, 24 April 2008 (UTC))

Tyson Chandler: First Pro Athlete Rick Rolled?
Tyson Chandler, the center for the New Orleans Hornets, appears to be the first professional athlete to have been rickrolled. A pirated version of a video from his web site, Posted on the Block, was posted on YouTube as Rick Roll Tyson Chandler with the original music replaced with Rick Astley's hit. The change was recognized on a post on Tyson Chandler's web site. —Preceding unsigned comment added by Athleteinteractive (talk • contribs) 08:00, 24 April 2008 (UTC)

Best source for origin of the Rickroll
This article, [], goes into far more detail about how rickrolling started than any other I've seen. --Xyzzyplugh (talk) 20:15, 21 April 2008 (UTC)
 * I want to click that link. I really do. But I can't help but hesitate. I wonder why. AtaruMoroboshi (talk) 20:24, 21 April 2008 (UTC)
 * It's legit. I just came here to post the same link., Xyzzyplugh is probably a Farker. It just showed up on the Fark mainpage Wcudmore (talk) 20:35, 21 April 2008 (UTC)
 * I would say that this is sufficient to re-instate the deletia from Talk Section 23 (except maybe the /v/ reference as nobody but 4channers cares.)Wcudmore (talk) 20:38, 21 April 2008 (UTC)
 * I agree its a reliable source, supported with interviews of the people who were involved. --ErgoSum88 (talk) 06:42, 22 April 2008 (UTC)
 * Interesting to note Rick Astley is no longer commenting about the phenomenon. That informations should definitely be captured in the article. AtaruMoroboshi (talk) 12:55, 22 April 2008 (UTC)
 * Why? If Rick farts, should it be documented? Drives a yellow car? Likes loafers with tassles? Proxy User (talk) 17:17, 23 April 2008 (UTC)
 * Those types of comments are unnecessary. Please don't engage me or others like that, it can unnecessarily put people on the defensive. Regarding my comment, the quote from the Fox News article is "'In response to a request for comment, a spokesman for his record label wrote back a single line: 'I'm sorry, but he's done talking about rickrolling.'" The quote acknowledges the height in which the phenomenon has reached, and considering the section heading name is "Astley's reaction" I consider Astley nolonger publically talking about it constitutes further reaction on his part. AtaruMoroboshi (talk) 12:17, 24 April 2008 (UTC)
 * I agree. Astley stating he doesn't want to discuss the issue at all any more is a significant reaction and should be noted. Bill (talk 13:05, 24 April 2008 (UTC)
 * I've incorporated this into the article. AtaruMoroboshi (talk) 13:30, 1 May 2008 (UTC)

Interesting source

 * Possible source to use in this article. Cirt (talk) 17:38, 27 April 2008 (UTC)

This article doesn't provide any new information. It certainly doesn't finger "moot" as the poster of the original rick roll. At this stage we have established the 4chan, GTA Trailer link through verifiable sources. We can infer from that that some moderator at 4Chan is the originator of the Rick Roll, but until we have a verifiable source, it's best to leave the origins as is. Without "moot" standing up and saying "I'z de one what dunnit", we can't list him as the originator. —Preceding unsigned comment added by Wcudmore (talk • contribs) 17:10, 29 April 2008 (UTC)

Looking For Group
Shouldn't this have something about the Looking For Group comic where Richard does it? —Preceding unsigned comment added by 12.197.249.12 (talk) 21:31, 3 May 2008 (UTC)

Have I Got News for You
Rickrolling was just mentioned on Have I Got News for You, with Brian Blessed. May be worth mentioning. J Milburn (talk) 21:53, 3 May 2008 (UTC)


 * Ian Hislop explained it wrongly (or at least not very well). He said something like "whatever you type in, Rick Astley comes up". --AdamSommerton (talk) 17:44, 4 May 2008 (UTC)

Last Call with Carson Daly
On the June 21 2007 episode of Last Call with Carson Daly, the host said he had found a video on the internet of Paris Hilton and Busta Rhymes making out and asked his studio audience if they wanted to see it. He proceeded to show part of the Rickroll video and said "You just got rickrolled".
 * Looks to me like its already mentioned in the article. --CapitalR (talk) 08:39, 4 May 2008 (UTC)

Looking For Group - Page 144
It was also used here, richard sang it for sisters. —Preceding unsigned comment added by 85.222.78.245 (talk) 21:05, 5 May 2008 (UTC)

T-shirt
Saw a site selling You've been Rickrolled t-shirts http://www.jinx.com/men/shirts/geek/you_just_got_rickrolld.html?catid=81 had to come here to find out what the hell this was all about. —Preceding unsigned comment added by 76.17.139.78 (talk) 21:55, 9 May 2008 (UTC)

Rick Astley reveals: I've never been Rickrolled

 * Interesting read. Cirt (talk) 09:35, 13 May 2008 (UTC)
 * Interesting read. Cirt (talk) 09:35, 13 May 2008 (UTC)

Idea
Is it too unencyclopedic to wish that every wikilink in the article just rickrolled the person? Ohh how devious. I won't but its hard not to. Hooper (talk) 01:03, 21 May 2008 (UTC)

Error in Article
I don't know much about rickrolling, but some of the information in the article is contradictory: "Lichtblau, by varying online accounts, treated his inner circle to surprise Rickrollings as early as September 2006, close to the inception of Youtube[11]". The citation given makes no mention of 2006; furthermore, the introductory paragraph of this article states that the concept of rickrolling was established May 2007. Also, YouTube was founded February 2005. --76.168.214.69 (talk) 10:39, 26 May 2008 (UTC)

Doom Rickrolling
There's a hack for the Doom (video game) that Rickrolls the monster - should it be included in the article? --12.206.2.162 (talk) 22:15, 9 June 2008 (UTC)

Vince McMahon 'rickroll'
To anyone ... please do not add the incident on WWE Raw involving Vince McMahon and the phone call. It's not a rickroll. ¢rassic! (talk) 01:41, 12 June 2008 (UTC)
 * I think it should be added, as many people saw it and thought it was. How about dscribing the instance, and then explain why it's not a textbook rickroll?-- Bedford  Pray  02:46, 12 June 2008 (UTC)
 * Every instance where the music is heard is not automatically a rickroll. How about it gets added once an actual source describes it as a rickroll? --Onorem♠Dil 02:51, 12 June 2008 (UTC)
 * That's one thing it really is lacking. If a source had something along the lines of how many people saw it or something along those lines, it's fine. But until then, it shouldn't be on the page. ¢rassic! (talk) 02:57, 12 June 2008 (UTC)
 * I'm sure a lot of people saw it, but I don't see how that matters at all. I'm just waiting for people to start adding it when they hear the song on their local 80s radio station. The music being present doesn't make it a rickroll. --Onorem♠Dil 03:00, 12 June 2008 (UTC)
 * The RAW rating was a 3.0, so roughly three million people watched it.-- Bedford Pray  03:08, 12 June 2008 (UTC)
 * A sweepstakes contestant's ringback tone is not a "Rickroll". Sorry to disappoint the wrestling fans. Stan Simmons (talk) 04:43, 12 June 2008 (UTC)
 * This should only be added if there is a source that describes it as a rickroll. Kip Kip 15:15, 12 June 2008 (UTC)

I think the article needs some sort of protection to keep the Vince McMahon/WWE business out of it. Stan Simmons (talk) 20:58, 12 June 2008 (UTC)
 * Condescending much? Fess up, you just don't want any lowbrow wrestling mentions on this very obviously "highbrow" entry. *eyeroll* 24.187.134.112 (talk) 00:23, 13 June 2008 (UTC)


 * I have not and will not refer to pro wrestling as "lowbrow", and I would appreciate not having my words twisted in such a manner. The event in question (which in fact I did view, albeit more than a day later courtesy of a YouTube upload that has since been removed) simply is not relevant to the article we're discussing. It simply makes no sense to have an article clearly define what a phenomenon is, then include a supposed example that clearly does not adhere to the definition provided. While not an editor with much time invested here (but, more notably, a professional, published writer elsewhere), I have observed, and you would have to agree, that there are a lot of editors who believe it justified to add a wrestling mention to any article they can. Understand that I have no bias against wrestling, per se, but that I believe that those edits are as useless to an encyclopedia of general knowledge as the seemingly endless bits about pop culture references in Family Guy gags or quotes from The Simpsons that also seem to be inserted into articles by fans of those shows. Eventually, it just creates trivial clutter with no real relevant purpose. Stan Simmons (talk) 10:13, 13 June 2008 (UTC)

The rintone is actually a rickroll, it's supposed to not make the song obvious by prefacing it with "please enjoy the music". If it werent a rickroll, it'd just be the song playing instantaniously. [Dr. R.K.Z

agree with r.k.z., cannot see why there is so much debate over adding this as one of the most obvious instances rickrolls yet. everyone who is busy deleting everyone trying to delete this instance from the article, perhaps you should delete all the entries about what happened at ewu, the anons protests against the scis etc as they didnt involve someone inadvertently hearing rick astley when they clicked a link while surfing the internet. the rickroll phenomenon is way beyond internet and in real life right now. if ewu, ny mets, and scis vs. anon are considered rickrolling, why not a ringback when on monday night raw that clearly threw off the entire broadcast team if you watch the youtube vid? —Preceding unsigned comment added by 75.121.174.106 (talk) 04:18, 14 June 2008 (UTC)

it is a rickroll because no one expected it, everyone expected a jubilant person to answer the phone HELLO! yes ive won 200k!! instead he rickroll'd the a man worth at least 1/2 a billion, 3-4 million people on tv, and greatly amused many. and it happened not once but twice. not mentioning this would be almost criminal negligence, as something that happened on e networks talk soup that maybe a few hundred thousand people viewed seems to merit attention, if just because it was the classic rickroll - i.e. here's a video preview of the season finale of l.a. ink - oops rick astley! —Preceding unsigned comment added by 75.121.174.106 (talk) 04:26, 14 June 2008 (UTC)

Arbitrary break idea
I say we put it to a vote. HOWEVER, we need to have a few round rules if we're gonna make it work:
 * Only established Editors (i.e. no Anonymous I.P.'s) votes will count (i.e. more than a few months worth of edits should suffice)
 * The vote has to list a valid reason why it's a yes or no. Just saying "It's a rickroll" isn't enough. Can you argue a point whether or not the incident is a rickroll?

e.g. (Don't copy verbatim, create your own using the same ideas!!)


 * YES Yes, the Vince McMahon incident was a rickroll. Vince wasn't expecting to have the song played, and one could argue that his confusion and his subsequent recall fulfills the definition of a rickroll.


 * NO A message service prompt isn't a rickroll. Just because it played Never Gonna Give You Up does not equate to an automatic rickroll. Turning the radio stations on your car is the same concept: Just because you turn the stations and encounter a radio station playing NGGYU does not equate to a rickroll.


 * Cut-off date. After XX days, a neutral arbitrator (i.e. someone that hasn't made any significant edits to the article to avoid bias) counts the votes and declares a consensus.

Think this would fly?? Or will it descend into anarchy?--293.xx.xxx.xx (talk) 08:18, 14 June 2008 (UTC)

a vote is a good idea, mine wont count cuz anonymous ip but i think most people find this to be a rickroll —Preceding unsigned comment added by 75.121.174.106 (talk) 11:02, 14 June 2008 (UTC) Yeah i'd agree, with a vote to see if there is any consensus


 * Oppose No-one has come up with a Reliable Source to say this was a rickroll, and i can't find one with a quick google search, and as said above, just because the song was played, doesn't mean it is a rickroll. Kip Kip 12:16, 14 June 2008 (UTC)


 * I agree. There is no source with this information and so if none is provided then the information should be removed from the article. Bill (talk 13:45, 16 June 2008 (UTC)


 * Irrelevent Oppose As one has said before, if I were to hear the song on the radio, would it qualify as a rickroll since I might not be expecting it? Also, I do agree with Liekmudkipz (Kip). ¢rassic! (talk) 02:44, 18 June 2008 (UTC)

Question About The Poll
Yeah that poll is not reliable after all its a poll so i suggest we take that off ChesterTheWorm (talk) 13:27, 14 June 2008 (UTC) ChesterTheWorm

What?--293.xx.xxx.xx (talk) 01:37, 15 June 2008 (UTC)

this video (not a rickroll, an example to one, except to maybe a few 4chan leets dominating this dicussion, i would call a reliable source not the text book definition of one not an article from the ny times but an uncut youtube video of the actual broadcast... http://youtube.com/watch?v=PdMj10s6nYw —Preceding unsigned comment added by Pvillemarc (talk • Pvillemarc (talk) 01:02, 16 June 2008 (UTC)

someone typing in a foot note the The Soup {{whatever the hosts name was?)) and E! Entertainment Television June 9, 2008 is realiable sourcing? gimme a break... the guy above was right is that you all consider wrestling way too lowest common denominator and just not cool enough for this internet injoke thus everyone deleting it.Pvillemarc (talk) 01:02, 16 June 2008 (UTC)

Please read Wikipedia_Copyright and why we don't usually allow Youtube links (unless it can be proven beyond a shadow of a doubt the upload was done by an agent for the copyright holders). Until then all copyright violations will be reverted back to proper citations.--293.xx.xxx.xx (talk) 05:19, 16 June 2008 (UTC)

internetisseriousbusiness
I happen to know the guy that invented the script of internetisseriousbusiness. His name is Kenneth Gordon, IT worker and recreational server host. He is currently moving to in Myrtle Beach, SC from Winchester, VA. I remember when he tested the script on our forums. God I wish I could document it. Since I can't add "myself" as a source, I'll dig something up.--Zblewski (talk) 23:59, 18 June 2008 (UTC)

Earliest reference?
Wiser Wikipedians than I will know what (if anything) to do with this, but in the 1997 movie "Contact" starring Jodie Foster (an adaptation of the Carl Sagan book), when the SETI signal is first detected, a harmonic is noticed on the prime number pulses and the researchers realize it's a video signal with audio. They decode it to a TV screen and there in rotated, garbled form, is none other than the "Never Gonna Give You Up" video. You might almost say that E.T. Rickrolls Earth :) GreatCaliban (talk) 07:13, 26 June 2008 (UTC)
 * Cute, but the first recognizeable image in the SETI signal in that film is not from the music video. Gimmetrow 00:57, 30 June 2008 (UTC)

Duckroll
This was originally posted as a blank thread with just a picture of a duck with wheels. The person who created the thread would then link people to his post from other threads. That is a duckroll. —Preceding unsigned comment added by 125.236.142.235 (talk) 06:38, 10 July 2008 (UTC)

Rick Rolling the Universe
Its possible to pay to have messages broadcast into space for you. Though we would never see their reaction, it would be interesting to rick roll the universe in the hopes that an alien race receives the transmission. Or, possibly, if humans can invent faster than light travel, our descendants may one day receive ancient rick rolls that have travelled across light years to our colonies. —Preceding unsigned comment added by 92.21.58.88 (talk) 20:27, 24 July 2008 (UTC)

Origins?
Anyone know how and more importantly when this whole thing started? PyroGamer (talk) 02:56, 25 July 2008 (UTC)
 * Its already stated in the lead section of the article, second paragraph down... Basically, the Rickroll was an offshoot of the duckroll, which was a pretty popular thing on 4chan quite a while back. When the first trailer for Grand Theft Auto IV came out, it nearly impossible to watch because of the large amount of people trying to access the site on which it was hosted. An anon on 4chan's /v/ (video games) board posted a link which was supposedly a Youtube mirror of the trailer. Instead, it turned out to be the video to Never Gonna Give You Up, and the rest is history. -- Ghost Stalker (Got a present for ya! | Mission Log) 17:04, 25 July 2008 (UTC)

rick astley's reaction
According to this [] Rick Astley is not amused with the RickRolling phenomenon. Quite the opposite what it say on the RickRolling Wiki --DDDW (talk) 14:44, 6 July 2008 (UTC)
 * Reading that article, it seems that he was not amused at being referred to as mediocre/generic by Family Guy, not by rickrolling itself--Kip Kip 18:43, 6 July 2008 (UTC)
 * According to this [] he finds it hillarious.--71.139.142.227 (talk) 21:35, 31 July 2008 (UTC)
 * -71.139.142.227 Wins this discussion, hands down. Made me actually burst out laughing. I salute you, good sir. May you live forever. —Preceding unsigned comment added by 82.15.15.120 (talk) 19:26, 16 August 2008 (UTC)

The MTV bit
I haven't got a reference or anything, though I did look for one. I would ask that anyone wanting to take it down go and check On Demand for themselves first though, because it really is a rickroll. —Preceding unsigned comment added by 98.223.100.216 (talk) 12:13, 3 August 2008 (UTC)
 * unfortunatly, we need a source before something like this gets added, otherwise the article will fill up with a lot of random stuff very quickly. If you do find a source feel free to re-add it or post it on this talk page--Kip Kip 14:06, 3 August 2008 (UTC)

Timeline
This article's timeline needs improvement. "By May 2008,[4] the practice had spread beyond 4chan and become an Internet phenomenon, eventually amassing some coverage in the mainstream media.[5][6][1] An April 2008 poll by SurveyUSA estimated that at least 18 million American adults have been rickrolled.[7]"

The "by May, 2008" seems to contradict the fact that 18 millions Rick Rolls had occurred by April. —Preceding unsigned comment added by 198.182.9.1 (talk) 20:04, 22 August 2008 (UTC) Shouldn't Rickrolling have been an internet phenomenon BEFORE it amassed 18 miillion views?

Lawsuit
Could Rick Astley sue somebody? Don't ask me who...I know this isn't a forum but the suspense is killing me. —Preceding unsigned comment added by 98.202.38.225 (talk) 04:44, 28 August 2008 (UTC)

Links
Meh. I'm not logged in. Whatever. XD

"One Web site offers a Rickroll-by-phone service, allowing visitors to enter a phone number to be called and have the song played to the answering party" Can anyone link me to this site? I will have epic fun with it. <33 74.182.114.108 (talk) 18:13, 8 August 2008 (UTC)


 * --4.244.36.205 (talk) 05:48, 16 August 2008 (UTC)

The art site "Furry Art Pile" closed down, and all links were/are redirected to a YouTube Rickroll. http://www.furryartpile.com/

Just2Draw (talk) 15:50, 4 September 2008 (UTC)

hobowars
If anyone here plays hobowars you'll find that he's the liquor sotre clerk in second city —Preceding unsigned comment added by 70.131.131.168 (talk) 22:19, 2 September 2008 (UTC)

TIME Magazine
Rickrolling as written about in TIME Magazine (the specific issue escapes my mind, but I'm sure you could find it by googling "rickroll time magazine"), in the "Websession" category by regular intarwebs wiseguy Lev Grossman (who also wrote the Nerd World article regarding "moot". You. Reference it.  Esper rant 04:24, 8 September 2008 (UTC)

Remove retailer link
editsemiprotected Remove section about the retailer, ThinkGeek. The information there is not relavent to this topic and has been created by the ThinkGeek staff to add links to their website.
 * Seems perfectly in keeping with the article.--Aervanath lives in the Orphanage 18:52, 15 September 2008 (UTC)

Anti-Rickrolling software
This article needs to mention anti-rickrolling software like RickRadar a Firefox add-on. Mieciu K (talk) 20:59, 16 September 2008 (UTC)

Gaotse: the obvious, original, pervasive bait-and-switch meme
How does this article not related back to THE orginal bait and switch meme, http://goatse.cx/ - important enough to even have a wiki page, goatse.cx? It seems obvious that bait and switch memes have been popular all along, and that was the original. Rickrolling is just the safe-for-work mainstream version updated for the 2000's with video. Even though goatse is terribly vulgar, it should be mentioned as the precursor meme, the original idea that made bait and switch linking popular. 71.139.40.173 (talk) 21:14, 16 September 2008 (UTC)


 * I've not seen any sources that say they're linked or that rickrolling is an updated version. While it may be true they're similar ideas, putting that into the article without a source is original research. Bill (talk 21:38, 16 September 2008 (UTC)

First instance
reference 3 cites "in March 2007" as the first instance of rick rolling. this could be added to the body of the article. from http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,352010,00.html 71.139.40.173 (talk) 21:27, 16 September 2008 (UTC)

The first instance is obviously the day the GTAIV trailer came out. And the song was NOT chosen due to popularity from Family Guy - that episode came out in MAY. 86.144.207.13 (talk) 21:31, 16 September 2008 (UTC)

Bait and Switch
'Bait and switch' is so misused that people think it means that one thing is advertised and they're tricked into buying something else. See bait and switch for the true definition. It's about offering a substitute so people don't feel let down when they leave the store. Rick Roll is a complete let-down and it's not a true substitute. Anyway, I'm being very literal because I think the phrase is overused and ends up diluting the true meaning. Ryandsmith (talk) 22:08, 16 September 2008 (UTC)

Rickrolling is a form of advertisement
It really should be tagged as such. I wonder what this article would look like if it weren't for youtube "rickrolling" people on april fools day? I think it's digusting to see this treated as if it weren't an advertising scheme. —Preceding unsigned comment added by 24.185.105.253 (talk) 01:53, 26 July 2008 (UTC)
 * Its not advertising.92.23.35.155 (talk) 10:12, 30 July 2008 (UTC)
 * It isn't advertising at all, it's a hillarious joke. See here for a source on that. []  —Preceding unsigned comment added by 71.139.142.227 (talk) 21:36, 31 July 2008 (UTC)
 * Advertising?!? Have you lost it?? Do you think anyone in their right mind would have an advertisement on every imaginable front of the internet? I hate this song now! I don't think there's many people left on the planet that can stand this song...maybe it's just me. —Preceding unsigned comment added by 98.202.38.225 (talk) 04:42, 28 August 2008 (UTC)
 * For cultural reference, I should comment that since its inception I've always viewed this song as The Worst Song In The World, which is also I assume why it was chosen for this special honor? (though one could apply a parse patch "Then I'm gonna" and Republican visualizations) But oh my, how would you ever provide a verifiable reference for the motivation at the beginning of this phenomenon? Wnt (talk) 20:32, 26 September 2008 (UTC)

Radio and Television
I don't believe Carson Daly can be considered the first to rickroll on television. I know Family Guy, season 5 - episode 18, which aired on May 20th, 2007 came before the Carson Daly show of June 21, 2007. In this episode, they were spoofing Back to the Future. Brian switches the last song, at the high school dance, up, and instead sings Rick Astley's "Never Gonna Give You Up." I'm not here to say this was the first occurence, just that the Carson Daly show sure wasn't the first. And thus should be removed. The claim that the Carson Daly show as first has no citations, and is also disproved by Family Guy. —Preceding unsigned comment added by Meh00 (talk • contribs) 04:41, 11 September 2008 (UTC) --Sorry. I forgot to give a citation. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Meet_the_Quagmires —Preceding unsigned comment added by Meh00 (talk • contribs) 04:45, 11 September 2008 (UTC)

Not a rickroll; it's been added and then deleted because it doesn't fulfill the "definition" of a Rickroll as stated in the article.--293.xx.xxx.xx (talk) 06:51, 15 September 2008 (UTC)

Anyone else notice the June 9th, 2008 edition of WWE RAW? Vince McMahon was in the process of phoning someone to award them $US200,000 and instead got a reverse ringtone of the song. 122.57.80.150 (talk) 09:32, 2 October 2008 (UTC)
 * Yes, check the talk page archive. We've discussed it, and it's not being considered a Rickroll. Latics (talk) 20:13, 2 October 2008 (UTC)

Smoouch.Net/Lol
The link www.smouch.net/lol should be added as it is a very common way of Rick Rolling people. :) "Never gonna give you up! Never gonna let you down. Never gonna run around and desert you." —Preceding unsigned comment added by Rick Atsley (talk • contribs) 10:07, 21 September 2008
 * , Wikipedia is not a directory of external links, unless there are mentions in reliable sources about how that particular link is in some way an important part of the meme, it does not really belong in the article. ~ mazca  t 11:59, 21 September 2008 (UTC)

youtube
someone who can actually edit this should trash the youtube link/picture that goes to an awful video with 715 views, most of which appear to have come from this page... —Preceding unsigned comment added by 76.254.19.90 (talk) 06:28, 3 October 2008 (UTC)

Removal of most viewed Youtube Rick Roll video - possible explanation:
The most viewed Rick Roll video on Youtube - with over 20 million hits - was removed early October 2008. It's removal was around the time Rick Astley was nominated for 'Best Act Ever' at the MTV Europe awards. It's interesting to note this particular Youtube video was the main Rick Roll link - the one which gave Astley the most internet exposure - so its removal could have been instigated by record labels not wanting people to be 'Rick Rolled', and vote for him as Best Act Ever. It's possible the Best Act Ever MTV award will generate sales for the winner and Astley hasn't released an album since 2005 - 'Portrait'. From a record label point of view it might make greater financial sense for the winner to be someone like Britney Spears or U2. Astley has no plans to record new material, is not with a label, so his 'win' (if it happens) wouldn't generate future earnings for a record label. This could explain why the main Rick Roll Youtube video was removed.

The Wikipedia Rickrolling article doesn't mention the removal of the most popular Youtube Rick Roll video. It should be updated to mention this. —Preceding unsigned comment added by 79.66.128.172 (talk • contribs) 15:08, 3 October 2008
 * Just added. Lu  na  ke  et  20:51, 3 October 2008 (UTC)

PAX 2008
Is it worth mentioning that Jonathan Coulton managed to rick roll the audience of PAX 2008? He got a pretty good reaction. You can search youtube for a video called "PAX 2008 - Jonathan Coulton rickrolls the audience" to check. 92.8.104.39 (talk) 23:53, 5 October 2008 (UTC)

Variations and parodies
I've removed this section. As I noted in my edit summary, anything popular on the internet gets parodies/remakes. Rick rolling has many remakes and variations. Picking these few seems arbitrary, without any source to indicate why they're worth mentioning. My opinion is that the remakes should really only be individually covered if there's some sort of coverage of them, for example if Barrack Obama says he likes the Barrack-Roll or something like that. If there's a reliable source that talks about variations/parodies/remakes in general then a paragraph on the topic might be suitable for the article. Bill (talk 00:21, 6 October 2008 (UTC)

WWE?
Is it worth mentioning the night Vince McMahon got Rickrolled on live TV? Certainly that's one of the larger mass-Rickrollings. 65.189.210.173 (talk) 04:14, 6 October 2008 (UTC)
 * Already discussed here a number of times. In fact, just a few paragraphs up. Rurik (talk) 08:54, 6 October 2008 (UTC)

xkcd references
The xkcd section should be updated with the reference to Rick Astley in comic 485 ( "A pixel on Rick Astley's shoulder" )  —Preceding unsigned comment added by Rjs valjean (talk • contribs) 09:40, 9 October 2008 (UTC)

xkcd comic #485
Wasn't there a refrence to a pixel in Rick Astley's Shoulder in comic 485. —Preceding unsigned comment added by 96.227.237.111 (talk) 16:01, 12 October 2008 (UTC)

New Zealand web harvest
The National Library of New Zealand decided not to honour the Robots Exclusion Protocol in the whole of domain harvest of the .nz domain. One serious suggestion for people who did not like their domain being indexed was to set a rewrite condition: RewriteCond %{HTTP_USER_AGENT} ^(.*)NLNZHarvester2008(.*)$ RewriteRule ^(.*)$ http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Yu_moia-oVI 203.7.140.3 (talk) 06:08, 15 October 2008 (UTC)

Rickrolls are more.
What about non-Rick Astley rickrolls? They're out there, but would they be considered Rickrolls? Or would they fall under a more general category? Thoughts welcome. Untii next edit, Sonic Boom 95 18:54, 15 October 2008 (UTC)
 * Rickrolls, themselves, are just Internet bait-and-switches. This is a concept that has gone back many, many years with other examples (such as Goatse). Rickrolling is notable in and of itself, and is exclusive of other band-and-switch examples. Rurik (talk) 20:09, 15 October 2008 (UTC)

Duckroll
Should we have an image of Duckroll, now that it's been established that it's certifiably the origin of the meme? It seems kinda useful that we've got something which can quite easily display the meme's origins, and I'm certain many users would find it illustrative of the history of rickroll.Methulah (talk) 22:36, 6 November 2008 (UTC)
 * I'd also like to see the origin of Duckroll explained. I remember reading that the admin of 4chan decided to wordfilter "egg" into "duck" out of whim, and some 4chan users ended up posting the word "duckroll" when they intended to type "eggroll". It would be great if someone could verify this. 88.112.192.69 (talk) 11:11, 7 November 2008 (UTC)


 * I can see a copyright issue arising with the duckroll image in that it would be hard (probably impossible) to find out who originally created the image so to properly attribute the source. Bill (talk 12:05, 7 November 2008 (UTC)
 * It would be fair use so figuring out the owner is not needed —Preceding unsigned comment added by Scientus (talk • contribs)
 * Wikipedia policy requires attribution of the image source if the image is used under a claim of fair use. See Item 10 in the Fair Use Policy. Bill (talk 19:36, 20 November 2008 (UTC)
 * Actually, I just added a piece about "Dickrolling" in the origin section. I distinctly recall seeing "dickrolls" circa 2001-2003, and "duckrolls" much, much later around 2004-2006. "Duckrolls" were the "anti-dickrolls", so to speak. Users at the time became very cautious about clicking on random internet links out of fear of being dickrolled. However, when they were actually "duckrolled", they became pleasantly surprised. This was all then followed by getting "rickrolled", thus perpetuating this meme. I don't check or edit wikipedia pages often, but I believe that I am a good source for this matter. If you need more information please contact me at gqtstyle@gmail.com.

McCain getting Barack Rolled
Should this be mentioned in examples? i think it's worth mentioning since it shows him getting "Barack-rolled" in front of hundreds of people. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_TiQCJXpbKg —Preceding unsigned comment added by 90.209.250.254 (talk) 13:28, 28 October 2008 (UTC)


 * That's faked. Bill (talk 14:48, 28 October 2008 (UTC)

Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade on NBC 2008
I'm not sure how to cite it, but we all just got Rickrolled by the parade. As the parade float for Foster's Home for Imaginary Friends from Cartoon Network arrived to the front of Macy's, the music suddenly changed and Rick Astley himself came out to lipsync to Never Gonna Give You Up. As the edit of the song finished, one of the puppet characters says "I like rickrolling". I have no idea if there's a specific episode of the show that this might tie to or not. Acroyear (talk) 16:43, 27 November 2008 (UTC)
 * There's no specific episode that it ties into as far as I know, although they are airing a special called "Destination: Imagination" tonight, which was mentioned during the parade, so there's a small but unlikely chance that it ties in. My best guess would be to find footage of the parade and use that as a citation. Also, to be specific, the puppet character in question is Cheese. -- Cyberlink420 (talk) 18:29, 27 November 2008 (UTC)


 * The song wikilink is incorrect, I'm trying to find the correct version of the song. Titles are alike, so therein lies the confustication... Edit Centric (talk) 19:34, 27 November 2008 (UTC)


 * Does anyone know what 70's tv show that this song is from? I know that much, remember hearing it back then... Edit Centric (talk) 19:40, 27 November 2008 (UTC)


 * FOUND IT! The version of the song is from the tv show The Courtship of Eddie's Father, aired on ABC. Edit Centric (talk) 19:45, 27 November 2008 (UTC)

2008 Macy's Thanksgiving Parade
This was HILARIOUS! I think many kudos should go to the organizers of the parade for being THAT current with the times, and kudos to US, the Wikipedians, for getting the event up inside the article so fast! Edit Centric (talk) 19:22, 27 November 2008 (UTC)

Rickrolling the Super Bowl
A new campaign has been started to buy ad time in order to rickroll during the Super Bowl TV ads. —Preceding unsigned comment added by 151.188.213.150 (talk • contribs) 13:56, December 1, 2008
 * Pics Source or it didn't happen. &mdash;  Hello Annyong  (say whaaat?!) 14:22, 1 December 2008 (UTC)
 * You're doing it wrong! You don't buy time for a rickroll. You hack into the existing feed and put the rockrolling instead. THAT'S rickrolling. Anything else isn't rickrolling and should not be mentioned.

-G

name?
Shouldn't this article be moved to 'Rickroll' instead of 'Rickrolling'? I think the more common variant is the former; "rickrolling" is just a variant off of the original. Dr. Cash (talk) 17:34, 4 December 2008 (UTC)
 * You make a valid point. Personally I find the latter acceptable because Rickrolling is better described as a practice than a thing, as such. --Kiz o r  08:53, 5 December 2008 (UTC)

Rickrolling Timeline
Origin section currently shows the first use of Rickrolling to be in March of 2007. This is not accurate. I would estimate the first usage of rickrolling to actually have been sometime in 2005. This particular information needs to be revised. Rickrolling was on the World of Warcraft forums long before 2007. I cannot give a definitive timeline, but date of origin should be discussed. —Preceding unsigned comment added by 75.207.120.233 (talk) 18:53, 27 November 2008 (UTC)

I would like to point out that It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia successfully Rickrolled its fans in the episode "Charlie Has Cancer," which aired August 23, 2005. Two years before this supposed 4chan duckrolling nonsense. —Preceding unsigned comment added by 76.123.65.136 (talk) 17:56, 28 November 2008 (UTC)


 * I added it, but it was deleted. —Preceding unsigned comment added by 75.72.49.230 (talk • contribs)
 * Are you referring to the part of the episode when Dennis was sitting in his 'Rover listening to Rick Astley? That was far from a Rickroll. Not every incident in which the song is played is a rickroll. The Family Guy event included. – LATICS   talk  19:04, 1 December 2008 (UTC)

Not to fuel the flames of doubt, but I believe that the phenomenon didn't fully explode into popularity until after The Family Guy aired Meet the Quagmires on May 20th 2007. I don't know how long it takes to create an episode but a conservative estimate would at least place the creation of this episode near the stated 4chan origin date. I will be the first to admit that Family Guy borrows heavily from internet memes and pop-culture. Does anyone know if Family Guy has ever lifted a gag from It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia? —Preceding unsigned comment added by 207.127.128.2 (talk • contribs) 23:20, November 30, 2008
 * That's irrelevant. Unless you can provide a reference from a secondary source, it doesn't matter and shouldn't be included. &mdash;  Hello Annyong  (say whaaat?!) 23:48, 30 November 2008 (UTC)

Look. To settle this once and for all. It seems fairly obvious that the first time someone was intentionally misdirected to the video (not just listened to it in a cartoon or other TV show) was in the 4chan GTA IV trailer incident. Check Google Trends. Rickroll was first google'd for on May 13th 2007. I'm going to change the article, it says it started in March 2007 and references Google Trends, someone must've written March instead of May.TheKhakinator (talk) 13:02, 6 December 2008 (UTC)

Worldwide tag
The simple reason that i have tagged this is that the examples section is biased towards american examples whereas people from many parts of the world were probably rickrolled. Simply south (talk) 17:13, 28 November 2008 (UTC)


 * Okay, then you tag the SECTION, not the article. (I moved the tag down to section level, but I DO agree that there may be other worldwide instances of Rickrolling!) Edit Centric (talk) 19:09, 28 November 2008 (UTC)


 * Whoops, thanks. Simply south (talk) 23:27, 28 November 2008 (UTC)
 * Can you prove that there are several instances of non-American rickrolling? I've yet to find any, which is why I removed the tag. Ten Pound Hammer  and his otters • (Broken clamshells • Otter chirps • HELP) 15:58, 30 November 2008 (UTC)
 * The London flash-mob, and the MTV Europe Music Awards were non-American rickrolls of sorts?-Nubile Servant (talk) 01:11, 17 December 2008 (UTC)

Super Mario World Rick Rolling
recently, some major smw hackers (people who hack or edit parts of the game "Super Mario World") made a "hack" that rick rolls the player. it features the music video and complete sound in the hack. it was first revealed to other hackers on "Super Mario World central", a hacking comunity, durring an event called "C3". It was first revealed by the user "smallhacker". the hack went by the name of "xka shack", for he claimed that it was just small level edits, not using any tools, or leveleditors, that make editing the game much easier. In other words, he claimed that he editted it with pure ASM, which stands for "assembaly code". When people played this hack, they would be surprised by getting a full length rick roll. when other users of smw central played it, they kept the surprise going by not comenting on how it was a rick roll, to keep it fresh.

LINKS:

http://www.smwcentral.net/?p=showhack&id=2012

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=seAwbPgfyuo&feature=related Doooomster (talk) 20:47, 21 December 2008 (UTC)

Anti-spore
I think that http://www.antispore.com warrants a mention in this, as it is one of the longest lasting rick rolls and people are still getting rick rolled without realizing it. Anonymous173173(talk) 05:07, 25 December 2008 (UTC)

Animal Collective - Merriweather Post Pavillion
There has been a lot of hoopla on music blogs/forums lately about the Rickrolling associated with the highly-publicized leaking of the Animal Collective album "Merriweather Post Pavillion," which has not yet seen its true release date. An estimated 11,000 people downloaded a supposed leak of the album, most prominently from this blog: http://roxymuzak.blogspot.com/ at this link: http://roxymuzak.blogspot.com/2008/12/animal-collective-merriweather-post.html. The link presented was an eleven-songs-in-length Rickroll. This incidence of Rickrolling was covered in Baltimore City Paper here: http://www.citypaper.com/digest.asp?id=17212 and originated on the popular music message board ILM (http://www.ilxor.com). —Preceding unsigned comment added by Animalcollection (talk • contribs) 01:03, 28 December 2008 (UTC)

bad link
The page links to All Summer Long album by the Beach Boys, in the context of All_Summer_Long_(Kid_Rock_song). For some reason my account hasn't met the criteria to edit semi-protected pages I guess; if someone wouldn't mind fixing it for me :) --Brandon12321 (talk) 03:02, 29 December 2008 (UTC)
 * Good catch. I fixed it. &mdash;  Hello Annyong  (say whaaat?!) 07:02, 29 December 2008 (UTC)

Family Guy
In an episode of Family Guy where Peter goes into the past, Bryan sings Never Gonna Give you up in its entirety at the end of the episode. I think this would definitely count as a Rick Roll. 75.53.42.191 (talk) 05:02, 10 December 2008 (UTC)
 * Been discussed. No it isn't. – LATICS   talk  05:19, 10 December 2008 (UTC)
 * yeah, it's just a simple use of that song. a rick roll is either the music video, or that song playing in the middle of another song/starting out of nowhere. —Preceding unsigned comment added by Estemshorn (talk • contribs) 10:22, 25 December 2008 (UTC)
 * It would count as a reference though. —Preceding unsigned comment added by 66.251.106.238 (talk) 17:22, 13 January 2009 (UTC)
 * Definitely include it as a reference to the culture. (The Elfoid (talk) 17:06, 15 January 2009 (UTC))

Nancy Pelosi
There is a section detailing that Nancy Pelosi had uploaded a video that contained a rickroll. Forgive my skepticism, but just because the video was uploaded under her username does not necessarily convey intent. It is possible that anyone else could have put the video there, and since the only references there are the video itself and a site talking about the video itself and there are no sources about or from Pelosi herself, I am not sure if this information is notable enough to be on this page yet. Closetoeuphoria (talk) 23:33, 14 January 2009 (UTC)

Pork and Beans
Wasn't this one of the many YouTube phenomenons parodied in Weezer's Pork and Beans (song) video? --Crackthewhip775 (talk) 02:08, 15 January 2009 (UTC)

Check this article. Pork and Beans It should have a list of all parodied videos.

-zxcvbnmalex —Preceding unsigned comment added by Zxcvbnmalex (talk • contribs) 01:08, 31 January 2009 (UTC)

Rick Roll A La Chilena
Really? Should this be mentioned? No significant third-party sources, and it says it was removed ... but who knows if it's really the video. I'd really like someone's opinion on this. I don't think it should, but maybe somebody else knows something I don't. – LATICS   talk  00:35, 27 January 2009 (UTC)

Video
the wiki page should forward to the video or embed it in the page so they would be rickrolled.--Conor Fallon (talk) 17:08, 16 January 2009 (UTC)

I agree. I know wikipedia is not supposed to be funny, but honestly, I think we could all agree that throwing a rick roll into the process would be the most "educational". Really people, make it happen.--69.179.55.204 (talk) 17:49, 5 February 2009 (UTC)


 * i second this. It is "Educational", sort of. It teaches them what rick rolling is in video, instead of words. so, yeah, this would be a good idea Estemshorn (talk) 03:48, 7 February 2009 (UTC)


 * No. Wikipedia is a body of reference; not a learning site. It would also be problematic because the video is copyrighted material, so couldn't be uploaded to Wikimedia Commons. A reference to an external site is fine, but embedded media would appear to be disallowed. It would also set a precedent for other meme pages to follow suit.--Rfsmit (talk) 19:59, 12 February 2009 (UTC)

Semi Protection
Shouldn't this page be protected? lots of people are vandalizing......................... —Preceding unsigned comment added by Lilbunnifufu101 (talk • contribs) 00:39, 8 February 2009 (UTC)
 * You could ask for protection, but I don't think they'd grant it; it needs to be pretty heavy vandalism. &mdash;  Hello Annyong  (say whaaat?!) 01:16, 8 February 2009 (UTC)

Chacarooned!
The Rickrolling has died down lately. Instead, people are starting to "Chacaroon" people. Should it be mentioned in this article? —Preceding unsigned comment added by 69.171.131.3 (talk) 02:18, 13 February 2009 (UTC)

2002?
I just stumbled across this 2002 reference in an article about a busted child pornography ring: There was Richard Roll, a male nurse and former scoutmaster from Jamestown, N.Y., who called his pornographic films "Rick Roll Videos." Don't know what to make of that. Could there possibly be a relation?--87.162.48.147 (talk) 10:47, 19 February 2009 (UTC)

Barrack Roll'd
Why is this page protected? I want to add a segment called "Barrack Roll'd", which highlights the new video on youtube that has Barrack Obama (from various speeches) appearing to sing the song Never Gonna Give You Up. —Preceding unsigned comment added by Epithanyseeker (talk • contribs) 00:22, 7 March 2009 (UTC)
 * it is protected so that people won't spam all over this or add something stupid. Estemshorn (talk) 00:40, 8 March 2009 (UTC)

Literal Rick Roll
Has over a million views now. Please Include it. —Preceding unsigned comment added by 98.213.120.190 (talk) 08:35, 2 March 2009 (UTC)
 * Doesn't make it notable. – LATICS   talk  02:37, 23 March 2009 (UTC)

WWE rick roll'd???
Vince McMahon with his McMahon million dollar thingy??? —Preceding unsigned comment added by 69.248.229.206 (talk) 22:00, 1 April 2009 (UTC)
 * It's been discussed several times. No. – LATICS   talk  22:27, 1 April 2009 (UTC)

Innapropriate Teen Dating Violence Redirect
The title "Teen Dating Violence" redirects to this page. Unless this is some form of sick joke, the redirection needs to be removed. I'm still new enough to wikipedia that I don't know how to do this. O76923 (talk) 23:18, 2 April 2009 (UTC)
 * Um, it was just vandalism. And you undid it. So... good job? &mdash;  Hello Annyong  (say whaaat?!) 01:10, 3 April 2009 (UTC)

Barack Roll - Sony has claimed rights
Can anyone find a source for this? I do not suppose that the youtube links will do? (i.e. ) 212.10.51.200 (talk) 09:24, 9 April 2009 (UTC)

Video
the wiki page should forward to the video or embed it in the page so they would be rickrolled.


 * The purpose of this article is to provide information on the phenomenon, not to perpetray it ourselves. Users can find the proper YouTube link (and several variations on it) in the article or at the bottom in the reference list if they need to. Stoney3K (talk) 16:08, 1 April 2009 (UTC)

I don't get wikipedia sometimes.. a video of a guying blowing his wad on the "cum" page is A-OK!, but putting the RickRolled video on the rickrolling page is a no-no! —Preceding unsigned comment added by 98.28.105.1 (talk) 23:50, 25 April 2009 (UTC)

April Fools' Day 2008..? Vandalism?
Some of the April Fools' Day 2008's data has lost somewhere, such as information about Kongregate.

http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Rickrolling&oldid=202976134#April_Fool.27s_Day.2C_2008

See, it's over there in an old edit. Kongregate uploaded a game called "Kongai Launch" which they said to be their new card game, "Kongai", but it was actually a Rick Roll. I am a long time member over there, and now I saw that it has been deleted.

So, could somebody please add it back?

--Juze (talk) 15:12, 20 March 2009 (UTC)

EDIT: Oh yeah! Found it!

http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Rickrolling&diff=204659986&oldid=204659246

That's where it was deleted.

--Juze (talk) 15:21, 20 March 2009 (UTC)

Somebody add this:

The online gaming community Kongregate launched a new "game" called Kongai Launch, which featured a special card to be won, once the link was clicked, the link led to being rickrolled.

I can't change it my self, I am logged in, but the semiprotection won't let me edit. :(

--Juze (talk) 15:27, 20 March 2009 (UTC)

Okay, I was finally able to edit it. :) April Fools' Day is coming tomorrow again!

--Juze (talk) 09:03, 31 March 2009 (UTC)


 * No way. This isn't getting into the article. This article isn't a place for you to advertise. Until you can find a reliable secondary source to reference for this, it's not getting in. &mdash;  Hello Annyong  (say whaaat?!) 12:48, 31 March 2009 (UTC)


 * Yes, it's true. I'll even link to it: http://www.kongregate.com/games/BenV/kongaiLaunch This is the "Kongai Launch". Notice the description: "Note: This was an April Fools joke. It is not actually Kongai. Though, Kongai is coming soon! Check http://www.kongregate.com/cards for the latest info.". BenV is one of the Kongregate Staff members. Heck, read the comments! Even they say it's a Rick Roll, and I have been almost 2 years now a member. The Rick Roll doesn't work anymore though, but it surely was an April Fools' Day joke. --Juze (talk) 09:16, 3 April 2009 (UTC)
 * The point is, it's not really a significant event is it? Sillyfolkboy (talk) 10:45, 3 April 2009 (UTC)
 * Also, as HelloAnnyong said, it's not remotely notable without sources from a third party. – LATICS   talk  17:08, 3 April 2009 (UTC)
 * Well, it made about 10,000 people to get Rick Rolled, so I think it should be added, as it was on the Wiki too before. Kongregate has currently around 20,000 people the same time online sometimes, I would really not say it wouldn't be a big thing. Sorry for the late answer too. --Juze (talk) 09:04, 16 April 2009 (UTC)
 * It doesn't work that way. Notability isn't justified by number of hits. You really need to read WP:N. Until such time that Kongregate is notable, it's not going in the article. &mdash;  Hello Annyong  (say whaaat?!) 12:45, 16 April 2009 (UTC)
 * Oh well, I understand it. If it's not wanted then to the Wiki, what ever. I was just wondering, why it was deleted. :( Well, that's fine then. --Juze (talk) 07:57, 18 April 2009 (UTC)

Not Notable
This is the most absurd wikipedia listing to date, and that is saying something. Someone attempt to explain to me why this "Rickrolled" bullshit is remotely notable or I will delete the entry and continue to do so every day until I die. This has no place on any information source that doesn't want to be lumped into the same quality category as the "urban dictionary" or some such. Explain why the term "Rickrolled" deserves to known by anyone other than lobotomized junior high school students, otherwise I'm killing it. —Preceding unsigned comment added by 76.93.79.233 (talk) 07:07, 29 April 2009 (UTC)
 * If BBC News, The Daily Telegraph, Reuters (already cited), not to mention The Guardian and The New York Times all think that it's something worth discussion, then who are you to say it's not? I think you could achieve much more in the days before your death than sit here trying to delete this article. Sillyfolkboy (talk) (edits) 15:48, 29 April 2009 (UTC)
 * Blimey, somebody's got sand in their vagina. How on earth can this not be notable? Have you been living with your head in the sand for the last year? It's been discussed on mainstream television, in mainstream newspapers and magazines, and many other media to boot. Just because it doesn't rise to an intellectual level above 'lobotomised junior high school students', that is no reason for you to kill it. Calm down.90.212.204.65 (talk) 13:43, 4 June 2009 (UTC)

Photo
The photo screenshot of Rickrolling from YouTube is from the actual music video, if you look on the title in the screenshot. The real music video is NOT an example of rickrolling--or the rickrolling that I have come to know. I think the best screenshot would have the title of something that should be a legitimate video but show the rickroll. Discuss ~ 71.109.169.112 (talk) 04:12, 20 May 2009 (UTC)

The first screenshot is weird
That screenshot located in the top of the article is weird because the caption says "Screenshot of a Rickroll video window on YouTube" but the video title (visible on the screenshot) says it's the music video itself, so it's not actually a Rickroll.--ATDC Raigeki (talk) 16:22, 1 October 2009 (UTC)
 * Apparently this has been changed. The caption is now: YouTube video of "Never Gonna Give You Up"; the song played when viewers are Rickrolled. --82.171.70.54 (talk) 14:03, 10 October 2009 (UTC)

Yahtzee / EA Games / "Rickroll by mail"
http://www.escapistmagazine.com/news/view/95781-EA-Rickrolls-Yahtzee
 * I'm confused, how exactly is my addition (which was almost instantly removed) of the above Rickroll not notable? Not only was it done by a major games company (EA Games), but it was done to a major internet magazine (The Escapist), and aimed at a notable games reviewer (Ben Croshaw). All three of these have detailed Wikipedia entries, so I fail to see why this highly unusual example of Rickrolling is not considered notable. This is certainly the first example of "rickrolling by mail" that I've ever encountered, and a demonstration of how an internet concept has evolved to the point where it can happen outside of the internet, and be used for promotional purposes too. And my addition was fully cited and comes from a reliable source. I'm going to undo the revision, and welcome discussion here as to why my entry shouldn't be left in. Damage (talk) 22:49, 28 October 2009 (UTC)
 * And Chud.com. --90.199.248.73 (talk) 23:57, 28 October 2009 (UTC)
 * Thanks, that's excellent, I'll add it as a reference. If EA are sending out these promotional packages to all sorts of companies and magazines, clearly they consider this phenomenon significantly important and worthy of use in an expensive and high-profile marketing campaign. I imagine this will get more media attention as other instances are reported.Damage (talk) 00:32, 29 October 2009 (UTC)
 * Remind me again why you're putting so much weight on the Yahtzee one? What makes him more significant than anyone else? Shouldn't this read something like, "EA Games sent out boxes to various organizations containing rickroll stuff as promotional material for Dante's Inferno." or something? —  Hello Annyong  (say whaaat?!) 00:44, 29 October 2009 (UTC)
 * It seems to me the important thing is the use of the Rick Astley song in such an unusual fashion, not only by mail but also hidden in a packing case which must be smashed to stop the music. It's the nature of this usage that's notable, rather than just another "EA used Rickroll for promotion" statement. Given the size of Escapist Magazine and notability of Croshaw it seems like a perfect example to explain in context how the Rickrolling was used, and what the included hammer and goggles were for. As you'll see from the article I've added in that other companies have been sent the same thing. If you're concerned that Yahtzee gets too much attention, I can scale that down. However, the package was addressed specifically to Croshaw so I believe he deserves mention. Damage (talk) 01:02, 29 October 2009 (UTC)
 * If Yahtzee was the only person to get it, then yes, we should mention him exclusively. But the fact is that other places got it too, so you're really just putting this one example above the rest. —  Hello Annyong  (say whaaat?!) 01:44, 29 October 2009 (UTC)
 * Update: I just found this article - apparently Destructoid got one on the 27th. So that's three now. Highlighting the Escapist one is entirely inappropriate now, so I've rewritten the text to be both less weighted and generally more neutral. —  Hello Annyong  (say whaaat?!) 01:50, 29 October 2009 (UTC)
 * Fine, except that you've completely removed any explanation as to the significance of the hammer and goggles. Now it just seems like EA did something weird that happened to include the Rick Astley song, rather than something clever where the song and the concept of Rickrolling (it being a form of trap for the unsuspecting) are the focal point of the promotion. I'd edit it and make some changes, but as is invariably the case whenever I try and do anything on Wikipedia, I find myself browbeaten and countermanded at every step, and any initial enthusiasm I had at trying to add something that would be of interest to others (which is, I thought, the entire purpose of an encyclopedia) is now long gone. Damage (talk) 21:45, 29 October 2009 (UTC)

A lot of this article is OR/SYN or not notable
Making a list of web comic mentions and using as references the comic itself is a perfect example. —Preceding unsigned comment added by 52.129.8.50 (talk • contribs) 20:51, July 20, 2009
 * It's a good example of stuff that is not original research, but bears enough resemblance to cause edit wars and drama. Drawing new conclusions is banned as WP:OR, and for a good reason, so it'd be a mistake to write that a webcomic tells stories with important human themes and cite the comic. It's not original research to describe contents that are readily apparent in the work itself. No new information is introduced, and the statements are verifiable. If you check The Rules you've mentioned, you'll find that this sort of primary source use is allowed. In fact, it's necessary. Ever tried describing plays, soap operas or even just book series without any use of the works themselves? I haven't, and have no intention of starting. "Notability" applies to article topics and those only. It causes enough trouble already: forcing editors to evaluate the (at best semi-) arbitrary worthiness of each individual statement or section would be one of the quicker ways to destroy the encyclopedia. Hope that helps. --Kiz o r  13:35, 3 August 2009 (UTC)
 * I agree with Kizor, and after reading the policy on primary sources - "Without a secondary source, a primary source may be used only to make descriptive claims, the accuracy of which is verifiable by a reasonable, educated person without specialist knowledge." - I think the deletion of the entire subsection TV, Radio and Fiction from the list of examples because they allegedly use primary sources is a mistake. Seems to me like someone decided to "clean up" the article by removing the In popular culture template, not by doing the work of integrating the information better, but by deleting the entire section someone plonked it on. Keep in mind: "Given that Wikipedia is not paper, there is no justification for deleting speciality-interest information from the encyclopedia because a subset of our readers do not share those interests." - http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wikipedia:WikiProject_Popular_Culture I'm no Wikipedia expert, so I may be misinterpreting these rules and policies I've found, please explain it to me if I'm mistaken Uneffect (talk) 17:30, 4 November 2009 (UTC)

Readding trivia
I've removed the text that added in this edit per WP:TRIVIA. We're not here to mention every single time someone was Rickrolled or every time it's been mentioned on XKCD. This article was GA'd without the text in, and adding it in just brings down the quality. —  Hello Annyong  (say whaaat?!) 18:56, 4 November 2009 (UTC)
 * Er, I was going to remove it, but then Uneffect undid their edit. So.. nevermind? —  Hello Annyong  (say whaaat?!) 18:57, 4 November 2009 (UTC) They're back, so now they're removed. —  Hello Annyong  (say whaaat?!) 19:26, 4 November 2009 (UTC)
 * I agree with Kizor above http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Talk:Rickrolling&diff=prev&oldid=323941509#A_lot_of_this_article_is_OR.2FSYN_or_not_notable, and after reading the policy on primary sources - "Without a secondary source, a primary source may be used only to make descriptive claims, the accuracy of which is verifiable by a reasonable, educated person without specialist knowledge." - I think the deletion of the entire subsection TV, Radio and Fiction from the list of examples because they allegedly use primary sources is a mistake. Seems to me like someone decided to "clean up" the article by removing the In popular culture template, not by doing the work of integrating the information better, but by deleting the entire section someone plonked it on. Keep in mind: "Given that Wikipedia is not paper, there is no justification for deleting speciality-interest information from the encyclopedia because a subset of our readers do not share those interests." - http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wikipedia:WikiProject_Popular_Culture I'm no Wikipedia expert, so I may be misinterpreting these rules and policies I've found, please explain it to me if I'm mistaken, how it is trivia? Uneffect (talk) 19:46, 4 November 2009 (UTC)

Actually if you mean the xkcd stuff, yeah thats not even an example of rickrolling so i put the trivia template over it, get rid of it if you want. The rest isnt trivia Uneffect (talk) 19:49, 4 November 2009 (UTC)
 * Um, the WikiProject on Pop Culture isn't Wiki policy. Let's try this another way. WP:INDISCRIMINATE says that Wiki is not an indiscriminate collection of information. Since we can't allow everything in, we have to come up with a way to determine what is worthy of inclusion on this page. If we allow everything, then this page turns into a big list of every time someone got sent the video, showed the video at an event, and so on. Right now we have a pretty big collection of times that Rickrolling came up. The ones listed right now have been covered by secondary sources - articles on BBC, New York Times, and so on. Coverage by secondary sources is a general rule for inclusion on all of Wiki. Now compare that to the ones that have been removed.
 * There is absolutely no reason why we should list all of the XKCD comics that involved Rickrolling. Hell, there's even an Wiki essay on this. Every time XKCD mentions something, the article about that thing gets slammed with XKCD comments. The essay covers it well enough, so I'm not going to hash it out here.
 * The same idea applies for everything else. A mention on The Soup or Family Guy doesn't add anything to the discussion, and it certainly doesn't need to be included on this page. We're not here to mention every single occurrence of a Rickroll - just ones that have had some larger effect.
 * Oh, and adding the text and then adding a trivia tag on top of it is a sneaky way of getting text into the article. The burden is on you to prove notability. —  Hello Annyong  (say whaaat?!) 20:05, 4 November 2009 (UTC)
 * Agreed. None of these other examples are really notable, especially not xkcd. Just one one-off mention isn't enough; it has to be a notable example reported in a secondary source. Otherwise we've just got one big list of trivia. Ten Pound Hammer, his otters and a clue-bat • (Many otters • One bat • One hammer) 20:27, 4 November 2009 (UTC)
 * Personally, I think adding in times it has occurred to a major audience, such as the Carson Daily Show, constitute a valid reason for including to further improve the notability of the article. I don't agree with 'small audience' references.  F ELYZA T ALK C ONTRIBS  11:56, 5 November 2009 (UTC)
 * I think that some of the major-audience rickrolls are valid examples, such as the Macy's Thanksgiving Day one. We just need to draw the line somewhere. Ten Pound Hammer, his otters and a clue-bat • (Many otters • One bat • One hammer) 17:29, 5 November 2009 (UTC)

Please, dont call int a meme
It makes the entire article suffer from the kind of quasi intellectual drivel and misuse/0veruse of certain words/teminology, that for some reason is so accepted when it comes to internet phenomenas. Why not just call it an "internet trend". (Excuse the english, not my first language) —Preceding unsigned comment added by 80.217.25.28 (talk) 10:05, 18 October 2009 (UTC)

I think rickrolling and other things you're calling "internet trends" have already been called "internet memes" by people who are actual intellectuals. When you consider the kind of things that happen in communication because of some of the more prevalent internet memes, it becomes apparent that they sometimes really are cultural units, containing much more meaning than just that of a practical joke. --Robynebyrde (talk) 01:31, 25 October 2009 (UTC)


 * Right, so why is "rickrolling" supposed to be funny? Is it something about Astley in particular, or just the fact that, "oh, it's *that* video again" --?  The article does not explain. Would a link to a Mozart cantata been as funny? Perhaps someone could enlighten. Wlindley (talk) 13:40, 13 November 2009 (UTC)
 * This isn't a forum. Go ask elsewhere. —  Hello Annyong  (say whaaat?!) 15:54, 13 November 2009 (UTC)


 * The NOTAFORUM meme is perhaps more annoying than rickrolling - you're responding to allegedly insufficiently focused conversation by providing completely irrelevant conversation, and then my response doubles that... The IP has a point that "meme" is jargon to be avoided when feasible - and more to the point, the entire "Internet meme" article Wikilinked is of dubious notability and should probably be either deleted or reduced and merged into meme, a far more informative explanation of the meme meme. Wnt (talk) 07:38, 8 December 2009 (UTC)


 * I was telling Wlindley not to use this as a forum to discuss "why is "rickrolling" supposed to be funny?"
 * As to rickrolling being called a meme, I reused two of the references in the article to show that it has been referred to as such by multiple sources. Per WP:V, text in the article needs to be verifiable by sources, and it is now. —  Hello Annyong  (say whaaat?!) 12:35, 8 December 2009 (UTC)


 * Alright, I've answered Wlindley's question in the article using somewhat reasonable sources -in any case, truthfully, and making the article more understandable. This proves incontrovertibly that the question was appropriate to begin with, and NOTAFORUM never applied. Wnt (talk) 19:03, 8 December 2009 (UTC)

Family Guy influence
In the history section, I think it would be right to recognize Family Guy's role in the rickrolling phenomenon. I'm sure most 4chan posters had no idea who Rick Astley was before the "Meet the Quagmires" episode aired in May 2007, featuring Brian singing the song in a parody of Back to the Future. Prior to that episode airing, I don't think anyone considered the song to be the "worst pop song ever," as the wikipedia article currently suggests. I don't think anyone even remembered it. Family Guy refreshed it in everyone's memory right before rickrolling started. —Preceding unsigned comment added by Steronz (talk • contribs) 13:03, 1 January 2010 (UTC)
 * You're going to need multiple sources to back up a claim like that. And I'm pretty sure that your theory isn't true anyway. —  Hello Annyong  (say whaaat?!) 15:44, 1 January 2010 (UTC)


 * It's an interesting concept, but it doesn't exactly hold water when you consider that the first Rickroll occurred on /v/ about a month before that episode of Family Guy aired. It was also more influenced by the duckroll than anything.


 * The duckroll is an Internet meme where one person posts a new thread on an imageboard, such as 4chan or 7chan, with no text, and a picture of a wooden duck. They would then copy their post number, go to other threads and write fake replies within the other threads. These fake replies would be prefaced with '>>[post number'. When posts include >>[post number] clicking it will link back to the post they entered. Usually this just moves you up the page to view an earlier post, however, if you do this with a post in a different thread it will redirect you to the new thread, out of the thread you were viewing. If you post these fake replies in multiple threads you can often get a lot of people viewing your duckroll thread, creating an interesting effect where comments on your duckroll cause the thread to last longer than the original threads people were linked from. The goal of a duckroller, of course, is to create an interesting and convincing enough fake reply to get people to click the post number you replied to in order to see the original comment.


 * Eventually, this evolved into using animated GIFs of the wooden duck rolling accross the screen, links to youtube videos of the duck rolling across the screen with extra quacking sounds instead of using fake replies, and eventually, at the end of March/start of April, rickrolling. Rockstar Games had just announced Grand Theft Auto 4, and many of 4chan's boards, but especially /v/, the video game board, were getting a lot of traffic regarding the game anouncement.


 * At the same time that Rockstar anounced GTA4, they also released a trailer of their game, however, it was only availible via Rockstar's website. Because of the popularity of Grand Theft Auto games, Rockstar's website became unusable to most, and most of the people who wanted to see the video could not connect to their website. It was then that an anonymous 4chan user posted a new thread on /v/ claiming that the trailer had been leaked to Youtube, and provided a link to the video. The video he linked to was not, in fact, the trailer, but instead the music video for Never Gonna Give you Up, by Rick Astley. And rickrolling was born.


 * Also, Rick Astley has always been pretty notable in his cheesiness. I believe Never Gonna Give you Up made VH1's list of the 50 Worst Songs Ever years before either this episode or rickrolling ever occured.


 * That said, it is definately possible that this episode played a role in the wide adoption of the meme into popular culture, and subsequent overuse/lameification. It's even possible that Seth MacFarlane was inspired by Rickrolling in creating that episode. I wouldn't put it past him, as it wouldn't be his first reference to Internet culture. (Admitidly the one other reference I can think of, the Peanut Butter Jelly Time dancing banana, was incredibly dated by the time it made it into Family Guy, where as this would have only been a month old.) 8bit (talk) 18:10, 13 January 2010 (UTC)
 * Rick Astley had a major hit across the world in the 80s. He was very well known b4 rickrolling and the song was still famous. How can you be "sure" that most 4chan users had never heard of him? Your theory is 100% based on what you personally believe. Wikipedia uses third party sources. --Bill (talk 20:44, 13 January 2010 (UTC)


 * 4chan was founded in 2004, Rick Astley obviously had to lose a lot of popularity in 20 years. —Preceding unsigned comment added by Estemshorn (talk • contribs) 02:26, 14 January 2010 (UTC)


 * I just want to point out, that rick rolling has been around since about 2002. 4 chan did not create this meme, and that information is wholey inaccurate. - Anonymous —Preceding unsigned comment added by 206.202.89.12 (talk • contribs) 22:16, February 15, 2010

The song ... "worst"[3]
Regarding the following line in the introduction: The song may have been favored for this use by those regarding it as the "worst"[3]

Reference [3] (http://www.citypaper.com/printStory.asp?id=15543) is not a legitimate source for this information. To quote the article: "tricking someone into watching the video for Rick Astley's "Never Gonna Give You Up," quite possibly the worst song ever recorded".

No poll was conducted. No analysis of the song's purchase history was made. No "Worst 100 songs of [insert era here]" was referenced. This is a single author's line, and does not represent more than that person's opinion. —Preceding unsigned comment added by Mowerm (talk • contribs) 05:38, 3 March 2010 (UTC)

Edit request
jailbroken iphone smartphone needs to be edited as follows:

(Capitalise) Jailbroken iPhone (remove smartphone)

Roby718 (talk) 19:14, 3 March 2010 (UTC)

Done Half of it, anyway. I can't see a valid reason to capitalize 'jailbroken'. I agree that iPhone smartphone is somewhat redundant, like Kleenex tissue or Band-Aid bandages. Celestra (talk) 23:08, 3 March 2010 (UTC)

New Rick Roll (Communist Roll'd)
A New Hit sensation has hit. It is called Communist roll. you may find it will come up with a guy from the 80's singing lolololol. it has been viral and been the new rick roll. —Preceding unsigned comment added by Mastchio (talk • contribs) 16:30, 12 March 2010 (UTC)

The Game
The repeated line "We know the game and we're gonna play it " in the lyrics to the song "Never gonna give you up" are often associated with the meme "You just lost the game" as in the wikipedia article titled "The game (Mind Game)". If somebody's speculation in the introduction about how this song is considered the worst popular song ever is notable, then so is the link to the game. I can't put it in because I have no edits, though. The two memes are probably about as familiar to anonymous as each other, and often work in concert. None of that needs to be put in though. Just a mention of the game with the quoted lyrics and a link to the article. —Preceding unsigned comment added by Humanaethema (talk • contribs) 10:40, 19 March 2010 (UTC)

The End
Just answer me this? why not end it? —Preceding unsigned comment added by Krashlia (talk • contribs) 06:11, 2 April 2010 (UTC)

Rickrolling Phone Calls
Popular website YouMail.com had about 10,000 of its users 'rick roll' phone calls they received from telemarketers on April 1, 2010. 

Rick rolling apperears to have been inspired buy the 2007 Season Finale of Family Guy in which they spoofed Back to The Future. A small portion of the song was played and it was called "That new mediocre sound you've been looking for." http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Meet_the_Quagmires#Cultural_references. The RickRolling fad croped up shortly after this date. —Preceding unsigned comment added by 69.255.120.192 (talk) 01:11, 19 May 2010 (UTC)

The reason why this Bait&Switch meme features Rick Astley
It strikes me as a severely deficient explanation to say that this Bait&Switch internet meme that became known as RickRolling features Rick Astley because, as the article currently states, because it is:


 * "the "worst" popular song of all time"

Those who lived through the 80s know exactly why the Bait&Switch meme posterboy is Rick Astley, because we experienced it while watching MTV. Here is the edit I made a few minutes ago:


 * ...the expectation of getting one thing but then seeing something completely different is epitomized by Rick Astley because with his soulful voice on the radio, many people expected his video to show him as a stocky black man, but were completely shocked to find out that he is a scrawny redhead with paste-white skin. The original RickRoll was seeing Rick Astley himself.

This change only lasted on the page a few minutes before it got clobbered out. I expect that the person who removed it is from a younger generation who never lived that original experience.--ChrisfromHouston (talk) 19:34, 28 May 2010 (UTC)
 * No, the person who removed it did so because that's your own speculation and was completely unsourced. Get a reliable source for your statements and we'll discuss its inclusion. —  Hello Annyong  (say whaaat?!) 19:38, 28 May 2010 (UTC)


 * I agree that the information appeared to be original research and was properly removed. I've also removed the line about it being used because it was the "worst popular song of all time" because the statement didn't match the source and I'm not sure that Chris Landers' opinion of the song belongs in the lead. --Onorem♠Dil 19:53, 28 May 2010 (UTC)

It's in a drama!
Oh my god,the music is in the Gloria drama.WTF?Why did the cast of the Gloria drama put that music in the background?If you hear the Rick Roll music while watching this drama,you know why.The 8th episode of the Gloria drama should have negative reception.--99.130.169.30 (talk) 13:17, 6 September 2010 (UTC)

Indirect profit
"Despite the video getting milllions of hits on YouTube, Astley has barely earned any money out of the meme, receiving only US$12 for his performance share."

I can't help feeling this is misleading, as although Astley may not have earned money directly from the meme, he will have had more people buying his music, going to his shows etc. because of it.

But I can't think of how to phrase that properly without just saying "he probably profited I suppose". -- Love, Smurfy 16:37, 18 September 2010 (UTC)

Rickrolled in a Movie?
I wanted to put before everyone if this would be something that could be added to the article. I was just re watching a movie called Cube Zero which is part of a movie trilogy. Its a pretty gruesome sci fi movie. The gist of the movies is that people are trapped in a high tech cube and have to find their way out by moving into a different part of the cube that doesnt a have a lethal trap. If you get trapped in one that does, your dead. In Cube Zero an unfortunate person gets trapped in a cube room where the deadly trap is several ultra sonic speakers blaring,you guessed it, Rick Astley's "Never Gonna Give You Up". It blares into the room where the guys dies a very gruesome screaming death, although I wonder if it was because of having to hear the song or the decibels. I know this is'nt technically a "rickroll" as defined by the article but I feel it should be included somehow. I hope I get some feed back soon. If nobody responds after a few weeks Ill add it with some qualifications and others can edit it or take it down. Here's the scene. WARNING: GRAPHIC SCENE http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eWI42icJzJc&feature=related —Preceding unsigned comment added by 76.31.242.174 (talk) 21:58, 4 June 2010 (UTC)
 * According to the YouTube user who posted the video, the song isn't actually in the movie (which is actually somewhat obvious). --RaygunShaun (talk) 14:51, 23 July 2010 (UTC)

No it is not actually obvious but I do see that he did make the comment to the effect that it was not in the movie after I had seen the video.--76.31.242.174 (talk) 23:42, 4 August 2010 (UTC)
 * It's painfully obvious. --RaygunShaun (talk) 19:38, 6 September 2010 (UTC)
 * no it is not --85.180.3.113 (talk) 03:00, 3 October 2010 (UTC)

Rickroll in Space
The comedy site ZUG.com sent a weather balloon into space with a device playing the Rickroll theme, capturing it on video. Can we add this to the page? Dprice99 (talk) 02:21, 8 October 2010 (UTC)

First Rickroll in 1991
I was a fervent listener of Live105 <1> radio broadcasts out of San Francisco, when I went to school at Santa Clara University in Silicon Valley, from 1990-1994. Every Memorial Day weekend, the station would count down the top 300 modern rack classics "of all time". I decided to tape-record as much of the 1991 countdown as I could. I still have the 10 or so tapes I made then. When the D.J. was about to reveal the #1 song on the countdown, replete with drum roll, he played a Rick Astley song instead of the actual #1 song, Bizarre Love Triangle by New Order <2>. It was horrifying for a moment, since we modern rock enthusiasts were loathe to appreciate a pop song by Rick Astley. Then the joke was apparent as the song faded out and the D.J. came back on to play the real #1. I believe that future internet gurus may have been listening to that broadcast as well in 1991, in the Silicon Valley, and they may have gone on to develop Rickrolling in later years. Does anyone have evidence of this? --Johnstonjenny (talk) 18:33, 9 October 2010 (UTC)

<1> http://live105.radio.com Official website of Live105, retrieved 10/09/10. <2> Live105 Flashback 300 (1991), http://www.rocklists.com/alltime71, retrieved 10/09/10.

I don't get the joke.
It's not like you are forced to look at the whole video. Beancrisp (talk) 05:43, 11 March 2011 (UTC)
 * Correct, but it would annoy someone who thought that they were going to see a video of something else.--76.66.187.132 (talk) 20:03, 2 April 2011 (UTC)

Sentence error?
Why is the word typically in the first line of the article? .

''Rickrolling is an Internet meme typically involving the music video for the 1987 Rick Astley song "Never Gonna Give You Up". ''

It's not "typically involving" it always involves the music video, it can't be a rick roll without a link to the video. I can't edit this article, but it would be appreciated if someone who can would make this change.

173.76.109.232 (talk) 20:59, 6 April 2011 (UTC)


 * ✅ I changed the line to remove the ambiguity. Thanks for pointing this out. Dawnseeker2000   00:50, 7 April 2011 (UTC)

I think it was meant to mean that the meme typically used Rick Astley, but that any music video can be used. It seems right, since the term rickrolling has become generic. --Allvanishing (talk) 00:17, 15 April 2011 (UTC)

Bad grammar
The section Saint Seiya: The Hades has horrendous grammar. Can someone fix it? Words such as "thoses" don't exist and official has two f's.72.152.136.241 (talk) 02:12, 16 April 2011 (UTC)

2011 ThinkGeek Rick Roll April Fool
ThinkGeek.com Rick Rolled site visitors who clicked on the video for the Beta to HD DVD recorder.

http://www.thinkgeek.com/stuff/41/betamaxhd.html

It linked to a YouTube video...

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7dY3IHhIRlo&feature=autoplay&list=FLOVFuVkd_Lwk&index=2&playnext=1 — Preceding unsigned comment added by 94.71.97.192 (talk) 17:31, 7 June 2011 (UTC)

Rickrolling Linux kernel module written
A Linux kernel module has been written that, when loaded, intercepts open system calls and replaces file names ending in ".mp3" with a path to a predefined MP3 file instead. The idea being that the kernel will Rickroll any users' attempt to play an MP3 audio file.

https://github.com/fpletz/kernelroll

213.100.159.170 (talk) 14:14, 25 September 2011 (UTC)


 * I'd really like to see this one in the article, too. So if there are no objections, I'll add it in a few days. —XanClic (talk) 00:54, 23 October 2011 (UTC)
 * Whoops, I totally missed that this article is write-protected (I guess, that only makes sense). Anyway, if someone's able to edit it, I'd greatly appreciate the inclusion of this example. —XanClic (talk) 19:23, 28 October 2011 (UTC)


 * No. This article isn't for promoting one-off scripts or anything like that. —  Hello Annyong  (say whaaat?!) 22:58, 28 October 2011 (UTC)

Edit request on 12 January 2012
Please change under the headline "Examples" and the sub headline "Others" to include a note stating: "On 11 January 2012, the Occupy Pittsburgh movement decided they will play "Never Gonna Give You Up" if confronted by authorities."

Citation: Balingit,Moriah (2012-01-11). "Occupy Pittsburgh to cops: prepare to be rickrolled". Pittsburgh Post Gazette. Retrieved 2012-01-12.

Fort2m (talk) 06:57, 12 January 2012 (UTC)


 * Ha, nice find, and thanks for the clear request. Yes check.svg Done. Adrian J. Hunter(talk•contribs) 15:02, 12 January 2012 (UTC)


 * Sorry, how does that not fall under WP:TRIVIA? —  Hello Annyong  (say whaaat?!) 02:00, 13 January 2012 (UTC)


 * It might, but that's a broader discussion to be had about that entire section, not just this edit request. Adrian J. Hunter(talk•contribs) 05:21, 16 January 2012 (UTC)

Ferris Bueller movie teaser "Rickrolled" to Matthew Broderick car ad
Can we ad the Ferris Bueller teaser and subsequent revelation to the list?

Millions of internet watchers were excited to the possibility of a new Ferris Bueller movie after a 10 second clip. We Googled the possibility and even found a 5 year old script. Less than a week later we were Rickrolled or "Bueller Bombed" because it turns out it was not a movie but an ad for a Honda, which isn't even choice enough the like of Ferris Bueller.

Djensen47 (talk) 18:54, 31 January 2012 (UTC)


 * And that has what to do with rickrolling? —  Hello Annyong  (say whaaat?!)
 * It appears that the only feedback you provide here is "what does that have to do with …" so I'm not going to bother. Anybody else have some useful feedback? Djensen47 (talk) 06:24, 1 February 2012 (UTC)

02:31, 1 February 2012 (UTC)

In Effects on Astley and reaction, the word "however" should be removed
In the Effects on Astley and reaction section, it says: "According to The Register, however, Astley has only directly made $12, in [...]" To know what that word "however" implies, we need to look at the sentence before it. That one states that Astley "thanked moot for the rickrolling phenomenon". The word "however" wrongly implies that Astley thanked moot for revenue Astley earned or expected to earn, thus the word "however" should be removed. --82.171.13.139 (talk) 13:31, 10 March 2012 (UTC)

Edit request on 15 June 2012
Please change the word "persons" to "people" on line 5, it should be changed because the sentence is not referring to individuals but anyone.

C7K (talk) 22:23, 15 June 2012 (UTC)
 * ✅ Rotorcowboy $talk contribs$ 22:29, 15 June 2012 (UTC)

Edit request on 17 July 2012
Edit request:

Add to section Examples: Others:

Another form of Rickrolling has circulated in social media images that trick the user into thinking the words Never Going To Give You Up, thus causing the viewer to "get the song stuck in their head". This is done by claiming that a percentage of the viewers of the image do not know the antonyms for the words "1) Always 2) Coming 3) From 4) Take 5) Me 6) Down".

ref:http://www.facebook.com/photo.php?fbid=356488241091891&set=a.126895770717807.28294.126894987384552&type=1&theater

DianaOBrien (talk) 16:02, 17 July 2012 (UTC)

Not done: please provide reliable sources that support the change you want to be made. Facebook is not a reliable source. Floating Boat  (the user formerly known as AndieM)  08:06, 18 July 2012 (UTC) What would be considered a reliable source for a phenomenon that occurs exclusively in social media? — Preceding unsigned comment added by DianaOBrien (talk • contribs) 12:50, 18 July 2012 (UTC)

Cotter548, Shawn Cotter, creator of the rickroll
Why hasn't this been addressed? People seem to accept that this guy started it, and he has the login on youtube for the original youtube video. See this, for example: http://www.reddit.com/comments/mx53y/i_am_youtube_user_cotter548_aka_the_inventor_of/?sort=confidence  as well as http://betabeat.com/2012/09/meet-shawn-cotter-the-man-behind-the-rickroll/ — Preceding unsigned comment added by 2601:A:2B00:48:E2F8:47FF:FE1F:47C6 (talk) 21:56, 5 September 2012 (UTC)
 * IIRC, Cotter548 wasn't the one who created the rickroll. He uploaded the video after the prank was created by an anonymous user on 4chan and made popular there. It may be okay to call him "the one who uploaded the original and most visited Rickroll video", but certainly he didn't create it. Diego Grez (talk) 22:43, 5 September 2012 (UTC)

Largest Rickroll Ever
In October 2012 Google did an extremely covert rick-roll by putting out a Google Maps tour video with Rick Astley's "Never Gonna Give You Up" playing on not one, but two screens. That attempt comes up when you search for 'worlds largest rickroll' and Beanstalk's blog can be "cited" as reporting the video to be, "... the world's largest ever single Rick Roll attempt", when they did a story on the same Google Maps video. If you dig further into the statistics close to 2 million viewers had watched the Google Maps rickroll/server building tour by the 3rd day, and most of those were all in the same day. So with this in hand Google needs an honorable mention if not the current title of 'worlds largest rickroll', at least in the context of forcing someone to watch the YouTube video.<b style="white-space:nowrap;text-shadow:#000 0em 0em 0.4em,#5a0 -0.2em -0.2em 0.4em,#a00 0.2em 0.2em 0.4em;color:#ddd">WRX</b>-<b style="white-space:nowrap;text-shadow:#000">Nut</b> 03:16, 29 November 2012 (UTC) — Preceding unsigned comment added by WRXNUT (talk • contribs)

Edit request on 14 December 2012
During a live edition of WWE Monday Night Raw on June 9, 2008, WWE chairman Vince McMahon was "rickrolled" as part of an on-air contest. Throughout the broadcast McMahon made several phone calls to WWE viewers who had entered the contest and if they knew the correct current prize code, they would win money. On the first attempt to call a viewer, that person had set their ringback tone to "Never Gonna Give You Up" which played live over the WWE broadcast for several seconds.

Stuttsy (talk) 10:20, 14 December 2012 (UTC)
 * Red information icon with gradient background.svg Not done: please provide reliable sources that support the change you want to be made. Also I don't think that every instance of a Rickroll should be covered here, though if consensus disagrees with me I will not object further. &mdash; KuyaBriBri Talk 18:32, 14 December 2012 (UTC)

IsoHunt Shutdown
On IsoHunt's shutdown page as of 2013/10/21, the site used the video unironically. — Preceding unsigned comment added by 173.167.113.209 (talk) 09:01, 21 October 2013 (UTC)

Webpage version
I'm sure I remember a version of Rickrolling where the unsuspecting Rickrollee was taken to a page on which the video played as wallpaper (in a manner reminiscent of YTMND) along with the music, while lyrics flashed up in sequential prompt windows, making it impossible to stop the webpage without closing the webpage by command prompt or similar. I have a feeling that this may even have been before YouTube. — Sasuke Sarutobi (talk) 10:53, 17 January 2014 (UTC)

The apostrophe follows the period in a quotation. Thanks.
Please change this section:

Effects on Astley and reaction

In a March 2008 interview, Astley said that he found the Rickrolling of Scientology to be "hilarious"; he also said that he will not try to capitalize on the rickroll phenomenon with a new recording or remix of his own, but that he would be happy to have other artists remix it. Overall, Astley is not troubled by the phenomenon, stating that he finds it "bizarre and funny" and that his only concern is that his "daughter doesn't get embarrassed about it".[13] A spokesperson for Astley's record label released a comment which showed that Astley's interest with the phenomenon had faded, as they stated "I'm sorry, but he's done talking about Rickrolling".[5]

To read like this:

Effects on Astley and reaction

In a March 2008 interview, Astley said that he found the Rickrolling of Scientology to be "hilarious"; he also said that he will not try to capitalize on the rickroll phenomenon with a new recording or remix of his own, but that he would be happy to have other artists remix it. Overall, Astley is not troubled by the phenomenon, stating that he finds it "bizarre and funny" and that his only concern is that his "daughter doesn't get embarrassed about it." [13] A spokesperson for Astley's record label released a comment which showed that Astley's interest with the phenomenon had faded, as they stated, "I'm sorry, but he's done talking about Rickrolling." [5]

Dj1964 (talk) 02:40, 18 January 2014 (UTC)
 * Yes check.svg Done. --User:Anon126 (talk - contribs) 05:33, 18 January 2014 (UTC)

Examples section
from the history, undoing the split. My intent is to discourage anyone from copying back from List of successful rickrolls unnecessarily. WP:Articles for deletion/List of successful rickrolls had consensus for reducing the list and strong support for cutting it substantially. I have no objection to anyone engaging in normal content editing immediately. Flatscan (talk) 05:06, 10 April 2014 (UTC)
 * Thanks for that. I have gone ahead and removed several entries whose references were either broken links or did not respresent independent coverage. I also moved some of the shorter "standalone" examples into the 'Others' section.  Gongshow   talk  07:08, 11 April 2014 (UTC)
 * There were two unsourced examples added to List of successful rickrolls, and both were removed. I have described them if anyone would like to search:
 * After Bill Nye and Ken Ham debated Creationism, a copy of the music video was uploaded to YouTube with a sensational death hoax title. (Nye has been the target of multiple death hoaxes.)
 * "Full Screen Pokemon", a hoax follow-up to Full Screen Mario, embedded and played the video after a brief introduction from the original game.
 * Flatscan (talk) 04:54, 13 April 2014 (UTC)

Semi-protected edit request on 20 June 2014
Insert link: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dQw4w9WgXcQ&feature=kp into the link of "bait and switch", if you have a sense of humor. Do it. Do it. Open the trunk. Do it.

Jaswon (talk) 03:01, 20 June 2014 (UTC)
 * Sorry, but your request is unnecessary. Diego Grez (talk) 05:01, 20 June 2014 (UTC)

Semi-protected edit request on 6 February 2015
Rickrolling was around long before 2008. Probably even dates back to the late nineties. By 2008, it had been a tiresome, old joke for years with internet geeks and old-timers. I don't know where it began, but if I had to guess, I'd say slashdot.org or /.

2602:30A:C071:98D0:89F8:FFD2:4266:F28A (talk) 00:48, 6 February 2015 (UTC)
 * Red information icon with gradient background.svg Not done: please provide reliable sources that support the change you want to be made. Stickee (talk) 00:56, 6 February 2015 (UTC)

During gameplay
I would like to suggest another variation of a "Rick Roll". During gameplay this evening we "Rick Rolled" one of the opposition via in game comms. With 12 people in a coordinated fashion saying lines of the song at one of the opposition team players. Causing the player in question to receive ~50 comms notifications over a few minutes. I guess I would call this the "sing-along-remote" rick roll, as each person was singing their line before posting it. — Preceding unsigned comment added by DanBUK (talk • contribs) 23:49, 4 August 2015 (UTC)

Semi-protected edit request on 29 August 2015
The Rickroll video is active as of August 28, 2015 through this link: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dQw4w9WgXcQ as a source for this Yahoo Answers page: https://answers.yahoo.com/question/index?qid=20081208133841AAUxOoY

Nightshade6977 (talk) 03:12, 29 August 2015 (UTC)
 * Red question icon with gradient background.svg Not done: it's not clear what changes you want to be made. Please mention the specific changes in a "change X to Y" format. Chamith   (talk)  03:22, 29 August 2015 (UTC)

Reference link update
Change link in reference 40 from http://popwatch.ew.com/popwatch/2008/11/macys-thanksgiv.html to http://www.ew.com/article/2008/11/27/macys-thanksgiv — Preceding unsigned comment added by Dumenar (talk • contribs) 21:17, 5 September 2015 (UTC)

Semi-protected edit request on 20 October 2015
To whomsoever is unfortunate enough to have this knowledge dropped upon them,

Hello, my name is James Ballard. I would like to start by saying that I use Wikipedia with frequency and have rarely, if ever, been disappointed by the service provided by your wonderfully accessible website. However, this is a forlorn edit request form. This evening, a good friend of mine informed me that "Rickrolling" was more of a thing than I was aware of. I thought that it was something reserved for youtubers and honestly enjoyed the occaissional influx of Rick Astley. Once informed of this "new" development, I quickly went to Wikipedia to do some research on "Rickrolling." The first two sentences in the article are as follows:

"Rickrolling is an Internet meme[1] involving the music video for the 1987 Rick Astley song 'Never Gonna Give You Up.' The meme is a bait and switch; a person provides a hyperlink which is seemingly relevant to the topic at hand, but actually leads to Astley's video."

In the second sentence, the word "hyperlink" is a hyperlink to an article on Wikipedia entitled "Hyperlink" which describes what a hyperlink is. This is a travesty. On the page for "Rickrolling" is an opportunity to express a definition or idea with such nuance as to be criminal to pass up. The word "hyperlink" should be a hyperlink to the music video by Astley. It is a rare occurance indeed to be able to explain to someone, in a way that they will totally understand the concept, without explaining anything. This is quite possibly the greatest tragedy the internet has ever seen. If internet giants turn their backs on little details such as this, the internet will turn into a festering pool of monotony and blandness. I for one, stand for the flair and entertaining nature of the internet. I cannot stand idly by while this crime against human hilarity and experimental education is allowed to go on. Please, for the love of every joke ever made, fix this wildly offensive error.

Thank you for your time, James Ballard

73.177.60.246 (talk) 02:15, 20 October 2015 (UTC)
 * Red information icon with gradient background.svg Not done: We cannot do that as we have policies on external links in articles. See WP:EL for more information.  We are also an encyclopedia, not an extension of YouTube and not a joke site. --Stabila711 (talk) 03:18, 20 October 2015 (UTC)

External links modified
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Update
One of the sections says that the current video has over 80 million views. It has more than doubled since then, as it now has over 195 million. 184.53.32.101 (talk) 20:39, 7 April 2016 (UTC)

What is this from?
this was a treadon 4chan mainly derrived from Hidden links veiw 4chan.org https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dQw4w9WgXcQ this is a link to a video about the history of rick rolling. — Preceding unsigned comment added by 209.189.162.111 (talk) 17:22, 12 April 2016 (UTC)

Rickrolling Scientology
The reaction from Astley mentions this incident but the incident itself isn't mentioned in the article which could lead to confusion for anyone unfamiliar with the event. Should the event be listed under its history or perhaps that mentions of the event be excluded? --Steven Williamson (HiB2Bornot2B) - talk ▓▒░ Go Big Blue! ░▒▓  04:53, 21 July 2016 (UTC)

Add External Links
There needs to be an external links section, and it should have a disguised link to Rick Astley's Never Gonna Give You Up. Dubinia (talk) 21:26, 12 April 2017 (UTC)

Capitalization
Shouldn’t “Rickroll” and “rick-roll” be capitalized, since they contain “Rick,” the name of a person? For instance, the “Morse” in “Morse code” is capitalized, since it is named after Samuel F. B. Morse. <font face="Papyrus"><font color="#0020C2">―  PapíDimmi  (  talk |  contribs  ) 02:18, 25 May 2017 (UTC)

more information here
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xfr64zoBTAQ — Preceding unsigned comment added by 41.177.148.40 (talk) 06:58, 10 September 2017 (UTC)

Rick in "rickrolling" should be capitalized
Rick is a name, not a word. — Preceding unsigned comment added by 86.173.195.6 (talk) 07:56, 17 September 2017 (UTC)

External links modified
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 * Added archive https://web.archive.org/web/20080330015146/http://laist.com/2008/03/25/rick_astley_cal.php to http://laist.com/2008/03/25/rick_astley_cal.php
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Semi-protected edit request on 4 February 2018
{ {subst:trim|1=


 * Your message may have been cut off. Do you have a request to change something on the Wikipedia article?  Anon 126   (notify me of responses! / talk / contribs) 00:14, 5 February 2018 (UTC)

"DQw4w9WgXcQ" listed at Redirects for discussion
An editor has asked for a discussion to address the redirect DQw4w9WgXcQ. Please participate in the redirect discussion if you wish to do so. <b style="color:#7F007F">Ritchie333</b> <sup style="color:#7F007F">(talk) <sup style="color:#7F007F">(cont)  18:10, 1 October 2019 (UTC)

Rick Rolling History
The claim that Rick Rolling began on 4Chan is wrong. Rick Rolling goes back to the 90's, when people would just post a mp3 of the song, and long before 4Chan had debut. It was popular on message boards long before 4Chan or 2007. — Preceding unsigned comment added by 2600:1700:f9d0:a610:4998:7555:c112:a9ad (talk • contribs) 01:09, August 7, 2019 (UTC)
 * All information on Wikipedia needs to be backed up by a reliable source. If you can provide such a source this can be included. — python coder (talk &#124; contribs) 02:07, 15 October 2019 (UTC)

First instance of rick rolling
I think the date in the article (2007) is inaccurate. I vaguely remmeber a website back in 2005-ish with a URL something along the lines of 1337.(something) which spawned the annoying pop-ups quickly which you had to close to exit the page.ZdrytchX (talk) 15:18, 16 January 2020 (UTC)

The fifth link
The fifth link in the sources (supposed to link to a Fox News page) results in a 404 error. — Preceding unsigned comment added by FooNation (talk • contribs) 04:36, 14 February 2020 (UTC)
 * using the miracle of the Wayback Machine. Thanks FooNation. Adrian J. Hunter(talk•contribs) 05:26, 14 February 2020 (UTC)

Wrong date lol
Both the Italian and English are referring this video for the date of the rickroll starting, other than the fact that this didn't start the rickroll, both miss the right date by 1 month. it's May, not August, eiher April. — Preceding unsigned comment added by FallBackITA27 (talk • contribs) 16:57, 15 March 2020 (UTC)

Radiohead?
Radiohead? (I was there.) -- — Preceding unsigned comment added by 2600:1700:43B1:1870:FD3D:F5EE:2913:7732 (talk) 04:11, 28 March 2020 (UTC)

On the event of Rick Astley getting rick-rolled on Reddit
It's finally happened. Reddit link

Here's the text I propose to insert under "Effects on Astley and reaction":

""""""

In June 2020, Rick Astley posted a picture of himself taken in 1989 on tour in Las Vegas on Reddit. A user responded with a possible fabricated story about meeting Rick Astley back-stage during their childhood with a link to the song. Rick responded with the 'applause' emoji presumably having clicked on the link and being Rickrolled.

""""""

If links are to be added, I'd need to be told, as I do not contribute regularly. — Preceding unsigned comment added by Atreya The Brain (talk • contribs) 20:42, 17 June 2020 (UTC)

I edited the "Ongoing Usage" section to mention briefly the event of Astley being rickrolled on 17 June. Please let me know if I cited an improper source before removing my edit, so that I can change the source or remove it. — Preceding unsigned comment added by Biasbalancer1 (talk • contribs) 00:43, 18 June 2020 (UTC)

Semi-protected edit request on 18 June 2020
I would like to add a link to Rick Astley's never gonna give you up to attempt to rick roll readers of the page CanadianRussianVodka (talk) 10:21, 18 June 2020 (UTC)

Not done There is already a still image and a link to a video. Larry Hockett (Talk) 10:26, 18 June 2020 (UTC)

Semi-protected edit request on 18 June 2020
Put under either ongoing usage section, or effects on Astley and his reaction. Not sure where this should go but I think it should go under one of these.

On 18 June 2020, approximately around 12AM (GMT+8), Rick Astley posted a photo of himself at his very first concert in 1989 on social media platform Reddit, following which a commenter known as u/theMalleableDuck commented on the post, saying that he had met him backstage when he was 12 years old, and attaching what was supposedly a link to a photo taken with him. The photo, however was actually a link to a copy of the Rickroll video. Rick Astley supposedly fell prey to it, and clicked on the link rickrolling himself in the process. He reacted with a clapping hands emoji after being rickrolled, while the Reddit user, whose identity is not yet known, became famous in the process, earning himself just under 40,000 Reddit coins and access to Reddit premium until 2029, along with respect from Rick Astley. Chenfenggoh (talk) 07:58, 18 June 2020 (UTC)
 * , while this is quite funny (I saw it myself) it is not a notable event unless it gets some news coverage. —moonythedwarf (Braden N.) 08:03, 18 June 2020 (UTC)
 * , it got covered my media already: https://movieweb.com/rick-astley-rickrolled-reddit/, https://digg.com/2020/this-guy-rickrolled-rick-astley. Therefore it should be treated as a notable event and readded to the page.
 * Red information icon with gradient background.svg Not done: In this format it would still be WP:UNDUE, as I also pointed out at the other talk page, and it's still a trivial event, despite the sensationalist coverage by news, i.e. WP:NOTNEWS RandomCanadian (talk / contribs) 20:20, 18 June 2020 (UTC)

Rick Astley Earning From Video
This article states Rick Astley mad 12 dollars from this video, however, in a reddit AMA, he claims otherwise. https://www.reddit.com/r/Music/comments/56cdgm/ama_im_really_rick_astley_i_swear_and_to/?utm_medium=android_app&utm_source=share — Preceding unsigned comment added by 2601:344:C300:4DC0:B035:8CC:6841:B4BF (talk) 22:27, 18 June 2020 (UTC)
 * REDDIT is not a reliable source except when used on themselves and it meets the 5 criterias in WP:ABOUTSELF. In this case, is it really Rick Astley behind the post or is it some internet troll? 99.999...% of the time, it's the latter. &#123;&#123; reply to &#124;Can I Log In&#125;&#125; 's talk page! 23:07, 18 June 2020 (UTC)
 * Ok after finding out that Rick Astley got rick rolled himself, I find the source your provide to meet WP:ABOUTSELF, but this is already stated in Never Gonna Give You Up. — Preceding unsigned comment added by Can I Log In (talk • contribs) 18:04, 21 June 2020 (UTC)  Apparently the reddit post is from 2016, so I would prefer using the sources from that article. &#123;&#123; reply to &#124;Can I Log In&#125;&#125; 's talk page! 18:06, 21 June 2020 (UTC)

Additional reference
In the category of "cover version references", an episode of the sitcom Better Off Ted titled "Beating a Dead Workforce" that first aired in January 2010 featured the audio of a lead character singing the song in the background of a motivational video. This was very likely a reference to the meme, not only due to the timing (the episode was filmed in 2009 at the height of it) but because the character stops singing the actual lyrics after the third line of the chorus and just boops along to the melody thereafter, reflecting the fact that most people turn off the meme after "Never gonna run around and desert you". 70.73.90.119 (talk) 19:20, 8 July 2020 (UTC)

2020 in Internet culture
Should this article be added to this category? Rickrolling has made a return this year. --HaruhiSuzumiyaIsAGod (talk) 12:13, 11 August 2020 (UTC)

A Commons file used on this page or its Wikidata item has been nominated for speedy deletion
The following Wikimedia Commons file used on this page or its Wikidata item has been nominated for speedy deletion: You can see the reason for deletion at the file description page linked above. —Community Tech bot (talk) 14:53, 30 September 2020 (UTC)
 * Never Gonna Give You Up - Rick Astley.png

Semi-protected edit request on 14 October 2020
pp Gardenbed11 (talk) 01:41, 14 October 2020 (UTC)
 * Red question icon with gradient background.svg Not done: it's not clear what changes you want to be made. Please mention the specific changes in a "change X to Y" format and provide a reliable source if appropriate. Eggishorn (talk) (contrib) 03:18, 14 October 2020 (UTC)

Fake
This website proves it actually didnt come from duckrollRubyPiec (talk) 11:32, 12 December 2020 (UTC)

2020 updates needed
Rickrolling hit new heights in 2020 with both Rick Astley https://www.reddit.com/r/pics/comments/haucpf/ive_found_a_few_funny_memories_during_lockdown/fv505w1/?utm_source=share&utm_medium=ios_app&utm_name=iossmf&context=3 and youtube https://www.reddit.com/r/nextfuckinglevel/comments/k98r41/i_rickrolled_youtube/ being rickrolled.

User:Devonian Wombat if it's ok, can you add this ? on 'ongoing usage section, where youtube got rickrolled. — Preceding unsigned comment added by 49.151.185.63 (talk) 02:29, 15 January 2021 (UTC)

Facebook Rick rolling
Recently I've been on facebook and I found a popular new trend, there is a facebook group called "... See More" and when you make a really long comment or post, it says at the bottom "... See More" if you want to read the rest of the post or comment, and people have instead made comments and post where they write a sentence usually containing important information and cutting it of by tagging the "... See More" group instead. When you click on the link for the group the cover photo is a picture of Rick Ashley from the video. There are also different variations such as groups called "... See Less", "... Read More", "... See Translation" and "view post". There is also a different type where they have taken advantage of the fact that when you tag groups the text is blue and links to websites are also blue and they named groups after website links and tagging it trying to fool people, these groups also has Rick Ashley from the "Never Gonna Give You Up" video as a cover photo. I thought this should be added to this article. Anzio Langeveldt (talk) 16:44, 15 January 2021 (UTC)

It turns out Facebook is deleting these groups since it is tagged everywhere and is against their community policies of spam Anzio Langeveldt (talk) 18:08, 25 January 2021 (UTC)

Darude Sandstorm
What does Darude Sandstorm have to do with Rickrolling --HighlyLogicalVulcan (talk) 10:54, 2 February 2021 (UTC)

Could we add a rickroll to this page?
In this part:

> When victims click on a seemingly unrelated link, the site with the music video loads instead of what was expected, and in doing so they are said to have been "Rickrolled".

I think it would be beneficial for the page if a link to Rick Astley’s “Never Gonna Give You Up” was added in a hyperlink where it says “seemingly unrelated link”. I think this would give readers a good firsthand knowledge of what the Rickrolling meme really is. FourInchKnife (talk) 13:45, 23 February 2021 (UTC)
 * I couldn't agree more. ~𝓐𝓭𝓲𝓰𝓪𝓫𝓻𝓮𝓴 𝓽𝓱𝓮 𝓕𝓲𝓻𝓼𝓽~ Contact  14:02, 23 February 2021 (UTC)
 * It would be funny and educational, but perhaps wouldn't match the encyclopedic tone? Nonoesimposible (talk) 03:51, 3 March 2021 (UTC)
 * I don't necessarily agree. Text does not have to be modified, just a link, and links to outside videos are common in Wikipedia. ~𝓐𝓭𝓲𝓰𝓪𝓫𝓻𝓮𝓴 𝓽𝓱𝓮 𝓕𝓲𝓻𝓼𝓽~ Contact  13:45, 3 March 2021 (UTC)
 * Yeah I think so so that the person could know what a rickroll is. Like they can make the word 'rickroll' a hyperlink to the song on YouTube. 136.185.132.69 (talk) 13:02, 31 March 2021 (UTC)
 * Such misleading links are strictly not allowed per MOS:EASTEREGG. And addition of external links is governed by WP:EL, which wouldn't allow this for multiple reasons. <b style="font-family:Times New Roman;color:Teal;font-size:110%;">Idell</b> (talk) 13:19, 31 March 2021 (UTC)
 * ^^^^This is why I'll never stop hating wikipedia ~𝓐𝓭𝓲𝓰𝓪𝓫𝓻𝓮𝓴 𝓽𝓱𝓮 𝓕𝓲𝓻𝓼𝓽~ Contact  08:01, 19 April 2021 (UTC)

"BarackRoll" listed at Redirects for discussion
A discussion is taking place to address the redirect BarackRoll. The discussion will occur at Redirects for discussion/Log/2021 May 3 until a consensus is reached, and readers of this page are welcome to contribute to the discussion. User:1234qwer1234qwer4 (talk) 18:19, 3 May 2021 (UTC)

Semi-protected edit request on 17 May 2021
i ask to be able to rickroll some people searching about rickrolls by writing ``check out this link for more informtion about rick astley`` AMAZOOKservices2 (talk) 16:45, 17 May 2021 (UTC)
 * Red information icon with gradient background.svg Not done: Wikipedia articles are not the place for jokes. Pupsterlove02  talk • contribs 17:02, 17 May 2021 (UTC)

Semi-protected edit request on 31 July 2021
MatthewTheRickrollEnthusiast (talk) 02:52, 31 July 2021 (UTC)

Prague City Hall’s QR code cobblestone in Prague, Czech Republic originally lead to a website, but as of February 2020, it now leads to a Rickroll.

Notable QR code rickrolls:

--MatthewTheRickrollEnthusiast (talk) 02:57, 31 July 2021 (UTC)Prague City Hall's QR code cobblestone originally lead to a website. As of February 2020, it now leads to a rickroll. --MatthewTheRickrollEnthusiast (talk) 02:57, 31 July 2021 (UTC)In January 2016, a person managed to rickroll motorists in Asheville, North Carolina via fake parking tickets that have a QR code, which is a rickroll. --MatthewTheRickrollEnthusiast (talk) 02:57, 31 July 2021 (UTC)A historical sign in South Nyack, New York has a the video's QR code on the bottom right. --MatthewTheRickrollEnthusiast (talk) 02:57, 31 July 2021 (UTC)In February 2021, the Los Angeles Unified School District made a video about their Daily Pass. The QR code in the Daily Pass from the video is a rickroll. --MatthewTheRickrollEnthusiast (talk) 02:57, 31 July 2021 (UTC)The video's QR code was used as easter eggs in video games such as Snow and World War Z.
 * Red information icon with gradient background.svg Not done: please provide reliable sources that support the change you want to be made. ScottishFinnishRadish (talk) 11:59, 31 July 2021 (UTC)

Semi-protected edit request on 26 August 2021
Changing the view rate for Rick Ashtley's youtube video from 900 million to a billion as of today.The wikiyeet (talk) 04:38, 26 August 2021 (UTC) The wikiyeet (talk) 04:38, 26 August 2021 (UTC)
 * It already passed a billion views back in July, that's documented already. --M asem (t) 05:23, 26 August 2021 (UTC)
 * Actually I did move up the billion view point already. So sorta handled this. --M asem (t) 05:28, 26 August 2021 (UTC)

MTV Europe Music Awards
The MTV Europe Music Awards have been rickrolled when 4chan, as well as several other forums (I believe ultimate guitar forum actually started it), voted to have Rick Astley nominated. He accepted the nomination and may quite possibly win, which would be probably the largest rickroll ever.https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dQw4w9WgXcQ. —Preceding unsigned comment added by 70.106.103.47 (talk • contribs) 01:53, 4 October 2008 (UTC)

Ted Lasso Episode Reference
In the television show Ted Lasso, season 2 episode 12, “No Weddings and a Funeral” released September 24, 2021, Hannah Waddingham (as Rebecca Welton) is about to speak at her father’s funeral and instead begins singing “Never Gonna Give You Up” to a church full of mourners, who eventually join in. It is both a "rickrolling" of the mourners and the TV audience, though without breaking the mood of the piece.

Calemplawyer (talk) 15:04, 28 September 2021 (UTC)


 * I've got the song use already mentioned in the "Never Gonna Give You Up" page (as that was sourced), but as a rickroll in this episode, we need a source for that. --M asem (t) 15:06, 28 September 2021 (UTC)
 * I found a source (NYTimes no less) so I'll add it. --M asem (t) 19:21, 28 September 2021 (UTC)

original deleted
Apparently the original Youtube link has been deleted. Per this vlog post https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xWog3NkPdPs it's shown the original vidlink is now broken. -- 64.229.90.53 (talk) 08:59, 5 October 2021 (UTC)

Yea cool
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dQw4w9WgXcQ please go here — Preceding unsigned comment added by 165.166.100.170 (talk) 16:04, 3 November 2021 (UTC)

Semi-protected edit request on 20 November 2021
You are not considered to be Rick rolled if and advertisement comes before the actual video. 2402:3A80:1E73:EA78:FF9E:E83B:1070:1DE5 (talk) 07:31, 20 November 2021 (UTC)
 * Red information icon with gradient background.svg Not done: please provide reliable sources that support the change you want to be made. Cannolis (talk) 08:02, 20 November 2021 (UTC)

"Dqw4w9wgxcq" listed at Redirects for discussion
An editor has identified a potential problem with the redirect Dqw4w9wgxcq and has thus listed it for discussion. This discussion will occur at Redirects for discussion/Log/2022 January 16 until a consensus is reached, and readers of this page are welcome to contribute to the discussion. Mvqr (talk) 16:58, 16 January 2022 (UTC)

When
has added the When template to the lede section of this article. The When template documentation suggests adding a When section to the talk page to discuss the issue. Personally I can't see what the problem is. However your mileage may vary. So here is a section to discuss the issue. Tango Mike Bravo (talk) 13:05, 10 February 2022 (UTC)

Daniel Yona
How is this article related to Daniel Yona, the Israeli skiller? — Preceding unsigned comment added by Napoleon 33eerrt 5567 (talk • contribs) 19:27, 6 February 2022 (UTC)
 * In reply to User Napoleon 33eerrt 5567, as far as I can see from searching on google, there is no connection between Daniel Yona and rickrolling. Why the question? Tango Mike Bravo (talk) 13:16, 10 February 2022 (UTC)

Foo fighters
Wouldn't Rick's appearance at the Foo Fighters concert also be an example of Rickrolling? Jalwikip (talk) 19:25, 14 February 2022 (UTC)

Rick Rolling, Why not specify,
you would not get this from any other guy but I say this artical is a bit blatant, the song never gonna give you up https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dQw4w9WgXcQ has a deeper story, and rick rolling does too, this needs more info, Your's truly< Qtcquestionbloc (talk) 23:40, 16 February 2022 (UTC) </ref https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dQw4w9WgXcQ>

Semi-protected edit request on 14 April 2022
People have token rock rolling so far that in 2021 TheTekkitRealm Rickrolled the superbowl by using word clouds Teanuarai (talk) 01:17, 14 April 2022 (UTC)
 * You would need reliable sourcing for that. --M asem (t) 01:22, 14 April 2022 (UTC)

Semi-protected edit request on 24 October 2022
there is a mistake in the rickroll and it is a bit outdated at some parts Acrobatsmek (talk) 08:13, 24 October 2022 (UTC)
 * Red question icon with gradient background.svg Not done: it's not clear what changes you want to be made. Please mention the specific changes in a "change X to Y" format and provide a reliable source if appropriate. MadGuy7023 (talk) 08:19, 24 October 2022 (UTC)

$12 youtube claim
then Darth Vader got rick rolled. — Preceding unsigned comment added by 70.184.82.3 (talk) 18:56, 21 November 2022 (UTC)

The article mentions a claim that Rick only received $12 from Youtube for his video, despite it's popularity, but then references a Reddit comment he made to say he denies this. However, if you go and read the Reddit comment, he's actually replying to a comment that only made $12 full stop from the video, not just from Youtube. He points out he's made lots of money from the video otherwise, and says he doesn't actually know how much he's gotten from Youtube as he doesn't care. Can someone with edit access please change the page to update this please? Link to Reddit comment: 2A00:23C4:6B13:D801:3416:F8C2:986:50CE (talk) 18:25, 28 June 2022 (UTC)

Semi-protected edit request on 1 January 2023
Hello! I would like some changes to make the page more readable. First of all, the first image says “A still frame from the music video of the song "Never Gonna Give You Up" by Rick Astley on YouTube, taken in 2008.” Most of that doesn’t matter. It could just be “A screenshot from 2008 of Never Gonna Give You Up”. Next the 4Chan, you could call m00t, well m00t and not Christopher “m00t” Poole.

Okay, speed round incoming. At the start you could just make “internet memes” to “memes”. The hyperlink to the page of wikipedias hyper-link page could just be a hyperlink to never gonna give you up. Finally, you didn’t need the paragraph about the video “RickRoll’d”

Finally, there’s a conspiracy theory about Conner, the uploader of RickRoll’d setting it all up. Some even believe he’s m00t and the person who made the duck rolling thread. The reason why was because the video was called RickRoll’d before rickrolling even became a thing!

Have a great day! RooneyDBPGaming (talk) 01:54, 1 January 2023 (UTC)

Not done for now: please establish a consensus for this alteration before using the template. It's important to get consensus for any edits that are likely to be disputed or removes content. Thanks for your request! Wikipedia is better when users work to improve it! Tomorrow and tomorrow (talk) 08:17, 3 January 2023 (UTC)

Semi-protected edit request on 25 February 2023
Hi, I want to add below contents in History#Origin :

In 2022, Shawn Cotter was interviewed by Vice Media. He said the reason of using "Never Gonna Give You Up" was because he found a list about songs that were popluar when you are born in Internet, and this song is on the top of 1987, which was his borned year.

Source:or 巴波 (talk) 12:19, 25 February 2023 (UTC)

History is way off
I got rickrolled today and recalled the wave of rickrolling in my office in 1999. I believe the practice of 'rickrolling' precedes the use of the term 'rickrolling', using the same method and the same video. I don't doubt the reference to the term but it would enhance the article to date the practice much earlier. 108.51.234.209 (talk) 20:54, 24 March 2023 (UTC)

Song sample
When you get rickrolled, you typically hear the first few seconds of the song, and then close off the video before you hear the rest, so I think the song sample should be at the beginning of the song. Would this be an NFCC minimal use issue because of a different sound sample at Never Gonna Give You Up? Snowmanonahoe (talk &middot; contribs &middot; typos) 21:23, 22 May 2023 (UTC)

But where is the lyrics?
Good description of a rickroll (ooh, by the way I got rickrolled two days ago). But I do not see any lyrics! Please add them Learning With Ameer (talk) 09:07, 31 January 2023 (UTC)


 * We cannot add lyrics, as for us that is copyrighted material and cannot be included. There are plenty of lyrics databases with appropriate licensing that have that. M asem (t) 13:30, 31 January 2023 (UTC)
 * Ndnnshs 223.19.177.65 (talk) 13:36, 11 June 2023 (UTC)

AI scannable pictorial QR code
https://twitter.com/FrankRose1856/status/1670925354024804353?s=20 Twitter user, @FrankRose1856 has created a scannable, pictorial QR code which rickrolls. So rickrolling continues into the artificial intelligence age. 2A02:C7C:D112:C00:CD69:65B5:FF74:8AE5 (talk) 14:34, 20 June 2023 (UTC)

Should we mention "Never Gonna Stop", Rick Astley's new song
Rick Astley published a song, "Never gonna stop" as part of his 2023 album 'Are We There Yet?'. The song structure heavily references Never gonna give you up, this is why some people consider this song to be Rick Astley's very own Rickroll.

Link to the song: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qWNQUvIk954 2A01:CB19:8F8A:9B00:25E3:E986:D584:74D9 (talk) 18:04, 5 September 2023 (UTC)

Nickrolling
a variant form of rickrolling using the Nickroll link that opens like a typical rickroll before the audio is replaced with Nickleback's "How You Remind Me". Entageweorc (talk) 15:59, 17 September 2023 (UTC)

Semi-protected edit request on 24 October 2023
We're no strangers to love You know the rules and so do I (do I) A full commitment's what I'm thinking of You wouldn't get this from any other guy I just wanna tell you how I'm feeling Gotta make you understand Never gonna give you up Never gonna let you down Never gonna run around and desert you Never gonna make you cry Never gonna say goodbye Never gonna tell a lie and hurt you We've known each other for so long Your heart's been aching, but you're too shy to say it (say it) Inside, we both know what's been going on (going on) We know the game and we're gonna play it And if you ask me how I'm feeling Don't tell me you're too blind to see Never gonna give you up Never gonna let you down Never gonna run around and desert you Never gonna make you cry Never gonna say goodbye Never gonna tell a lie and hurt you Never gonna give you up Never gonna let you down Never gonna run around and desert you Never gonna make you cry Never gonna say goodbye Never gonna tell a lie and hurt you We've known each other for so long Your heart's been aching, but you're too shy to say it (to say it) Inside, we both know what's been going on (going on) We know the game and we're gonna play it I just wanna tell you how I'm feeling Gotta make you understand Never gonna give you up Never gonna let you down Never gonna run around and desert you Never gonna make you cry Never gonna say goodbye Never gonna tell a lie and hurt you Never gonna give you up Never gonna let you down Never gonna run around and desert you Never gonna make you cry Never gonna say goodbye Never gonna tell a lie and hurt you Never gonna give you up Never gonna let you down Never gonna run around and desert you Never gonna make you cry Never gonna say goodbye Never gonna tell a lie and hurt you — Preceding unsigned comment added by Myname-issaysay12 (talk • contribs) 00:33, 24 October 2023 (UTC)

Semi-protected edit request on 4 January 2024
Change to the Simultaneous references of the appearance in It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia episode. You cited the wrong episode

The song "Never Going to Give You Up" appeared twice in It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia Season 1 episode 4 "Charlie Has Cancer" whiched aired on on Aug 23, 2005.

https://itsalwayssunny.fandom.com/wiki/Charlie_Has_Cancer scroll down to trivia. Or watch the episode on Disney+/Star (Canada) or Hulu (USA) to confirm. Fast forward to 10:54. Dennis even mentions Rick Astley when asked what he listening to.

In the podcast you referenced as a citation, they only mention the song when Rob goes a little off topic and starts discussing music they have used through out the series, but it does not appear in episode 15 of Season 3 "The Gang Dances Their Asses Off".

In fact, the song is only used one other time on Oct 3, 2018 in Season 13 Episode 5 "The Gang Gets New Wheels" at the end of the episode as a call back to the Season 1 episode. 199.7.158.57 (talk) 10:17, 4 January 2024 (UTC)
 * Red question icon with gradient background.svg Not done: it's not clear what changes you want to be made. Please mention the specific changes in a "change X to Y" format and provide a reliable source if appropriate. Shadow311 (talk) 15:45, 4 January 2024 (UTC)

Honorable mention
according to the never gonna give you up article, when USA invaded panama they played this song as Psychological warfare. Does that count as rickrolling Thehistorianisaac (talk) 00:54, 19 January 2024 (UTC)

Semi-protected edit request on 3 November 2023
The origin of Rickrolling started sometime around the year 1999 or 2002 as an Internet Email Prank where you would be treated to an email from a friend or a random message sent to you by an unknown sender. When you clicked on the link inside you would be sent to a new window where the video of Never gonna give you up would open and play the video. At the same time the lyrics of the video would appear and any attempt to click off the video would skip to the next sentence in the song until you got through the lyrics of the song before you were allowed to shut the video off, or just allowed for the whole song to play. Vasarto (talk) 16:00, 3 November 2023 (UTC)


 * That is my recollection also. I had this done to me many times, very funny.  But I don't have any sources beyond my experience.  How can we amend the record on this one?  It was called Rickrolling at the time (late 90's) CharlieBear3D (talk) 23:58, 24 January 2024 (UTC)


 * ❌. Your text is unsourced (and also incorrect, see the correct origins already documented in the article.) - MrOllie (talk)

Iasip involvement incorrect
The song was in iasip (Charlie has cancer) in 2005 which was before the first uses of the rick roll. The current article says it was in iasip in 2007. 98.14.97.228 (talk) 15:41, 2 February 2024 (UTC)