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The Fox (What Does the Fox Say?)

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"The Fox"
Song

"The Fox (What Does the Fox Say?)", commonly abbreviated to "The Fox", is an electronic dance song and viral video by Norwegian comedy duo Ylvis. The video was posted on YouTube on September 3, 2013 and has over 160 million views as of October 25.[2] Currently, "The Fox" is number 6 on the Billboard Hot 100,[3][4] the highest-ranked song by a Norwegian artist on the chart since a-ha's number-one song "Take on Me" in 1985.

The song was released as a single on iTunes in Norway on September 2, 2013[5] and it was planned to be released on iTunes in the United States on September 9.[6] However, it remained unavailable for one week due to allegations of copyright infringement by a third party.[7] It became available on the U.S. iTunes on September 16[8] and has peaked at number 5 on the Top Songs chart from October 11 to October 12, 2013.[9] There are currently no plans to release an album including the song or any sequel to it.[6][10]

Production

The brothers Vegard and Bård Ylvisåker, members of the Norwegian comedy group Ylvis, produced the song and music video "The Fox" to promote the upcoming third season of their television talk show I kveld med YLVIS (Tonight with YLVIS) on TVNorge. In an interview with Norwegian newspaper Aftenposten, the brothers stated that the idea about a song about a fox was originally conceived in 2012, but then shelved. Half a year later, in 2013, Bård and lyricist Christian Løchstøer began to play with the idea once again. Vegard was initially skeptical about making a song about a fox, but soon relented.[11] In an interview with Billboard in the United States, Bård described the writing process for the song: "The way we work is we just sit around and talk about things and get ideas and take some notes. I guess we must have been talking about what sound a fox makes. And then we had a chance to work with Stargate, a production company in New York City... We actually did a favor for them and we asked them if they could produce a song for the new season in exchange".[6] Tor Erik Hermansen of Stargate recalled in an interview with Spin that the favor was actually a mockumentary done by the Ylvisåker brothers to celebrate Mikkel Storleer Eriksen's 40th birthday, in which they pretend to be the Stargate duo.[12] Australian producer M4SONIC was also involved in the production.[13]

Bård, being interviewed by Entertainment Weekly, talked about their intention of making "The Fox":

“As comedians, it wouldn’t be a good thing if we went to pursue a hit in the States because they could potentially make something that became big, so we thought it would be more fun from a comedian perspective to come home to the talk show and say, ‘Listen we had the chance, we could’ve made it big, but the only idea we got for the song was this old idea about what the fox says so we’re sorry. We screwed up.’ That was the plan... That would’ve been funny to say on the talk show."[14]

M4SONIC described producing "The Fox":

“I was over in the US with a production duo called Stargate working with Sia and Nadia Ali. One of the beats that I made we kinda put to one side as it wasn’t really going anywhere. I’d totally forgotten about the track until I stumbled across The Fox video on YouTube. It turned out that Tor and Mikkel (Stargate), who are Norwegian, are friends with Bård and Vegard Ylvisåker (Ylvis). Stargate gave Ylvis a copy of the beat that we made to use for a video they were doing to launch their comedy show in Norway. I think the whole thing kinda ‘snowballed’ and was an accident on their side as well. No one really thought it would be a top 10 Billboard track!"[15]

Music video and composition

Vegard Ylvisåker (left) in animal costume in the music video

The video was released on September 3, 2013. It is performed in the style of a typical electronic dance pop song, and the lyrics are sung "with deadpan seriousness."[16] The video was originally created to promote the brand-new season of Ylvis' talk show I kveld med YLVIS on TVNorge but was released on TVNorge's YouTube channel and went viral. The video was directed by Ole Martin Hafsmo with cinematography by Magnus Flåto. The choreography was done by Thea Bay. The forest scenes were filmed in Nittedal municipality, 22 kilometers from Oslo downtown.[17]

The video begins with Bård singing at a costume party where other participants are dressed as different animals, whose appearances follow the progression of the lyrics. He gives a summary of animal sounds ("Dog goes woof/cat goes meow", etc.) that "could have been lifted straight from a pre-school primer" and asks "what does the fox say?"[18] The group then transitions into a synchronized dance scene in a forest with Bård in a bear costume and Vegard a squirrel costume (as they failed to find any fox costume in the Norwegian Film Institute the day before filming), complete with face-paint and giant, bushy tails.[19] During each chorus, the song offers several increasingly absurd possibilities for the fox's sound such as "gering-ding-ding-ding-dingeringeding!" and in the second chorus where Vegard sings "fraka-kaka-kaka-kaka-kow!"[13][20] Among the dancers, an elderly man is shown reading the lyrics from a book to a boy sitting on his lap. The song then describes the fox and the singer's admiration for it, and asks whether it would communicate with a horse using morse code. In the end, the singers float in the air and a computer-animated fox stands and scat sings (voiced by Vegard) while Bård finishes the song with falsetto.[21]

Analysis

In our show last season, we went to Kyrgyzstan in Central Asia and tried to become pop stars there. The idea was that we'd never become pop stars in the U.S. or England, so we chose another country where it would be easier. We did all kinds of stupid things: performed at weddings. The whole humor is that we didn't succeed and had lots of obstacles. The obstacles generated the comedy. Then suddenly we're on this trip to America, the place people want to go, and there's no obstacles. Every doorway is open… and there's no comedy.

Vegard Ylvisåker, when asked about the impact of the popular song on I Kveld med YLVIS, mentioning their Big in Kirgisistan segments[10][22]

Tris McCall of The Star-Ledger describes "The Fox" as "a parody of the excesses and absurdities of contemporary club music": the brothers "take turns singing preposterous lyrics about animal noises" over "typically vainglorious synthpop," with the proposed fox sounds "mimic[king] the car-alarm synthesizers of contemporary dubstep." He compares it to Ylvis' "Someone Like Me," which mocked the insertion of dubstep breaks into pop songs.[18] Caitlin Carter of online music site "Music Times" echoes McCall's comments, adding that "The Fox" becoming the first song to get serious recognition "makes [the staff at Music Times] wonder", as the duo's other songs and videos prior to the release of "The Fox" "are just about as random and melodramatic", such as "from contemplating the meaning of Stonehenge" ('Stonehenge'), to scientifically examining the inner-workings of the female reproductive organ ('Work It'), to honoring a United Nations Human Rights hero ('Jan Egeland')."[23]

Speaking of the meaning of the song, Vegard characterizes it as coming from "a genuine wonder of what the fox says, because we didn’t know."[24] Bård, however, called the song "a stupid thing" and that "even though people find it interesting, it's still a stupid fox song, and when people start to get over this, it gets even worse, because it is so stupid."[10]

Although interpreted by some commentators as a reference to the furry fandom,[25] the duo have stated they did not know about its existence when producing "The Fox."[26]

Reception and response

In the U.S., "The Fox" debuted on September 12, 2013 on the Billboard Hot 100 at number 29, and at number 3 on the Streaming Songs chart.[27] It later reached the top spot on the Streaming Songs chart for the week ending October 19.[28] The song in the following week has also broken into the Hot Digital Songs top 10 at number 8 with 108,000 downloads during the week and debuted on the On-Demand Songs chart, when it sits in the top 10 of Hot 100 for the third week.[4] The music video's viral success and catchiness has also drawn comparison to that of PSY's "Gangnam Style".[29][30] It took 35 days to hit 100 million views, compared to 51 days by "Gangnam Style" to reach the mark.[31]

Following the song's success, Ylvis were signed on by Warner Music, although it was later clarified by Vegard that the "record deal was landed way before 'Fox' — in the spring sometime."[10] Their first live performance in the United States was on September 20, 2013 at the iHeartRadio Music Festival in Las Vegas.[24] They also appeared on The Ellen DeGeneres Show on September 20, Late Night with Jimmy Fallon on October 9 and The Today Show on October 11.[32][33][34]

Ylvis were surprised by the international success of the song, intending only to target their Norwegian audience.[6] Bård said he was "quite surprised" and that it was "supposed to entertain a few Norwegians for three minutes — and that's all."[13] Vegard described it as "definitely very shocking."[26]

Like many viral music videos, "The Fox" has become an Internet meme and has been extensively covered and adapted by others, with some of the most prominent including a cover by The Ohio University Marching 110 who had previously covered "Gangnam Style" and LMFAO's "Party Rock Anthem";[35] an acoustic guitar cover of the first verse by Tyler Ward;[36] an adaptation based on the popular video game League of Legends entitled "What Does Teemo Say?";[37] an advertisement for the Fox Network featuring clips of FOX programs and actors singing the song;[38] and an adaptation by Annoying Orange entitled "The Sock."[39] The video was also featured twice by the Fine Brothers on their popular series Elders React and Teens React, which show reactions of elderly people and teens to YouTube videos, respectively.[40][41]

Due to the popularity of the song, TMZ reported on October 18, 2013 that two weeks away from Halloween, the sales of furry animal costumes have already risen by almost 40% from last Halloween, according to the data from Spirit Halloween, BuyCostumes and Amazon.[42]

Track listing

  1. "The Fox (What Does the Fox Say?)" – 3:33
  2. "The Fox (Extended Mix)" – 4:37
  3. "The Fox (Instrumental)" – 3:33
  4. "The Fox (Acapella)" – 3:33

Chart performance

Chart (2013) Peak
position
Australia (ARIA)[44] 16
Austria (Ö3 Austria Top 40)[45] 21
Belgium (Ultratop 50 Flanders)[46] 38
Belgium (Ultratip Bubbling Under Wallonia)[47] 23
Canada (Canadian Hot 100)[48] 19
Denmark (Tracklisten)[49] 9
Finland (Suomen virallinen lista)[50] 2
France (SNEP)[51] 167
Invalid chart entered Germany2 58
Ireland (IRMA)[52] 15
New Zealand (Recorded Music NZ)[53] 4
Norway (VG-lista)[54] 1
Scotland (OCC)[55] 14
Sweden (Sverigetopplistan)[56] 4
Switzerland (Schweizer Hitparade)[57] 55
UK Singles (OCC)[58] 23
US Billboard Hot 100[59] 6

References

  1. ^ Trust, Gary (27 September 2013). "Chart Moves: Ylvis' 'The Fox' Scampers Up Hot 100, Pearl Jam Ties Alt Rock Record, Luke Bryan Stays Atop Hot Country Songs,". Billboard. Retrieved 6 October 2013. {{cite web}}: Italic or bold markup not allowed in: |publisher= (help)
  2. ^ tvnorge (3 September 2013). "Ylvis - The Fox (What Does the Fox Say?) [Official music video HD]". YouTube. Retrieved 19 October 2013. {{cite web}}: Cite has empty unknown parameter: |1= (help)
  3. ^ Trust, Gary (9 October 2013). "Lorde's 'Royals' Remains Atop Hot 100". Billboard. Retrieved 9 October 2013. {{cite news}}: Italic or bold markup not allowed in: |work= (help)
  4. ^ a b Trust, Gary (16 October 2013). "Lorde's 'Royals' Rules Hot 100 For Third Week". Billboard. Retrieved 19 October 2013. {{cite news}}: Italic or bold markup not allowed in: |work= (help)
  5. ^ "The Fox – Single". iTunes. Apple Inc. Retrieved 10 September 2013. {{cite web}}: templatestyles stripmarker in |work= at position 1 (help)
  6. ^ a b c d Nagy, Evie (7 September 2013). "Ylvis Q&A: What 'The Fox' (Viral Stars) Say About Their Surprise Hit". Billboard. Retrieved 7 September 2013. {{cite web}}: Italic or bold markup not allowed in: |work= (help)
  7. ^ "Hit music video pulled off iTunes". Newsinenglish.no. 12 September 2013. Retrieved 17 September 2013.
  8. ^ Zahn, James (16 September 2013). "YLVIS – The Fox FINALLY comes to iTunes in the U.S... and goes Metal!". The Rock Father. Retrieved 20 September 2013.
  9. ^ "iTunes Store Top 10 Songs". Retrieved 12 October 2013.
  10. ^ a b c d Marchese, David (15 October 2013). "120,000,000 Ylvis Fans Can't Be Wrong". Spin. Retrieved 19 October 2013. {{cite web}}: Italic or bold markup not allowed in: |publisher= (help)
  11. ^ Ripegutu, Halvor (18 September 2013). "Ville ikke lage "The Fox"". Aftenposten. Retrieved 27 September 2013. {{cite web}}: Italic or bold markup not allowed in: |publisher= (help)
  12. ^ Martins, Chris (17 October 2013). "Ylvis Super-Producer Admits 'The Fox' Is Unintentional EDM Parody". Spin. Retrieved 19 October 2013. {{cite web}}: Italic or bold markup not allowed in: |publisher= (help)
  13. ^ a b c Suebsaeng, Asawin (5 September 2013). "The Guy Behind "The Fox"—The Summer's Funniest Music Video—Talks About Going Viral". Mother Jones. Retrieved 5 September 2013.
  14. ^ Highfill, Samantha (14 October 2013). "Meet Ylvis, the comedic brothers behind the accidentally successful 'What does the Fox say?'". Entertainment Weekly. Retrieved 19 October 2013. {{cite web}}: Italic or bold markup not allowed in: |publisher= (help)
  15. ^ Jarvis, Nick (13 October 2013). "How M4SONIC accidentally soundtracked the viral video of the year". Inthemix. Retrieved 18 October 2013.
  16. ^ Mansfield, Brian (5 September 2013). "Your next viral video: Ylvis' 'The Fox'". USA Today. Retrieved 10 September 2013. {{cite web}}: Italic or bold markup not allowed in: |publisher= (help)
  17. ^ Høidalen, Sigbjørn. "Ylvis-videoen er fra Nittedal" (in Norwegian). Varingen. Retrieved 28 September 2013.
  18. ^ a b McCall, Tris (23 September 2013). "Song of the Week: 'The Fox,' Ylvis". Entertainment. The Star-Ledger. Retrieved 28 September 2013.
  19. ^ Brand, Anna (14 October 2013). "Ylvis, the Duo of 'The Fox,' Shares Some (Angry) Fox Sounds You Haven't Heard". The Daily Beast. Retrieved 19 October 2013.
  20. ^ Hachman, Mark (5 September 2013). "Must-see viral video of the moment: Ylvis 'The Fox'". PC World. Retrieved 5 September 2013. {{cite web}}: Italic or bold markup not allowed in: |publisher= (help)
  21. ^ ANIMASKIN (1 October 2013). "Ylvis - The Fox - Making of". YouTube. Retrieved 19 October 2013.
  22. ^ tvnorge (19 September 2012). "Ylvis - Big in Kirgisistan - episode 1" (in Norwegian). YouTube. Retrieved 19 October 2013.
  23. ^ Carter, Caitlin (11 September 2013). "Ylvis' 'The Fox': A Cultural Examination". Music Times. Retrieved 19 October 2013.
  24. ^ a b Zemler, Emily (21 September 2013). "Ylvis, of Viral Sensation 'The Fox,' Lands Major Label Deal Ahead of U.S. Live Debut". The Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved 28 September 2013.
  25. ^ Jones, Van (8 September 2013). "If anyone missed joke, viral video "What Does The Fox Say?" is sly tribute to sex habits of "furries." (Thus correct answer: "yiff.") #Geeks". Twitter. Retrieved 10 September 2013.
  26. ^ Gruger, William (11 September 2013). "Ylvis' Viral Hit 'The Fox' Debuts On Hot 100". Billboard. Retrieved 16 September 2013. {{cite web}}: Italic or bold markup not allowed in: |publisher= (help)
  27. ^ Trust, Gary (9 October 2013). "Lorde's 'Royals' Remains Atop Hot 100". Billboard. Retrieved 9 October 2013. {{cite web}}: Italic or bold markup not allowed in: |publisher= (help)
  28. ^ Scott Monty (11 September 2013). "Me-too won't do: why viral marketing must be real | Technology". The Guardian. Retrieved 17 September 2013. {{cite web}}: Italic or bold markup not allowed in: |publisher= (help)
  29. ^ Ornos, Riza (18 September 2013). "The Fox: "What Did The Fox Say?" Hits 31 Million Views And Still Counting (With Video)". International Business Times. Retrieved 21 September 2013. {{cite news}}: Italic or bold markup not allowed in: |publisher= (help)
  30. ^ Hilmarsdóttir, Lára (9 October 2013). "'The Fox' Creators Wolf Down Marketing Opportunities". The Wall Street Journal. Retrieved 20 October 2013. {{cite news}}: Italic or bold markup not allowed in: |publisher= (help)
  31. ^ TheEllenShow (20 September 2013). "'The Fox' Is Here!". YouTube. Retrieved 28 September 2013.
  32. ^ latenight (9 October 2013). "Ylvis - What Does The Fox Say? (LIVE Music Video)". YouTube. Retrieved 19 October 2013.
  33. ^ Dawn, Randee (11 October 2013). "What Does the Fox Say?' Ylvis answer ultimate question on TODAY". The Today Show. Retrieved 19 October 2013. {{cite web}}: Italic or bold markup not allowed in: |publisher= (help)
  34. ^ Ohio University Marching Band (14 September 2013). "Ohio University Marching 110 – The Fox – Ylvis". YouTube. Retrieved 28 September 2013.
  35. ^ Ward, Tyler (8 September 2013). "The Fox – Ylvis (Tyler Ward Acoustic Cover) – Official Music Video & Challenge". YouTube. Retrieved 28 September 2013.
  36. ^ Instalok (10 September 2013). "Instalok – What Does Teemo Say? (Ylvis – The Fox PARODY)". YouTube. Retrieved 28 September 2013.
  37. ^ Fox Broadcasting Company (17 September 2013). "What The FOX Say? - Ylvis Cover – FOX BROADCASTING". YouTube. Retrieved 28 September 2013.
  38. ^ Annoying Orange (20 September 2013). "Annoying Orange – The Sock (The Fox By Ylvis Parody)". YouTube. Retrieved 28 September 2013.
  39. ^ Fine Brothers (19 September 2013). "ELDERS REACT TO YLVIS – THE FOX". Elders React. YouTube. Retrieved 22 September 2013.
  40. ^ "Teens React to Ylvis – The Fox". YouTube. 29 September 2013. Retrieved 30 September 2013. {{cite web}}: |first= missing |last= (help); Unknown parameter |deadurl= ignored (|url-status= suggested) (help)
  41. ^ "'What Does the Fox Say?' FOX COSTUMES EXPLODE... Thanks to Viral Video". TMZ. 18 October 2013. Retrieved 19 October 2013.
  42. ^ a b "The Fox (What Does the Fox Say?) - Single / Ylvis". iTunes. Apple. 2 September 2013. Retrieved 19 October 2013. Cite error: The named reference "itunes.apple.com" was defined multiple times with different content (see the help page).
  43. ^ "Ylvis – The Fox". ARIA Top 50 Singles. Retrieved October 21, 2013.
  44. ^ "Ylvis – The Fox" (in German). Ö3 Austria Top 40.
  45. ^ "Ylvis – The Fox" (in Dutch). Ultratop 50.
  46. ^ "Ylvis – The Fox" (in French). Ultratip.
  47. ^ "Ylvis Chart History (Canadian Hot 100)". Billboard.
  48. ^ "Ylvis – The Fox". Tracklisten.
  49. ^ "Ylvis: The Fox" (in Finnish). Musiikkituottajat. Retrieved October 7, 2013.
  50. ^ "Ylvis – The Fox" (in French). Les classement single.
  51. ^ "Chart Track: Week 42, 2013". Irish Singles Chart.
  52. ^ "Ylvis – The Fox". Top 40 Singles.
  53. ^ "Ylvis – The Fox". VG-lista.
  54. ^ "Official Scottish Singles Sales Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company.
  55. ^ "Ylvis – The Fox". Singles Top 100.
  56. ^ "Ylvis – The Fox". Swiss Singles Chart.
  57. ^ "Official Singles Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company.
  58. ^ "Ylvis Chart History (Hot 100)". Billboard.
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