Australian man ‘Rickrolls’ MTV
‘HE HASN’T bothered the charts in 20 years, so you might call ’80s pop star Rick Astley a surprise inclusion on the list of nominees for MTV Europe’s Best Act Ever to be announced next month.
Astley, the baby-faced crooner who sang the cheesy 1987 hit Never Gonna Give You Up, is up against U2, Christina Aguilera, Britney Spears, Green Day and Tokio Hotel.
At last count, Astley had an astonishing 99.98% of the 20 million votes cast on MTV’s online poll — but the washed-up warbler’s nomination is no bizarre error: MTV has simply been “Rickrolled”.
Astley’s sudden popularity is the result of an internet prank campaign that began as a geeky joke 18 months ago and has grown into a web craze of monster proportions. To be “Rickrolled” is to be unwittingly redirected to a video clip of Never Gonna Give You Up — a prank that has no apparent point other than to illicit a giggle from the unsuspecting viewer.’
