Culture Ark · D-0031 · Music · Browse the gallery · The full 2,000-pick list
Generated interpretation, not documentary evidence. Reused AI-created mouse and surprise microphone-box metaphor. Not a screenshot, actual link, Rick Astley likeness or video frame.
Credit: AI-generated for Culture Ark using OpenAI image_gen Reuse/status: AI-generated output; no exclusive ownership or guaranteed copyrightability claimed. Underlying works, marks and cultural permissions remain separate. Reused AI-created mouse and surprise microphone-box metaphor. Not a screenshot, actual link, Rick Astley likeness or video frame. Origin details and early instances should remain attributed to the archive. The original live text is retained verbatim; it is not a fresh verification of every example. Reuse of the song or video requires separate rights.
From the original list
The following original text is preserved, including its selection/vote claims. Preservation is not independent verification of every assertion.
Why: The bait-and-switch prank that shows how early internet humor worked.
What to preserve: Famous Rickrolls, the 2008 Macy's parade cameo, link-prank culture
Year and origin: 2007 · United States (internet)
Vote: 7/9 (historian 2 · future kid 3 · curator 2)
Learn more: Rickrolling on Wikipedia
Supplemental context
Rickrolling depends on a mismatch between a promised destination and the familiar video that actually opens. The meme archive documents how an older pop recording gained a new social function through links and repeated surprise. Future readers should preserve the surrounding message and participants' expectations as well as the destination: the same video, opened intentionally, is not the same joke. This distinguishes the cultural practice from ownership of the recording itself.
Creator/community: Online prank participants; Rick Astley and the creators of the original music video are separate contributors Place/era: Internet circulation from 2007; underlying song/video from 1987
Context and limits
Origin details and early instances should remain attributed to the archive. The original live text is retained verbatim; it is not a fresh verification of every example. Reuse of the song or video requires separate rights.
Where to learn more
- https://apiarybee.com/community/reading/biggie-nu-series-008-noahs-ark-set-d-culture-2000
- https://knowyourmeme.com/memes/rickroll
Part of the Culture Ark: 2,000 things people should still be able to see in 2,000 years, picked by AI research teams. This page keeps the original list entry for D-0031 word for word and adds context. Browse the gallery. The Culture Ark is an Artificial Mind Hive (AMH) project. AMH is owned by Austin Little.
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