These days, there’s two signs that a tune has reached Song of the Summer status. One: it stalks your every move, playing at every drug store, at every bar and restaurant and on every radio station on a near-constant loop. Two: lots of people make viral videos about it.
That’s certainly case now with “Blurred Lines,” Robin Thicke’s shake-your-groove-thing call to the dance floor that’s topped the charts for almost the entire summer and is now taking over YouTube, too. The track and its accompanying NSFW video have inspired over a dozen covers, parodies, and rip-offs. Here’s a rundown of the most best, worst, and ones that, well, blur those lines.
Blurring Pains
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Show me that smile, indeed. Some certifiable genius mashed-up Robin Thicke’s “Blurred Lines” with the theme song to his father, Alan Thicke’s, ‘90s sitcom, Growing Pains. (If you didn’t know Robin and Alan were father and son, first, we’ll give you a moment to pick your jaw off the floor, and second, we’re just curious how life is under that rock.)Verdict: Sheer, utter brilliance
Cosby Theme
“Blurring Pains” not enough nostalgia for you? How about this mash-up, in which the opening credits of The Cosby Show is set to “Blurred Lines?”Verdict: What rhymes with happiness?
Bill Clinton
The painstaking practice of having presidents sing hit songs by editing together soundbytes from past speeches is nothing new. But the on-the-nose decision to do it with Bill Clinton, whose past liaisons may well have served as inspiration for the questionable themes of the song.Verdict: Hail to the creator of this
NSA
Pop and politics combine for this spoof from The Shorts Show, which recreates Thicke’s video with original lyrics about the NSA surveillance scandal: “Maybe you have a secret. Maybe you want to keep it. Maybe you are a terrorist.”Verdict: Forget “hey hey hey.” More like “meh meh meh.”
Gender Reversal
The chief critique of the “Blurred Lines” video, which features topless models strutting around while Thicke and company remain clothed and gawk, is that it’s sexist. Consider Mod Carousel’s reverse-gender version of the song, which has women crooning while men strut around in g-strings, payback.Verdict: Revenge may be best served cold, but this is hot
Kids Version
To say the least, “Blurred Lines” is not a kid-appropriate song. Enter MattyBRats, a pint-sized mini Bieber who swaps lyrics “I know want it…you’re a good girl” with “I know you wanna…join a kids’ world.”Verdict: Foolishness
Muppets
If “Blurred Lines” is any indication, the following people have a way with the ladies: Robin Thicke, Pharrell, and Kermit. This Muppets version reveals the iconic frog to be quite the p-i-m-p.Verdict: Maybe it is easy being green after all
Snapchat
Remember Over Attached Girlfriend, the semi-popular meme from last year? The girl behind it is back with an original song about Snapchat selfies set to the “Blurred Lines” tune.Verdict: The Over Attached Girlfriend meme was never that funny. Neither is this.
Jimmy Kimmel
What? You missed the part in the “Blurred Lines” video when Jimmy Kimmel and Guillermo get down with Thicke and the ladies?Verdict: This, however is funny
Vampire Weekend
No one likes exaggeration. So we’ll just say that 97 percent of the country has sung along to “Blurred Lines” at some point this summer. Count Vampire Weekend among them, as the group is responsible for this unlikely cover of the track.Verdict: Unexpected, in the best way
Hungry Girl
“Everybody eat up.” This odd take on “Blurred Lines” tackles body issues, as a flawless girl with a stellar body sings original lyrics about being tempted by donuts and cake.Verdict: Not ordering what’s on this menu
Good Boy
From the same mindset of Mod Carousel’s gender reversal version, this clip also features a girl singing while scantily clad men dance around—only they’re less scantily clad than Mod Carousel’s boys and the production value is worse.Verdict: Put your clothes back on
Addie
Seventeen-year-old singer Addie sings the acoustic version of “Blurred Lines” that you never knew you wanted to hear.Verdict: Gorgeous
Super Mario Bros.
Confused about why someone would think to pen original lyrics set to “Blurred Lines” about Mario, Koopa, Peach, and the rest of Nintendo classic’s crew? Join the club.Verdict: Cute…but why?
Country Blurred Lines
A band called The Raging Bulls swaps Thicke’s disco-groove melody and swoon-worthy falsetto for slow guitar and twang.Verdict: No thanks, ya’all
