Because the platform is relatively young, it might feel strange to think of any YouTube video as "classic." But 14 years is a lifetime in Silicon Valley, and for most of those years, YouTube has functioned as the Internet's bustling town square. It's noisy, crowded, and vibrant, and everyone passes through it. And if you set up a shop there, you'd better be selling something good; otherwise, someone hungrier than you will take your spot.
Andy Warhol said that in the future, "Everyone will be world famous for 15 minutes." That's a pretty good encapsulation of what YouTube has become. At this point, many videos have racked up millions or tens of millions of views. But the turnover for these "viral" videos is equally dramatic; views do not equate to longevity. Most content creators can rack up millions of views and subscribers without ever creating something truly memorable, that will last or impact people beyond the month (or even week) in which it was created.
It takes something special— that right combination of quirky, weird, and funny—to last for years, and these 10 videos have got it. Here are the 10 most classic YouTube videos of all time. No matter how many times we watch them, they'll never get old.