Crazy Frog (originally known as The Annoying Thing) is a Swedish CGI-animated character and Eurodance musician created in 2003 by actor and playwright Erik Wernquist. Marketed by the ringtone provider Jamba!, the character was originally created to accompany a sound effect produced by Daniel Malmedahl while attempting to imitate the sound of a two-stroke engine.
The Crazy Frog spawned a worldwide hit single with a cover version of the Beverly Hills Cop theme tune "Axel F", which reached the number one spot in Turkey, New Zealand, Australia and most of Europe. The subsequent album Crazy Frog Presents Crazy Hits and second single "Popcorn" also enjoyed worldwide chart success, and a second album entitled Crazy Frog Presents More Crazy Hits was released in 2006, as well as a third album, Everybody Dance Now, released in 2009. The Crazy Frog also spawned many singles, a range of merchandise and toys, as well as two video games before going on hiatus in 2009.
On 22 April 2020, a Twitter account for the character was created, and the account is listed on the official website, Facebook profile and YouTube channel. A new album was announced later that same day. On 10 December 2021, a new single, "Tricky" was released after a 12-year hiatus.
History
In 1997, 17-year-old Gothenburg student Daniel Malmedahl recorded himself imitating the noises produced by a two stroke engine. He posted this on a website and caught the attention of a Swedish television researcher, who convinced Daniel to perform the sound live on air. After it debuted on television, recordings of his performance began appearing on file sharing networks and various websites under the filename "2TAKTARE.MP3" ("Tvåtaktare" is Swedish for "two stroker").
The sound was adopted as the sound of a Formula One car as early as 2001 in the form of "Deng Deng Form" and later "The Insanity Test", both of which were a static background of a Ferrari Formula One car accompanied by the sound.
In late 2003, another Swede, Erik Wernquist, encountered the sound effect and, not knowing about the previous incarnations of the sound, was inspired to create the 3D animated character he named "The Annoying Thing" to accompany it. Wernquist worked on the first animation in his spare time using the LightWave 3D modeling application, and the whole process took between six and eight weeks. On 7 October 2003 he posted it on his website and on the CGTalk forum.
The animation was a popular attraction at Wernquist's website, but the sound was credited to "Anonymous". Eventually, word reached Malmedahl that his impressions had been used in a now well-known animation studio. He contacted Wernquist, apparently giving an impromptu performance to confirm his claims. Wernquist was convinced, and gave credit to Malmedahl for his creation.
The animation received attention through filesharing and word of mouth and, when Ringtone Europe and Jamster België (now both merged into Jamba!) got wind of this, realizing the monetary possibilities through capitalizing on the underground cult-status, they licensed the rights to the creation, renaming it "Crazy Frog" and starting to market it in mid-2004.
In an interview with HitQuarters, Wernquist expressed his displeasure at the choice of name:
Following 2009, the character went on hiatus. In 2018, a trademark claim by Kaktus Films, the original owners alongside Erik Wernquist, had music listed as one of many rights. On 22 April 2020, an official Twitter account for the character was created, and later that day it was announced that a new album was in development.
In April 2022, the Government of Ukraine uploaded a video on Facebook of Russian tanks being hit by Ukrainian strikes during the 2022 Russian invasion of Ukraine with "Crazy Frog" playing in the background.
Other media
Racing games
On 1 July 2005, UK-based publishers Digital Jesters announced that they had acquired the rights to the video game licence for the Crazy Frog. Crazy Frog Racer (featuring the Annoying Thing) was released in December 2005 on PlayStation 2, Gameboy Advance and PC as a racing game. A year later in 2006 a sequel was released, entitled Crazy Frog Racer 2.
Merchandise
A string of Crazy Frog merchandise was released in the UK.
Cancelled TV series
In 2005, the German production company The League of Good People was in talks with broadcasters about a TV series based on Crazy Frog. The TV series was cancelled.
Australian tour
The Crazy Frog toured Australia in late 2005, beginning in Perth on 4 December and continuing through other major capital cities. He made appearances at numerous shopping centres and major hospitals around the country.