Eduard Khill (TROLOLOLO) dies.

[Seraph]

Eduard Khil dies at 77: 'Mr. Trololo' meme hit late in his career


Eduard Khil, the award-winning Russian baritone who enjoyed Internet fame as "Mr. Trololo" late in his career, has died at 77 after suffering a stroke in early April.

Eduard Khil, known to most Western audiences as Internet star “Mr. Trololo,” died early Monday in St. Petersburg after suffering a stroke in April. He was 77.

Khil, a baritone who was popular in the 1960s and '70s in what was then the Soviet Union, received a number of awards during his career, including the People’s Artist of Russia honor, but it wasn’t until a 1976 TV performance surfaced online in late 2009 and hit big in early 2010 that he enjoyed international fame.

“The death of the exceptional singer, Eduard Khil, is an irretrievable loss to Russian culture,” Russian Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev said Monday in a statement expressing his condolences. “He was truly a people's artist. Several generations of people loved his songs not only in this country but also abroad.”

That notorious TV clip -- described by the Ministry in 2010 as “the high-speed freeway chase of music videos” -- was uploaded to YouTube in November 2009 and later renamed “Mr. Trololo original upload,” according to the Know Your Meme website. The original upload has notched almost 12.5 million views, with copycats racking up millions more.

The baritone learned of his newfound fame courtesy of his grandson, according to a St. Petersburg journalist who knew him personally.

"From his grandson he learned that T-shirts and mugs with his image had become available in the West, and he joked that he never earned a kopeck from them," Mikhail Sadchikov told the Associated Press on Monday. "He was also very optimistic, positive and ironic at the same time."

The kitschy (and oh-so-catchy) wordlessness of the Trololo song, more properly known in rough translation as “I Am So Happy That I’m Finally Coming Home,” interestingly had its roots in Cold War-era history. After the original lyrics about a cowboy riding his horse home in Kentucky didn’t fly with Soviet censors -- it’s unclear if the ban was official or unofficial -- the words were turned into vocalizations instead.

And decades later, a star was born.

A civil funeral will be held at a theater in Moscow, Khil’s son Dmitry told the Voice of Russia. He’ll be buried at Smolenskoye Cemetery in St. Petersburg -- while “Mr. Trololo” lives online in perpetuity.

Eduard Khil dies; 'Mr. Trololo' of Internet fame was 77 - latimes.com

Looks like that stroke Khilled him.

[Hillboy]

Wow, I kind of almost feel sad. At least he was happy when he died

[Seraph]

Wow, I kind of almost feel sad. At least he was happy when he died

Better die the way you want than what the circumstances merit; this is why I support Euthanasia.

[DMrayZ]

Looks like that stroke Khilled him.

... I'm so glad he didn't have to live to see that...

[Seraph]

... I'm so glad he didn't have to live to see that...

Oh, I'm sure someone in Russia has done a joke about his last name before.

[DMrayZ]

No doubt, but it wasn't a joke about what khilled him.

[chihuahuaman]

Rest In Peace, man. Seems like just yesterday I watched that video.

[Seraph]

Rest In Peace, man. Seems like just yesterday I watched that video.

Yeah, it isn't a song I get tired of listening to.

[Absent axel]

Rest in peace.

Seeing a man who has sung such an iconic song and to know that he isn't in this world anymore while I watch it discomforts me.

Makes me remember his speech on a youtube video about everyone setting a date and time and singing the song together as one.
Did they ever do it?

[The Hero's Hat]

Damn, I thought he was young. Didn't realize he was 77.

[Theart]

Heard about this yesterday, but forgot to post about it here. :c

Rest in Peace, Mr. Trololo. May you forever troll with angels~ <3

[Seraph]

Rest in peace.

Seeing a man who has sung such an iconic song and to know that he isn't in this world anymore while I watch it discomforts me.

Makes me remember his speech on a youtube video about everyone setting a date and time and singing the song together as one.
Did they ever do it?

I don't know, but I remember seeing him participate in a Christmas special, maybe it was that?

[▽]

Damn, i remember back when i first saw his performance, first day of christmas 2009. Too bad he died, he seemed to enjoy everything that came with his renewed fame, yet he stayed humble. The world has lost an icon for whom exists no successor.

[Amros626]

Apparently this guy was a pretty cool dude as I recall hearing. Sucks.