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Hey there, Hit Parade listeners. It's Chris Malanfi. This week, we're bringing you an episode from

another Slate show that I think you'll like, especially if you enjoyed our One Hit Wonders episode

of Hit Parade. Slate's history podcast, One Year, introduces you to the people

and struggles that changed America, one year at a time. In each episode, host Josh Levine

explores a story you may have forgotten, or one you've never heard before. What were the moments that transformed

politics, culture, science, religion, and how does the nation's past shape are present? The current

season of one year covers 1995, a year when homegrown terrorists attacked Oklahoma City, America went online, and DNA changed

the way crimes were investigated. The episode I'm highlighting for you today is about

macarena. Yes, that macarena, the song and the dance that became the defining left-field

pop happening of the mid-90s. This bilingual song by a pair of Spaniards and a couple of Miami

DJs they'd never met before brought joy to millions, and it topped the charts for months,

winding up Billboard's number one hit of 1996, over smashes by Mariah Carey, Boys to Men, and Celine Dion.

And then, just as quickly, Macarena became a cultural pariah.

While I did touch on Los Del Rio's unlikely smash on Hip Parade,

Josh and his team on one year go much, much deeper into just how improbable this song's

very existence was. I myself learned a lot from this show,

and I strongly encourage you to give it a listen. And by all means, if you like this episode,

subscribe to one year wherever you get your podcasts. What's the story of where your name came from?

So, like, my mom and her sisters, they're Maria Clarissa, Maria Angelica, Maria de la

Luce.

So my dad was like, we're not doing that.

...