...and we're talking most popular by far, with more than 120 million views: Susan Boyle's astonishing performance at Britain's Got Talent. This is hardly a surprise, given the enormous buzz the video has caused. Because it's basically a reprise of Paul Potts's performance from 2007, one has to wonder whether Britain's Got Talent -- with its "surprising" discovery of hidden talents -- will continue its YouTube reign in 2010, too.
Susan Boyle's performance is followed by "David After Dentist" with more than 37 million views, "JK Wedding Entrance Dance" with more than 33 million views, the trailer for the New Moon movie with 31 million views and "Evian Roller Babies" in the fifth place with more than 27 million views.
Besides the top five videos watched globally on the service, the folks at YouTube also listed the top five music videos of 2009, as well as the fastest rising search terms per month (both globally and for the U.S.). The list of popular search terms reads like a very condensed history of 2009:
January: inauguration
February: christian bale
March: the climb
April: susan boyle
May: pacquiao vs hatton
June: michael jackson thriller
July: michael jackson
August: usain bolt
September: kanye west
October: paranormal activity
November: bad romance
December: tiger woods
Yup, that's pretty much how I remember it.