Alex Parker
It’s that time again; time to take into account the events of the past year. There are so many trends, songs, books, movies, and of course, so much news, to keep up with on a day-to-day basis. Let’s reflect on some of the best things that happened in 2011.
According to Yahoo, the most searched man was Robert Pattinson, not so surprising, and Jennifer Aniston was the most searched female. E! has a list of top celebrity news including the royal wedding, Charlie Sheen’s meltdown, Schwarzenegger’s love child, and the Kim Kardashian wedding/divorce. Forbes has named Lady Gaga number one on its top celebrity list followed by Oprah, Justin Beiber, U2, and Elton John.
Billboard has named Adele the top artist of 2011. She managed to have two hit singles Rolling in the Deep and Someone Like You from one album. Adele has recently been nominated for six Grammy Awards in the categories of album of the year, best pop vocal album for 21, record of the year, song of the year, best short form music video for Rolling in the Deep, and best pop solo performance for Someone Like You. Following Adele on Billboard’s list of top artists were:
2. Rihanna
3. Katy Perry
4. Lady Gaga
5. Nicki Minaj
6. Taylor Swift
7. Justin Bieber
8. Chris Brown
9. Lil Wayne
10. Bruno Mars
As for flicks, Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part 2 came in at number one at the box office, grossing over $ 380 million, Transformers: Dark of the Moon came in at number two with just over $ 350 million grossed, and The Twilight Saga: Breaking Dawn Part 1 came in third with just under $ 300 million. The Hangover Part II and Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides finished out the top five.
In my research, I came across something I found to be quite intriguing. AOL took a poll from its users and came up with “11 Days That Shaped 2011,” http://11in2011.aol.com/. January 8, the Arizona shooting, 19 people were shot and six died; January 25, the start of the Arab Spring; March 1, Charlie Sheen’s “Winning” over 18,000 re-tweets; March 11, the earthquake that hit Japan, caused a 23’ tsunami and resulted in over 22,000 people reported dead or missing; April 29, Prince William married Kate Middleton, 23 million Americans watched; May 1, Osama bin Laden is killed; May 25, Oprah’s last show after 25 years on-air; August 2, the debt ceiling crisis; September 11, the ten-year anniversary of 9/11; September 17, Occupy Wall Street began, 20,000 people “flood” Manhattan; October 5, Steve Jobs died.
The same could be said for any year, but 2011 has really been world-altering. The U.S. broke its record for natural disasters, having 12, the fate of the Arab world is entirely unknown, and the world is facing a debt crisis. Dust off your resolutions, it seems that 2012 has the potential to be just as interesting and equivocal as 2011.
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