Village People sang and 40,148 adoring fans in the stadium danced their way into a world record. Just certified this week by Guinness World Records, the largest YMCA dance ever was scored during the halftime show at the Brut Sun Bowl, in El Paso, Texas, presented by Helen of Troy, on December 31, 2008.
Danny Girton, Jr., Guinness World Records Adjudication Manager, announced today, “On behalf of Guinness World Records, we are delighted to certify such a visual, fun and monumental record achievement. A very worthy effort by all 40,148 participants and we welcome them to the Guinness World Records family!”
Village People has sold more than 100 million albums and singles internationally and remains as popular today as the group was in the beginning. They continue to perform to sell-out crowds around the world.
The group’s biggest hit records include YMCA, Macho Man, In The Navy, Can’t Stop the Music, Go West and San Francisco/Hollywood. YMCA is, to date, their best selling single, amassing sales of over 15 million units worldwide (four million in the U.S. alone).
Today, 32 years after the creation of the group, the Village People legacy endures and continues to be reinvented through the six performers who don the iconic costumes that first captured and captivated the world’s attention in 1977.
They are:
Ray Simpson, who replaced Victor Willis as the group’s lead singer/Cop character in 1979, beginning with the group’s cult hit film Can’t Stop the Music.
Felipe Rose, who is the one and only Indian, and was the basis for the creation of the group. He is half-Native American and half-Puerto Rican.
Alexander Briley, the one and only G.I./Military Man.
David Hodo, the original Construction Man.
Jeff Olson, who, in 1980, replaced Randy Jones as the Cowboy just after Can’t Stop the Music.
Eric Anzalone, who joined the group in 1995 as the Biker/Leatherman, as original member Glenn Hughes began battling lung cancer.
With a global fan base and a worldwide tour schedule that attests to the group’s enduring and increasing popularity, Village People is thrilled to also be recognized by Guinness World Records.
