Rhino is marking this achievement with new collectables available in their store

The iconic video for A-ha’s No.1 hit Take On Me reached one billion views on YouTube on 18 February as the Norwegian band joined the small group of music artists including Queen, Nirvana and Guns ‘N’ Roses who have achieved this rare milestone. It’s also the second most-viewed video from the 80s on YouTube and the fifth most-streamed track of the 20th century.

Originally released in 1985, the official music video for Take On Me was recently restored and upgraded to 4K resolution to improve its visual quality. Directed by Steve Barron, the promo captured audiences’ imaginations with its unique mix of hand-drawn animation and live-action. This illustration technique – known as rotoscoping – required live-action footage to be traced frame by frame. To complete the video, artists Michael Patterson and Candace Reckinger spent 16 weeks rotoscoping thousands of frames. Audiences can revisit the ‘Making Of’ both the song and its video by watching the three-part documentary on YouTube.

Rhino is celebrating the newest members of the Billion-Views Club with a special offer for A-ha fans available exclusively from their webstore. Signed bundles and an art print are already sold out but a special bundle comprising a T-shirt, an exclusive print set from the Take On Me era sketched by Michael Patterson and Candace Reckinger as well as a VHS tape are still available.

Click here to secure your limited edition Billion-Views bundle now.