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TIL that the 2010 FIFA world cup song "Waka Waka" by Shakira is actually based on a 1986 song "Zangaléwa", by Cameroonian band Golden Sounds, which was a hit not only across Africa but also in Colombia with the help of West African DJs where Shakira heard the tune when she was a child.

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X9WR TIL Nintendo never intended to create Mario. The original arcade Donkey Kong was intended to be a Popeye game. When they lost the license, they came up with their own characters; Mario for Popeye, Donkey Kong for Bluto and Pauline for Olive Oyl.
Y7gGx TIL Beethoven’s 3rd Symphony was initially his tribute to Napoleon, whom he admired. But when Napoleon crowned himself emperor in 1804, Beethoven angrily declared that Napoleon had become a tyrant, and he erased Bonaparte's name from the score’s title page.
neobr TIL that Brad Pitt joined the cast of King of the Hill for two episodes to play Boomhauer’s playboy brother.
XElJr TIL that in 2009, author Nevin Martell wrote a book about his quest to get an interview Bill Watterson. He ended up not getting one, but did get interviews with some of his family and friends. A few months after the book, Watterson did his first interview since the conclusion of Calvin and Hobbes.
rRoW0 TIL that the intro Song from Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band wasn't in fact a live performance, but a fake in a studio with a 40 people orchestra intended to break the fourth wall