A significant number of Finnish radio stations, shopping centers, and even schools paused to commemorate the 25th anniversary of ‘Sandstorm’ by Finnish DJ Darude. The instrumental track, which stands as one of Finland’s most successful outputs, was simultaneously broadcast at 9:15 a.m. local time on Thursday.
“What an honor! At 09:15 this morning, radio stations and shopping centers across Finland joined in to play ‘Sandstorm’ at the exact same time to celebrate 25 years! It was heard in shopping centers, schools, everywhere! Thank you everyone!” wrote the DJ on social media on Thursday, alongside a video of the song being played.
‘Sandstorm’ was first released in 1999 in Finland but gained international acclaim the following year when it was re-released in multiple countries.
Years later, a YouTuber used ‘Sandstorm’ as background music in gameplay footage of the game ‘Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare,’ attracting millions of views. The song became so widely used in such videos that ‘Darude – Sandstorm’ evolved into a meme for anyone questioning what track was being used.
‘Sandstorm’ charted in the major music lists of several countries and, just this year, made it to Billboard’s “The 100 Greatest Dance Songs of All Time” list for 2025.
Reminisce:
