# Yes We Can (will.i.am)

> will.i.am’s Obama music video had 24,353,527 views on its original YouTube upload.

- Owner: will.i.am
- Kind: Music
- Sector: Politics & civic
- Seed date: 2008-02-01
- Milestone date: 2008-05-06
- Date basis: Documented milestone; not a measured attention peak.
- Spread Score: 36 (Niche, provisional), v1.3
- Mechanics: Maker origin, Platform jump, Press loop, Newsjacking

## Summary

ABC premiered the video before its YouTube release. The Obama campaign screened it and asked supporters to share it. Press covered parodies, and will.i.am performed the Emmy-winning song at the Democratic convention.

## Timeline

- 2008-02-01 — ABC News Now (TV) — ABC News Now premiered the completed music video on What’s the Buzz.
- 2008-02-02 — WeCan08 (YouTube) — The official video appeared on YouTube.
- 2008-02-05 — Michelle Obama / Obama campaign (Open web) — Michelle Obama emailed Pesce asking him to share the video through his social networks.

The full timeline, metrics and sources are on the case page, or via the Pro API (https://howitspread.com/developers).

Canonical URL: https://howitspread.com/cases/yes-we-can

Cite as: How It Spread (2026). “Yes We Can (will.i.am).” Case HIS-01665. Spread Score v1.3: 36/100. Updated 2026-10-24. https://howitspread.com/id/HIS-01665