Nearly Little Drummer Boy-free as well.

By some accounts, this December 1st marked the beginning of the 10th annual Whamaggedon contest. With every radio station with a vaguely rock format as well as every Pandora (or the like) holiday music streamer having Last Christmas lurking it its playlist, your hosts here at SCIFI.radio wants you to know that this will be your online fallout shelter to avoid you being sent to Whamhalla.

The very tongue-in-cheek game, where participants try to avoid getting “whammed” by hearing the original version of Last Christmas as performed by the British pop duo “Wham” is said to have originally started on internet forum GT Planet in 2010. But, it really came into public awareness in 2016 via a Facebook page that set out the current rules – which can also be found on Whamaggedon.com:

The First Rule
The objective is to go as long as possible without hearing WHAM’s Christmas classic; “Last Christmas”.

The Second Rule
The game starts on December 1st, and ends at midnight on December 24th in your time zone.

The Third Rule
Only the original version applies. Enjoy the remixes and covers.

The Fourth Rule
You’re out as soon as you recognize the song.

Clearly, the goal is to be the last one standing among your friends by being the last to hear the song.

Participants are encouraged to post when they’ve been “whammed” or “sent to Wamhalla” by accidentally hearing the song. Participants are also strongly encouraged to NOT trick their friends by sending them a link that will play Last Christmas either.

Susan Fox, co-owner of SCIFI.radio, has declared her very rare use of the “I own this station” rule and has declared that Last Christmas will not be played before the 24th.

Almost Little Drummer Boy-free As Well

In terms of public awareness, the Little Drummer Boy Challenge has been “a thing” for longer, rising to the level of being the subject of an article in Time in 2014.

The rules for the LDB Challenge are less formal, but essentially the same: you’re out if you accidentally hear any version of Little Drummer Boy. Given that there are many more versions of LDB out there in all sorts of genres, some will say that this is the more challenging of the two contests.

SCIFI.radio host Gary DaBaum has promised listeners that he would be playing Little Drummer Boy by King & Country during his shows through the season, however he has likewise promised to give listeners a heads-up before it plays, giving them a chance to mute the stream for the three-and-a-half-minute play length by pushing the Stop button on the SCIFI.radio Player in the upper right of your screen.

Gary’s shows air Tuesdays, Fridays and Sundays, and you can check out your local show times here if you’re slow on the trigger.

Whether you’re playing or not, whether you’ve been sent to Whamhalla or you’re avoiding malls at all costs, the staff and hosts here at SCIFI.radio wish you joyous times celebrating whichever holidays hold meaning for you.

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