Who Dey
Who Dey is the name of a chant of support by fans of the Cincinnati Bengals, an American football team. The entire chant is: "Who dey! Who dey! Who dey think gonna beat dem Bengals?" The answer screamed in unison, "nobody." "Who Dey" is also the name of the team’s mascot, an anthropomorphic Bengal tiger. According to Bengals.com, Who Dey stands 6'-5" and weighs 227 pounds.
[edit] History
Although the exact origin of the phrase is disputed, it had been made popular by 1981 in Bengals fans’ cheers for their team during their run to Super Bowl XVI. Some fans would do the chant and other fans would reply, “Nobody!” The cheer again gained national recognition in their 1988 appearance in Super Bowl XXIII. Due to the success of the Bengals team in the 2005 season, the chant is again gaining popularity.
Different theories of the origin of the chant exist:
- A 1980 commercial for Red Frazier Ford of Cincinnati used this tagline: “Who's going to give you a better deal than Red Frazier? Nobody!” Cincinnati fans who had seen the commercial many times may have just copied it when cheering.
[edit] Appearances
- The now-defunct Hudepohl-Schoenling Brewing Company of Cincinnati had been producing a beer called Hudy Delight, which was just a shortening of the company’s name. In the 1980’s, they re-labeled the drink as Hu-Dey to cash in on the popularity of the Bengals.
- Cincinnati radio station 700 AM WLW recorded a version of the chant in 1980, which was played on the radio and also released on a 45 RPM record.
- The phrase and mascot were featured prominently in the music video for "Fear 'Da Tiger", a 2005 song written by legendary funk bassist and singer Bootsy Collins, a Cincinnati native, to be played on the internal video system during games. It also features "raps" by several Bengals players.
- The phrase was displayed prominently in the season 8 of the CBS television show, The Amazing Race. The winning team, the Linz family, were Bengals fans from Cincinnati. One team member often wore a shirt that said "WHO DEY" in large letters, and the team chanted the slogan upon reaching the finish line and winning first place.
- The phrase who dey is also an informal colloquial greeting among Bengals fans.
- After the Bengals lost to the Pittsburgh Steelers in the 2005 Wild Card round of the playoffs, Steelers head coach Bill Cowher and the players in the locker room celebrated by Cowher chanting "Who dey?" and the players responding "We dey!" two times. Then one Steeler chanted "Who dey think they gonna beat dem Bengals?" All responded "We dey!"
- It is reported however that the same evening the Steelers chanted "Who dey?", an assistant coach's wife broke her leg. Cincinnati fans claimed it was due to using their chant.
- It is reported that Carmen Electra got a "Who Dey" tattoo on her ankle.
- It is reported that "Who Dey" is the title of Cincinnati native Nick Lachey's next solo album.
- It is reported that for the upcoming 2006 season, the Cincinnati Bengals plan on adding additional mascots: The "Who-dettes." The Who-dettes will be a group of twelve female "little people" dressed as Bengal Tigers and will be on the sidelines during the game shooting hot dogs and t-shirts into the stands.
- As a write in vote, the Cincinnati Bengals mascot "Who Dey" finished third in the 2005 Cincinnati Mayoral Election, losing to current Cincinnati Mayor Mark Mallory.
- In the upcoming film Tigress of the Jungle, adult film star Jenna Jameson is reported to scream "Who Dey! Who Dey! Who Dey!!" during the movie's climax.
- Who Dey leads all NFL mascots with five Pro-Bowl appearances.
[edit] External links
- A researched article about the history of the chant on BengalsJungle.com.
- The official web site for the mascot of the Cincinnati Bengals
- "Who dey! Where'd it come from?": A Cincinnati Enquirer article speculating on the source of the phrase
