The original "Trolololo" song — non-lexical vocalize I'm Glad As I'm Finally Coming Back Home («Я очень рад, ведь я наконец возвращаюсь домой»), also known as I'm Coming Home («Я возвращаюсь домой») — was written by distinguished Soviet composer [url=https://discogs.com/artist/805291]Arkady Ostrovsky[/url] (1914—1967), who had previously commissioned a few notable songs for Eduard Khil, such as Moonstone («Лунный камень») with lyrics by [url=https://discogs.com/artist/1219339]Inna Kascheszcheva[/url] and Sea, Sea («Море, море») co-authored by [url=https://discogs.com/artist/805583]Igor Schaferan[/url] and [url=https://discogs.com/artist/805202]Mikhail Tanich[/url]. According to newspaper interviews with the composer's son, [url=https://discogs.com/artist/13917220]Mikhail Ostrovsky[/url], the quirky Vocalize («Вокализ») was created on a half-humorous bet with Arkady's close friend and regular co-author, poet [url=https://discogs.com/artist/805322]Lev Oshanin[/url] — to prove he could make a great song without lyrics at all. Given its rollicking and joyful melody yet significant technical challenges, Ostrovsky invited his trusted collaborator and classically-trained singer Eduard Khil to debut the song. The project almost got canceled, however, when during June 1965 studio sessions with the [url=https://discogs.com/artist/1055021]All-Union Radio Variety Orchestra[/url] conductor [url=https://discogs.com/artist/1712509]Yury Silantiev[/url] refused to work on a project and insisted the song must have proper lyrics. At his suggestion, Ostrovsky reached out to poet [url=https://discogs.com/artist/820400]Vadim Semernin[/url], with whom they quickly devised a Wild West cowboy "saddle" song. This poem didn't pass the Cold War-era governmental censorship, though, with ideologically inappropriate references to the enemy American state — thus, Ostrovsky's initial vision ultimately prevailed, with Vocalize recorded as acapella without any discernable words. (The only remnant of Severnin's unused lyrics was in the song's full title.) Curiously, it wasn't Khil who exposed the broader Soviet audience to "I'm Coming Home" in 1966 but rather [url=https://discogs.com/artist/1149969]Valery Obodzinsky[/url], who recorded a [url=https://discogs.com/master/1075453]"jazzier" version[/url] with Oleg Lundstrem Orchestra, and [url=https://discogs.com/artist/805293]Muslim Magomaev[/url] with his [url=https://discogs.com/master/598555]Songs of Arkady Ostrovsky[/url] 7" EP and televised live performance on the annual primetime New Year Eve's television show Little Blue Light («Голубой огонёк»). Both singers incorporated additional non-vocal techniques in their renditions, such as whistling and humming — in contrast with Khil, who sang the entire piece. The artist soon turned "Vocalize" into one of his stage repertoire staples, announcing it as a song in the audience's native language during his European tours — be it German, Dutch, or Swedish — and proceeding to the crowd roaring in laughter as they realized there were no lyrics beyond ya-ya-yeah's and lo-lo-lo's.

In November 2009, an archival video of Eduard Khil performing "I'm Glad As I'm Finally Coming Back Home" from a February 1976 television broadcast appeared on YouTube — right as one of the most significant and impactful music-related memes, [url=https://discogs.com/master/96559]Rickroll[/url], reached ultimate saturation — i.e., hardly any online user would be caught "off guard" by Rick Astley's gimmicky singing. A fresh and even more eccentric "Trolololo" (dubbed in a portmanteau of "trolling" and onomatopoeic representation of indiscernible lyrics), paired with Khil's overly cheerful smile and vivacious mimicking), filled the gap, featured on Ray William Johnson's high-ranking YouTube reaction show as Communist Roll'd, further solidifying its viral popularity; the original upload alone gained over 5 million views. Eduard Khil, who was seventy-seven at the time, learned about his newfound "Mr. Trololo" fame from his grandson; he had an overwhelmingly positive and joyful response, adoring numerous parodies and encouraging fans worldwide to write new lyrics for a non-verbal vocalize in their languages. Following a few TV interviews, Khil gave a soldout debut solo concert at [url=https://discogs.com/label/893851]16 Tons Club[/url] in Moscow on 26 June 2010 and earned a special "Internet" prize from [url=https://discogs.com/artist/1543678]Artemiy Troitskiy[/url]'s indie music award Steppe Wolf («Степной волк») the same month. He made numerous other live and media appearances and won the prestigious [url=https://discogs.com/label/551896]Golden Gramophone[/url] award (Премия «Золотой граммофон») in November 2011. Abroad, "Mr. Trololo" had a mainstream media breakthrough, featured on Stephen Colbert's late-night show. Austrian actor Christoph Waltz filmed his "Trololo" parody, Der Humpink, which he presented during the annual Oscar Awards ceremony and on Jimmy Kimmel's "Live" program. The song made a cameo in the opening episode of Family Guy's 10th Season in September 2011; subsequent film appearances include the second episode of the first season of 12 Monkeys TV series in January 2015, a Russian overdub of [url=https://discogs.com/artist/1481074]Stephen King[/url]'s 2016 sci-fi horror adaptation Cell, and the second installment in "Pacific Rim" monster horror franchise co-authored by Guillermo Del Toro, [url=https://discogs.com/master/2138410]Pacific Rim Uprising[/url] (2018).