Vancouver Canucks Ben Hutton, Jake Virtanen step up for Christmas rapping
Holiday rap video features the two young players and local music parody trio
Rookies Ben Hutton and Jake Virtanen stepped up to help a trio of local musicians hit a major milestone — joining the superfans in their latest parody video posted on the team's official YouTube channel.
Ben Hutton and Jake Virtanen are featured in the video, Canucks Christmas Rap by Clay Imoo, Marie Hui and Arielle Tuliao.
The trio have collectively written and produced about 20 videos professing their commitment to the team.
Their latest video, which mixes parodies of The Sound of Music's My Favourite Things and Run DMC's Christmas in Hollis, has logged over 60,000 views since it was posted on Saturday.
"We actually didn't know we had Ben [Hutton] and Jake [Virtanen] until we showed up to shoot," said Imoo. "Needless to say, we were thrilled."
Despite just being background dancers, the two young Canucks rookies steal the show from singer Hui and rapper Tuliao.
Reaction has been swift with some commenting on Virtanen's movements, which Imoo jokingly likens to "trying to hail a cab".
"We shot that rap scene probably about six or seven times, so they were doing different moves, trying different things," said Imoo, recalling the 30 minutes they had with the players.
Hutton appears more comfortable, throwing up his arms and even takes on a speaking role by telling singer Hui how he remains positive despite being away from home during the holiday season.
Imoo said he and his co-producers often hear negative feedback, so he appreciates the rookies' willingness to put their reputation on the line.
"All we're trying to do is be bold, step out of the box a little bit — express our fandom in a creative way," he said.
He does admit, it might have taken some arm-twisting behind-the-scenes to get the guys to agree.
"You wouldn't see Henrik or Daniel or Jannik Hansen doing this I don't think," laughed Imoo.