Eddy Wally was a Belgian singer known for his flamboyant style and long career in schlager music. A short television clip of him exclaiming Wow with an exaggerated expression was uploaded and reposted across YouTube and social media in the 2010s, where editors isolated the single word as a standalone reaction. It spread in gaming and meme compilations alongside other short reaction sounds, and its brevity made it easy to loop, layer and drop into streams. It remains popular because the delivery is sincere, instantly readable and useful for both real and sarcastic surprise.