Whether you like it or not, you’ve definitely seen it. The “Harlem Shake” video craze basically took over the Internet in the past two weeks.
Around 12,000 Harlem Shake videos have been posted since the start of the month, and they’ve already gained about 44 million views.
The actual Harlem Shake dance became popular in Harlem, New York in 1981. It reached the national acclaim in the early 2000s through hip-hop videos like Missy Elliot’s music video “Work It,” in which ladies swung their shoulders side to side while shimmying at the same time.
However, the craze barely resembles its origin. The videos are based around the song “Harlem Shake” by DJ Baauer and involve people sitting still for about 15 seconds until the beat drops, at which point a quick cut reveals the group dancing around wildly with absurd costumes and accessories.
Why have these Harlem Shake videos become so popular? The main answer is the Internet. The anticipation of that breakout moment where the costumes and the creeps come out, and the short length of the videos is the perfect combination for a viral sensation.
The most interesting thing about the Harlem Shake is the amount of school pride it generates. Schools across the country, including Cal State Long Beach, are joining in on the fad.
Nicholas CvjetkoviÄc, a senior kinesiology major, was the first student on campus to put CSULB on the Harlem Shake radar. Originally, CvjetkoviÄc was supposed to make the video with a few of his classmates. However, when word got out of CSULB’s first Harlem Shake, more than a dozen students wanted to take part in the video.
Eventually when talk of the event grew so large CvjetkoviÄc posted the event information on Facebook to let students know when and where the Harlem Shake taping would take place. More than 200 students participated in CSULB’s first-ever Harlem Shake video on Feb. 11 at the Walter Pyramid.
Only two nights later, at the Long Beach vs. Fullerton basketball game, a second Harlem Shake video was produced.
“I wanted to do it because there was a sense of excitement to represent [CSULB],” Emily Premo, a senior communication studies major who participated in the second Harlem Shake video, said. “It’s the first time I felt the spirit of Long Beach as a collective student body.”
Most students, including Premo, who participated in the basketball Harlem Shake, said they did not know what the real Harlem Shake dance was.
This begs the question, will this fad stay? CvjetkoviÄc said no.
