Black History Month can be a drag if we don’t incorporate recent history into the stories of achievement. With viral dance crazes taking over the Internet in recent years, it’s important to know that many Black people paved the way for moves to be seen, practiced and spread across the world.
It’s not just the dancers who get moves to go viral either. Someone has to spread the word.
Back in the day, there were various DJs, radio hosts and T.V. pioneers who saw the potential of dance and made sure it reached the masses.
Hit the next pages for some Black icons who were crucial to viral dance culture stretching from 1976 to 2015.
Don Cornelius
You can’t talk about viral dance influence without talking about Soul Train. The show, which aired from 1976 to 2006, was the go-to program for the latest dance crazes and innovations. Creator and host Don Cornelius exposed people to styles that would eventually become dance movements such as b-boying, waacking and more.
Before Instagram, Twitter or Facebook, there was T.V., and Soul Train was the culture.
DJ Casper
In 1995, Latin pop group Los del Río released the “Macarena” song and dance, and it ushered in a new era of line dancing. But whereas the somewhat campy song might work for a lit elementary school function, it might not work as well for a turnt Black family gathering.
Thanks to DJ Casper of Chicago, a missing void was filled when he dropped the “Cha Cha Slide” in 2000. It was full of easy steps that definitely got the party started, no matter if you were a “slide to the left” type of gal or “hands on your knees” type of partner.
If you’ve ever spent your life going to a Black function and this song wasn’t played…
Shame on the DJ.
DJ Webstar & Young B
Today, most of the latest viral dances start on Instagram thanks to the many talented people using the site. But before IG ever allowed its first post, there was a thing called YouTube.
Now granted, YouTube is still a major force in these social media streets. But back in 2006, it was one of the only sites to show off your new skills or popular moves from the neighborhood.
DJ Webstar and rapper Young B‘s “Chicken Noodle Soup” was one of the first examples of how a local song and dance from Harlem could reach the world. The youth of the Internet couldn’t wait to upload their own renditions of the Chicken Noodle Soup to YouTube, resulting in thousands, even millions of views. The South would soon compete with a few dance crazes of their own.
Soulja Boy
It can be hard to take Soulja Boy seriously, especially considering his recent antics. But there’s no denying when “Crank That (Soulja Boy)” dropped, it changed the game. Soulja used the Internet, TV and a catchy dance to make himself a star. With seven weeks at number #1 on the Billboard 100, “Crank That” was a certified hit and viral dance gold.
Dem Franchize Boyz
Before Soulja Boy had us “Superman that h*” or Yung Joc had us bumping side to side with “It’s Goin’ Down,”Dem Franchize Boyz were one of the first groups out of Atlanta to recognize the value in a simple dance. In 2004 and 2005, they already had hits on their hands with “White Tee” and “I Think They Like Me.” But by 2006, they struck gold with a simple lean and snap.
“Lean wit it, Rock wit it” would spread to school dances and college parties across the country.
I dare you to play the song now and not tilt your body at a 45-degree angle.
Silento
Fifteen years after the “Cha Cha Slide,” the world was feening for another participatory dance that could easily gather the fam at a community function.
Seventeen-year-old Silento from Stone Mountain, Georgia answered the call when “Watch Me (Whip/Nae Nae)” dropped in 2015.
Ironically, most of the moves he commands in the track were already viral sensations in their own right. Silento just decided to mix things like “The Stanky Leg” and the “Nae Nae” together for one big infectious suite.
It seemed to work too.
As of today, the music video for the track has racked up over 1 billion views on YouTube!
