The Harlem Shake meme is infecting the internet and spreading fast. The music and videos are both catchy and entertaining. It is February’s (and possibly 2013’s) biggest web video trend. But wait… What is the Harlem Shake anyway? It’s a booming dance track from New York based producer Baauer. Then a couple of video bloggers made silly youtube videos for it. The rest of the youtube horde followed suit. It went viral from there.
I’ve been following several videos over the past two weeks. I’ve also been thinking about including it in my playlist for when I DJ weddings and other parties here in Toronto. Here’s a collection of some of the best Harlem Shake versions I’ve encountered to date. R.I.P. Gangnam Style.
The Original Shake
This is the video that established the form – the helment, jump cut, facing the wall guy, etc…
UGA Men’s Swim & Dive Edition
This is my favourite. Very original. Very hard to execute.
Norwegian Army Shake
If you didn’t know what Harlem Shake was, you’d be most surprised by this version.
University of Guelph Edition
I have to include a video from fellow Canadians. This one takes top honours.
Grandma Edition
Props to Hank Rao for convincing Grandma and company. You`ve got a cool family, dude.
Annoying Orange Edition
This is the reason why my kids know what Harlem Shake is.
