It’s called the Harlem Shake and as with all viral videos, viewers are usually left scratching their heads trying to figure out what it was that they’ve just seen.
The 30-second video is formulaic – a lone, masked dancer gyrates amidst a few disinterested people. Halfway through the video, the music ratchets up a notch and suddenly the screen is filled with crazy revellers.
The original video was published on February 2 and has already garnered 3.7-million views.
It was devised by a group of teenaged longboarders from Australia’s Sunshine Coast, who were looking for something to do during a rainy spell.
The Harlem Shake is actually a dance, dating back to the early 2000s. But it rarely features in the videos currently doing the rounds. It takes its name from the backing music, which is by Brooklyn-based dance music producer Baauer.
There are now scores of copycat versions featuring firefighters, an endearing father-son duo, the staff of entertainment website IGN, and rapper T Pain.
The fad picked up locally in recent days after a Cape Town based advertising agency the Jupiter Drawing Room made a version and dared its competitors to “out-shake” them.
Of course, the M&G Online had to have its own take.
Who says teambuilding costs money?
Now for the inevitable backlash. Oh wait, it’s already here.