Wednesday, February 2, 2011

Youtube Dance Lessons

Quite often in class, we all mention how easy it is to look up dance routines on Youtube and learn steps, moves and routines from there. Essentially, I've come to think of it as Youtube dance lessons. It's free, it's easy and you don't get laughed or yelled at for messing up a move. It's perfect. It makes me wonder why people are still adamant about not dancing.
Anyways, the popularity of Youtube and learning choreographies from there got me wondering what dance routines have become the most popular for people to learn. I found a website that lists what they claim to be the "Top Five Most Iconic Music Video Dance Routines." While it's not official or anything, looking at the majority of the list made me laugh because I am guilty of either participating in some of these routines, or at least trying to learn them. Here's the link:

http://musicouch.com/musicouching/top-five-most-iconic-music-video-dance-routines/

I think most of us have danced to the YMCA and the Macarena at some point or another. Also, a friend of mine and I tried to learn the routine that is #1 on this list, but we gave up after about 10 minutes. Here's a good video of people who had plenty of time to get the routine down though

7 comments:

  1. This is great! And perhaps even a good starting point for an internet research project?? Thanks for posting.

    By the way, here is my current favorite version of "Thriller" - over 46 million views! Have you seen it yet?
    http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hMnk7lh9M3o

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  2. This is really cool. I hadn't noticed how many different dances I know through my own culture growing up that I don't remember ever learning and just picking up. It always makes me wonder about the cultural dances similar to these like those done during weddings or Bar and Bat Mitzvahs. I wonder if those will catch on at some point into a larger social and cultural phenomenon. Also, where is the cotten eyed joe on this list? Great find!

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  3. Those dances were really cool, and it is amazing what cultural phenomenons/trends have been created! Posting how-to videos helps people move, dance, and learn at their own pace and not feel embarrassed! And it is great to think of how many dances we know from the list!

    Last year on So You Think You Can Dance, the judges created a National Dance Day to get people to move and organize dancing events around the country. Two of the judges/choreographers, Napoleon and Tabitha, created a dance and posted a how-to video on YouTube for people to learn!
    Here is the link for that: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zKUyp1GMQVg

    I think that's another great way to dance to the current trends and form a group with your friends!

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  4. @Professor Hutchinson- That's a great version of "Thriller"! Definitely better than the ones I've seen.

    @Christina- I was also wondering about the Cotton Eyed Joe, that one has seemed to take the world by storm these days. I guess it goes without saying that it's well-known?

    @Karen- I love that video! I'm definitely going to learn that routine, it looks so fun! Thanks for sharing it!

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  5. I really enjoyed this post and the article. I was shocked to see that yes in fact I have attempted all of those dances at one point. The cha-cha slide is definitely my favorite though. I think that people don't realize how main stream dances become and even more so how quickly they come into the main stream. Some of these dances stay around for years like the YMCA and become a cultural phenomenon done at sporting events, dances and anywhere else there may be dancing. Others like Soulja Boy come and go very quickly. What makes a dance stick around?

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  6. Kim: Good question. Part of the YMCA appeal has to be how easy it is to do, as well as the campiness/humor. Other ideas for why some dances stay when many others go?

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  7. I was just looking through the blog and happened upon this post. This is exactly what my group is planning on doing for the internet research project!
    Great find and helpful comments! These are questions we hope to answer through our research!

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