How the Harlem Shake Went Viral (One Week after purported Original Post)

Here's a quick guide for the baffled: Harlem Shake videos all follow the script of one person, often in a helmet, dancing alone in a room full of bored-looking people. Then, as the beat kicks in on Baauer's "Harlem Shake," we smash cut to the entire room going nuts in the most ridiculous ways possible.

In a post titled "The Harlem Shake is Exploding," YouTube trends manager Kevin Allocca reveals that more than 12,000 Harlem Shake videos had been uploaded by close of business Monday. Collectively, they have been watched more than 44 million times in a week.

Clearly, part of the success of the videos can be attributed to the anticipation of that breakout moment. Another reason: The videos are so short, you can easily consume a dozen of them in a ten-minute lunch break.

I did a quick search on Google Trends, and the stats say the meme is still exploding (especially in Canada) as of February 13th. This chart will update to show you the last 90 days.

Interpretation of the graph: the line going up means that the term is rising in popularity. The incline indicates how hot it is. The "100" on the left side (y-axis) indicates when the search term was most popular.

The winner thus far is this version from the staff of Maker Studios. The Maker video just topped 9 million+ views on Valentine's Day and is still rising.

While it could have just remained a college-kid fad, Maker Studio's version helped signal that the trend was something any organization or office could be a part of. I'm hoping that it doesn't just become an excuse for participants in the meme to be crude (as most of the younger copycats are doing), but is evened out by folks who use it as a tool to unify, build trust, and just get down with their friends, family, and co-workers.

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