Top Secret Dance-Off is “an underground network of otherwise ordinary people seeking to activate the dance secret — an elusive power said to be hard-wired into our brains, and requiring highly unusual dance experiences to unlock it.”
Awesome.
Here at Dancing Videos, we only hoped to unlock the happy synapses in your brain that react positively to the visual stimulant of The Dance (no matter the ilk) in its sundry, miraculous forms, but the creators of this Ning blog take it a step further by rallying the troops to make use of that Flip camera you bought but rarely use and get down to business.
So I have a show. I haven’t had a show in awhile (not since, perhaps, Two Guys, A Girl, and a Pizza Place), but for some reason, I really like How I Met Your Mother, and I choose here to not explore the reasons why.
This kid has some serious moves. I wish this video went on forever.
Kids dancing at weddings is one of the best things about weddings. I think because kids don’t really have anything to do at weddings besides dance.
Even though these dancing kids are being exploited to sell a credit card, their dancing is nothing short of awe-inspiring.
This can hardly be considered dancing, and does not require a full viewing, but the first few seconds alone are probably some of the most adorable seconds of video footage ever recorded.
While The Hustle has had its day and the Macarena (gah!) is still being danced at recent weddings I’ve attended, the new cool line dance seems to be The Cupid Shuffle. According to Dance Jam, the Cupid Shuffle is similar to the Lil Mama G-Slide, the Cha Cha Slide, and Country Line Dancing (though its dancers surely demur from any Achy Breaky Hearted comparisons).
All I know is that even the cool kids are doing this one, so it must be cool.
It’s been a tough day, hasn’t it? Yeah, it’s been a tough day for me, too.
But whatever’s grinding you down – bills, obnoxious coworkers, tedious workaday tasks, an increasingly ambiguous forecast for your personal happiness and security, dragons, loud neighbors, unemployment, the rising cost of prescription drugs, graduate school, foreclosure, April snowshowers, social unrest in Africa, ennui, your diet, library fines, cat allergies even though you think cats are great, too much Twitter, potholes, poppyseeds in your teeth – you get the drift –
Take heart; be strong; face the music and dance. Start here.
This video sold me on Beck forever when I first saw it on the MTV so many years ago. Since then, I’ve been wanting to do the half split (at about 3:00 minutes in) since I first saw this video.
Welcome to Dancing Videos! To start off, I’m going to repost this little ditty from my music blog, The Post-Rockist. We got such a good reaction from this post that I thought it would be great to actually start a blog with just dancing videos. Czech it!
–Scotter
Tuesday mornings are rough. Monday, eh, you’ve been away from work a few days and had fun, so Monday feels kind of grin-and-bear-it-able.
But Tuesday morning?! Criminy! You’ve already forgotten about your weekend. The next one is four days away. You’ve got a ton of work. You’re sitting in the office under intense fluorescent lighting. And the weather is finally getting nice and warm. The sun is shining brightly, taunting you.
How can you make it through? How you can you possibly bear the monotony? The stress? The feeling of being chained to your desk? The glare of the lighting! The agony! The ecstasy-lessness!
Well, I promise nothing, but how about taking a few minutes per every hour of your Tuesday to watch one of the videos below.
What do they have in common? Dancing! Glorious, amazing dancing! And the fun kind too! Think of the following as meditations in fun, opportunities to let lose a bit for a few minutes throughout your Tuesday and relax and enjoy and even do a little bit of cube dancing yourself (come on! you can shimmy just a bit in that office chair!).
Follow the Post-Rockist’s 8 video plan and you’ll be assured that this god-forsaken day will, in fact, end.
9am: You obviously turn on your computer and go directly to The Post-Rockist blog. It’s probably your homepage. It is?! Sweet. We think you’re great too. Let’s start your day with the late, great Godfather of Soul. I know what you’re thinking: “But Scotter, I don’t feel good. It’s Tuesday morning.” But in the words of Walter B. Sobczak, “If you will it, it is no dream.”
10am: Ok, you’ve finished your first cup of coffee and are onto your second. You’re mildly awake, have made it through your inbox, and are ready to start the work at hand, perhaps preparing for a meeting. How about something new?
Found a new video for the first single from the new Peter, Bjorn, and John album last night from the Radio Milwaukee blog. Czech it.
11am: Finished third cup of coffee. Maybe thinking about that first cup of tea. Two hours down, another till lunch, then the afternoon. You’ve completely woken up. You’ve done some work. You’re kind of “on” right now. How about something from a french film from the 60s? Godard’s Band a part was a revelation to me when I first saw it this past fall. And this is one of the best scenes of any movie ever, as far as I’m concerned. The dance is called The Madison. The music is northern soul. Who knew french cinema could be so fun, and that line dancing in midday at a diner could be so cool? L’existence est tres bon, n’est-ce pas? (And Anna Karina! Ooh-la-la!)
Noon: Time for lunch. YES! Here’s a send-off for you. Just try to get this song out of your head.
“Hot dog!”
1pm: Back from lunch. About to start the second half of your day. YOU’RE HALF WAY THERE! YOU CAN MAKE IT! You had a good lunch, you’re feeling a bit kooky. So get it out before returning to your daily haul of tasks. Fuse some Flashdance with some M.C. Hammer shit, like David Brent.
This never, ever gets old.
2pm: OK, this is the midpoint of the second half of your day. The high from getting out of the office into the lovely spring air has now faded from your mind and you’re starting to look at the clock. But the 5 is still so far away!
What you need is something to get you moving in spite of yourself–music that’s too infectious to be refused. But you also need something quirky–something to take your mind off of the clock. Here’s the best of both worlds.
3pm: You’re in the homestretch. Two more hours! Likely, you’re browsing through your Google Reader or reading blogs anyway. I was doing that just the other day and found this video. I’m a bit late on it, with the election well over. We all know who won. Still, this is well worth a few minutes off your 3 o’clock hour.
4pm: One hour to go. Oh man! One hour to go!
I’m not sure what kind of dancing video fits this hour. So, why not Beyonce? This video is amazing. It needs no other justification than that.
5pm: YES! That day is done! Time to celebrate! Time to exalt!
I told you I’d help you make it through, my babys!
And to help you celebrate the end of Tuesday, I’m going to let everybody in on a little secret. If you’ve ever been out dancing with me, this video will look oddly familiar for reasons you might not as first be able to put your finger on. Here’s the secret: I’ve stolen every single dance maneuver I’ve ever maneuvered on the dance floor from Stephen Colbert. Yep, that spin with hands in the air, elbows at 90 degree angles. The sassy walk with hip thrusts back and forth. That other spin where I hold my leg behind me and my other arm raised in the air. I pretty much stole it all from Colbert. GUILTY! Still, you love it.
Have a safe ride home. You made it! And you’re welcome.
Did I miss any good ones? I’d love to get suggestions for a similar video mix next Tuesday. Please submit suggested time of day with description and video link to scotter[at]post-rockist[dot]com or comment. I’d love some new ones. I have to suffer through Tuesday too, you know?
Dancing Videos Blog 