Off the heels of the Running Man challenge and “JuJu On That Beat,” a new Internet dance craze is sweeping the country.
What started out as a viral challenge amongst high schoolers has turned into the latest web fad called the “Mannequin Challenge,” with music stars like Rae Sremmurd and Young Thug as well as athletes such as Golden State Warriors’ Stephen Curry and the New York Giants getting in on the action.
To successfully complete the challenge, people must remain frozen (in mannequin-like fashion) in whatever position they’re in while being filmed on camera — with some going H.A.M. after a beat drop. Rae Sremmurd’s song “Black Beatles” has been used for several of the videos, and the hip-hop duo used the song to acknowledge the challenge at their show in Denver on Nov. 3.
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Despite the use of “Black Beatles” for the challenge, though, 2 Chainz seems to think his mannequin-inspired music video for “Countin” was what made it take off. Whatever the case, the “Mannequin Challenge” has inspired several others to try it out, with Curry organizing a video at his wife Ayesha Curry’s restaurant International Smoke on Nov. 5 and rapper Young Thug and hip-hop artist 21 Savage doing the mannequin before taking flight on a private jet the day after.
The craze is apparently beginning to spread like wildfire now, as celebrities and sports teams — both college and professional — have used locker room celebrations and team travels to take part in the challenge. Even the girls of Destiny’s Child were so inspired that they reunited to do their own. See more of the #MannequinChallenge below.
#MannequinChallenge @espn @ESPNCFB @CoachJim4UM #GoBlue pic.twitter.com/lCbP0xgBX6
— Chris Evans (@Kidnplay_abc123) November 4, 2016
Love those Black Beatles #MannequinChallenge pic.twitter.com/aAu9umHKI7
— Paul McCartney (@PaulMcCartney) November 10, 2016