For the past month, Harlem Shake videos have flooded the Internet as the meme ran rampant on YouTube. By February 13, just 11 days after the 'original' was posted, approximately 12,000 Harlem Shake videos had been posted, accumulating more than 44 million views.
Most Harlem Shake videos, assuming everyone now knows what they entail, follow the same formula and are good for a few hearty laughs. But not all of them. Some Harlem Shake videos epically fail, which is surprising since the whole format is laid out in front of you. All you have to do is fill in the blanks. It's not that difficult.
Here's list of some of the worst Harlem Shake videos.
Many claimed that the Harlem Shake meme had been killed, brutally, after this version was released. Perhaps it's a generation gap, or perhaps it was the level of commercialization that this version represented, but either way it left a sour taste in young viewers' mouths.
This is just terrible. Not only does the video lack the mass of rabid lunatics breaking down on camera, the location looks like a sad, terribly decorated dorm room reminiscent of a prison cell. In addition, this guy sports the worst dance moves the meme has ever seen. And who does his friend think he is saying the whole Harlem Shake thing is stupid...? Right...?
Several students dressed in catholic school uniforms doing the Harlem Shake outside their classrooms. There's no way this could be good. There are only four basic components to the Harlem Shake meme: the song, the intro dance, the climax dance, and the wardrobe. Way to botch three out of four, and please try to refrain from giggling throughout the entire video.
This is just a waste of time and Internet space. Recently, some videos have included inanimate objects, like the washing machine Harlem Shake that went viral and now has over 2 million views. But this is just a poor, lazy attempt. It's not even worth including in the 'Harlem Shake' category.
Once again, it's not that hard to make a Harlem Shake video. This attempt is even lamer than the car keys version. At least play the song in the background. These kids had their friend sing his own, off-tempo version. And the foosball table breakdown? Pathetic.
So please, if you're going to take the time to make a Harlem Shake video, please do it right. There are already tens of thousands of them out there. The last thing we need is to waste another 30 seconds of our lives watching failed, lackluster videos.