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The Harlem Shake Invades the Upper West Side

Who does it better: Columbia or Yeshiva University?

by
Adam Chandler
February 12, 2013
Indiana University Lacrosse Team's 'Harlem Shake'(LacrossePlayground)
Indiana University Lacrosse Team's 'Harlem Shake'(LacrossePlayground)

I’m being ambushed on Twitter by fans of a new-ish internet meme called the “Harlem Shake.”

I can’t explain it, I can’t really describe it, it involves some dancing, and lasts for approximately 30 seconds. Presumably it’s filling a Gangnam-sized hole in peoples’ lives all across the world.

The two videos I’ve been asked to pit against each other are versions of the meme presented by students at Columbia University and Yeshiva University respectively.

Here’s Columbia University’s attempt:

And here is the Yeshiva University edition:

I’m too befuddled to pick a winner, each is ground-breaking in its own way: one for the use of cold weather, the other for the smashing of religious conventions, so I’m leaving it for the readers to pick the winner.

Adam Chandler was previously a staff writer at Tablet. His work has appeared in the New York Times, the Wall Street Journal, the Atlantic, Slate, Esquire, New York, and elsewhere. He tweets @allmychandler.