Features Reporter
Photo by: Millie Schriebman
Fully clad in outrageous costumes or barely even dressed at all, students came together to put CMU on the Harlem Shake grid. Energy in Brownson Arena was intense as people flooded the stands and floor, waiting for the beat to drop.
A banana was gyrating, a pig was pumping up the crowd and midriff was showing along with the occasional spotting of cheeks, and not the kind that’s on a person’s face. Laughter rang throughout the gym as more and more interesting costumes were brought into the mix. Body paint was being smeared while muscles were out on shirtless display. All of these components created an atmosphere of summer-time freedom and Maverick pride. The excitement throughout the masses elevated with each practice run, and a CMU chant occasionally rocked the bleachers.
Demonstrating school spirit was the concept of the event, but it turned out to be more than that. Coming together as a student body ended up being an enjoyable time for many students.
Austin Pridham showed up to the event in a rocking button-up T-shirt, mustard colored pants and sunglasses.
“I had a blast,” Pridham said. “The turnout was great, and I was happy to see all of the people there to represent CMU.”
The event was organized by Whitney Rowe, Patrick Wall and Jordan Price via Facebook and caught a lot of hype. Enough hype to attract news stations and journalists from around the valley. The event turned out successful, with CMU-TV behind a few different cameras to catch all the angles.
“The only thing that would have made it better is if we turned it into an epic dance party afterwards,” Pridham said.
The viral Harlem Shake concept stems from a track that Baauer produced. A few months after the song dropped, it hit the Internet in a big way. There are numerous video remakes of the Harlem Shake that can be found on YouTube.
Contrasting the popularity of the Harlem Shake are those who believe it’s just a silly pop-culture phase that will soon evaporate. Marc Palacios decided against participating in the event.
“I’d just rather be doing something else on a Monday night,” Palacios said. “Count me in on a dance party, but to me, the Harlem Shake is weak.”
Regardless of the differentiating opinions on the matter, those who came out to the event thought it to be a good one.
“I know everyone is saying the Harlem Shake fad is stupid,” Chelsea McComas mentioned. “But at least it was something our school participated in.”
Running around dressed up as a bottle of ketchup with a big smile on his face, Alex Zemezonak showed up ready for the action.
“It was a very interesting time,” he said.
University Vice President John Marshall seemed to think so too, at least enough to show up with a smile on his face to watch the event go down. Standing off to the side with a Pepsi in his hand, he was laughing and chatting with students and staff throughout the entire event.
Regardless of if you’re pro-Harlem Shake or if you haven’t even seen it before, one thing remains true: ask a bunch of college students to dress wacky and dance together, and the turnout will be huge. The CMU Harlem Shake proves that the college students of the valley know how to get down and thoroughly enjoy it.
Recent Comments