FOTI #23: Do The Harlem Shake
February 21, 2013 Leave a comment
Fortnight on the Internets is ready to smash, Smash, SAH-MASSHHH!
On this episode, we break down the red-hot Harlem Shake video meme, debate whether the Women of LA viral video song is in slightly poor taste or the worst thing ever, and celebrate the heroism of Kai the Hatchet Wielding Hitchhiker. The amazing Jeni Sue joins us for a lively discush. With music from the mysterious Tashaki Miyaki…
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The Congressman and the Bikini Model
In the open, I describe how a series of passionate tweets from Tennessee Democrat Steve Cohen to a little-known hot blonde bikini model from Texas during the State of the Union address raised many an eyebrow around the Internets!
Of course, everyone immediately assumed that this was yet another horny politician conducting a tawdry affair with a young ingenue. But the truth was otherwise!
Turns out that the young woman to whom Cohen tweeted “Happy Valentine’s beautiful girl! ILU” was actually his daughter, whose existence he’s only known about for the past few years!
Since he realized the truth through a time-honored activity of googling ex-girlfriends (I’m kicking myself now for not mentioning this part on the show!), they’ve grown quite close. Here’s a touching pic of dad and daughter at the White House Christmas Party.
Report Card
Hope you guys enjoyed our new Report Card theme song! 100 bonus Internets and a LOTF crown to anyone who figures out all the source material used.
#1: Harlem Shake Video Meme
We begin by breaking down this explosive new meme that’s sweeping the entire world!
It began, in a way, with this clip from blogger Filthy Frank of his posse dancing to an EDM track (not, it should be noted, doing the actual Harlem Shake dance). Then heroes like these guys innovated the trend, introducing a hilarious jump cut into chaos that has characterized the meme ever since. (Perhaps indirectly inspired by these Norwegian masterminds — VERY NSFW link — ??) Virality ensued.
In addition to the amazing one above from the University of Georgia Swim and Dive Team, here are a few of our faves:
Today brings news that, with Billboard’s rework of their Top 100 charts to include YouTube views, the dance track “Harlem Shake” by Baauer just hit #1 in all the land.
#2: Pretty Girls, Ugly Faces
We learned of this Reddit meme through pleated-jeans.com, who had a great writeup and collection of the best. The concept is simple but delightful nonetheless!
Perhaps the best example of this trend is the GIF editions, which truly showcase how angles and facial expressions can turn a visage from comely to comedy:
Perhaps indirectly related — the amazing memeage that broke out when Buzzfeed did a post about the photos Beyonce’s publicist didn’t want the Internet to see…
So the next time someone posts a terrible picture of you to FB, remember — even the hottest people in the world look super ugly sometimes!
#3: Kai the Hatchet-Wielding Hitchhiker
Words can’t really describe this Internet gem, it just has to be seen. Witness the gripping narrative as Kai details his heroic deeds, stopping a madman mid-crime spree:
Alison highly recommends this interview with Kai conducted by Jimmy Kimmel:
For more Kai, check out the Gregory Bros remix of his viral video, an interview about his tormented life on the road, and a song written by Kai himself.
Our Musical Guest
This episode, we have awesome music from the Los Angeles dream-pop/noise-rock ensemble Tashaki Miyaki.
This band is versatile enough to pull off Everly Brothers covers, evoke Jesus & Mary Chain comparisons, and surprise bloggers and music writers at the USA’s biggest music festivals — all while maintaining a delightful air of mystery.
Here’s a great video of them performing and chatting with VICE as part of the Newtown Sessions series:
They are amazing. For more Tashaki, check ‘em out on Bandcamp, Facebook and Twitter.
Internet Challenge Surprise!
We’re back to two surprises this episode, mostly because I couldn’t control myself and kept sending stuff to Alison even though it wasn’t my turn.
Alpine: @Florida_Man
No US state can begin to approach Florida for sheer, outrageous cray, and a new Twitter feed celebrates that reputation with a collection of bizarre news headlines.
Florida Man Accused Of Waiving 'Klingon' Sword In Fort Lauderdale Intersection | bit.ly/X80LF6—
Florida Man (@_FloridaMan) February 14, 2013
Florida Man Fights Cops Trying To Leave The Scene Of An Accident, Shits Himself | bit.ly/WRKkN1—
Florida Man (@_FloridaMan) February 14, 2013
Drunk Florida Man In Golf Cart Shoots Hole Through City's Water Tower, Says He Was Looking For His Dog | bit.ly/Vy5JYD—
Florida Man (@_FloridaMan) February 16, 2013
Florida Man Hits Boyfriend With Plate For Listening To Too Much Alanis Morissette | queerty.com/florida-man-hi…—
Florida Man (@_FloridaMan) February 15, 2013
As Alison points out, sometimes the stories behind these headlines are even more insane than the headlines themselves!
Alison: Unhappy Hipsters
An amazing photo blog whose creators were profiled by the NY Times.
This site takes pretentious photos from the architecture magazine Dwell and composes short, poetic, amusing stories to accompany them, as follows:
If you love Unhappy Hipsters — buy their book!
“The Women of LA”, Debated!
Well, the entire internet has been talking about DJ Lubel’s new video, which portrays the Women of LA as narcissistic, vain, gorgeous creatures who completely refuse to have sex with him.
With Jeni Sue joining us, we go deep on this video — what’s good about it and what’s terrible. We also take a look at the backlash against it, where it was spot on and where it went too far. Plus, a sidebar about the ongoing, unfair backlash against Lena Dunham and her “lumpy naked body” on HBO’s Girls. Special thanks to Liker Nate for sending in his incisive comments.
For more, check out this great take from comedian/actress Erin Gibson. Here’s the Nice Guys of OK Cupid collection that was referenced. (And I have to say that I find Lubel and his co-creator Jamie Abrams’ tongue-in-cheek response to the backlash kinda funny.)
Shoutout to the Likers
Our Liker of the Fortnight is Liker Erin C, who responded to Alison’s encouragement to seek employment with Buzzfeed with this incredibly inspirational blog post / job application.Way to go Liker Erin C!
Other Likers whose pizzazz we respect:
- Liker Jeff H, who tore the cover off Facebook’s creepy scheme to get you to buy Valentine’s Day presents for hotties.
- Liker Zach, who brought us the tale of this Facebook-profile-pic replicating genius.
- Liker Evan from the LBC, who shared his unique tale of utilizing Hot Cheetos.
- and Liker Isabel from Brooklyn, who gave us a nice message of encouragement.
LIKERS!! Thank you for all your support. We truly appreciate it.
Thanks for listening, we’ll be back in two weeks.
Thanks to Tashaki Miyaki for musical assistance.
Theme song by Snowplows: Check out their songs on Bandcamp!
Cover art by Vicious Rumors.
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