Dabbing is the latest dance craze sweeping the Internet. And like its predecessor, the Nae Nae, it was dragged from the hip-hop community into the traffic-baiting morning news circuit, shifting from lit trend to tired fad.
Of course, this should come as no surprise. As a society, we don’t deserve to have fun things—we’ve lost all sense of propriety. Thus, here is your comprehensive explanation of the birth and death of dabbing.
First, it’s important to state that dabbing is also the term for smoking butane hash oil and extracting 90 percent of the THC. In other words, it gets you dumb high. No coincidence that this nonsensical dance that resembles proper seizing etiquette relates to being blazed out of one’s mind.
However, the dab dance originated in Atlanta, Georgia. There’s a great deal of controversy surrounding the pioneers of the dabbing dance, with the majority of credit going to the members of Quality Control label (including Migos, OG Maco, and Peewee Longway). Migos has gotten the bulk of credit for the trend since releasing the song "Bitch Dab" on Sept. 3, 2015.
Yet even fellow QC member OG Maco cited Skippa da Flippa as the dab originator in a since deleted tweet:In Skippa Da Flippa’s “How Fast,” you’ll see that he starts dabbing around 1:40.You’ll notice that “How Fast” was released in July 2014 (a year before Migos’s single). So who is the true creator of the dab? We’ll leave that up to Black Twitter folklore. What we can be sure of is that soon after the dance appeared in Atlanta, the dab was spreading like a viral disease.For your viewing pleasure, here is a tutorial on proper dab technique by QC member Rich the Kid.
Armed with this knowledge, please enjoy the best and worst dabs the Internet has to offer.Here you can watch rap god Kendrick Lamar dabbing his way through a random wedding in Columbus, Ohio. Gracing the midwestern couple with his presence, he was initially harassed for his behavior before the family realized that the disruptive black guy was none other than national sensation Kendrick Lamar.
In perhaps the most legendary sports dab, Carolina Panther quarterback Cam Newton dabbed his way around the end zone, irking the entire Tennessee Titan roster (and at least one mom). Please appreciate how he dabs away from Titans and referee in a doubly shady celebration.After this miniature scuffle, it wasn’t long before the media ran with the viral dance. Here some elderly sportscasters awkwardly jerk around while attempting to dab, nearly falling out of their chairs.
And here is legendary announcer Cris Carter explaining “bapping,” which is like dabbing, but for older, sadder adults who have been eavesdropping on their children’s conversations.And really it was downhill from there, with these “behind-the-times” newscasters partaking in “the dab,” as they call it.Fair to say they have killed the dab. Something the most self-respecting adults would be ashamed of, but which they wore as a badge of honor.Whether good, bad, or downright ugly, the latest dance craze sweeping the Internet is always just another silly trend dragged into the mainstream with barely any juice left. It’s ridiculous, it’s dumb, and it’s viral.And if, at any moment, you start to take dabbing too seriously, remember that Charlamagne tha God puts it all into the best perspective:
Photo via HotNewHipHop/YouTube