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What's The 'Interpretive Dance Trend'? TikTokers Making Their Boyfriend's Dance To Spend The Night Explained

The "Interpretive Dance" trend from TikTok involving boyfriends and husbands doing an interpretive dance in order to spend the night or earn other things.
The "Interpretive Dance" trend from TikTok involving boyfriends and husbands doing an interpretive dance in order to spend the night or earn other things.

1613 views
Published 2 months ago

Published 2 months ago

Women on TikTok have discovered that if they make their roommate's boyfriend perform an interpretive dance to spend the night, he'll actually do it.

This new TikTok trend is seemingly sweeping couples everywhere. All you have to do to participate is play a bongo drum song with an interesting rhythm and let the man go to work. Let him catch a vibe and hopefully (or maybe unfortunately), he passes the test.

So, where did the "Interpretive Dance TikTok trend" come from? Who posted the original video and why's this trend going viral? Let's explain.

Who Started The Interpretive Dance Trend?

The trend was originally started by TikToker @hummuslover33 at the beginning of the month. She posted a video in which she made her roommate's boyfriend do an interpretive dance in order to spend the night — and he actually did it.

The video racked up more than 25 million views in roughly a week. As of right now, there's no update on whether or not he passed the test, but @hummuslover33 did confirm that he gets fed twice a day in a follow-up video.

@hummuslover33

♬ original sound – Shelbydances!!

How Is The Interpretive Dance Trend Evolving?

TikTokers have started to riff on the original video's concept as it's continued to evolve. Instead of boyfriends, husbands, brothers and even girlfriends have since joined the dance troupe.

The succession of videos has included increasingly elaborate text captions. For example, many are about a boyfriend dancing (but then in parentheses, the girlfriend will admit that he already lives there or has no other choice because he's visiting from out of town).

Other late iterations of the trend involve the man dancing to earn other prizes. For instance, if a man wants to go golfing or play Xbox, he must prove his creative worth in an interpretive solo.

@maryrosec

peep that jazz split

♬ original sound – Shelbydances!!

@poppyhollins

A dog walker stopped outside our window 💀😂😂

♬ original sound – Shelbydances!!

What's The Interpretive Dance Trend Song?

Each of these videos uses a bongo song that's called "Laterals" by Fat Code Studios. It's a percussion song that's commonly used in modern dance classes. If you've ever studied interpretive dance, chances are you've heard it and danced to it already.

Why Is Making Boyfriends Do Interpretive Dances A Viral Trend?

Over the past year, there have been numerous TikTok trends that involve testing men. Probably the most notable example is asking your boyfriend, "How often do you think about the Roman Empire?" The question, which went viral last year, shocked many women who discovered that men think about the ancient empire often.

How is that trend similar to the Interpretive Dance trend though? Well, both challenge men and light-heartedly embarrass them — as many find it both humorous and fun to embarrass them sometimes. Putting a guy on the spot and assuming a casual and creative position of power over them is prime for virality.

@ashley.whitelock

Lol i am blown away by this trend.

♬ original sound – Ashley | Working Mama | Travel


For the full history of Making My Boyfriend Do an Interpretive Dance, be sure to check out Know Your Meme's entry for even more information.

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