Origins of the 'Slickback' dance move that's taking over TikTok and Instagram feeds

By now, most of you would have seen that TikTok dance video of the South Korean student, seemingly defying the laws of physics by gliding and floating off the ground.

If you haven't see it, be prepared to spend the rest of the day analysing every frame of this visual masterpiece.

The star of the video is Lee Hyo-cheol, a student from the city of Daegu in South Korea. Since it was uploaded on Oct 15, Lee's video has received over 200 million views – with most users simply questioning "How?" 

Through a series of shuffles and footwork, Lee moves in a circle while making it seem like the ground is repelling him – giving the illusion that he's floating.

Lee's dance move is poised to be the next big dance challenge – Slickback move dance videos have racked up 1.8 billion views on TikTok. 

As a few TikTok users have pointed out, though, Lee's "levitating dance" is a variation of the Jubi Slide – a popular dance move created by TikTok user Jubi2fye in 2022. The Jubi Slide has also been called Slickback as the song A Pimp Named Slickback is usually played in videos of the dance.

However, there is a key difference between the two moves. The original move by Jubi2fye is like a "sideways moonwalk" where the feet are in a tiptoe position. Lee's move, on the other hand, requires one's foot to hover longer before proceeding to the next step.

As one user puts it, Jubi2fye's move is "sliding like you're marching" and Lee's move is "sliding like you're roller-skating".

In an interview with YouTube channel Recent Olympics, Lee spoke about the differences of his move: "People said if you jump on your heels, it looks as if you’re slightly floating. Originally, you’re supposed to drag your feet while doing the dance but for me, my feet look like they’re floating."

If you're looking to jump in on this trend, check out this tutorial by a creator (who's doing it in football cleats, no less).

That being said, don't be disheartened if you can't get the moves right. Even seasoned K-pop idols like the members of Le Sserafim have attempted the challenge and failed hilariously.