We're less than one week into 2019, and you probably need a break already. There's been the announcement that Elizabeth Warren will run for president, a partial government shutdown, a lot of all-caps presidential tweets, and a scandal over an unearthed video of brand-new congresswoman Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez dancing with her friends in high school. To me, this video says that she's cool and smart and fun, but some conservatives were intimidated because they'll never be able to match her dance prowess. Or something.
The video shows AOC dancing happily on what looks like a rooftop, jiving with friends, and expertly wearing a pair of heels on a grate (that she managed that as a teen says a lot; I can't as a fully-fledged adult). This, apparently, was scandalous. "Congratulations New York!" wrote the person who shared the original video on Twitter, apparently snidely, to which I say, as a New Yorker...thank you?
Anyway, because the internet always comes through, a new account called "AOC Dances to Every Song" popped up on Twitter, which is...exactly what it sounds like. From Bowie to Prince to Darude to the Super Mario theme, AOC's now-legendary dance has been set to all sorts of music. The magical thing is that each new clip elicits a new kind of feeling—and now, after listening to Toto's "Africa" dubbed over it, I'm feeling all kinds of spiritual.
Here are some of the best, picked just for you by someone who did the hard work of watching every single one (not for that reason, but let's say that it was).
Toto, "Africa"
Lou Bega, "Mambo No. 5"
Britney Spears, "Toxic"
Wham!, "Wake Me Up Before You Go Go"
Smash Mouth, "All Star"
Psy, "Gangnam Style"
Darude, "Sandstorm"
If this is how you, too, want to spend your weekend (and how could it not be?), you can watch all the videos here. Now, if you'll excuse me, I'm off to dance to "Africa" and pretend I have half the grace of AOC doing it.
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