Michael Jackson dropped jaws with his iconic Moonwalk, but the intrepid dancers on TikTok all over the world are pulling off a move so unbelievably smooth that many are question whether it’s even really possible — the “Jubi Slide.”
Also known as the Slickback, the viral dance trend has to to seen to be believed, and plenty still don’t believe it’s actually possible. Sorry, skeptics, but this isn’t a clever editing trick; anyone can perform the Jubi Slide, and watch jaws drop to the floor when they show it off.
What is the Jubi Slide?
The Jubi Slide is a dance move created by YouTuber, TikToker, and now dance legend Jubi2fye back in 2022. One of the original videos of him performing the dance garnered hundreds of thousands of likes, and it’s easy to see why. The dance move, which is reminiscent of a moonwalk, only sideways, makes the dancer look like they’re sliding across ice, nearly floating, while performed on any surface.
In 2022, people performed the dance move as part of a viral TikTok trend called the Aye Aye Slide. Now in 2023, users like kiingjojo.inc are performing the “A Pimp Named Slickback” challenge, demonstrating that this dance move is not only real and possible, but can even be performed in football cleats.
How do you perform the Jubi Slide?
The creator of the dance himself Jubifye performed a tutorial on how to do the dance for Good Day Sacremento back when it was originally going viral in 2022. If you’re strapped for time, kiingjojo.inc has a more recent tutorial with the aim of getting folks gliding around themselves in under two minutes, which can be viewed above. Are none of those good enough? Check out the countless other tutorials various dancers are putting on TikTok.
Why is it also called the Slickback?
The Jubi Slide is also known as the Slickback due to the music use in the most viral videos performing the move. “A Pimp Named Slickback” comes from artist LAKIM’s album Classics II, and has music playing behind remixed lines from the titular character from The Boondocks.
A Pimp Named Slickback first appeared in the episode “Guess Hoe’s Coming to Dinner,” and became an iconic part of The Boondocks, especially because Slickback demands everyone calls him by his full name. With the show’s deep roots in discussing hip hop music and culture, the fact that the lines being used to support this new dance trend are voiced by the legendary Katt Williams is poetic.
So is the Jubi Slide real?
Yes, it is undeniably a real dance. The fact that so many people have performed the move since its invention in 2022 — and that anyone can learn it, too — is proof of that fact. There isn’t some secret camera trick, video editing, green screens, none of that. It’s just further proof that the human body is capable of incredible things that wow us so thoroughly that our eyes can barely handle what they are taking in.
Follow the tutorials, get good and who knows, maybe even you can become as popular as Lewis the jack-o’-lantern!
