NEED TO KNOW
TikTok user Stephon Vann is the creator behind the viral Law & Order TikTok dance
The dance has spread widely, with NBC and the stars of the show noticing and sharing their own take
Vann tells PEOPLE about the dance’s origin and what its viral journey has meant to him
Everyone is learning the viral Law & Order TikTok dance!
Stephon Vann, on TikTok @jonas_sjv, tells PEOPLE he came up with the choreography that’s now gone viral with over 19 million views “just on a whim.”
The lifelong dancer was waiting for the bus on his way to a movie. With time to burn, he tried to think of an unexpected song he could dance to on TikTok.
“This is really insane that people have taken a liking to something that I did at a bus stop. I wanted to do something that nobody would really expect me to do,” he shares. “The Law & Order: SVU theme song came to mind off the strength of being random. I’ve always liked that theme song. Everybody knows it, but nobody has really danced to it.”
His bus stop take on the dance got around 100 likes on TikTok, giving Vann an inkling that the dance was worth repeating.
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“I thought it was pretty funny,” he admits. “When I got home from work a few days later, I decided to do the dance again, not thinking it would do anything else. That one got even more views, those numbers got bigger.”
Ten days after his original video, Vann was in Cleveland, meeting with a group of friends who dance, and decided to try it again.
“I asked them, because people don’t always like doing TikToks. They might get embarrassed doing it for the camera, but I thought the synchronicity and flash mob look would be pretty cool. When we did it, we only did two takes. The second is the one that has been spreading around.”
The group video was clearly going viral by the next day, which was surprising to the choreographer and his friends. He knew it was taking on a life of his own when he learned it was popping up on other platforms.
“People are telling me it’s on Twitter. Then it was Instagram. Then, once NBC did the video, it blew up so much more from there.”
On Friday, Aug. 1, NBC and SVU social media pages shared a hilarious video of Mariska Hargitay and Kelli Giddish’s take on the dance. Not only did they share the video, but they also credited Vann for his original idea.
“They invited me to a collaboration and I just jumped to the moon. I’m like, ‘Ain’t no way the people from Law & Order are doing this dance!'” he laughs.
“It looked like they had a lot of fun doing it. I hope they both enjoyed it. I’m hoping to do it with them one day, if that’s feasible. Who knows what the future holds? But it was cool seeing them do it, and I loved everything about it. I never had anything like that happen before.”
It was also a shock to the friends who joined Vann for the video, as he and they heard from family and friends catching wind. “When things go viral, they’re very catered to the algorithm. You see what you want to see. So for people like my grandma to send me the video, knowing she’s nowhere near a social media site, that’s how I knew, ‘Oh, this is real. This isn’t just a normal video.’ We all sit in amazement and shock. We didn’t think it would be a movement the way it is, in a way.”
He continued, “It was just off the top of my head, freestyle. I laughed at it, but I just kept repeating the dance because it was simple. I’ve been dancing my entire life and choreographed a couple of pieces, been in shows, and things of that nature. It was just fun.”
Since going viral, Vann has gotten requests for dances to other popular theme songs, from The OC to Grey’s Anatomy. As a creative and Black creator online, Vann also sees it as a “blessing” that he’s gotten the credit and love for this trend that he has.
“We create so much of what happens in the culture because we are the culture. And it’s just on a whim, not really intentional or anything. The fact that we are living in a day and age where people want to give others credit and want to show love makes me happy.”
Vann says he appreciates it “not just as a Black creator, but a creator in general. This is my dance, but I’m also able to share it with the world. However, just tag me right under there. People can totally do the dance, and I feel so honored to see tons of videos of the dance on TikTok. I’m glad I have an army, in a way, that makes sure I’m tagged any time they see anyone post the dance.”
“I feel blessed and grateful that I can just show the world me. This is just a little funny dance that I made up, and people are loving the fact that it’s random and kind of unique in a way. But I’ll take the love, and hopefully I can keep dancing and show people this side of my personality.”
Read the original article on People
