If you have been following my blog for sometime (or read the “about me“) then you know that I am a Lindy Hopper.
Lindy hop is the granddaddy of all swing dances, a dance originated by the Black community that is both uniquely American… and now spans the globe.
Lindy hop takes its name from the Charles Lindbergh’s flight to Paris in 1927.
If Tango is sultry, and Ballroom dancing is aloof, lindy hop is joyful and playful. Lindy has a grounded, flowing style that closely reflects its music — from the late 20s hot jazz to the early 40s big bands.
Harlem, New York, and in particular the Savoy Ballroom (“The Home of Happy Feet”) is where the dance was developed and innovated from the 1920s onward.
Based on earlier dances such as the Charleston, the Black Bottom and the Breakaway, the dance evolved and spread over the decades along with the new swing music.
And while the dance continues to evolve today, contemporary lindy hoppers still strive for that same spirit, inventiveness, and musicality of the pioneers of lindy hop like Norma Miller, Dean Collins, Frankie Manning and many more.
Learn more at Yehoodi
I have been dancing since 2008 and I love it a lot and even met my now husband on the dance floor (not my husband pictured below HA!). It’s been hard with the pandemic to not swing dance like I used to but life is slowly coming back so I will be hitting the floor very soon I’m sure.
For today’s post I wanted to showcase Lindy Hop out of it’s normal world (dances, competitions and classes) and showcase music videos & commercials that have used Lindy Hop as part of the esthetic or story.
Let’s see what I have found!
Lindy Hop in Commercials & Music Videos
First up, can it get any more cooler then seeing Lindy Hop in a ADELE VIDEO? Yes THEE Adele!
Check out Chandrae Roettig Gomez and Stephen Sayer dancing in Adele’s new music video “Oh My God.” They come in around the 1:15 mark doing some impressive swing outs and airsteps (Chandrae has long curly hair).
Great song and lots of super other styles of dance as well.
(Video link HERE)
My next selection is a HUGE favourite of mine (it gives me goosebumps every time I watch it) because it was so well done. Lindy Hop in a Guinness Commercial-“John Hammond, Intolerant Champion”
About the commercial:
- Guinness’ advertisement tells story of jazz musician John Hammond who discovered Black artists Billie Holiday and Aretha.
- In 1930s New York Black and white musicians rarely played together, with many music venues banning Black people.
- Advert tells story of jazz musician John Hammond who was born before the civil rights movement in America.
- Although he was white, Hammond had burning passion for music of Black origin, including jazz, blues and gospel.
- So he toured the bars and clubs of Harlem, seeking original, undiscovered talent to feature on his radio show (Source).
- Directed by Jake Nava, c/o Cherry Films. Set in Harlem in the 1930s, this short film was shot in London in 2015 and features all British dancers.
(Video link HERE).
The below video is a longer more in depth version of what was seen on TV in the UK (Video Link HERE). I highly recommend checking this video out as well.
Famous Soul / Jazz artist Jon Batiste recently joined forces with a crew of Lindy Hoppers for his new Video, For “I Need You” in 2021. This video will MAKE YOU WANT TO DANCE!
About the video:
“It’s got to be an experience. It can’t be something that’s like a museum piece.”
As bandleader on The Late Show with Stephen Colbert, as co-artistic director of the National Jazz Museum in Harlem, and as a solo artist with a freewheeling relationship to genre. The exuberant video for his new single, “I Need You,” takes his proposition literally: set in an art gallery, it imagines what would happen if some archival photographs of Lindy Hoppers in Harlem suddenly came to life (Source).
(Video Link HERE).
1998…The Gap Commercial that fueled a Neo-Swing Craze (aka the Swing Revival)! (Including for me, but I was obsessed with swing since 1993 when Swing Kids came out).
About the commercial (from Yehoodi):
By 1998 there was already a significant “neo-swing” movement happening throughout the United States and elsewhere. Bands like Royal Crown Review, George Gee’s Make Believe Ballroom Orchestra and Lavay Smith and her Red Hot Skillet Lickers had been performing for nearly 10 years to large audiences around the country. The Derby nightclub in LA had been offering swing music and dancing every night a week since 1993. Movies like “Swing Kids” in 1993 and “The Mask” in 1994 and “Swingers” in 1996 prominently featured swing dancing in the storylines.
Still, for many swing dancers of that era, what we called simply “the Gap Ad” was a pivotal moment for us.
The Gap clothing commercial was notable for a number of reasons. It was one of the first uses in a commercial of the “bullet-time” filming technique, made famous by the “Matrix” movies. It combined a “classic” jump blues song (“Jump and Jive” by Louis Prima) with a young, attractive, energetic group of dancers in modern casual clothing. It featured lots of flashy aerials.
In short, it was the perfect fuel to spread even faster an already vibrant dance movement.
(Video Link HERE).
A Catalan 2017 commercial for sparkling water. “Did you know that the flavors of Vichy Catalan, with 0% sugar, will give you all the “Swing” you need? Try them and you won’t be able to stop dancing…”
(Video link HERE).
A German delivery service commercial. I would of loved to have been in the marketing meeting for this one.
“Here is my thought…2 people meet on the street and start swing dancing, one is the delivery guy. Perfect! Book the dancers!” HA! It’s a cute commercial and worth the watch.
(Video link HERE).
This next one is not a commercial or a video but a TV show but as a fan of this show I wanted to share it….so….please don’t judge me but I’m a huge Bachelor / Bachelorette fan. It’s my guilty pleasure TV (sorry not sorry. HA!).
Now back in 2016 one of the dates the Bachelorette JoJo Fletcher got to do, was a Lindy Hop date (they learned some steps & then attended an outdoor dance filled with skilled Lindy Hoppers and Jonathan Stout and his Campus Five playing for them.
Here is a clip of the fun (video link HERE).
“What is the link between the land of cognac, jazz, blues, and hip-hop?” asks Grammy-award winning singer Usher at the beginning of this extended ad / music video for cognac maker Rémy Martin.
The video features legendary dancer (in Lindy Hop & so many other styles) Chester Whitmore. Plus you will see some fantastic tap dancing and a bit of Lindy Hop / Rhythm & Blues dancing in the early part of the commercial (before 4 mins).
Here is a screen shot from Yehoodi of Chester in the video, but he appears in various times throught the 6 min commercial. Check it out below, it is really fun!
(Video Link HERE).
I really hope you enjoyed watching these music videos and commercials. I know they made me want to jump up and dance!
Please share in the comments section what your favourite was.
FURTHER READING: Collection of Vintage Blog Posts on Swing Dance & The Big Band Era
Thanks for stopping by!
Liz
