(bolding mine)
+1
As a kinda old-ish dude, I thought I knew what twerking was, but now I know for sure.
Where is Sir Mix-a-Lot when you really need him…? 
Good link, but I think it’s important to also link to the video that popularized it all… Because it’s still f’n awesome!
“Comments are disabled for this video.” This may be the first time I’ve ever been mildly disappointed to see that.
I don’t know if I’ve ever seen a prehensile ass before.
That said, I’m pretty sure Robert Crumb drew this scene back in the late sixties.
First you twerked for your caught, now you’re posting in this thread…
… I’m on to you, Cat Whisperer.
In the middle of a Walmart. This gal’s got class. I was amused to hear her singing “Bacon Pancakes”.
2009 is the reason behind the current surge in the term’s popularity.
The Twerk Team put out a series of videos featuring them sexily dancing to popular hits and they all went viral. They were… very skilled and most people didn’t know they were only 17 at the time, so the videos gained them millions of admirers and eventually a ton of imitators.
It’s the name of the Twerk Team and the ubiquity of the copycat videos that kinda spread the idea of ‘twerking’ to the mainstream. It became a meme.
Local garden center sells a remote-activated water sprinkler.
It’s a hundred bucks, but it sure would keep pest animals off the lawn.
Huh. I hadn’t known there was a “Twerk Team”.
Did Cyrus also copy her current hair style from that video?
Nah, most likely Rihanna.
I ADMIT NOTHING!
Oh, yeah!
Truly beautiful twerking requires a fair amount of junk in the trunk. I mean, azzless chicks like Miley can do it, but it doesn’t usually have the same impact.
Was “the humpty dance” in your day?
For some of us “our day” included the rise of Slam Dancing.
I’d rather have the twerking.
and that shit hurt. With twerking you just get sore quads and glutes, not bruises.
*cat
What’s now called twerking is reminiscent of dancing in Jamaican dancehalls. Chaka Demus and Pliers’ “Murder She Wrote” features a few proto-twerkers, and that came out in '94.
Not sure exactly what Miley was trying to do, but it fell far short of the work observed here.
The recent twerk craze has been confusing to me too but only because I remember this being a fairly well known dance for at least 15-20 years. Although, it was definitely something that was more prevalent in music videos from the BET uncut era. Still, I find it strange to describe something that I grew up with as a current trend that my HS students are into.
When I checked to make sure I wasn’t getting old and forgetful, I confirmed that Ying Yang Twins came out with “Whistle while you twurk” when Miley was only 8 years old.
To be honest, I am still trying to figure out how the VMAs are still on.
I can’t find that dagnabbit “likey” button on this here new-fangled thing!
Explaining Twerking to Your Parents (or the fogies on the SDMB)