Harlem Shake challenges Gangnam Style on online dance floors

LONDON (REUTERS) - Hot on the heels of South Korean rapper Psy's Gangnam Style, a new dance craze is sweeping offices, universities, and even a museum as it goes viral - the Harlem Shake.

The Harlem Shake began as a dance in the 1980s but the latest version featured on a flood of online videos is an electronic dance track by 23-year-old Brooklyn DJ Baauer who released the single last year with the record label Mad Decent.

The video starts with one person, often masked, dancing while everyone else in the room pays no attention but when the chorus kicks in they all join in, usually wearing crazy costumes or with props like blow-up giraffes or bicycles.

YouTube said the craze appeared to have started with a posting by a vlogger and spread quickly, with more than 12,000 Harlem Shake videos posted from the start of the month to mid-week watched up to 44 million times.