Viral African dance videos are busting stereotypes in China – and making money for some

Connected to wireless earphones, Yoofi Greene from Ghana begins his dance steps down a busy sidewalk in Guangzhou, China.

People, bicycles and cars zoom past.

Pedestrians watch with a mix of amusement and annoyance as he glides by them and moves to occupy the middle of the street.

Yoofi draws closer to the long lane of traffic that his dancing has managed to interrupt.

He pauses.

I steady my phone to track his choreography.

He looks directly at the camera.

A big smile extends across his face as he proceeds to twerk at an impatient taxi.

Back on the sidewalk, I airdrop him the footage to edit and before you can say “viral dance” he’s uploaded it to social media and his followers – 215,000 at the time of writing.

Yoofi is one of many Africans living in China who are participants in a broader movement to bring emerging lifestyle trends from the continent to new audiences.

Like most dancers, he connects with these new audiences on social media.

Dancers rely on social media to create and share dances from different parts of the world.

The more followers, likes and reposts they get, the more recognition, status and money they can gain.

Going viral also helps dancers connect with and learn from others, while giving them opportunities to travel and migrate.