Instead of blogging about a particular dancer this week, I’m going to blog about a dance move that you’ve most likely heard 
of, particularly in recent years: twerking. This sexual and provocative dance move has taken the world by storm. Contrary to what the media will tell you, it did not originate with Miley Cyrus’s 2013 VMA performance with Robin Thicke (a sad interpretation of twerking if you ask me).
Twerking has actually been around for much longer than it has been in the mainstream media. The dance dates back centuries, having most likely originated somewhere in West Africa. It has an uncanny resemblance to the Mapouka dance from Côte d’Ivoire (modern versions of which can be seen here and here (a side note: if you decide to investigate this further, beware of simply typing “mapouka” into YouTube)). The Mapouka dance focuses mainly on the buttocks; the resemblance to modern-day twerking is easy to see.
According to the Western perspective, twerking is a highly sexualized and provocative gyration of the hips and buttocks. It has even been added to Merriam-Webster’s Online Dictionary, which defines it as “sexually suggestive dancing characterized by rapid, repeated hip thrusts
and shaking of the buttocks especially while squatting.” But twerking isn’t new. In many West African cultures, it was an expression of joy and celebration performed at family gatherings and weddings. One blogger recalls seeing older women in her predominantly West African church go to the front of the church and twerk if a certain song of praise was sung. There, it was not a sexual thing; it was a form of worship.
Twerking has long been a part of black culture; even disregarding its original cultural origins, black women were twerking in rap and R&B videos long before Miley Cyrus ever hit the stage. One of the first recorded instances of the use of the term “twerking” occurred in DJ Jubilee’s “Do the Jubilee All” from 1993 when he says, “twerk baby, twerk baby, twerk, twerk, twerk.” Other songs since then include “Whistle While You Twurk” by The Ying Yang Twins, “Twerk That Thang” by Master P, “Get Low” by Lil Jon, and many others (Destiny’s Child almost released “Twirk” but ended up deciding against it, just FYI ’cause who doesn’t love Beyonce?)
So twerking isn’t new. At all. So why, then, has it suddenly become so popular with Miley Cyrus? Well, it’s not exactly surprising. The mainstream media loves to take things that traditionally belong to other cultures, put a white face on them, and present them as some new trend that only recently came about. Remember that time Justin Bieber had dreads? Or the excessive amounts of culturally offensive Halloween costumes you can find at any costume store? Or all the times Miley Cyrus has twerked, surrounded only by dancers of color that seem a bit more like props than back up dancers at times? Even Taylor Swift has twerking in her video for “Shake It Off” (which, if I might add, is also full of stereotypes and cultural appropriation).
So yes, twerking isn’t new; it’s only new to the mainstream media. The media will probably tire of it eventually, and when that happens, black culture will be there to reclaim it.
http://www.xojane.com/issues/the-origins-of-twerking
http://www.vh1.com/news/51270/twerking-complete-history/