What do you do when you’re locked up inside because of the coronavirus pandemic and you’re going stir-crazy? Alongside the usual hour yoga session and taking on the home-made sourdough, it turns out the world also makes TikTok videos.
The brainchild of Chinese artificial intelligence company ByteDance, TikTok is like an Instagram challenge on steroids, where good content is that which can be shared, replicated and built upon by absolutely anyone – and of all ages. In recent times of socials distancing, this short-form video platform has absolutely skyrocketed, bringing with it an obscene level of publicity.
One challenge that has gone viral is the ‘The Up and Down Challenge’, also known as #vengachallenge which now has over 65 million views – despite pleas from the Vengaboys’ themselves to stop attempting the fitness trend-inspired on TikTok due to safety concerns.
The challenge itself is a zany and acrobatic exercise that challenges couples to move ‘up and down’ together and in-sync to the beat of the Vengaboys classic: ‘Up & Down.’ It looks easy and harmless, however, that’s not always the case. Although the exercise has been performed flawlessly by many, there are also people who end up crashing down. Some escape with minor injuries, such as bumps and bruises, however, some are inflicted with serious injuries, including: broken bones and fractures.
“We are of course delighted with the huge success, but we still want to ask the TikTok community to stop this challenge,” explains Vengaboys Captain Kim. “If you break a finger or sprain your wrist, you still have to go to the hospital, where they have more important things on their mind right now.”
Yikes. Check out the challenge below (but please don’t try it at home).
