It’s electric!
Posted: February 20, 2007 Filed under: electric slide, ric silver 5 Comments »
I almost drove off the road this morning on my way to the gym. On NPR, there was a story about Ric Silver, the guy who claims to have invented The Electric Slide. According to Wikipedia, there is some debate about that. But, anyway…
So Ric is spending his time suing people for doing the dance wrong. He’s going to websites, videos, everywhere….telling people to take down their stuff. Check out YouTube – there are tons of unavailable videos of the dance.
One could ask…is this the way to further his cause? He seems a maniac to me! (Go listen to the Morning Edition segment, if you have time.)
So this story did two things for me. 1) Made that song get stuck in my head. Ugh. and 2) Made me think about what Ric could have done that would have been a better public relations choice.
I came up with some ideas. He could have done a media blitz in a tongue in cheek way that told people the right way to do the dance. Put up a great modern video on YouTube (the one he has up is horrible and seriously dated!) Start some online conversations! Take the energy that he’s using to sue and harass and turn it into a positive PR effort. It would probably have cost him less and done something good.
Something I won’t forget soon. If you think you’re being wronged publicly, turn it around. You don’t know how? Hire an expert. (I know some if you need one!) No one likes a crybaby.
bar mitzvah guests everywhere, UNITE!
But he wants to sue people. Lawsuits are not that expensive to file if you are not paying legal fees and if he owns a copyright that is being violated he could win big.
Yes, but Melissa – evidently dance steps are not copyright-able. At least that’s what NPR said. You can’t sue someone for being a bad dancer! If you could, I know some people who’d be in big trouble!
Any Maven – funny!
Oh boy, I better hide my wedding DVD, I could get sued!!!!! They’re TONS on bad dancing on it!
i was also amazed that he wanted to sue people. but i liked that he explained the dance. it made me realize why the dance felt wrong at all of the bar mitzvahs and weddings. those 4 steps are very important!
-Elizabeth