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Cha Cha Slide

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"Cha-Cha Slide"
Single by DJ Casper
ReleasedAugust 2, 2000 (US)
2003 (12” vinyl promo & 12” vinyl)
March 1, 2004 (CD single)
Recorded1998–1999 (original version)
2003 (Hardino’s arrangement)
Length
  • 6:26 (original version)
  • 3:46 (original radio edit)
  • 3:41 (Hardino version)
LabelUniversal (US) All Around The World (UK)
Songwriter(s)Willie Perry Jr.
Producer(s)
  • Willie Perry & the Platinum Band
  • Frederick Johnson[1]
Music video
"Cha-Cha Slide" on YouTube

"Cha-Cha Slide" (or "Casper Slide Part 2") is a song by American musician Mr. C the Slide Man (also known as DJ Casper). The song was released as a single in August 2000 and spent five weeks on the Billboard Hot 100 chart, peaking at number 83. Four years later, "Cha-Cha Slide" became a hit in Europe and Australia, especially in the United Kingdom, where it topped the UK Singles Chart in March 2004.

As a line dance song, "Cha-Cha Slide" is often played at dance clubs, school dances and gym classes, prom nights, birthday parties, ice-skating rinks and roller rinks, B’nai Mitzvahs, Quinceañeras, weddings, and sporting events in the United States, the United Kingdom, Canada and other countries.

History

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"Casper Slide" Parts 1 & 2

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DJ Casper (Willie Perry Jr.) originally wrote "The Cha-Cha Slide" as a step aerobics routine for his nephew, David Wilson, who was working at the time as a fitness trainer at Bally Total Fitness Health Club in Chicago's Hyde Park neighborhood. In its original form, the song was just a set of instructions that Perry wrote for his nephew to call out in his Orientation class at the club. Wilson's class grew so popular that Perry decided to set his instructions to music. Perry recorded his performance of the original version of the song, titled "Casper Slide Part 1" in January 1998 using "Plastic Dreams" by Jaydee as the musical track.[2]

The song was inspired by the Chicago stepping movement, where DJ Casper cut a notable figure in the clubs. Wilson went so far as to compare his uncle's dancing prowess to MC Hammer.[2] Because Casper did not own "Plastic Dreams", he hired a band to record an instrumental track at the home studio of Fred Johnson with the help of Hollywood Scott, band leader for the Platinum Band. He called this version of the song "Casper Slide Part 2."[3]: 3 

Perry recorded and released the song at his own expense, and manufactured copies and distributed them with the help of Gardner Douglas ("Cisco"), owner of the Cisco's Music World record stores in Chicago, Illinois.

"Cha-Cha Slide"

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DJ Casper enlisted the help of M.O.B. Music Publishing to produce, edit, and engineer the new version of the song "Cha-Cha Slide". Men On Business also produced several other accompanying songs to produce the entire Slide Album. DJ Casper and Men On Business licensed the Slide Album to Universal Records, and it was released on September 19, 2000.

Universal's Senior VP of Urban Promotion Michael Horton recalled, "we made some instructional 'Cha-Cha Slide' dance videos and distributed them to clubs...We also promoted the song at various black functions, such as homecoming events at black colleges." Horton claimed many radio stations initial response to the song was, "There's no way we're playing it," but Universal's promotion department was persistent and finally got it on the air. The song then made its way to R&B/hip hop station WGCI-FM, in DJ Casper's hometown of Chicago, the first radio station to play the song. Horton accurately predicted the future of the song: "It's like a novelty that will eventually die down, but it will never go away completely—just like the electric slide and the bus stop are still around."[4]

In 2001, the following year, the dance caught on around Canada and the United States, where urban contemporary radio stations (and later mobile DJs) played the song continuously.[5] In March 2004, "Cha Cha Slide" was released in the United Kingdom and went on to top the UK Singles Chart.[6][7] Its success in the United Kingdom was helped by Scott Mills of BBC Radio 1, who promoted the song on his weekday afternoon radio show.[8]

Legacy

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In August 2020, in honor of the 20th anniversary, Google added a Easter egg where, when "Cha Cha Slide" is searched for, a microphone appears next to the music video. Some lyrics from the song are played when the button is clicked.[9]

Music video

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The music video was shot in downtown Chicago.[10] At the beginning of the video, a news van arrives in front of a crowd of people doing the dance on a sidewalk. After that, the reporter reports about the dance. Then, the video transitions to several scenes, including DJ Casper dancing with a group of people on a white background and different people in various locations doing said dance. Near the end of the video, the news camera crew begins dancing a bit. In the last scene, the reporter dances with them.

Lawsuit

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In 2011, Willie Perry Jr. and Jerome Haywood filed a lawsuit against M.O.B. Productions.[11] The suit alleged that M.O.B. obtained a false copyright registration under the title "Casper Cha-Cha Slide (Live Platinum Band)".[3]: 5 

Album

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The song was also part of an 11-track album, Cha-Cha Slide: The Original Slide Album, released in September 2000.[6]

No.TitleWriter(s)Length
1."Cha-Cha Slide" (radio edit) 3:46
2."Cha-Cha Slide" (club edit) 7:44
3."Bus Stop/Electric Slide"Charles Green Hudson Beaudy4:45
4."Casper Slide Part 2"With Live Platinum Band6:27
5."Step To This"Colta / Ken Uchida5:29
6."Unworthy"Colta4:47
7."Unworthy"Colta4:25
8."Bus Stop/Electric Slide" (original)Charles Green Hudson Beaudy7:55
9."DJ Eric-B Slide"DJ Eric-B9:45
10."Step To This"Colta / Ken Uchida5:29
11."R-U-Here"Colta 

Charts

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Certifications

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Region Certification Certified units/sales
United Kingdom (BPI)[36] Platinum 760,000[35]

Release history

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Region Date Format(s) Label(s) Ref(s).
United States August 2, 2000
  • 7-inch vinyl
  • 12-inch vinyl
 Universal [citation needed]
September 19, 2000
[37][38]
United Kingdom March 1, 2004
  • 12-inch vinyl
  • CD
 All Around the World [39]
United States April 26, 2004 Contemporary hit radio Universal [40]
Australia May 17, 2004 CD [41]

Crazy Frog version

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"Cha Cha Slide"
Single by Crazy Frog
from the album Everybody Dance Now
ReleasedAugust 25, 2009
GenreDance
Length3:03
LabelMOB Music Publishing
Songwriter(s)William Perry Jr.[1]
Producer(s)M. Thompson[1]
Crazy Frog singles chronology
"Daddy DJ"
(2009) 		"Cha Cha Slide"
(2009)
Music video
"Cha Cha Slide" on YouTube

On August 25, 2009, Crazy Frog released "Cha Cha Slide" for the album Everybody Dance Now.

Charts

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Chart (2009) Peak
position
France (SNEP)[42] 18

References

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  1. ^ a b c "US Copyright Office". Recording Industry Association of America. RIAA. Retrieved June 7, 2011.
  2. ^ a b "The Cha-Cha Slide And More: Which Dances Were Invented In Chicago?". NPR.org. Retrieved March 1, 2021.
  3. ^ a b Perry & Haywood v. M.O.B. Music, 1:11-cv-2198 (N.D. Ill 2011).
  4. ^ Hay, Carla (February 10, 2001). "Mr. C the Slide Man Sets Off a Dance Craze on M.O.B." Billboard. p. 9. Retrieved August 3, 2023.
  5. ^ "He was the 1st to play the 'Cha-Cha Slide' on the radio. He's 'still mesmerized' by the hit". Yahoo Entertainment. August 11, 2023. Retrieved May 4, 2024.
  6. ^ a b Roberts, David (2006). British Hit Singles & Albums (19th ed.). London: Guinness World Records Limited. p. 696. ISBN 1-904994-10-5.
  7. ^ "DJ Casper tops UK singles chart". BBC News. March 14, 2004. Retrieved April 28, 2010.
  8. ^ Every Little Thing (September 3, 2018). "The Cha-Cha Slide: How One Uncle Changed Weddings Forever". Gimlet Media. Retrieved August 2, 2023.
  9. ^ "Google gets funky with 'Cha Cha Slide' Easter egg in search". CNET. Retrieved May 4, 2024.
  10. ^ Gunderson, Erica (May 29, 2018). "Nearly 20 Years Later, 'Cha-Cha Slide' Still Gets People Moving". WTTW. Retrieved August 3, 2023.
  11. ^ "DJ Casper in Court over Royalties from Cha-Cha Slide". Afro News. April 2, 2011. Retrieved August 3, 2023.
  12. ^ "Issue 743" ARIA Top 100 Singles. National Library of Australia. Retrieved September 24, 2020.
  13. ^ "DJ Casper – Cha Cha Slide" (in Dutch). Ultratop 50.
  14. ^ "DJ Casper – Cha Cha Slide" (in French). Ultratop 50.
  15. ^ "Hits of the World – Eurocharts" (PDF). Billboard. Vol. 116, no. 13. March 27, 2004. p. 53. Retrieved March 19, 2020.
  16. ^ "DJ Casper – Cha Cha Slide" (in French). Les classement single.
  17. ^ "DJ Casper – Cha Cha Slide" (in German). GfK Entertainment charts.
  18. ^ "The Irish Charts – Search Results – Cha Cha Slide". Irish Singles Chart. Retrieved January 15, 2020.
  19. ^ "Top 10 Dance Singles, Week Ending 11 March 2004". GfK Chart-Track. Retrieved June 17, 2019.[dead link‍]
  20. ^ "DJ Casper – Cha Cha Slide". Top Digital Download.
  21. ^ "Nederlandse Top 40 – week 18, 2004" (in Dutch). Dutch Top 40.
  22. ^ "DJ Casper – Cha Cha Slide" (in Dutch). Single Top 100.
  23. ^ "Arhiva romanian top 100 – Editia 21, saptamina 24.05 – 30.05, 2004" (in Romanian). Romanian Top 100. Archived from the original on February 21, 2005. Retrieved May 16, 2020.
  24. ^ "Official Scottish Singles Sales Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company.
  25. ^ "DJ Casper – Cha Cha Slide". Swiss Singles Chart.
  26. ^ "Official Singles Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company.
  27. ^ "Mr C the Slide Man Chart History (Hot 100)". Billboard. Retrieved June 17, 2019.
  28. ^ "Mr. C the Slide Man Chart History (Dance Singles Sales)". Billboard. Archived from the original on January 16, 2020. Retrieved January 15, 2020.
  29. ^ "Mr C the Slide Man Chart History (Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs)". Billboard. Retrieved June 17, 2019.
  30. ^ "Jaaroverzichten 2004" (in Dutch). Ultratop. Retrieved June 17, 2019.
  31. ^ "Rapports annuels 2004" (in French). Ultratop. Retrieved June 17, 2019.
  32. ^ "Tops de L'année | Top Singles 2004" (in French). SNEP. Retrieved May 16, 2021.
  33. ^ "Jaaroverzichten – Single 2004" (in Dutch). MegaCharts. Retrieved June 17, 2019.
  34. ^ "The Official UK Singles Chart 2004" (PDF). UKChartsPlus. Retrieved July 7, 2018.
  35. ^ "DJ Casper creator of UK Number 1 single Cha Cha Slide, has died aged 58 | Official Charts". Official Charts.
  36. ^ "British single certifications – DJ Casper – Cha-Cha Slide". British Phonographic Industry. Retrieved May 16, 2020.
  37. ^ "Going for Adds / AddVance Notice". Radio & Records. No. 1368. September 16, 2000. pp. 146, 152.
  38. ^ "Gavin Top 40/Rhythm Crossover: Impact Dates". Gavin Report. No. 2322. September 15, 2000. p. 10.
  39. ^ "Reviews: Singles". Music Week. February 21, 2004. p. 31.
  40. ^ "Going for Adds" (PDF). Radio & Records. No. 1552. April 23, 2004. p. 24. Retrieved July 3, 2022.
  41. ^ "The ARIA Report: New Releases Singles – Week Commencing 17th May 2004" (PDF). ARIA. May 17, 2004. p. 27. Archived from the original (PDF) on February 22, 2008. Retrieved January 8, 2022.
  42. ^ "Crazy Frog – Cha Cha Slide" (in French). Les classement single.
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