A new “dance” trend has people rhythmically bobbing their heads all over TikTok.
The trend has been cropping up all over the platform, populating ‘for you’ pages and getting 8-seconds of a catchy tune stuck in everyone’s head. The videos tend to look very similar, due to the nature of the trend, and so often blend together. Despite this, new entries into the ‘Head Bobbing’ trend continue to pour in.
So where does it come from? What is the song behind the Head Bobbing trend, and how did it become a phenomenon on TikTok?
What is the Head Bobbing song?
The simple song, which is typically referred to as simply the ‘head bobbing’ song, is actually a remix of “Drilla – Freestyle” from Opps & Blocks. The original track dropped earlier this year and quickly found a home on TikTok.
On TikTok, most people have only heard a tiny snippet of the track. An 8-second clip from midway through the song provides the soundtrack for the trend, which pretty much just sees people bobbing their heads enthusiastically from front to back. The clip used in TikTok encompasses a short burst of lyrics, proclaiming “Love, nah nah we ain’t giving no hoe/ I ain’t Romeo and I’ll hold, hold/ Bake in the party, chocolate Barbie waiting on me for a yo.”
The OG Head Bobbing TikTok
The first TikTok to ever make use of the now-popular audio was posted by @liverpoolfans.com in late August. The TikTok displays a short clip of Roberto Firmino, known most commonly by his affectionate nickname “Bobby.” In the clip, Firmino — who plays as a forward or attacking midfielder for Liverpool and the Brazil national team — can be seen flying down the field before scoring on the opposing team.
He then breaks into a simple, rhythmic dance that pairs perfectly with the music. The clip ends soon after.
While it has little in common with the Head Bobbing trend the sound ultimately inspired, this clip is the entire reason the trend was born. It brought Opps & Blocks’ song to TikTok, where it inspired literally hundreds of charming, simple videos and a dance trend that anyone can manage.
The trend has mostly taken off in the last month or so, despite the original upload hitting the platform back in August. The most popular videos provide a slight twist on the simple trend, providing context via text overlay to add humor or drama to the resulting video.
The vast majority of the videos now populating the Head Bobbing trend are some mix of humor, family dynamic, and life or work goals. They tend to provide a small, relatable glimpse into creators’ lives, an undeniably wholesome fact that makes it clear why this trend has spread so far.