Last night was among the most random nights of my life. I get a text in the late afternoon from a friend informing me “the guy in the evolution of dance video is performing at the student union.” If any of you haven’t seen the video, you should check it out… it’s pretty sweet, not to mention its the all-time most viewed video on YouTube (supposedly it was recently bumped to #2, but there are concerns of cheating regarding the #1 video).
I go to the union and meet Judson Laipply, the performer/inspirational comedian behind the famous video. He gave an *awesome* talk/performance/routine for a PACKED room of students (1,000 or more?). He really connected with the audience in a way I have rarely seen. Everyone loved it. People were laughing practically the entire time. He’s truly a gifted public speaker. Afterwards, he was kind enough to let me and some friends from the Digital Ethnography working group interview him about his history, the history of his video, what he thinks about viral videos, and his thoughts on the future of YouTube and the Internet. We video recorded the interview so I will post a link as soon as we get it uploaded. He had some very insightful things to say… I’m sure you all will be interested in checking it out. He’s very knowledgeable about the state of the Internet and its potential. Made for a great interview.
He is a very personable guy. It’s easy to understand why he’s so good at what he does and why he loves it so much. And to top it all off, he came out with us for a few drinks afterwards!
