Both The Funky Chicken And The Funky Duck Were Dance Crazes (Video)

Since October 5 is always National Get Funky Day, follow orders! As “One Nation Under a Groove,” we have a collective opportunity to pay homage to the power and majesty of The Funk. We’re not talking funk as in depressing, but funk as in get-happy-and-celebrate-life!

• 17th Century – the word “funk” originally began and was taken to mean “a strong odor”.
• early 1900s – the term “funk”, which had come to mean something along the lines of “musty, was taken to mean something earthy or even something deep or felt strongly. In the budding world of jazz music.
• 1893 – ​Funk and Wagnalls created a dictionary of the English language emphasizing accurate phonetics and simple spelling of words.
• 1971 – ​No one understood the mystery of the funk like James Brown, but he breaks it down so anyone can understand with the iconic powerhouse song, “Make It Funky.”
• 1976 – ​Wild Cherry, a predominantly white band, admonishes a colleague to “Play That Funky Music, White Boy”— which gets Americans of every color on the dance floor shaking that thang.
• 1992 – ​​Straight out of New York City, the Beastie Boys release their hit, “Funky Bass,” which definitively proves that funk is a feeling not bound by race, creed or color.
• 1995 – ​Playwright George C. Wolfe collaborates with tap dancer extraordinaire, Savion Glover, on “Bring in da’ Noise — Bring in da’ Funk,” a musical journey of African-American history using tap dance.
• 1997 – Funk pioneer, George Clinton, releases “Give Up the Funk” — proving once again why he is the Master of the Mothership.
• 2016 – Founded by Funkytown Fitness, a health club located in St. Augustine, Florida in the US, National Get Funky Day got its start in 2016 (though not officially proclaimed until 2017).
• ​Blondie wrote one of the first rap tunes in the modern era with “Rapture,” even mentioning veejay Fab Five Freddy of Yo’ MTV Raps in the lyrics.
• ​Both the Funky Chicken and the Funky Duck were dance crazes that dominated the dance floor for about a funky minute.
• In the budding world of jazz music, musicians would often encourage each other with phrases like “Put some stank on it”, or “Make it funky, now”.
• To capture the true and free-spirited funk, you must do something out of the box, something far crazier. It is the mandatory part of this activity; a blonde can color its hair into numerous shades, and yeah, you are ready to be a funky freak.
• To be Funky, you must go to the dance by illuminating the 70s-era platforms, customizing the outfit with all the glittery stars, and setting a dance floor to some parliament, a musician, or a band.
  • Wear crazy-colored or bright-colored clothes.
  • Listen to, and share with others a lot of funk music.
  • High-five and hug people.
  • Let your hair down, get a crazy haircut, or dye your hair.
  • Do something fun you’ve been meaning to do but haven’t found the courage to do yet.
  • Do the funky chicken, or another dance.
  • Make some funky food and share it with your friends.
• Here’s a list of some funk songs to listen to:
  • Parliament: “Give Up The Funk”
  • Zapp: “More Bounce To The Ounce”
  • Rick James: “Super Freak”
  • Commodores: “Brick House”
  • Stevie Wonder: “Superstition”
  • Stevie Wonder: “Higher Ground”
  • Kool & The Gang: “Get Down On It”
  • Earth, Wind, And Fire: “Shining Star”
  • Kool and the Gang: “Jungle Boogie”
  • Lipps Inc.: “Funky Town”
  • James Brown: “Sex Machine”
  • Carl Carlton: “She A Bad Mama Jama”

Sources:

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