A Disturbing Trend in Higher Education

I recently attempted to give advice to the college students in America concerning the topic of college rap/pop videos.

apparently nobody listens to me, however there is another, perhaps more severe, issue facing higher education in America.

The Lip Dub

/rubs temples

Evidently the latest craze is to essentially lip sync a song, while walking through an environment. The goal is for the video to seem spontaneous, yet it is highly choreographed and organized.

An example from Xavier University.


I'll give credit, I like the Rabbi on a Catholic campus, however it seems that everyone at Xavier has failed walking backward 101, coolness 202, and Freshman seminar: When not to make it rain.

Also. Only 5 from the dance squad? Were the other 10 screwing the basketball team?

Next UVA


That's so typical. Why doesn't this surprise me? Where do I even begin? The execution was off, nothing inherently funny about it, not even in an ironic way.

Bias aside, this was just horrible.

It was so bad that I'm not even going to send it to VT friends. Part of a rivalry is having some semblance of competition between two schools. This...this would just be too devastating to overcome. Trust me, it's best if we keep this our little secret.

Here's more examples from Boston, Seton Hall, and Lehigh there's probably a lot more, but quite frankly I can't stand to watch them.

Look I get these are all about school spirit. Fine. I'm not against it. But we all have school spirit. I think most people enjoyed their college experience, so I'm sorry, your school isn't any better than mine or anyone else's. Your school may be unique in some way, but again every school is unique. That's why kids go to them, they fit their needs. So while you may love your wonderful family atmosphere, someone else may want to get ripped and not go to class. To each their own.

However, I fear these videos a false impression of what college is like. Sure, these videos have some truth to them. Girls will walk around in uggs and galoshes. Many will rep their frat or sorority. And yes, you will have guys walking around in ironic shirts or banana costumes in order to draw attention to themselves. But not everyone is like that. I swear. College can be fun without making lip dub videos. And that's the thing. Colleges have a club or organization for everything. EVERYTHING. You'll find your niche, whether it's heavy drinking, chess, or saving the world. If you're into lip dubbing? Well, they obviously have that for you too.

Now, I'm not all negative. I'm here to help you. I'll give you an example of a decent lip dub.


First off, this is From Emmerson. Emmerson is a four year Performing arts college, which is a trump card in this situation. If you are a drama/performing arts kid disregard everything I've just said. Why? Performing arts kids are typically pretty cool, and this is also their job.

you can see the professionalism in this video. It has a story line with the girl trying to find her way and seeing all the wonders of Emmerson. (I appreciate the creativity in an otherwise bland genre). The cinematography is second to none, and the choreography and acting is to be respected.(Note: The drama trump card is in play for the quidditch portion as well)

But like I said, this is what they do. I don't roll into the Science building and start performing experiments and shit. Science kids do that.

Anyway, if you MUST make a video about your college. May I suggest using a simple montage? Sports teams have been using this for years to great effect. It shows ACTUAL things that ACTUALLY happen. Second, use a cool song. I get Dynamite is appealing to you, but there are a lot of people who hate that song. And as always make it funny or creative on some level.

My biggest fear is that at some point my alma mater will make a stupid music video or even worse I'll be in one. On some level I know it's going to happen. And in that moment all my respect and my reputation that I had worked on for some many years will go up in flames. Like dynamite.