October 9, 2016

Benny Bar Zohar was hanging the laundry when his eldest daughter was dancing along to a music video by Silentó in the family’s living room in Yavneh, Israel. While she mimicked the “Watch Me (Whip/Nae Nae)” moves from the television, he decided to join her covertly, behind her back.

Now, Bar Zohar is being hailed in Israel as “father of the year,” “best dad ever,” and “coolest dad” for his in-sync choreography.

The climax of the short video clip, of course, is when Bar Zohar’s daughter, Lior, turns around and sees her dad doing his own version of Silentó’s stanky leg.

Bar Zohar, a father of four who imports women’s fashion, uploaded the family rendition of “Whip Nae Nae” moves to his Facebook account and the shares were quick to spread. Within 48 hours, the video chalked up over one million views.

Screen shot from the Bar Zohar dance video.
Screen shot from the Bar Zohar dance video.

In June 2015, an American father did the “Whip Nae Nae” with his daughter, a dancer, to help promote her skills to the US audience. Their video scored over four million views and a guest appearance on The Ellen Show.

And though the Nae Nae viral dance craze has been trumped by hip-hop’s “running man” and “dabbing” moves in terms of trendiness in 2016, Bar Zohar’s video is proof that it’s still got appeal in Israel.

Local media here uploaded versions of Bar Zohar’s video as well – garnering a few hundred thousand extra views.

“Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s phone is less busy than mine,” Bar Zohar told Ynet 24 hours after the video took to the country’s social media arena. “It’s an amazing feeling to know that people liked the video and had a good laugh. We make a lot of funny, musical videos like this but we never imagined this one would go so viral. I’m thrilled and Lior is, too.”

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