It’s a stressful job working in the police department. Sometimes, the members of the force to let their hair down. Deputy Alexander Meña of the Texas’ Bexar County Sheriff’s Office was doing just that, about three weeks ago, as he lip-synced to a song in his car (video below). The Sheriff’s Office posted the video online, where it went viral, and prompted what has now turned out to be an unprecedented nation-wide lip-sync battle amongst police departments in the United States (video above).
Soon, police departments throughout Texas started to respond with videos of their own lip-syncing prowess, to songs ranging from numbers by Miley Cyrus and the Backstreet Boys to Spice Girls and Bruno Mars. Over the past three weeks, over 15 police departments have joined in the fun, raking in thousands and millions of views. But the most formidable talent in the lot with the most impressive video clearly belongs to the Norfolk Police Department in Virginia.
The police department was challenged by the Corinth Police Department to take part in the battle. Norfolk answered with a version of Bruno Mars’s Uptown Funk that looks like the real deal, just with a much smaller budget. The video featured it all – stellar choreography, a confident frontman played by Officer Christopher Taveras, impressive props and, of course, some perfectly-timed lip-syncing. What’s more, the police department even got the local fire department, paramedic team and bomb squad to join them. It’s no wonder the video had almost 45-million views at the time of writing.
According to Insider, following extensive rehearsals, the department filmed the video in two easy takes, going from beginning to end both times with an iPad. Corporal Pickering told Insider that it was a great experience for everyone: “There’s nothing like moving as a team. It’s a stressful job, and it always nice to have moments where we can all come together and enjoy each other’s time.”
But just because the Norfolk PD went all out, doesn’t mean the other police departments didn’t do a great job. You can take a look at some of them below. Special to the Wayne’s World parody immediately below.
Limited-time offer: Big stories, small price. Keep independent media alive. Become a Scroll member today!
Our journalism is for everyone. But you can get special privileges by buying an annual Scroll Membership. Sign up today!