Viral Dance Moment Boy Graduates High School

ATLANTA — Anyone who has looked online in the last six years has likely come across a popular video of a young student wearing a Ron Clark Academy jacket dancing in class.

And if you don’t know what moment we’re talking about, here it is:

The first student you see dancing on the chair is Jaycob Linsey. Well, the young boy who was 12 years old at the time is now grown up. He just graduated from high school in Atlanta.

Since that viral moment, his face has been omnipresent in memes and GIFs across social media. You know you’ve seen it… 😂😂😂

Linsey told 11Alive on Friday that that day her class had just learned they would get the chance to go see the movie “Black Panther.” Linsey and her classmates were delighted to hear the news. The highly anticipated film broke box office records in its first opening weekend in 2018.

“When they told us we were going to see ‘Black Panther,’ I was so excited,” he said. “I just wanted to get up and start dancing. I don’t know what made me start dancing, I just wanted to do it.”

He said everyone was supporting him and enjoying the moment. But this viral dance changed his life.

“When I was younger I didn’t really understand what was going on, it was like everyone was saying, ‘You were that kid in that video. It’s you ? Can I take a photo! Can I have a photo!”

He said the attention eventually died down — but that was until he graduated.

“Everything started coming back, and it felt like it was really happening,” he said. “It just hit me.”

He said he realized the far-reaching significance of this moment, especially for young people.

“I have a very big impact on everything, on the black community,” he said. “It makes me feel good.”

He said it made him want to make everyone who supported him proud.

“It just makes me want to try harder, go harder and do my best,” he said.

He recently graduated from DM Therrell High School in Atlanta and is preparing to attend college. The Ron Clark Academy saluted him online.

This dance will be remembered by his family and friends… as well as those who use the popular GIF online. 🙂

He said he’s been asked to do the viral dance since that time in 6th grade. He had some advice for young kids who really want to go viral.

“Be yourself,” he says. “Don’t try to be something you’re not. Be yourself.

11Alive photojournalist Brandon Tucker contributed to this story.