The men and women of the Norfolk, Virginia, Police Department sure do know how to get down and decided to show off their dancing chops in a lip-sync video that has gone viral.
It all started when the Norfolk Police Department was challenged to a lip-sync battle by the police in Corinth, Texas, who uploaded their own lip-sync video to Party in the USA by Miley Cyrus.
And not being the type of people to shy away from a challenge, they immediately accepted and on Monday, released a video of more than three dozen officers dancing and lip-syncing to Uptown Funk by Mark Ronson, featuring Bruno Mars.
Hilarious: The men and women of Norfolk Police Department did a lip-sync video to Uptown Funk by Mark Ronson and Bruno Mars
‘Your wait is over,’ the police department wrote on Facebook. ‘The Norfolk Police Department was challenged by the Corinth Police Department, Texas to a #lipsync battle and we gladly accepted.’
‘As you can see we all had a great time filming the video, which we have to point out was done in #onetake!’
And since it was posted to Facebook (the police department shared it on YouTube as well) it has garnered more than 39 million views, 972,00 shares, 892,000 likes and 128,000 comments from people praising the Norfolk Police Department for its talent.
One person commented: ‘Whoa whoa whoa people! What about the safety of the citizens of Norfolk? Who’s going to protect them? Their entire police force is about to be arrested for murder because they just killed it!’
And another person wrote on Facebook: ‘That was so much fun to watch. I’m 92 years old and I couldn’t keep my 92-year-old feet still.
Dare: It all started when the Norfolk Police Department was challenged to a lip-sync battle by the police in Corinth, Texas
Getting down: They immediately accepted and on Monday, released a video of more than three dozen officers dancing and lip-syncing
Viral: Since it was posted to Facebook, it has garnered more than 39 million views, 972,00 shares, 892,000 likes and 128,000 comments
‘They happily tapped along to the music, (I am sitting down, of course) otherwise I would fall over. LOL You are a very talented, entertaining group. I loved it. You put a big smile on my face.’
Another person commented: ‘Choreograph On point!!! Whoever started this all Genius!! I think it really shows how law enforcement are humans too! Hopefully it’s helping public’s perception of our everyday heroes.’
And of course the people that took part in the video loved every second of it but mostly, they’re just glad people loved it too.
‘I’m just so glad people are enjoying it,’ Cpl. William Pickering, a Norfolk Police Department spokesman told the Virginian-Pilot. ‘I’m at a loss for words.’
But the praise is well-deserved because William and his colleagues developed choreography and encouraged other police officers and members of the fire department to participate, including Officer Christopher Taveras who was the frontman in the video.
Fans: One person commented ‘That was so much fun to watch. I’m 92 years old and I couldn’t keep my 92-year-old feet still’
Excited: And of course the people that took part in the video loved every second of it but mostly, they’re just glad people loved it too
Where it began: Bruno Mars struts his stuff during the music video for Uptown Funk
‘He said, “Let me guess Bruno Mars,” William said. ‘I guess people have told him there’s a resemblance. He was on board.’
And about forty more officers were on board as well and showed up at noon on July 9 to film at the Third Patrol Division on Asbury Avenue to strut their stuff through the hall and in the parking lot of the police department.
One officer’s baby even made a special guest appearance but the singing and dancing didn’t seem to interrupt her nap time as she can be seen getting some sleep while her dad holds her and dances along.
‘We wanted to show the community our primary objective is to protect and serve the community, but we’re not robots,’ William said. ‘We share a lot of the same interests the community has.’
And for those who can’t get enough of the lip-sync battle, which has spread across the country, with other departments taking up similar challenges, according to the Virginian-Pilot, the Norfolk Police Department challenged Virginia Beach, Seattle, St. Louis and Norfolk, England.
Here’s hoping they accept the challenge and that they all share their moves for the world to see.