The Jubi Slide (also spelled jubislide) or Slickback is a "sideways moonwalk" dance move invented in 2022 by the American TikTok and YouTube entertainer Jubi2Fye, who is best known for posting videos of dance routines and choreographed flash mob demonstrations in public settings such as shopping malls.
The jubislide, like the moonwalk, creates an illusion of floating, gliding along the ground, or skating over the terrain in reduced gravity (such as that of the moon), but instead of moving in a reverse direction, the dancer moves sideways to the left or right, crossing each foot in front of or behind the other in such a way as to conceal the moments when one foot is actually making contact with the ground. The rapid movement of the forward foot deceives the eye, making it appear that the forward foot is the one providing propulsion for each step, when it is actually blocking viewers from seeing the rear foot kick off the ground to begin the second half of the stride.
This "sleight of foot" is drastically more difficult to accomplish than the moonwalk, because it requires considerable core strength and cardio stamina to perform for more than a few strides: each repetition of the movement involves leaping sideways a considerable distance, while attempting to stay as close to the ground as possible through the entire arc of the leap, in order to maintain the illusion. The moonwalk, by comparison, maintains contact with the ground at all times, and does not feature leaping, so it can be performed for long durations without causing fatigue.
The first video displaying the jubislide was posted on 13 February 2022, set to the song "Aye Bay Bay" by the artist Jersey Anniversary. Beginning in March 2022, other TikTok entertainers took up the "challenge" of performing the jubislide to the same song, themselves, causing it to gain viral popularity on the platform. In June 2023, the challenge surged in popularity yet again, this time set to the song "A Pimp Named Slickback" by LAKIM, resulting in the jubislide also being called the Slickback.
Apart from the intense energy demand of the move, its greatest disadvantage for the performer is its reliance on having a large area in which to perform the move. Since outdoor spaces are typically the most available spaces with enough open area and adequate lighting to record the move, it is usually done outdoors, and subject to variable terrain conditions and the presence of crowds. The move also necessitates a separate person holding the camera in order to record it, since a static camera will not be able to rotate far enough to capture the full duration of the move's execution. For these reasons as well as the fundamental difficulty of the move, the jubislide has not become one of the "Fortnite dance moves" commonly demonstrated by members of Generation Z and Generation Alpha at social dance events and videos posted to social media. Instead, it remains an uncommonly-performed dance move demonstrated chiefly by professional dancers and choreographers on social media, and the ability to perform it fluently is considered an indicator of a very high degree of athleticism.
Iron Noder 2023, 14/30