Intence’s ‘Yahoo Boyz’ No. 1 For Fifth Week But Who’s The Original Creator Of The ‘Rifle Bounce’?

For five consecutive weeks, Intence’s Yahoo Boyz was the most streamed song in Jamaica on YouTube, according to the platform’s Music Charts And Insights.  The fast-rising star while giving us a summer banger, has also spurred controversy within the Dancehall as to whether the Yahoo Boyz dance, dubbed the Rifle Bounce, was originally created by him.

At the deejay’s defense, is his father and manager, Stephen “Fada Axe” Gabiddon, who declared in an interview with the Jamaica Observer today that the industry should “give credit where credit is due”.

Yahoo Boyz, produced by Country Hype and Cryshy, was released on July 5 and has racked up 4.2 million total views on YouTube.  With five consecutive weeks of being the No. 1 streamed song on YouTube, as well as on iTunes, there’s no doubt Intence has found another hit. The streets also agree with the streamers, as the song and accompanying dance have been the crowd favorites at parties and gatherings.

However, a debate has emerged about whether the dance was originally crafted by Intence and whether similarities to the Rifle Bounce had existed prior but had not been popularized. To settle the matter, Stephen Gabiddon told the Jamaica Observer that the song Yahoo Boyz and its accompanying dance was crafted while Intence, himself, and his entourage were quarantining in the Cayman Islands.

“He’s [Intence] not a dancer and he never identified as a dancer, but he wanted a song that could take the summer. I brought all my recording equipment from Jamaica and the idea just came to him. He always tries to make songs that are catchy for young people and when he heard the rhythm ‘Yahoo’ was the first word that came to his mind. He reads a lot and does a lot of research to ensure that his music is fit for the young people. After the song was completed, the dance just came naturally,” Gabiddon explained.

The rifle bounce, which is done by Intence and others in the music video for Yahoo Boyz, is a vibrant bounce while positioning your hands like you are holding a rifle. The dance compliments the upbeat tempo of Yahoo Boyz and adds to the unexplainable liveliness and energy that comes with listening to the song.

Like any other dance, similarities may exist. Tommy Lee Sparta’s dance in the very acclaimed Under Vibes may have some resemblance to the Rifle Bounce as both songs have similar aggression and energy, however they are still distinguishable. In Under Vibes, though Tommy Lee holds his hands like he is holding a rifle — which is perhaps commonplace in Dancehall — Tommy Lee does not vibrantly bounce with the ‘rifle’.

A more recent release mimicking Rifle Bounce is Elephant Man’s Rifle Walk, which was released last week on August 15. In his single, dancers are seen mimicking the exact dance to Yahoo Boyz.

Dancehall’s dancing specialist, Ding Dong also posted a video two days ago on his Instagram showcasing a dance move that, according to his caption, was created by Coote Boss, who identifies, in his IG bio, as the creator of Rifle Walk.

With a seemingly unreleased Ding Dong song playing in the background, the group of dancers perform a mix of movements resembling the Yahoo Boyz dance, in addition to their own Rifle Walk movements, which were seen in videos from as far back as May 2021 on Coote’s IG.

https://www.instagram.com/p/CS4nPp2FgtL/

Ding Dong’s video received mixed responses as fans saw this as disrespectful to Intence and the traction that Yahoo Boyz deserves. One Twitter user @tamoyyaa commented sarcastically: “Gmail boyz”.

Meanwhile, according to YouTube’s Charts and Insights, Mankind by Silk Boss is the No. 2 most streamed song in Jamaica last week.

Journey by Dancehall newcomer 450 is No. 3, followed by Be Good by Shenseea at No. 4.

At No. 5 is Imperfection by 450, followed by Chosen by Rytikal at No. 6 and Racketeer by Squash at No. 7.

Street Cred by Skeng is No. 8, followed by Dirt Bounce by Laa Lee at No. 9 and Send It Up by Spice at No. 10.