@christopheraguirree / TikTok / shakira / Instagram
It has been almost a week since Super Bowl LIV. Everyone was talking about the J.Lo and Shakira halftime show and the unapologetic Latin performance. Shakira’s appearance was arguably the most successful. Her single “Whenever, Wherever” reached the No. 1 spot on the charts and she created a viral TikTok dance challenge called #ChampetaChallenge.
It all started when Shakira posted a video teaching the choreography of her Super Bowl halftime show.
Champeta is a form of music and dance that originates from the Caribbean coastal region of Colombia. It is traced back to people of African descent who lived in Cartagena before spreading in influence to Barranquilla.
Then, Shakira posted a behind-the-scenes video of her staff learning her halftime show dance.
Everyone looks like they are having so much fun learning this dance that it makes you want to give it a shot. Her video is captioned, “Directors, producers, cameramen,… all of them learning to dance Champeta. #ChampetaChallenge.” Smart.
With that behind-the-scenes video, the #ChampetaChallenge was born and soon found a home on TikTok.
Videos have popped up all over various social media channels of people and influencers jumping on the #ChampetaChallenge bandwagon. Some of these people are super talented.
Friends have joined forces to spread the regional dance style.
Who doesn’t like spending time dancing with friends? It’s a workout, bonding moment, and just a good time. And if you can make a viral video at the same time then why not?
Some people wanted to match the dancers and Shakira’s outfit in their own performance.
Certainly, this earns them extra points. Learning and doing the #ChampetaChallenge is one thing. Coordinating your outfit with the people on the tv takes this whole thing to another level.
And some people really let loose during their dance challenge.
This weekend was special for more than just the Super Bowl, it was Día de la Candelaria (aka. Candlemas). And I don’t know about you, but I stuffed my face with tamales—as is mandatory. Why is that important? Because this weekend, we also found out that more than 100 emojis will be available on Apple this year —and one of them is an actual tamale. Is it a rajas tamale? Or is it filled with mole? We’re not too sure, but what we are sure of, it that a tamale emoji is coming and we can’t wait!
Emoji is the fastest growing language in history.
72% of 18-25 year-olds say that they find it easier to convey their feelings in emojis than in text. With #Emoji being the fastest-growing language in the UK, is this the new global #language to transcend communication barriers? @T21Centuryhttps://t.co/BPhnTf7wpQ
Five billion emojis are sent every day, just on Facebook Messenger. And they’re appearing in some places you wouldn’t expect. One court judge in England used a smiley face emoji in a document to make it easy to explain the court’s decision to children —an actual fact. So it should come as no surprise, that emoji consortiums have formed to keep updating the language and including more and more elements to it.
Starting in the second half of 2020, users can insert a tamale Emoji into any conversation.
Whether you’re including it in a text conversation about making tamales during the holidays, or simply emphasizing your craving for one of the best Latinx dishes around, the option will be there before you know it.
Emojipedia confirmed the introduction of over 100 new emojis this year.
According to Emojipedia, the emoji reference website —yes, it’s a thing—this year we’re getting 117 recently approved new emojis. From a gender inclusive alternative to Santa Claus and Mrs. Claus, named Mx. Claus, to a fondue, a bell pepper and a piñata emoji.
That’s right, Latinos are getting another emoji that illustrates our culture.
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The Piñata emoji is coming in the shape of a Donkey—granted, it’s an old, clichéd reference, but hey, it’s iconic nonetheless. Get ready to dale dale dale because the paper maché burro will be available to add to your convos, this year.
The Christmas icon is not the only gender-neutral addition, btw.
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The new emojis will also include a woman in a tuxedo, a man in a bride veil and a gender-neutral person feeding a baby. All of these emojis are also available in all skin tones.
And it features 117 new emoji that will be arriving on devices like iPhone, iPad, and Mac later this year. Apple typically adds the new emoji with the next major operating system updates in the fall.
We’ll be getting a wide array of animals, household items and more foods in emoji form!
The list of new emojis also includes other foods like bubble tea and a flat bread, animals like a seal and a cockroach, and household items like a toothbrush.
A hearing aid emoji, wheelchair emoji and seeing eye dog emoji were in 2019’s new batch. A gender-neutral couple and various combinations of people with different skin colors holding hands were also made available last year.
Back in February 2019, the Unicode Consortium unveiled 230 new emojis with a majority representing people with disabilities and their needs.
They included hearing aids, prosthetic limbs and service dogs. It also included the option for interracial couples to mix and match skin tones.
New emojis are now added to the Unicode standard on an annual basis.
There’s the Unicode standard for symbols and characters – including lots of emojis. If a specific emoji gets approved for inclusion, it goes into that standard and becomes usable by all devices / platforms that adhere to that standard. https://t.co/gBd43iCivW
These emojis are proposed by different companies like Google, Apple and Twitter, and finalized by the start of the year. This allows ample time for these platforms to include these in future updates.
— ken ????????➡???????? ????????♂️ (@kensadahiro) March 1, 2019
10 years ago, Unicode Consortium released 722 different designs, and the genre has come a long way since. In 2015, Oxford Dictionaries’ Word of the Year was an emoji–the Face With Tears of Joy one. There’s also a World Emoji Day celebrated annually on July 17.
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