Lil Uzi Vert‘s viral Jersey club-inspired track (which has TikTok in a chokehold) has finally received a visual treatment. Filmed in New York City, “Just Wanna Rock” portrays Uzi traveling in an intergalactic monster truck before landing at his destination of a party full of dancers.
With cameos from notable TikTok stars like 2rare, Uzi hits his footwork routine as the crowd hypes him up. He later finds himself on the streets of New York City, causing a huge commotion as he dances on top of his vehicle before the police arrive.
Without many lyrics to the song, Uzi raps: “Ha! 1600 block, I just wanna rock (shake it down)/ I just wanna, ah, ah, ah, ah, ah, ah, ah/ I just wanna rock, body-ody, yeah (shake it down)/ Shawty got that body-ody, ah, ah, ah (shake it down)/ Hit her once, no ties (shake it-shake it)/ How the f**k you gon’ kill my vibe? (Shake it down)/ Stand on my money, don’t know my size (shake it-shake it).”
The dance routine—which features the popular TikTok move where you move your hips back and forth—has caused a huge debate on whether it originated from Philadelphia or New Jersey. According to renowned Jersey club producer DJ Jayhood and many other New Jerseyans, the dance belongs to the Garden State and is called “Rock ya hips.”
“Shake ya hips” is not a new dance and here’s proof JERSEY REALLY THE TRENDSETTERS OF TODAYS MUSIC SCENE!” tweeted Jayhood. “It’s really called “Rock ya hips” but they don’t wanna give us our credit & put the ones who really responsible for the wave on songs. Do y’all real research.”
Assuming that Jayhood was referring to Uzi’s song and that he used Philly dancers in the visual, many chimed in with their own opinions.
One Twitter user said, “As a Philly ni**a I gotta say, the dance def started in jersey. Philly used to make fun of them dances too a few years back lol… but this younger generation didn’t care about none of that.. they started embracing all the dances… Jersey def need credit though.”
Another added, “Just let them kids from Philly make their money in peace.” Jayhood responded with, “& the kids in jersey shouldn’t? Foh.. hell no it don’t work like that my guy.”
The Gibson Hazard-directed video arrives after thousands of videos circulated on TikTok using the #IJustWannaRock hashtag. Even some celebrities have participated in the dance craze catapulted by Uzi. Kevin Hart posted a hilarious video of his attempt at Uzi’s dance as he kept repeating the chorus, “I just wanna rock.”
The single follows the release of Uzi’s EP RED & WHITE which dropped in July. “Just Wanna Rock” is slated to appear on his forthcoming fifth studio album The Pink Tape. However, its release date has yet to be confirmed.
Uzi has also revealed that he’ll be heading on a 20-city tour in 2023 produced by Live Nation.
Check out the energetic music video to “Just Wanna Rock” above.