The John Wall Dance is a dance performed by flexing the arms and twisting the wrist.[1] American basketball player John Wall first performed the eponymous dance during his introduction at Big Blue Madness at the University of Kentucky in October 2009.[1] Wall says that his idea for the dance came from the music video of the song "Do the Shizz" made by the Louisville rapper Kenzo.[1] LaShawn "Sugar Shizz" Talbert, who inspired the dance, performed "The Shizz" in the music video.[2][3] The John Wall Dance has subsequently integrated itself into popular culture.[3][1]
On August 21, 2010, LaShawn "Sugar Shizz" Talbert, the inspiration behind the John Wall Dance, died after being shot in the head in Louisville.[2][4][5] Talbert created the dance "The Shizz" which was shown in a music video by Kenzo who further popularized his dance move.[2][5]
On March 11, 2011, Kensey "Kenzo" Rankin, the hip hop artist from Kentucky who wrote the song "Do the Shizz", filed a lawsuit against CBS Broadcasting for airing segments regarding Wall and the dance.[6][7] Kenzo owned the copyright to the song with Gracie Productions LLC and Marcus Clark and alleged that CBS exploited the song without permission, though he did not claim copyright of the dance.[6][7]
