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Japanese cheerleaders’ cute fox dance goes viral, videos rack up millions of views
Nine years since the 2013 viral hit song "The Fox (What Does the Fox Say?)" by Ylvis hit the airwaves, the Norwegian comedy duo performed it in a Japanese baseball stadium, surrounded by 300 cheerleaders clad in fox ears and tails and to the delight of fans. It was the first time they had performed the song for a live crowd since 2017 and their first trip to Japan.
As some of our readers may recall, Japanese baseball Pacific League team Hokkaido Nippon-Ham Fighters, who are based in Japan's northernmost island and prefecture, Hokkaido, began playing "The Fox" at the beginning of the 2022 season when their cheerleader team, Fighters Girl, introduced a new dance number. Donning fuzzy fox ears, they danced a catchy routine to the song, and it quickly became a fan favorite with even other team mascots and players joining in the dance. The きつねダンス (kitsune dansu | "fox dance"), as it came to be known, also went viral on social media.
Finally on September 19th, 2022, Ylvis themselves made an appearance, performing their famous song before the Nippon-Ham Fighters faced the Chiba Lotte Marines.
Showing up in fox suits, brothers Vegard and Bård Ylvisåker entertained the crowds. The Nikkan Sports reported that the 300 cheerleaders paid homage to the music video by putting on serious faces while they danced.
According to Sponichi Annex, Vegard joked: "We're glad that the Japanese have taken their time to realize the quality of this song." Bård excitedly added: "This was amazing. It really put me in a good mood."
The duo are scheduled to appear on numerous music variety shows during their stay, such as TV Asahi's "Music Station" and NHK's うたコン "Utacon".