Beyonce’s moves are so iconic that they’ve spawned thousands of dance classes around the world inspired by her.
Yet it’s now been claimed that her perhaps her most signature move – her famed booty shake – actually came from a very unexpected source.
Speaking on BBC documentary Boybands Forever, the Nineties British group 911 have laid claim to the move – saying they taught Beyonce how to do it.
Formed of Lee Brennan, Jimmy Constable and Simon ‘Spike’ Dawbarn in 1995, the group scored ten UK top 10 singles in the five years before they split.
For their 1997 hit Bodyshakin’, they famously shook their bodies when performing, with Spike revealing that Beyonce was fascinated by their show.
He explained: ‘There’s something about that move… we did a TV show with Destiny’s Child. We performed and we did Bodyshakin’ and Beyonce was like “show us that move! Keep doing it”.’
Beyonce’s moves are so iconic that they’ve spawned dance classes around the world. Yet it’s now been claimed that her famed booty shake actually came from a very unexpected source.
Speaking on Boybands Forever, British group 911 laid claim to the move – saying they taught Beyonce how to do it (L-R Simon ‘Spike’ Dawburn, Jimmy Constable and Lee Brennan in 1996)
Spike continued: ‘And me and jimmy were just stood there, doing the move because if Beyonce asked you, you did it!
‘So when you watch Beyonce videos doing the booty shake I’m like “ah, she robbed it!” We did it first!’
It’s not the first time Beyonce has been accused of stealing dance moves.
In 2011, Belgian choreographer Anne Teresa De Keersmaeker claimed the singer had copied several of her moves for her single Countdown.
Speaking to a Danish blog, De Keersmaeker said she had not been asked permission by Beyonce’s record label to use her original work.
‘I didn’t know anything about this. I’m not mad, but this is plagiarism,’ she said.
Meanwhile, speaking about the inspiration behind Bodyshakin’ songwriter John McLaughlin mused on the BBC show: ‘Spike and Jimmy were fantastic dancers. It wasn’t even dancing, it was acrobatics…
‘So I was like OK, let’s give them a song that’s a themed song. We wanted it to sound like a dance. A word that just sticks in your brain.
‘When Bodyshakin’ came, I thought ah that’s it!’
MailOnline has contacted Beyonce’s representatives for comment.
Spike revealed: ‘We did a TV show with Destiny’s Child. We did Bodyshakin’ and Beyonce was like “show us that move! Keep doing it”. She robbed it!’
For their 1997 hit Bodyshakin’, the band famously shook their bodies when performing, with Spike revealing that Beyonce was fascinated by their show and asked them how to do the move
It’s not the first time Beyonce has been accused of stealing dance moves (pictured in her music video for her 2011 hit Countdown)
Belgian choreographer Anne Teresa De Keersmaeker previously claimed the singer had copied several of her moves for her single Countdown
Boybands Forever uncovered the dark side of Nineties and Noughties bands, with Lee admitting that his time with 911 was ‘a whirlwind of planes, hotels, gigs, press conferences.’
‘We were so tired and we didn’t have a minute to think,’ he confessed, before sharing that found the attention from fans difficult to handle.
The band split in 2010 and Jimmy was tasked with announcing the news in a live radio interview on the Chris Moyles Show on Radio 1 in 2000.
Speaking in an interview with the Guardian in 2005, Jimmy revealed the impact it had on him. ‘I didn’t have any time to get my head around it,’ he said.
‘I had a lump in my throat saying it, then we came out of Radio 1 and the other two guys went to the pub. I got in my car and took off and I never saw them for two years.’
After the band split, Jimmy turned to drink and drugs, facing an addiction battle that eventually led to an appearance on the Jeremy Kyle show in 2013.
After their split, 911 have reunited for several gigs in recent years.
Just last year the group collaborated with Vietnamese singer Đức Phúc for a bilingual version of I Do in English and Vietnamese, which reached No.1 on the Billboard Top 100 in Vietnam.
They had several top 10 hits including Bodyshakin, Private Number and All I Want Is You.
Formed in 1995, the group scored ten UK top 10 singles in the five years before they split. They had several top 10 hits including Bodyshakin, Private Number and All I Want Is You
911 have reunited for several gigs in recent years and last year the group collaborated with Vietnamese singer Đức Phúc for a bilingual version of I Do in English and Vietnamese
