The camel walk is a ragtime

Ragtime

Ragtime is an original musical genre which enjoyed its peak popularity between 1897 and 1918. Its main characteristic trait is its syncopated, or "ragged," rhythm. It began as dance music in the red-light districts of American cities such as St. Louis and New Orleans years before being published...

 dance

Dance

Dance is an art form that generally refers to movement of the body, usually rhythmic and to music, used as a form of expression, social interaction or presented in a spiritual or performance setting....

 that was popular in the 1960s. James Brown

James Brown

James Joseph Brown was an American singer, songwriter, musician, and recording artist. He is the originator of Funk and is recognized as a major figure in the 20th century popular music for both his vocals and dancing. He has been referred to as "The Godfather of Soul," "Mr...

 often used this dance in his routine when he performed on stage.

Origin

The camel walk originated as a ragtime dance in the early 20th century. It was referred to as an “animal ragtime dance”, due to the nature of the dance.

The Dance

The original camel walk started out in vaudeville

Vaudeville

Vaudeville was a theatrical genre of variety entertainment in the United States and Canada from the early 1880s until the early 1930s. Each performance was made up of a series of separate, unrelated acts grouped together on a common bill...

 shows during the early part of the 20th Century. It became popular with college students, most notably “flapper

Flapper

Flapper in the 1920s was a term applied to a "new breed" of young Western women who wore short skirts, bobbed their hair, listened to jazz, and flaunted their disdain for what was then considered acceptable behavior...

s”, as a social dance during the 1910s and 1920s. The dance received disapproval from the general public, as the female dancers would often rest their shoulders upon the lead dancer’s shoulder as they danced. This was seen as vulgar at the time. Despite the negative reputation, the camel walk remained popular through much of the 20th century.

1950s/1960s Variant

The camel walk entered the 1950s and 1960s as a retro dance. However, unlike the group dance that it was in the 1920s, this version of the camel walk was more of a solo act. One notable performer of this dance was James Brown, who performed it when doing concerts and stage shows. Parts of the 1950s/1960s camel walk were used in Michael Jackson

Michael Jackson

Michael Joseph Jackson was an American recording artist, entertainer, and businessman. Referred to as the King of Pop, or by his initials MJ, Jackson is recognized as the most successful entertainer of all time by Guinness World Records...

’s version of the memorable moonwalk dance.