I'm not a particularly patriotic person.
But a scene in season two of Heartbreak High legit brought a tear to my eye. The moment came at the school formal in episode eight, as a familiar guitar riff blared from the speakers, the Gen Z'ers rushed to the dance floor and something special began.
It is, of course, time for the Nutbush.
This song was written and recorded by the late American music icon, Tina Tuner, yet for some mysterious reason has become Australia's unofficial anthem.
Tina's 'Nutbush City Limits' is played at every school dance, deb ball, wedding, Christmas party, or basically, any time a group of Aussies congregates on a dance floor.
At long last, Nutbushers are now represented in the mainstream on Netflix's Heartbreak High, a wildly popular teen series viewed around the world. I must say, the patriotism leaped from my body watching a bunch of cool teens do the daggiest of dances.
And already, the Australian pride from this moment is FOR REAL.
So what the bloody hell is the Nutbush dance?
Let's go back to the beginning. Ike and Tina Turner released 'Nutbush City Limits' in 1973, and it became a huge hit — especially in Australia. The song itself is actually about Turner's hometown of Nutbush in Tennessee, which has a rural community known for cotton growing.
So yeah... no obvious Australian connection whatsoever.
Turner did not choreograph any of Australia's signature dance moves. In fact, when Turner performed the song on stage she would do her signature energetic dance... a very different energy to Australia's stiff and robotic interpretation.
In fact, most people outside of Australia have no clue why we have a national dance to this Tina Turner hit.
BUT WE CALL IT NUTBUSH CITY LIMITS.
The song 'Nutbush City Limits' was picked because it was a popular song at the time and had a repetitive beat which meant even the least coordinated among us could follow the dance.
As children in NSW schools began doing the Nutbush, teachers from other states introduced it into their school programs and it clearly spread like wildfire.
And one thing is for sure, if you ever need to quickly locate an Australian anywhere, you know what to do.
@sumiegray He ate ngl #dance #concert #nutbush #aussie #fyp ♬ original sound - sumiegray
That's 'Straya for you!
Season two of Heartbreak High is streaming on Netflix.
Feature image: Comedy Central/Netflix.
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