Werk: Best Dance Moves in a Music Video

Some scenes, like MJ's Smooth Criminal lean, are timeless.

Werk: Best Dance Moves in a Music Video

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Werk: Best Dance Moves in a Music Video

Werk: Best Dance Moves in a Music Video - Dance, like vocals and beats, has been a way of carrying on tradition, and sometimes the movements produce some of the most memorable moments in our collective consciousness. Where were you when you first saw Michael Jackson's anti-gravity lean? If a woman flips her hand back and forth, does it not mean "put a ring on it"? Click on for some other unforgettable music video dance scenes.(Photos from left: Michael Buckner/Getty Images, Samir Hussein/WireImage,Frank Micelotta/ImageDirect)

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Werk: Best Dance Moves in a Music Video - Dance, like vocals and beats, has been a way of carrying on tradition, and sometimes the movements produce some of the most memorable moments in our collective consciousness. Where were you when you first saw Michael Jackson's anti-gravity lean? If a woman flips her hand back and forth, does it not mean "put a ring on it"? Click on for some other unforgettable music video dance scenes.(Photos from left: Michael Buckner/Getty Images, Samir Hussein/WireImage,Frank Micelotta/ImageDirect)

Chris Brown, "Run It" - This is not your average high school dance. The Scott Storch beat and a Juelz Santana feature set the pace for a male vs. female battle in the video for Chris Brown's debut single. By the end, the baby-faced hip hop dance prodigy had won our hearts.(Photo: RCA)

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Chris Brown, "Run It" - This is not your average high school dance. The Scott Storch beat and a Juelz Santana feature set the pace for a male vs. female battle in the video for Chris Brown's debut single. By the end, the baby-faced hip hop dance prodigy had won our hearts.(Photo: RCA)

“Single Ladies (Put a Ring on It)” – Beyoncé - Six months after marrying Jay Z, Bey dropped this now classic song for her single fans. Along with the ditty came the iconic music video, which spawned a million viral video parodies, including Justin Timberlake's famous one on Saturday Night Live.  (Photo: Columbia Records)

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Beyoncé, "Single Ladies (Put a Ring on It)" - Beyoncé started a viral video craze (and the Kanye West/Taylor Swift debacle) with this minimalistic visual acompaniment to the lead single for her I Am...Sasha Fierce collection. The dance-pop R&B song with bounce beat, disco and dancehall elements laid the perfect background for the cheerleader-esque choreography inspired by Bob Fosse's "Mexican Breakfast" and J-Setting, a modern day vogue dance that was previously only popular in southern gay clubs.(Photo: Columbia Records)

Usher, "Yeah!" - The club-floor choreography in this Usher video not only brought light to stateside movements like the A-Town Stomp, it also drew from Caribbean dances like the Thunderclap and sparked a huge anthem for Fat Joe and the Terror Squad, who picked up the Rockaway dance for his "Lean Back."(Photo:Arista Records)

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Usher, "Yeah!" - The club-floor choreography in this Usher video not only brought light to stateside movements like the A-Town Stomp, it also drew from Caribbean dances like the Thunderclap and sparked a huge anthem for Fat Joe and the Terror Squad, who picked up the Rockaway dance for his "Lean Back."(Photo:Arista Records)

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Ciara, "Goodies" featuring Petey Pablo - Ciara's debut was her declaration that she's "sexy, independent," and it came with some hard-hitting dance moves that were a direct contrast to her airy vocals, including one that became one of her signatures: the Matrix.(Photo: LaFace Records)

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Ciara, "Goodies" featuring Petey Pablo - Ciara's debut was her declaration that she's "sexy, independent," and it came with some hard-hitting dance moves that were a direct contrast to her airy vocals, including one that became one of her signatures: the Matrix.(Photo: LaFace Records)

The Smoothest of Criminals - Real or an illusion? In Jackson's 1987 video for "Smooth Criminal," we saw him defy gravity as he leaned forward almost 180 degrees. In 1993, Jackson co-patented specially made shoes that hitch into a device on the stage, thus presenting the illusion of anti-gravity and some cool moves.  (Photo: Epic Records)

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Michael Jackson, "Smooth Criminal" - The mix of ballroom dancing and Michael Jackson's signature moves in this Western-set-in-a-nightclub are only topped by the legendary moment when he and his fedora-wearing crew do the anti-gravity lean and circular moonwalk.(Photo: Epic Records)

Omarion, "Touch" - Before Omarion's throbbing heart became an ice box, it was accentuated with the moves in this O single. Shane Sparks choreographed the dance between the B2K graduate and Step Up 2: The Streets star Danielle Polanco.(Photo: Sony Music)

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Omarion, "Touch" - Before Omarion's throbbing heart became an ice box, it was accentuated with the moves in this O single. Shane Sparks choreographed the dance between the B2K graduate and Step Up 2: The Streets star Danielle Polanco.(Photo: Sony Music)

Janet Jackson, "Rhythm Nation" - No color was needed for this black and white military-inspired video from Janet Jackson's fourth studio album because the dance moves — from the finger count down to the standing split — were as crisp as the uniforms.(Photo: A&M Records)

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Janet Jackson, "Rhythm Nation" - No color was needed for this black and white military-inspired video from Janet Jackson's fourth studio album because the dance moves — from the finger count down to the standing split — were as crisp as the uniforms.(Photo: A&M Records)

Justin Timberlake and Timbaland "My Love" video

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Justin Timberlake, "My Love" featuring T.I. - Justin Timberlake Fred Astaires his way through dancing lights and flashes of color with clean and smooth moves in this black-and-white video that could have easily been a Gap ad.(Photo: RCA Records)

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Aaliyah, "Are You That Somebody" - Famed choreographer Fatima Robinson got behind the scenes for this video and managed to work in the energetic Flamenco dance with Aaliyah's laid-back hip hop moves, perfectly complementing Timbaland's production.(Photo: Atlantic Records)

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Aaliyah, "Are You That Somebody" - Famed choreographer Fatima Robinson got behind the scenes for this video and managed to work in the energetic Flamenco dance with Aaliyah's laid-back hip hop moves, perfectly complementing Timbaland's production.(Photo: Atlantic Records)

'Work It' Out - After losing "a few pounds" in her waist for ya', Missy Elliott delivered one of her most creative videos to date with "Work It." The video not only featured amazing young dancers, it also served as one of the first tributes of many to Aaliyah and Lisa "Left Eye" Lopes.   (Photo: Elektra Records)

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Missy Elliot, "Work It" - Missy Elliot has some of the most creative videos in hip hop, like this VMA-winning one that featured live bumblebees, Mr. Wiggles from the Rock Steady Crew and Missy doing handstands and headspins — without messing up a single strand of her furry Kangol hat.(Photo: Elektra Records)

Sean Paul "Get Busy"" - Just about everyone is ready to “Get Busy” on the dance floor in the video for Sean Paul’s single of that name. The singer never steps out from behind the mic, instead serving as the master of ceremonies for everyone’s good times. (Photo: Atlantic Records)

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Sean Paul, "Get Busy" - Though Sean Paul doesn't show off his Bogle in this one, the guests at this dancehall house party give a perfect demostration of Jamaica-to-Bronx dancing — wines included.(Photo: Atlantic Records)

Jennifer Lopez, "Love Don't Cost a Thing" - J. Lo made a postcard-pituresque moment an urban experience when she donned cornrows, a crop top and baggy jeans for a dance scene in this video. Flanked by male dancers, Lopez adds a bit of her Latin flavor to a break in the beat.(Photo: EPIC Records) 

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Jennifer Lopez, "Love Don't Cost a Thing" - J. Lo made a postcard-pituresque moment an urban experience when she donned cornrows, a crop top and baggy jeans for a dance scene in this video. Flanked by male dancers, Lopez adds a bit of her Latin flavor to a break in the beat.(Photo: EPIC Records) 

Mya, "Case of the Ex" - This video won an American Choreography Award for Best Hip Hop Video due to Mya and her all-girl crew serving up some "whatchu gonna do" in the desert to a group of nonplussed men.(Photo: Interscope Records) 

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Mya, "Case of the Ex" - This video won an American Choreography Award for Best Hip Hop Video due to Mya and her all-girl crew serving up some "whatchu gonna do" in the desert to a group of nonplussed men.(Photo: Interscope Records) 

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Mindless Behavior, "Keep It on the Low" - A suited-up Mindless Behavior grooves "like the Jacksons" between security laser beams and cyberspace data streams for this lead single from their second studio album, All Around the World. Their mission: deliver a high tech performance in just five minutes.(Photo: Interscope Records)

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Mindless Behavior, "Keep It on the Low" - A suited-up Mindless Behavior grooves "like the Jacksons" between security laser beams and cyberspace data streams for this lead single from their second studio album, All Around the World. Their mission: deliver a high tech performance in just five minutes.(Photo: Interscope Records)

10. Chris Brown "Turn Up the Music" - Chris Brown showed off his dance skills in the Michael Jackson-inspired video “Turn Up the Music.”(Photo: Jive Records)

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Chris Brown, "Turn Up the Music" - Chris Brown uses the frenetic choreography of this hot like fuego track to unleash a beastly calm — the kind that comes just before the pounce. That unique balance that he brings as a dancer won him two 2012 VMA Awards for this one — Best Male Video and Best Choreography.(Photo: RCA Records)