News Every Day | 20 August 2022, 23:53

‘Wow lulu is the new corporate uniform’: Students show ‘corporate America rush’ outfits for Zoom meetings

A TikToker named Matt (@this.isnt.matt) went viral on the popular video-sharing platform for posting a corporate spoof of the popular "Bama Rush" trend.

If you aren't familiar, Bama Rush Week is a mid-August recruitment period for sororities at the University of Alabama. Folks hoping to attend the sorority will usually post a short clip describing what they're wearing along with a small fact about themselves in a bid to get accepted into the prestigious groups.

Now, the trend has extended to another exclusive group—the corporate workforce. Matt, a student at Baylor University, lampooned the Bama Rush videos with a "Corporate Rush" video where he and several other co-workers show off their outfits while giving their best Bama Rush auditions.

@this.isnt.matt Corporate America Rush Day 1 - OOTD #bamarush #ootd #rush #southern #goldengoose ♬ original sound - Matt

"Hi y'all, welcome to Corporate America Rush Day One. This is on Zoom," Matt says at the beginning of the video, explaining why the outfits that follow are primarily "professional" from the waist up. "So my tie is Joseph A. Bank, my jacket is Joseph A. Bank, shirt from Macy's, joggers from Lulu, custom Golden Gooses, Apple Watch from the Memaw, and I got a tropical smoothie cafe, Island Green."

Then, a young woman comes into view wearing what appears to be bicycle shorts with her blazer. "Hi everybody, welcome y'all to this vlog so I'm...we're at Bama Rush day one, why is everyone laughing at me?" she asks before explaining her outfit, featuring Lululemon shorts and "normal" jewelry, as Bama rushers frequently refer to everyday items.

A third person then enters the frame. "OK hey everyone my blazer is from Nordstrom, my shirt is from Dillard's, my necklace is from Nordstrom, my pants are from Lulu, my shoes are from Nordstrom, and my jewelry's Normal," they say.

Another employee jumps in front of the camera wearing a black pantsuit and describes their outfit, again with Lululemon pants.

Then, the final Corporate "Rusher," Ben, shows up on camera. "What's up? Hi I'm dressed in a full suit I'm working on my personal branding guys," he then turns to other folks in the room. "Um, what am I supposed to say?"

Then Matt turns the camera to his face, "That's it, OK bye!" everyone in the room giggles and then the clip cuts out.

Tons of major companies left remarks in the comments section of Matt's clip. The Lululemon brand wrote, "Here for the pants party," because so many of the folks in the clip said that they were rocking Lulu gear. LinkedIn's TikTok account simply wrote, "you're hired."

Other folks who saw the clip said that the video was giving them professional-looking yet comfortable office outfit ideas, while others said that they hoped more corporate workers would join in on the fun, turning "corporate rush" into a thing.

So what's the deal with the Bama Rush videos? And why did they become so popular? It gained notoriety online in 2021, so much so that HBO Max and Vice Studios produced a documentary on the phenomenon.

Post-vaccinations, many college students were stoked at the prospect of returning to school in person after most of the country lifted mandates implemented in response to the COVID-19 pandemic. Engaging in sorority activities was once again novel and fresh.

Then there was the fact that large demographics of social media users outside of the United States viewed the Bama Rush phenomenon as a scientific case study of sorts. These all worked together to create a massive viewership of any and all content related to the Bama Rush phenomenon.

It seems that Matt is keeping up with his "Corporate Rush" posts and has uploaded other TikToks in the same vein—whether it's a post-dinner clip or a pro-sales meeting where the team is rocking green polos.

The Daily Dot has reached out to Matt for further comment on TikTok regarding his "Corporate Rush" clips.

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