It was written by Carlton Mahone and Rodney Terry, with lead vocals sung by Virgo Williams.

In 2016, the song was re-popularized by the "Running Man Challenge" and re-entered the Hot 100, achieving a new peak of number 27 twenty years after its original release.

[11] Abroad, the song became a major hit in New Zealand, where it rose to number three on the RIANZ Singles Chart and earned a gold certification for sales in excess of 5,000 copies.

The original videos were posted on Vine by high school students Kevin Vincent and Jeremiah Hall in Hillside, New Jersey.

[22] Inspired by Vincent and Hall's video, two players from the University of Maryland basketball program, Jared Nickens and Jaylen Brantley,[23] filmed their own versions of the Running Man Challenge, spreading the meme.

[24] The challenge went viral on Vine, and Vincent, Hall, Nickens and Brantley were invited to perform it on The Ellen DeGeneres Show.

[25] Many other athletes from various sports, a number of celebrities and the general public embraced the trend and produced their own takes of the dance.