You probably remember exactly where you were the first time you saw four guys in tracksuits dancing on treadmills. It was 2006. YouTube was barely a year old. Low-resolution video was the standard, and high-speed internet felt like a luxury. Then came OK Go. Specifically, then came the here it goes again song, a power-pop track that, honestly, might have been just another catchy radio tune if it weren't for those eight motorized belts. It changed everything. It wasn't just a music video; it was a proof of concept for the digital age.
The "treadmill video" basically invented the modern viral loop.
Before we got TikTok dances and choreographed Instagram Reels, we had Damian Kulash, Tim Nordwind, Dan Konopka, and Andy Ross. They didn't have a massive budget. They didn't have CGI. What they had was a basement, a bunch of rented fitness equipment, and a level of persistence that borderlines on clinical obsession. If you watch the video today, it still holds up because it’s real. There’s no safety net. One trip, one mistimed jump, and the whole take is ruined. That raw, "we might actually fall" energy is why people still click on it today.
The Choreography That Broke the Internet
Let's be real: the here it goes again song is a masterclass in DIY engineering. The band worked with Trish Sie, Damian’s sister and a professional choreographer, to map out every single movement. They spent weeks in a warehouse. They practiced until their legs were jelly. They recorded 17 full takes in a single day, and the one we all know—the one that won a Grammy—was take number 14.
Think about the physics for a second.
You aren't just dancing; you’re dancing on a surface moving at a constant speed in the opposite direction. Your muscle memory has to fight your survival instincts. Most people don't realize that the treadmills weren't even fancy high-tech models. They were standard, mid-range machines that they had to carefully align so they wouldn't drift apart during the performance.
The song itself often gets overshadowed by the visual. Written by Damian Kulash, "Here It Goes Again" is a textbook example of mid-2000s indie rock. It’s got that crunchy guitar riff, a driving beat, and lyrics that perfectly mirror the "loop" nature of the video. It’s about that frustrating feeling of being stuck in a cycle—"here it goes, here it goes, here it goes again." It’s meta. It’s self-aware. It’s the kind of song that sounds like a Saturday afternoon in a garage.
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Why It Worked (And Why Most Fails Today)
A lot of brands try to "go viral" now. They hire consultants. They spend millions. Usually, it flops. OK Go succeeded because they weren't trying to sell you a product; they were trying to share an idea. There’s a certain "found art" quality to the here it goes again song video. It feels like something you and your friends could do in your garage, even though you definitely couldn't. Not without the 100+ hours of rehearsal they put in.
- Zero Cuts: The one-take format creates stakes. You’re rooting for them to finish.
- The Aesthetic: The matching outfits and the wood-paneled basement screamed "indie" in a way that felt authentic.
- The Surprise: Nobody expected a rock band to be world-class synchronized treadmill dancers.
The simplicity was the hook. In 2006, the video was uploaded to YouTube and garnered one million views in the first six days. By today’s standards, that’s a slow Tuesday for a MrBeast video, but in 2006? That was astronomical. It was one of the first times a band bypassed MTV entirely to reach their audience.
The Business of the Treadmill
Industry experts often point to this moment as the beginning of the end for traditional music video distribution. Capitol Records, their label at the time, didn't initially know what to do with it. They weren't used to content they couldn't control. Interestingly, the band eventually went independent, partly because they realized they could reach more fans through clever digital experiments than through corporate marketing budgets.
The here it goes again song became a blueprint. It showed that "the idea" was more valuable than "the production value." You don't need a 4K Red camera if your concept is brilliant.
However, there’s a downside. OK Go sort of became "the treadmill band." For years, they had to fight the perception that they were a gimmick act. They followed up with increasingly complex videos—Rube Goldberg machines, zero-gravity planes, cars playing instruments—but the treadmill video remains the purest expression of their brand. It’s the "Seven Nation Army" of music videos; everyone knows the riff, and everyone knows the visual.
Misconceptions About the Recording
One thing people get wrong is thinking the song was written for the treadmills. It wasn't. The track was already on their album Oh No, which came out in 2005. The video didn't surface until 2006. The song was already a modest hit on alternative radio, but the video turned it into a cultural phenomenon.
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Also, despite how smooth it looks, the band members have admitted they were terrified of the machines. The treadmills were positioned so close together that if one person fell, they would likely take out the person next to them. It was a domino effect waiting to happen. If you look closely at Andy Ross during some of the transitions, you can see the intense focus on his face. He isn't just performing; he's navigating a moving obstacle course.
Legacy in the Age of Short-Form Video
If you look at TikTok today, the DNA of the here it goes again song is everywhere. Every "treadmill dance" challenge or synchronized transition owes a debt to OK Go. They proved that human synchronization is inherently satisfying to watch. It triggers something in the brain—a mix of awe and rhythmic satisfaction.
But there is a nuance here that often gets lost. OK Go wasn't just doing a "challenge." They were making art. There’s a difference between a 15-second clip of someone doing a dance they learned in ten minutes and a four-minute, single-take endurance test. The here it goes again song represents a bridge between the old world of professional music videos and the new world of user-generated content.
How to Apply the OK Go Logic to Your Own Projects
If you’re a creator, musician, or just someone trying to get an idea off the ground, there are genuine lessons to be learned from this specific moment in pop culture history. It isn't about buying a treadmill. It's about the "effort-to-reward" ratio.
First, embrace limitations. OK Go didn't have a Hollywood budget, so they used what they had: their bodies and some gym equipment. Constraints often breed better creativity than unlimited resources do. If they had a million dollars, they probably would have used green screens and it would have looked terrible five years later.
Second, do the work. The reason the here it goes again song video feels effortless is that it was incredibly difficult. The "human quality" comes from the fact that they are actually tired by the end of it. Authenticity can't be faked in a one-take shot. If you want people to care about what you’re making, you have to put in the "invisible hours" that nobody sees.
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Third, think about the loop. The song is catchy because it’s repetitive in a good way. The video is rewatchable because you keep seeing new details in the background or the footwork. Whether you're writing a blog post or filming a video, give people a reason to come back for a second look.
What really happened with the here it goes again song wasn't just a lucky break. It was a perfect alignment of a catchy hook, a revolutionary new platform (YouTube), and four guys willing to look a little bit ridiculous for the sake of a great idea. It remains a high-water mark for what's possible when you stop trying to be "cool" and start trying to be interesting.
To truly appreciate the impact, go back and watch the video again, but ignore the band. Just watch the treadmills. Watch how they move, how they're spaced, and how the floor vibrates. It’s a messy, mechanical, beautiful piece of history.
Next Steps for Enthusiasts and Creators:
- Analyze the Take: Watch the video and try to spot the moment where they look the most tired; it usually happens around the 2:30 mark during the cross-overs.
- Listen to the Album: Check out the rest of the Oh No album. Tracks like "Do What You Want" carry the same high-energy power-pop vibe without the treadmill baggage.
- Study the Choreography: If you’re a dancer or filmmaker, look up Trish Sie’s interviews about the production. She explains the "grid system" they used to keep the band from crashing into each other.
The era of the "viral video" has changed, but the fundamental rules of engagement haven't. People want to see something that looks impossible being done by people who look like them. That’s the magic of OK Go.