In order to avoid looking “cheugy” to Gen Z, older managers (Millennials, Gen X, and Boomers) are constantly trying to stay ahead of workplace trends. However, in doing so, sometimes leaders can miss the mark — which seems to be exactly what happened at the Canva Create conference on May 23.
Attendees were able to score a spot at the event for $175. The conference was also live-streamed globally.
“Whether you’re a professional, nonprofit, educator, or creator, it’s shaping up to be a world-class creative festival with the unique opportunity to learn from and network with like-minded innovators,” the company said.
But in a now-viral clip, a musical performance with a rapper and six backup dancers is being panned for being “cringe.”
Though the entire performance feels like an Off-Broadway parody of Hamilton, thanks to the cadence and conversation in the lyrics, the reviews were not what producers would want to see.
Just canceled my Canva subscription pic.twitter.com/4H0dLKFdMa
— Chris Bakke (@ChrisJBakke) May 26, 2024
Imagine spending your entire childhood waking up early, traveling, competing, developing eating disorders, all just to get into Juilliard to become a professional dancer, and then you end up being a backup dancer at the Canva corporate employee summit’s tech rap battle number https://t.co/klmJNoAsl4
— Anne ??? (@GovernorAnne) May 26, 2024
Yes this is peak cringe.. but screw it, I hope Canva just keeps pumping out these musical numbers. Lean into the cringe, make it their brand. Get us talking about just how bad it will be so we anticipate the next conference.
pic.twitter.com/4nvm3UYXLV— Brad Colbow (@bradcolbow) May 27, 2024
just wanted to take a moment to apologize and take back everything nice i’ve ever said about canva. pic.twitter.com/aJVa9ROHaQ
— Aleks (@aleksliving) May 26, 2024
Related: Turning Points: Melanie Perkins, Co-Founder And CEO, Canva
Canva is not the first company to get pushback for “cringe” at a company event this month. Earlier in May, at Google’s I/O Event, a musician was also mocked for his performance.
Canva did not immediately respond to Entrepreneur’s request for comment.
