Flash mobs aren't new to -- there have been several there in the last couple years.
But there was a key difference between those and by Cleveland rapper Machine Gun Kelly -- an event that drew hundreds of screaming fans and eded in the rapper's arrest.
Permission.
"All of the other flash mobs were coordinated with us and I assisted with every one of them," mall Marketing Director Andy Selesnik said in an email.
Videos show the previous flash mobs were not very disruptive, like this one by the Cleveland Swings dance club Nov. 20, 2010.
Some others involve teens performing choreographed dances in May, 2010 and Dec. 20, 2010.
It's apparent the mall was involved because the music for the routines is piped through the sound system.
By contrast, Machine Gun Kelly posted this video of Saturday's 5 p.m. event on You Tube.
It shows the rapper and his group being greeted by fans in the malls food court, outside , and jumping on tables to be seen.
Strongsville police said the group members were asked to get off the tables and did not comply. Several were arrested for disorderly conduct and removed from the mall -- including a shirtless Machine Gun Kelly in handcuffs.
Selesnik said it is too early to comment on the future of flash mobs at Westfield SouthPark as "the whole situation is being reviewed."
But the nature of flash mobs has taken a violent turn in recent months.
A in the Coventry neighborhood of Cleveland Heights made headlines in June after thousands of kids gathered at an art fair. Fights broke out and 16 people were arrested, prompting local officials to impose a 6 p.m. curfew for minors in the city's business districts.
It's not known what Machine Gun Kelly had planned at Westfield SouthPark on Saturday, other than to gather as many fans as he could and possibly perform for them in the food court.
Another key difference in Saturday's event is that this one was advertised and fans were encouraged to attend, rather than other flash mobs in which no crowds were gathered to watch.
The rapper organized the flash mob through Twitter.
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To read the words in some of Machine Gun Kelly's songs, simply copy and paste these links: http://www.lyricsbox.com/machine-gun-kelly-lyrics-cleveland-67tc94w.html http://www.lyricsbox.com/machine-gun-kelly-lyrics-the-return-4g6vc2k.html http://www.lyricsbox.com/machine-gun-kelly-lyrics-salute-z8lhtgr.html http://www.lyricsbox.com/machine-gun-kelly-lyrics-cleveland-67tc94w.html Seems to me there are two issues, should they have the "right" to frighten and intimidate all of the other families that were at the mall that day? Answer-Obviously, NO. And is Machine Gun Kelly really the role model we want our kids to follow? Do we want our children to be like him, to talk like him? Because if we don't, then we better make sure they aren't listening to him!