def
SOL Productions
- Hip Hop Dance Studios
615 - 2nd Avenue North * Saskatoon SK S7K 2C7
306.382.8367
def SOL Performance Company 09/10 | About Us | Events & Workshops
"Fresh Hip Hop 101" Technique Classes | "Booty-licious" Dance/Fitness | def SOL for Hire
Studio Calendar | Student Newsletter
Techniques
Urban / Street Styles Taught &/or Sampled by def SOL
FUNK: Locking | Boogaloo | Popping | Tutting
STREET:
BBoy
| Krump |
Steppin
| Uprock
| Clowning
| TURF
| Hyphy
Jooking
| Jerking
| Clown Walking
CLUB: New Jack Swing | Dancehall | Reggaeton | FAD Dances | Crunk
Punking | Vogue | House | Juke Dance
FUNK
In the 80's when street dancing blew up on the scene, the media often
incorrectly used the term "breakdancing" or “hip hop” as an umbrella term
for most the street styles that they saw. What many people don’t know is
that many of these styles were part of a separate dance movement with its
own history and founders. While breakdancing, better known as bboying
started on the East Coast as an element of hip hop culture, styles such as
Popping, locking and boogaloo were being created in the West Coast as part
of the funk era. While these funk styles were eventually adopted into the
hip-hop movement, its roots should still be recognized as pure funk. Hence
the term, ‘Funk Styles’. Other funk styles created during this time
include: floating/gliding, tutting, robot, ticking, waving, strobing…and
many more! (www.electricboogaloos.com)
Click on the links below for a breakdown of some of the popular funk
styles sampled and instructed in def SOL’s Funk Classes.
Locking Boogaloo
Popping Tutting
LOCKING
Locking, (originally Campbellocking) is a comical street dance using
the frequent "locking" of limbs in time with the music. It relies on fast
and distinct arm and hand movements combined with more relaxed hips and
legs. The movements are generally large and exaggerated, and often very
rhythmic and tightly synched with the music. Locking is quite performance
oriented, often interacting with the audience by smiling or giving them a
high five. The beginning of Locking can be traced to one man, Don
Campbell. In the late 1960s he put together several fad dances adding
moves of his own (notably the "Lock") when performing which became
fundamental to the new style called Campbellocking.
Sources:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Locking_(dance)
https://www.msu.edu/~okumurak/styles/pop.html
http://www.mrwiggles.biz/hip_hop_dance.htm
Watch it:
http://ca.youtube.com/watch?v=qktA59QgcAY&feature=related
BOOGALOO
In a town called Fresno, California, there lived
a shy boy named Sam. Inspired to create his own style of dance after
seeing the original Lockers perform on TV, in 1975 Sam started putting
together movements which later became known as boogaloo or boog style. The
name came from the old James Brown song "Do the Boogaloo". One day when
Sam was dancing around the house, his uncle said "Boy, do that boogaloo!"
A puzzled Sam asked his uncle, "What's boogaloo?” "That means you're
gettin down", his uncle replied. From that day on he was known as Boogaloo
Sam. Boogaloo is a fluid style that uses every part of the body. It
involves using angles and incorporating fluid movements to make everything
flow together, often using rolls of the hips, knees, head. The dance is
also known for covering a lot of space on stage using "walkouts" or other
transitions to get from one spot to the next spot
Sources:
www.electricboogaloos.com
Watch it:
http://ca.youtube.com/watch?v=FauOsBt_IFA&feature=related
POPPING
Popping is a dance style created by Boogaloo Sam. People get confused
about what this style is. They think it is the name for all the styles
that came out of the funk movement (1970's California). It is not. Popping
is a style in itself, that involves snapping the legs back, and flexing
your muscles continuously to the beat to give a jerky/snapping effect. Sam
would say the word "pop" (under his breath) every time he flexed while he
danced, and people would ask him "Hey do that popping stuff!" Electric
Boogaloo style is combining popping and boogaloo style together. The two
styles complement each other well and are known worldwide as the signature
styles of the Electric Boogaloos. Today, popping has been incorporated
into both the hip hop and electronica dance scenes to some extent.
Sources:
www.electricboogaloos.com
Watch it:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mi59L3Cx96E
TUTTING
'Tutting' is distinct style that emerged out of
the funk era during the early 1980s when dancers would use tutting poses
while performing popping routines. These movements made use of the wrists,
elbows, and shoulders to create the desired right angle. Presumably, the
dance began as a mimicking of the angular poses common to ancient Egyptian
art. Tutting as a whole or certain tutting moves have been referred to as
'King Tut'; it is likely from this colloquialism for the Pharaoh
Tutankhamen, as a representative of ancient Egypt in western popular
culture, that the form gained its name. Although Tutting as a style has
maintained its close ties to popping, it has since evolved to making use
of a much wider range of positions and movements. The size of poses, or
tuts, now varies from large body tuts to intricate finger tuts.
Sources:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tutting
Watch it:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ESbnrf0qLSc
STREET
Street Stylez are any dances that came from the streets and evolved
out of a need for youth to express themselves in a non-violent way. Street
styles are also characterized by a very competitive and often aggressive
nature with battles playing a central role to the dancer’s evolution and
status. While many funk & club dances also have a competitive nature,
street styles represent the more ‘intense’ and ‘in your face’ side of hip
hop driven by struggle and the need to ‘break free’ from the stress of
everyday life that is a reality to many inner city youth. BBoying, the
very first street dance became part of hip hop culture because it provided
an outlet of positive expression for youth otherwise drawn to a gang life
style. In the same way, new school street dances such as clowning and
krumping have evolved to provide that same ‘escape’.
Click on the links below for a breakdown of some of the popular street
styles sampled and instructed in def SOL’s STREET
Classes.
BBoying
| Uprock
| Clown Walking
| Clowning
| Krump
| Steppin'
| TURF
| Hyphy
| Jooking
| Jerking
BBOYing
(breakdancing)
Originally known as bboying, it is a style of street dance that evolved as
part of the Hip Hop movement in the South Bronx of New York City during
the early 1970s. It is the oldest and best known of all Hip Hop dance
styles and maintains popularity due to its fast, complicated footwork and
gravity defying moves. Bboying consists of Toprock (footwork done
standing), Downrock (footwork on ground), Freezes (random ‘pauses’ during
footwork) and Power moves which include the acrobatic and often highly
dangerous flips and spins. Mastery of all these components is essential to
being a well rounded bboy/bgirl. A true bboy also has ‘finesse’ or flow
when combining these moves.
Sources:
www.bboy.org/forums/interviews-articles/51945-history-breakdancing.html
Watch it:
http://ca.youtube.com/watch?v=p6ZVJ_tmHxM&feature=related
http://ca.youtube.com/watch?v=QgVZY1d5zpQ&feature=related
UPROCK
In the late 1960s and early '70s, Brooklyn, NY gave birth to another dance
in Hip-Hop culture, known as "Brooklyn uprocking." Inspired by similar or
the same break beats used by b-boys/girls, this dance was more
confrontational. Typically, two opponents faced each other and engaged in
a "war dance" consisting of a series of steps, jerks, and the miming of
weapons drawn against each other. There were also the "Apache Lines" where
one crew stood in a line facing an opposing crew and challenged each other
simultaneously. In uprocking battles winning meant: displaying the
swiftest steps; being receptive to the rhythms and counter rhythms of the
music and the opponent; catching the opponent off guard with mimed
assaults, humor, and endurance. Brooklyn uprocking consisted of quick arm
and leg movements, turns, jumps, drops, and freezes. This dance was
similar in spirit to b-boying/girling, yet different in form. The two
forms developed simultaneously from similar inspirations yet kept their
own identities.
Sources:
http://www.daveyd.com/historyphysicalgrafittifabel.html
Watch it:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=d1q2NxXpkAQ&feature=related
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Bh9ZhjahsHU&feature=related
CLOWN WALK
The Clown Walk, also known as the C-Walk, shares many of the same moves of
gang-related dance called the Crip Walk. Inspired by the Crip Walk, the
Clown Walk was specifically designed as a dance and not a gang-related
movement. At def SOL we do not teach/encourage the use of the Crip Walk to
its negative affiliations. While the style of the Clown Walk is very fast
and very flashy, it does not focus on precision or clean walking. This
style allows people to move how they feel and incorporate it into their
dance, much like Krumping. Some basic movements in the Clown Walk are the
V, Shuffle, Heeltoe, X-hop, Wiggle Walk, and Gangsta Skip. Many “walkers”,
as the dancers are referred to, like to slide, glide, moonwalk, and add
variations to their walk.
Source:
http://dancejam.com/dances/clown-walk (warning: video has
adult content in lyrics)
CLOWNing
Clown dance or ‘clowining’ was created in the early 90s by a man named
Thomas Johnson (Tommy the Clown). When clown dancing was originally
performed it was common for the dancers to paint their faces. This (and
the fact Tommy was a clown) helped spark the name for the dance. Tommy saw
this dance as a way to keep kids off the street, and away from violence.
After he performed the dance at parties many people became interested, so
he started teaching the dance in small sessions. From here the underground
dance movement shot across the rest of California. Clowning, fuses local
elements like "G dance" or "Gangsta(er) boogie" and stripper dancing (not
what you think!). Clowning also employs certain elements of Jamaican
dancehall moves such as the "butterfly" or the "rodeo", as well as
elements from popping, locking and breakdancing.
Sources:
http://www.tommytheclown.com/
http://www.danceorigin.com/articles/krumping/the-history-of-krumping.html
Watch it:
http://ca.youtube.com/watch?v=URcXcIpfIAQ&feature=related
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dJg7PpmjNcA&feature=fvw
KRUMP
Krump is a form of dance that originated in South Central Los Angeles in
the early 90s. This dance is expressive and highly energetic. Its
performers mostly use it as a way to express who they are and what they’re
feeling. “Krump” or “Krumping” evolved out of “Clowning” aka
“Clown-dancing” which is a manifestation from the black Dance movement.
The inception of Krump occurred when a number of the original hip hop
clowns and youth of that generation of clowning became older and moved on
from the child-oriented nature of clowning. Individuals such as Tight
Eyes, Big Mijo, Slayer, and Lil C are the originators of Krumping and are
known as the Kings of Krump. Compared to clowning, Krump is a more
sinister and aggressive dance form. Rapid combinations of ‘stomps’, ‘chest
pops’ and ‘arm swings’ are used to create a wild chaos of movement. While
it may appear violent, krump was created as a form of emotional &
spiritual release, a positive alternative to gang life.
Sources: www.krumpkings.com
http://lifestyle.iloveindia.com/lounge/krump-dancing-848.html
Watch it:
http://ca.youtube.com/watch?v=lt7s6_ahld0&feature=related
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BJDGi3n-8bg&feature=related
STEPPIN'
Steppin’ is a form of percussive dance in which the participant's produce
complex rhythms and sounds through a mixture of footsteps, spoken word,
and hand claps. Though stepping may be performed by an individual, it is
generally performed by groups of three or more, often in arrangements that
resemble military formations. Stepping or step-dancing is a dancing
tradition that emerged through the gatherings of young African American
students in yards, quads, and stages on campus by traditionally black
college fraternities and sororities around the middle of the 20th century.
Stepping finds its origins in a combination of military close-order and
exhibition drill, and African foot dances such as the Welly "gumboot"
dance. It also incorporates several other influences such as tap dancing,
gymnastics and cheerleading. Over time the dance has with become more
complex and athletic in nature and continues to evolve.
Sources:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Stepping (African-American)
http://www.auburn.edu/pbs1914/the_history_of_stepping.htm
Watch it:
http://ca.youtube.com/watch?v=zEoPXBPc7O0
http://ca.youtube.com/watch?v=IjmemE-r2q8 (intro features
steppin)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=d_yZXpQ2gLw
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MG8yIEU1oYA&feature=related
TURF
TURF is an acronym for Taking Up Room on the Floor. Created by
influential Turf dancer, Jeriel Bey the dance originated at house parties
and the inner city streets of Oakland, California. Originally known as
“Hittin’ It”, TURF dancing is an evolution and fusion of various funk
style dance forms such as gliding, waving, popping, and boogaloo. During
the 90s, a resurgence of interest in funk styles was revisited, merged,
and remixed. The dance’s guiding principles are heavily rooted in creating
original style, illusions, and storytelling. There is heavy emphasis on
gliding in since footwork plays a major part in creating illusions,
otherwise it contains a very small collection of foundational movements or
steps because the dance form is heavily dictated by personal style. TURF
dancing existed before the emergence of the Hyphy Lifestyle and actually
helped to bring hyphy to the spotlight when legendary artist E-40 hired
choreographer Jeriel Bey to assist in promoting the Bay Area Dance culture
across the country. His organization "The Architeckz" promoted the new
dancing term for bay area freestyle dancers as TURF Dancing, rather than
Hyphy, to discourage Hollywood from boxing-in the two cultures.
Sources:
http://dancejam.com/dances/turf-dancing
http://www.thearchiteckz.com/
Watch it:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=laUtVx87leA
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=B2-1b9OfC28
HYPHY
Born from the streets of the Bay Area (San Francisco) the hyphy
movment is known for its own distinctive dance, language music & culture.
To "get hyphy" means to act or dance in an overstated, fast paced, and
ridiculous manner. Those who consider themselves part of the Hyphy
movement would describe this behavior as "getting stupid" or "going dumb."
In contrast to much of popular American culture where these phrases would
be considered negative or even insulting, Hyphy is distinguished by taking
this kind of behavior as a form of pride. Crunk is considered to be a
close cousin to Hyphy. It shares the same aspect in that the movements are
all about being loose, crazy and abstract. However, one obvious difference
is that Crunk is slower in all aspects than Hyphy.
Sources:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hyphy
http://www.mtv.com/bands/h/hypy/news_feature_110804/index.jhtml
Watch it:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MOgJ5mC8Mas&NR=1
JOOKING (Buckin’)
Jooking was originally named Gangsta Walking and is often referred
to as Buckin, or Choppin. Jooking is a street dance that originated in
Memphis, Tennessee along side "Buck" music during the 1980s. Some have
speculated that the dance may even go back to the late 1970s. Jookin is
commonly performed to crunk music due to the particular 'bounce' in the
beat & the movement the dancers make to keep with it flowing. Though
Jookin/Gangsta Walking has been around for many years, much of the dance
is still exclusive to the city & surrounding areas. The dance can commonly
be found in urban areas like North Memphis, South Memphis, Orange Mound,
Whitehaven, East Memphis , etc.
Sources:
http://www.memphisjookin.com/
Watch it:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qUjgy1gn9v4
JERKING
Originating in Northern California in 2008, this new dance
style went popular overnight when video battles starting popping up over
the internet. It is said to have evolved from the crazy footwork of
Midwest ‘Juke dancing’ and has obvious influences from bboying, clown
walking and hyphy. This dance style requires some basic footwork and
extreme flexibility and endurance in the knees due to the frequent drops
and rocking moves.
Sources:
http://www.urbandictionary.com/define.php?term=jerkin
Watch it:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PtYRhTMJygc&feature=related
CLUB
Club style is a general term to describe both new & old school
‘party’ dances that have evolved out of the club and party scene. While
the styles vary greatly depending on the culture & music from which they
evolved, the common essence of all club dance is about letting loose and
having a good time. Some of the earliest and most memorable club dances
came ouf the new jack swing era where moves like the ‘hammer shuffle’,
‘cabbage patch’ and ‘running man‘ had everyone getting down. More recently
club music has shifted to a mix of Caribbean based hip hop, house music
and crunk beats! Likewise, dancehall, reggaeton, house & crunk dances have
gone worldwide in the club and party scene! Many club style dances are
also made popular through the use of simple and repetitive ‘fad dances’
that show up in music videos or internet networks such as YouTube.
Click on the links below for a breakdown of some of the popular Club
styles sampled and instructed in
def SOL’s CLUB Classes.
New Jack Swing
| Dancehall
| Reggaeton
| FAD Dances
| Crunk
| Punking
| Vogue
| House
| Juke Dance
NEW JACK SWING / OLD SCHOOL
In the late 80s to early 90s, the media turned it’s attention to an
exciting new fusion of hip hop and R n B known as ‘New Jack Swing’.
Created by musician and record producer Teddy Riley, this new sound
blended “sweet melodies and big beats” preferred by radio stations as the
more ‘commercially acceptable’ style of hip hop’. Just like the sound, the
dance scene began mixing large movements in with a slower & smoother vibe
creating many of the steps popularized by artists such as Bobby Brown, New
Edition & TLC. Equally successful during this time, party tracks playing
up rap’s connection to pop and dance music became instant favourites for
their big beats and addictive hooks. Pop-rap artists such as Fresh Prince,
MC Hammer & Vanilla Ice became instantly popular for their good-humored,
storytelling skills and crazy fashion sense. This time period was
responsible for such great moves as the running man, rogger rabbit,
cabbage patch and of course ‘hammer shuffle’.
Sources:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/New_jack_swing
Watch it:
http://ca.youtube.com/watch?v=ZIB4GB8Olss
http://ca.youtube.com/watch?v=ZVJBhDoGapM&feature=related
DANCEHALL
From the early days of Jamaican dancehall, to the club and
house parties today, this island flavored mix of reggae & hip hop has
always produced some of the greatest, funniest and rudest dance moves.
These intricate dance moves can be quite raw and explicit, with many
showing traces of traditional African movements. Due to the success of
commercial dancehall artists like Elephant Man, Sean Paul & Mr Vegas, this
style is quickly growing in popularity.
Sources:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dancehall
Watch it:
http://ca.youtube.com/watch?v=zZ17J5zb97Q
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MWkdLxD-i7I&feature=related
Like the music, Reggaeton dance blends the
Jamaican influences of reggae and dancehall with those of Latin America,
such as merengue and salsa, as well as that of Hip Hop. The result is
‘spicy’ dance style which mixes dancehall girations with latin booty
shaking and a Hip Hop attitude. Tracks such as “Gasolina” by Daddy Yankee
and “Culo” by Pitbull have helped earn mainstream success for the
reggaeton music & dance craze.
Sources:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Reggaeton
Watch it:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5ZelJMbbkYE&feature=related
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PHr1lqqyYgc&feature=related
Fad dances or dance crazes are characterized by
a move or series of moves that experience a short burst of popularity.
Unless you’ve been living under a rock and haven’t watched any music
videos lately, you have seen some of the highly entertaining Fad Dances
that have become so popular in today’s Hip Hop & rap videos. From Soulja
Boy and his crew dancing the “Superman”, DJ Unk’s “2-Step” and Usher and
Lil Jon doing the “A-Town Stomp”, Fad Dances have been popping up all over
the streets & clubs. Also known as ‘party dances’, fad dances have been
around for decades. Early hip hop fad dances such as the ‘hammer dance’
were followed by the ‘chicken noodle soup’, ‘tone wop’, ‘aunt jackie’ and
more! Recently fad dances have evolved as a way for each city to showcase
their moves & styles to the rest of the world.
Sources:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Novelty_and_fad_dances
Watch it:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cmdF1r8rjJ0
http://ca.youtube.com/watch?v=_qRLxiSI3fs&feature=related
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2TaAceHgyFE
Crunk is the new era of club and ‘party
dancing’. With the rising popularity of Southern rap music known for it’s
heavy bass beats and frenetic chanting, crunk music and has taken over
clubs across North America. Emerging from Atlanta, the crunk style has
become more and more popular through the explosion of ‘fad dances’ in
music videos and the internet. Songs named after the popular dance moves
such as ‘Poole Palace’, ‘Walk it Out’, ‘Snap Ya Fingers’ and ‘Lean wit it’
have poured into music streams with the lyrics often providing instruction
on how to do the moves. These songs fall under a sub-genre of crunk know
as snap music however crunk can simply mean just letting loose and dancing
all crazy like no one is watching.
Sources:
http://crunk.wordpress.com/what-is-crunk/
Watch it:
http://crunk.wordpress.com/category/snap-dance/
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dSUfN4vmYzc&feature=related
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YQ_lQG0fRNA
PUNKING (Whacking)
The style of punking was born in the 1970s in the LA underground club
scene. It was first popular in the gay clubs then became more mainstream
as the dance started being performed in public. This source claims that is
was created by west coast latinos (Mexican American chicanos) but came
into the mainstream as many professional dancers at the time started
performing it on television (Soul Train) and various stages from Hollywood
to Las Vegas. Wacking is the name that some of the soul train dancers
started using instead of the initial term 'punking'. Tyrone Proctor (Soul
Train dancer) has been credited by several original whacking dancers as
the source for their 'Diva' training.
Sources:
http://dancejam.com/dances/punking
Watch it:
http://dancejam.com/videos/1054593951-wackingpunkin-with-eva
Vogue, the dance, became a mainstream phenomenon
in 1990 when pop star Madonna released the single “Vogue” from her album
I'm Breathless and featured the dance in her music video for the single.
The dance utilizes model-like photo poses and angular, linear movements of
the limbs. The history of the dance goes back at least two decades earlier
when the dance started to appear in New York City underground clubs. House
clubs such as the House of Royals, House of Mizrahi, House of LaPerla, and
many others around the country in the 1970s and 1980s featured the dance.
Source & Video:
http://dancejam.com/dances/vogue
HOUSE
House dance itself is a lot older than house music, which arose
in the early 1980s upon the end of the disco era during the times of such
nightclubs as Chicago's Warehouse, New York's The Loft and Paradise
Garage. House dance takes from many different dance elements such as the
Lindy era, African, Latin, Brazilian, jazz, tap, and even modern. Contrary
to popular belief, House dance is not a descendant of hip-hop. A lot of
hip- hop dancers have crossed into house music in the early 80's and 90's
to bring in a sequence of steps. House dance has been debated and broken
down into 3 styles: Footwork, Jacking, and Lofting. House includes a
variety of techniques and sub-styles that include skating, stomping, and
shuffling. It also incorporates movements from many other sources such as
Whacking, Voguing, Capoeira, Tap, and Latin dances such as Salsa. A wide
variety of the movements came from jazz and bebop styles and even from
African and Latin descent. Major contributors to the house dance scene in
the US include Brian "Footwork" Green, Marjory Smarth, Caleaf Sellers,
Ejoe Wilson, Terry Wright, Shannon Mabra, Tony McGregor, and many others
before them that danced at places such as The Warehouse in Chicago, The
Loft in NYC, Paradise Garage, and other places that are long forgotten.
Sources:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/House_dance
Watch it:
http://www.videosift.com/video/History-of-House-Dancing
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XNXSRJukRFI&feature=related
JUKE DANCING
Emerging out of Chicago, this dance is known for its incredibly
fast-paced footwork and high energy. Performed to high tempo
house-influenced beats, the style also includes grinding and booty
popping.
Watch it:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3Zzr05jcxYs