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The Lasting Physical Treasure of Hip Hop Dance

4/27/2020

Movemakers Philly
Hip Hop Home Dojo
Hip Hop Dance for Kids Streaming Live Online

A note from Mr. Vince to all students:
The Lasting Physical Treasure of Hip Hop Dance

Hip Hop Dance is a training of the body, among other attributes as well. We do not always consider all of the reasons why one might go on the journey of learning hip hop. The origin of Hip Hop Dance is rooted in community conversation. The dance is a way that folks communicate with one another while also relating to other cultural features like music or art. People often come to the dance as a hobby. For some it becomes a career aspiration, whether they are interested in performing, teaching or competitions. Regardless, Hip Hop Dancers are bound to discover, very early on, that their pursuit is athletic as mush as it is artistic. For some, like the worldâ€™s top bboys, it is argued that it is more sport like then art like, hence why breaking has entered the Olympics.

The lasting value in something like Hip Hop Dance is that the potential for growth and learning never stops. Dance in itself is an immediate function in human life. Anyone can dance, regardless of their skill. For example, Iâ€™ve been to weddings and have witnessed 80 year old relatives dancing in celebration. Imagine being 80 years old and continuing to explore and develop your dance.

There are unique differences between sports that are based on a one-dimensional task vs. those that are multi-dimensional. Running, although there can be many subtleties, has fewer variables that need to be considered than say playing basketball. Basketball has the aspect of running, while there is also ball handling, team coordination, shooting, passing and the list goes on. There are great benefits for our mind when we engage in physical activities that are multi-dimensional, activities that force us to problem solve. This isnâ€™t taking anything away from running. Afterall, there are few that rise to the top of running based sports. And it is not a simple feat to run a long distance race. We might observe in our society that there are more people that run recreationally than playing Basketball recreationally. This might be due to the fact that many people stop Basketball because it is more difficult to maintain the skill. For many, it becomes less interesting when the competitive element of it diminishes as we age. Running for many is a meditation and even a battle against themselves. Many benefit from it. Still there are limits to its complexity.

Dancing has many of the same attributes as running. Hip Hop Dancers are certainly in battle with themselves as they work to acquire new abilities. Like any other sport, there is a need to grow strength, endurance and technique. Many sports are also creative. However, as a dance athlete, your limits in creativity are expanded in the pursuit of art and expression. A dancer can use the gestures of other sports and activities while exploring abstractions of the body. Dance may very well be one of the most expansive explorations that one can make with their body.

The great treasure of dance is that it can be with us always, never stagnating. It gives us broad variance in how we can train our bodies and amuse ourselves simultaneously. You can even adjust its intensity whenever needed. And 80 year old might not have the best joint health for running. Iâ€™ll argue that an 80 year old can likely adapt their joints more easily to dance. In fact, their joints might benefit from the dance. Think of Tai Chiâ€™s benefits to the elderly. And Tai Chi presents very similarly to dance, some arguing that it is an ancient medicinal dance.
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Learning Hip Hop Dance opens up the possibility of having a much more rich relationship to our bodies as we move through various stages of life. Yes many of us will run, swim and cycle into adulthood. This is what the majority do for exercise and recreation. But how much more colorful could their adulthoods be if they also knew the process of building through dance. This is a treasure that Movemakers Philly Hip Hop Dance Kids will carry through life.

95 year old Roy Haynes playing the drums. The roll of the drummer is similar to the dancer. The drummer has to have specific physical abilities that are focused for artistic expression. Can we imagine how Roy Haynes would dance if he were a dancer at this age?

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At 95 years old, this cat still has one of the greatest swing feels of all time! Please join us in wishing a very Happy Birthday to Roy Haynes! #ZildjianFamily #ZildjianSticks #GOAT #95YearsYoung #Goals â–¡ by: @jaleelshaw

A post shared by Zildjian Company (@zildjiancompany) on Mar 13, 2020 at 7:39am PDT

The Airflare was created by Break Dancers, but Gymnasts have appropriated the movement. Well Breakers owe the gymnasts, because Breakers borrowed Thomas Flares from gymnastics years ago. The years active of a breaker are usually much more than the years active of a gymnast. This often puzzles me. The reason that we can often come to is that gymnasts stop when they are no longer fit for competition. Bboys and Bgirls keep dancing, because it is their communication within a special commmunity. Bboys and Bgirls can adapt and find new ways of developing when theyâ€™ve outgrown their peak levels of athleticism. Gymnasts donâ€™t seem to have the same motivation to adapt as they age in order to maintain their practice.

I am still growing as a dancer, movement artist and athlete. Iâ€™ve taken on the learning of styles like Tutting, that I was not working on in my early stages as a dancer. This practice of tutting started in 2020. Also in my late 20s I took up gymnastics tumbling. I am 34 now. I look forward to the tumbling skills I will be doing well into my future. I owe my ability to explore these various forms of complex movement as an adult to early explorations of hip hop that started when I was 12. The cool thing is that I have heroes and friends my age and older that I can look up to for inspiration. They are much more advance than me! I love that they are still going too, without plans of stopping anytime soon.

Dan Perez, an expert Martial Arts Tricker with advance tumbling knowledge

Ryan Webb aka Future one of the most renown tutters in the world

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Movemakers Virtual Town Hall Meeting for Kids

4/21/2020

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Sunday, April 26th
1pm-1:45pm for ages 5-9
2-3pm for ages 10+ and mature 7 and up students

Mr. Metal will host a discussion group for our youth students. The intention is to provide the kids with an opportunity to express themselves verbally and to share with their peers. This is particularly valuable now when they've been isolated from one another. We believe that providing them with a platform to have structured conversation, to hear from their peers, will be great for their esteem and sense of community. This is us taking it beyond the engagement of dance. Metal is a highly skilled facilitator who has worked with a number of youth groups and professional organizations, leading discussions and workshops. He is the best for an event like this. For the younger group, his session will feature fun and engaging activities, games and discussions. For the older group, he will lead more structured discussions that give the kids the opportunity to discuss their creativity, resourcefulness, resilience while offering the opportunity to tell fun stories. To my knowledge, the kids are deprived of this sort of engagement. If such is the case for your child, our Virtual Town Hall on the 26th is worth joining.

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Virtual Art Class for Kids

4/21/2020

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Lesson #1
Collage poetry:
Strengthening visionaries

Movemakers Philly during COVID-19 is offering virtual art classes for kids. We believe that during these tough times the youth will benefit greatly from virtual art lessons that are motivated from the following principles and themes: resilient spirit of childhood, urge to create, resourcefulness, sustainability and DO IT YOURSELF EMPOWERMENT. Our classes will be another opportunity for students to grow their creative impulses and diversify their at home experience. They will also provide an alternative platform for child/parent bonding.

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Hip hop is resourceful!

4/20/2020

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Movemakers Philly
Hip Hop Home Dojo
Hip Hop Dance for Kids Streaming Live Online

A note from Mr. Vince to all students
Hip Hop is Resourceful!
Youth Hip Hop Dance Students Experience DIY Empowerment

Hip Hop since its beginnings has come from folks who often do not have much. The first Bboys and Bgirls did not learn in dance studios, but rather in their communities: living rooms, garages, rec centers, religious institutions, night clubs and other community gathering places are where Hip Hop was made. The creators were young and spirited individuals that took inspiration from almost anything, such as cartoons, film, sports, other social dances and more. In the visual art world there is a term called found object art which is used to describe artworks that are made from materials that are often not associated with art making, often trash. Hip Hop in many ways is a found object artform. The music in itself was born out of DJ Kool Hercâ€™s innovative approach to mixing two different records. Kool Herc would take something already created and turn it into something new. This type of reimagining and recycling is happening through all of the branches of hip hop ranging from music, artwork to dance.

Movemakers Philly Dancers in Hip Hop Home Dojo are carrying the spirt of Resourcefulness and DIY Empowerment, core values of Hip Hop Dance culture. Our students are doing an excellent job with using the techniques taught to them by their instructors as a baseline for growing their own unique creativity and expression. The students have learned to use us as a springboard primarily. They donâ€™t stop with what we give them. Many go in quest of more, whether in the form of researching more ways that they can dance and/or figuring out their own unique techniques and moves. After attaining a solid understanding of Hip Hop Dance principles, the students have the tools and power to explore far on their own. And they do.

For example check out Nate in the clip below. He demonstrates traditional techniques but doesnâ€™t stop there. He goes beyond. If he didnâ€™t have the drive to go beyond the standard, his dance would be limited to a dry and mechanical output. This is not Nate, or our other students.
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Hip Hop practices in themselves teach students the importance of digging deep to go deep. Thereâ€™s only so much that the teachers can offer. What truly matters in the long run is the motivation and ability to Do It Yourself, to craft and independent journey. Movemakers Philly Students love the support that they receive from their teachers. But they are also driven to expand and endlessly build. This is the Movemakers Philly way, the attitude and determination that help to cultivate in our students.

Nate Showing the Work!

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#movemakershomedojochallenge THIS IS GOLDENâ€¼ï¸ We love to see it â–¡â–¡ Shout out to our student Nathaniel for stepping up to the challenge! Canâ€™t wait to see what everyone is cooking up at home â–¡ #socialdisdancing #movemakersphilly

A post shared by Movemakers Philly (@movemakersphilly) on Apr 2, 2020 at 5:11pm PDT

The iconic Dance Scene from â€œFlash Danceâ€ featuring dancers like Crazy Leg and Frosty Freeze who are very important pioneers in Hip Hop Culture