|
|
Credit to Aucklands Busselltron Industries for these awesome graphics.
Sometimes known as breakdancing by the un-informed masses b-boying is one of the four elements of hip hop culture to emerge from NYC in the late 1970's-early 1980's. It is a totally different style of dance to any other, and its moves are some of the most difficult moves in dance. Nowadays it's incorporated into funk and jazz dancing but b-boying in its purest form is still around and going strong.
The term b-boy orginated from the african word "boioing" which means to hop or bounce, and was an expression used in the Bronx to describe the bouncy b-boy dance style.
The b-boy style comes from a couple of different sources. There was the influence of African Americans and the Hispanics moving into the Bronx at the time bring their musical influences with them. There is the influence of the previous generations' dance styles, the jitterbug, salsa and the Charleston. Then there is the influence that is the godfather of soul James Brown
In 1969 James Brown's hit "get on the good foot" was top of the charts and in the video for this track James Brown did the "good foot". "Good foot" was a fast athletic dance which was well suited to dance battles, that's when two dancers compete battle-style to see who is the better dancer. Dancers of the "good foot" style would dance in the "break" of a song in the clubs and so Kool Herc called these dancers breakers or B-Boys, and the movement began. The dance style of these days was not the same as modern day b-boying. The action was fast and furious, very physical with complicated leg work, and it was all done on the floor.
Before long the battles began, most notably in South Bronx, where the street gangs used these battles as a means of resolving problems with other gangs. It was here that the battle element of breakdancing really began. Though violence was still common and sometimes these breaker battles would lead to violence.
Through this gang foundation the first dance crews began, breakers who would practice and perform together. These breakers got better and tighter in this environment with more complex moves at faster speeds. Then along came Afrika Bambaataa, a legendary grand master D.J. who performed at this year's Big Day Out. He saw Breakdance as a means of achievement and encouraged dancers forming the first break dance the Zulu Kings who went on to feature at clubs winning countless battles along the way.
In 1977 the Freak came along, based on "Freak Out" by the Shieks, a new style of breaking emerged and new crews came with it. One of the big crews from this time was the Rock Steady Crew also organised by Afrika Bambaataa. They brought a new style which was much more acrobatic but with the same floor work as the older styles. The new acrobatic styles include headspins, backspins, handglides (where you balance on one hand, elbow tucked into the body while turning) and windmills (on your head/shoulders spinning with your arms providing the momentum).
With the Wild Style movie in the 1980s and the rise of clubs such as the Roxy in New York, hip hop was in the spotlight and thrived. In the late eighties we saw pop culture take on b-boying with Michael Jackson breaking in his videos and the massively popular film "Flashdance" which gave rise to the term breakdancing in its popular context. Due to this increase, there was a media overload on breakdancing and it died out in the public eye but continued in the underground. Now b-boying is resurfacing with new media interest, it's appearing in videos, commercials and in your backyard as those of you at the Bodyrock festival would have seen. Check out your local b-boys and b-girls and find out what it's all about if you haven't already.
Hit on these websites for more breakin' information
Spartanic website Has a phat list of breakin' vocab.
Breakdancing worth a look for the graphics and the scientific approach to breakin.
Bboysummit has the latest and greatest from the 2004 international bboy summit.
Within the Library
Try our videos/dvds of
Breakin
Wild Style
And an eighties guide for how to breakdance:
Breakdance!
|
