I love this show! Yeah, it's sometimes incoherent, but there is no denying the creativity, passion and dance skills of these crews. The first episode featured five of the ten crews that will be competing. Dominic (D'trix) Sandoval is a new judge; he was a competitor on SYTYCD and one of the Quest crew that were champions a few seasons ago.
IAmMe features the popular Phillip Chbeeb, Moon, and a group of tutters based in Texas, but with a terrific gal from the former Czech republic. ReQuest, the women from new Zealand were champions from the 2010 World Hip Hop Championships. I love that they are all Polynesian and I hope they show more of their cultural blend. The Boston funk crew has great style. I don't know who choreographed the opening group number, but I wouldn't be surprised if it were Napoleon and Tabitha, since they've done a lot of the group choreo in the past.
Showing posts with label ABDC. Show all posts
Showing posts with label ABDC. Show all posts
Friday, April 08, 2011
Monday, January 11, 2010
"Freak the Vogue!"-Pony and Dashaun teach basis of vogue to the fabulous Beat Freaks
Pony and Dashuan, two of the stars of Vogue Evolution (the crew I first saw on ABDC) teach The Beat Freaks how to vogue.
PART 1 OF Pony and Daschaun of VOGUE EVOLUTION teaching LindseyB, Rino, Maryss From Paris, and Keeley "LockN' Key" of the BEAT FREAKS how to VOGUE. Part 1 includes: Catwalk & Duckwalk.
Part 2 of Pony and Daschaun of VOGUE EVOLUTION teaching LindseyB, Rino, Maryss From Paris, and Keeley "LockN' Key" of the BEAT FREAKS how to VOGUE. Part 2 includes: Dip & Hands
I have so much respect and love for these dancers! Here they talk about the knowledge behind the moves. There is a lot in common for these dancers who are keeping dance practices alive and innovating with them at the same time: take the moves and make them your own!
PART 1 OF Pony and Daschaun of VOGUE EVOLUTION teaching LindseyB, Rino, Maryss From Paris, and Keeley "LockN' Key" of the BEAT FREAKS how to VOGUE. Part 1 includes: Catwalk & Duckwalk.
FREAK THE VOGUE 1 from Beat Freaks on Vimeo.
Part 2 of Pony and Daschaun of VOGUE EVOLUTION teaching LindseyB, Rino, Maryss From Paris, and Keeley "LockN' Key" of the BEAT FREAKS how to VOGUE. Part 2 includes: Dip & Hands
FREAK THE VOGUE 2 from Beat Freaks on Vimeo.
I have so much respect and love for these dancers! Here they talk about the knowledge behind the moves. There is a lot in common for these dancers who are keeping dance practices alive and innovating with them at the same time: take the moves and make them your own!
Sunday, December 27, 2009
Beat Freaks + Vogue Evolution = Love!
I keep writing posts and then not posting them because they dissatisfy me. I'm getting frustrated that blogging feels more like a chore than a pleasure. I briefly considered going on hiatus or even closing it down. But then I found this clip of the Beat Freaks taking voguing lessons from Vogue Evolution, and it made me very happy.
FREAK THE VOGUE Trailer from Beat Freaks on Vimeo.
Friday, September 04, 2009
Doing the latest dance craze!
Do you love me/now that I can dance?
On America's Best Dance Crew (ABDC) the next challenge is to incorporate some of the latest urban dance crazes that are propagated by YouTube (AND use a trampoline, but that's another story) When I looked at the list, I realized I would need to do my research before Sunday nights show. Have you seen/heard of/danced any of these dances? Probably not.
RHYTHM CITY "The Jerk" New Boyz--this one is the most complicated!
On America's Best Dance Crew (ABDC) the next challenge is to incorporate some of the latest urban dance crazes that are propagated by YouTube (AND use a trampoline, but that's another story) When I looked at the list, I realized I would need to do my research before Sunday nights show. Have you seen/heard of/danced any of these dances? Probably not.
"For their challenge this week, the crews will be incorporating the latest dance crazes (think updated Cabbage Patch) into their routines. And in addition to mastering their moves -- and giving 'em their own personal spin -- they'll also need to incorporate that big ol' trampoline ... without falling flat on their faces. Take a look at the songs and challenges assigned to each ABDCrew, and let us know which dance crazes are taking over your hometown!
AFROBORIKE "Swag Surfin'" Fast Life Yungstaz
MASSIVE MONKEES "Do The Ricky Bobby" B-Hamp
WE ARE HEROES "Stanky Legg" GS Boys
VOGUE EVOLUTION "Halle Berry" Hurricane Chris
RHYTHM CITY "The Jerk" New Boyz--this one is the most complicated!
Thursday, August 27, 2009
Tutting (updated)
LOVE THESE GUYS!
Di Zhang (Moon), Phillip Chbeeb (Pacman) and Hokuto Konishi (Hok) here integrate waving and hand tutting into a dance they apparently created and filmed in just three days. Moon and Chbeeb teach and dance with a group called MarvelousMotion. Chbeeb was a very popular contestant on Season 5 of So You Think You Can Dance (sytycd), while Hok competed in Season 4 (and his crew auditioned together earlier). Hok and his buddies are now the Qwest Crew which won America's Best Dance Crew (abdc) last season.
Tutting (as in King Tut) is a type of hip-hop dance movement that emerged in the early days of hip hop dance, along with popping and locking. The group of dancers called The Electric Boogaloos had a huge influence on young kids who saw them on Soul Train (omg, awesome!).
Tut movements were inspired by Egyptian images and meant making right angles with the arms; these movements have been refined into various types, including hand tutting, which you can see here. Click on some of the links below for some more You Tube videos:
Di Zhang (Moon), Phillip Chbeeb (Pacman) and Hokuto Konishi (Hok) here integrate waving and hand tutting into a dance they apparently created and filmed in just three days. Moon and Chbeeb teach and dance with a group called MarvelousMotion. Chbeeb was a very popular contestant on Season 5 of So You Think You Can Dance (sytycd), while Hok competed in Season 4 (and his crew auditioned together earlier). Hok and his buddies are now the Qwest Crew which won America's Best Dance Crew (abdc) last season.
Tutting (as in King Tut) is a type of hip-hop dance movement that emerged in the early days of hip hop dance, along with popping and locking. The group of dancers called The Electric Boogaloos had a huge influence on young kids who saw them on Soul Train (omg, awesome!).
Tut movements were inspired by Egyptian images and meant making right angles with the arms; these movements have been refined into various types, including hand tutting, which you can see here. Click on some of the links below for some more You Tube videos:
Friday, February 27, 2009
Which crew should win ABDC?
You can watch the whole episode here, but these two performances were the highlight for me.
Will the voters choose the crew that has had more of the best performances throughout the competition, or the best final performance? If they go for the first, it should be Beat Freakz, but a lot of people think Quest's performance this week may have pushed them out of first place.
They have to do threading, tutting, krumping, housing (house dancing) and waving.
OK, embedding the videos from MTV didn't work, so just go watch the episode.
Here's one I found floating around, but they may not be up for long.
Will the voters choose the crew that has had more of the best performances throughout the competition, or the best final performance? If they go for the first, it should be Beat Freakz, but a lot of people think Quest's performance this week may have pushed them out of first place.
They have to do threading, tutting, krumping, housing (house dancing) and waving.
OK, embedding the videos from MTV didn't work, so just go watch the episode.
Here's one I found floating around, but they may not be up for long.
Tuesday, February 03, 2009
"Whack" songs challenge on ABDC
ABDC challenge for this week: dancing to "whack" songs! Blogging America's Best Dance Crew (aka BABDC!) put out the playlist. So if you want to reminisce to songs that the producers consider the cheesiest of cheese, check it out:
But remember, as you mock, that all these songs were big hits in their day because they are EARWORMS, so click at your own risk!
The vocal for the song "Everybody Dance Now" was actually performed by Martha Walsh, not the woman dancing on the video. She also did the vocals for "Everybody Everybody" and "It's Raining Men," (as one of The Weather Girls) and still performs to much acclaim.
- BEAT FREAKS - "Pretty Fly for a White Guy"by The Offspring
- RINGMASTERS - “Macarena” by Los Del Rio
- STRIKERS ALL-STARS - “2 Legit 2 Quit” by MC Hammer
- FLY KHICKS - “Everybody Dance Now (Gonna Make You Sweat)” by C&C Music Factory
- QUEST CREW - “The Right Stuff” by New Kids On The Block
- DYNAMIC EDITION - “Achy Breaky Heart” by Billy Ray Cyrus
But remember, as you mock, that all these songs were big hits in their day because they are EARWORMS, so click at your own risk!
The vocal for the song "Everybody Dance Now" was actually performed by Martha Walsh, not the woman dancing on the video. She also did the vocals for "Everybody Everybody" and "It's Raining Men," (as one of The Weather Girls) and still performs to much acclaim.
Tuesday, January 27, 2009
Beat Freakz on ABDC
via MTV Remote Control TV Insider blog
Because I don't get MTV at home, I'm very appreciative of the fact that MTV has made an effort to put out high quality videos for fans to watch after the show. You can watch the whole episode at the America's Best Dance Crew homepage on MTV, and there is also an official ABDC MySpace page and an authorized YouTube Channel Fanscape with this playlist. There is even an embeddable player on the YouTube page. This is so much better than the stupid policy that has SYTYCD videos disappearing from YouTube because the show mistakenly thinks that fans are stealing something from them when in fact the videos are a way that fans build loyalty to the show. I'm heartbroken that the remixes and mashups that buffmetube made last season are gone! They were outstanding.
Friday, January 16, 2009
Delayed recap of ABDC (I don't get cable)
I love America's Best Dance Crew! Now in its 3rd season, it's running in the background of the American Idol blitz, Randy Jackson's side joint. The show flows well, with good camera work, strong production values, and dancers doing their own choreography in response to the challenges set them by the show. I never feel that the judges are talking down to the dancers or the audience, even if the show has a formula. I also love how the words you and your are banished in favor of 'y'all' and 'y'all's' by Shane and L'il Mama. Kid Rainen, a dancer from Jabbawockeez, stood in for JC Chasez as a judge, and he did a good job. This show also features Asian and Latino dancers which is how I remember growing up in California.
The crews performed in sets, with one crew from each set being sent to duel it out at the end of the show.
Strikers Allstars: stepping based. They were in sync, strong, and attractive. They don't have as much name recognition as some of the other crews, but there are a lot of steppers out there who will root for them.
Beat Freaks, an all-woman all-star B-girl crew, doing the foundational styles of hip hop: popping, locking, b-girling. Awesome! I have to root for them.
G.O.P. from Puerto Rico incorporated some salsa and reggaeton moves, but were a little ragged compared to the other groups, and they were sent to the battle at the end, while the other two crews were safe.
Quest Crew has some familiar faces: Hok, Dominic and Ryan Conferido were all on So You Think You Can Dance in previous seasons, so they bring a wide fan-base. Very charismatic, very creative, and super-talented, they may be the early favorites. On the other hand, there could be some backlash if they are seen as too privileged because of that.
Fly Khicks, Miami Heat cheerleaders, high energy strip-club style. Ugh. Yeah they can dance, but I hate the hoochy-coochy stuff. Shane's reaction was exactly what I hate about it-- it was condescending. Kid Rainen called them on it gently: yeah, you can bring the sexy, but what else?
Ringmaster, a crew from Brooklyn did "flex" dancing (double-jointed, gruesome, "bone-breaking") popping their arms out of the sockets, yeow! along with a lot of hat tricks. Amazing, scary, nobody has ever seen moves like that, including a flip off a ten-foot ladder and a guy who came out of a suitcase: originality and goosebumps! "Cirque but in a raw, street form." L'il Mama cried for her hometown crew.
Fly Khicks was sent to battle it out.
Box Cuttahs (how do you spell that? why did they pick that dumb name?) did a well-choreographed routine, with theatrical touches, humor. One gal (Korean) and a bunch of guys with charm and skills- I think they are contenders.
OK, now, this was my big surprise: the return of the CLOGGAH! (and damn Dick Clark productions for yanking every SYTYCD-related fan video from YouTube). Brandon Norris, the guy who auditioned for SYTYCD and made such a great impression, is back with a group called Dynamic Edition (seven-time clogging champions) to do a number to Black-Eyed Peas "My humps" (too much!) They sold it. They know they are on the show to represent clogging to a new audience, and they impressed. The comments I read on Twitter last night, which was how I learned the show was on again, were positive.
Team Millenia had appeared in the auditions of a previous season, but they were cut, so this is their second chance. They chose to showcase a more "rock"-inspired choreo, to differentiate themselves from the style they did when they got cut, and the fans seem to be divided on whether or not they should have done it. The judges hinted that they shouldn't go too far in that direction, and I agree.
Box Cuttahz seemed surprised that the white kids aka the cloggers were kept, but this gave them a chance to show their skills again, and they were much better.
The crews had all been asked to prepare a 30-second routine to the same music, and this was where the choreography chops showed, or didn't show. G.O.P. pulled out their moves, but the cheerleaders are seasoned competitive performers, used to pulling together new choreo, and Box whatevers have a choreographer-leader, who worked the music really well. Bye bye earnest young men from Puerto Rico! Your fans will be mad at L'il Mama, but someone had to go.
I'll be able to watch the next round online next Friday, since I don't get MTV and have to wait until the voting is over to watch the whole show online.
The two classes of 4th-graders I talked to this morning had watched the show, and when I showed them Brazilian capoeira videos, we talked about the connections between breaking and Afro-Brazilian culture. So cute!
The crews performed in sets, with one crew from each set being sent to duel it out at the end of the show.
Strikers Allstars: stepping based. They were in sync, strong, and attractive. They don't have as much name recognition as some of the other crews, but there are a lot of steppers out there who will root for them.
Beat Freaks, an all-woman all-star B-girl crew, doing the foundational styles of hip hop: popping, locking, b-girling. Awesome! I have to root for them.
G.O.P. from Puerto Rico incorporated some salsa and reggaeton moves, but were a little ragged compared to the other groups, and they were sent to the battle at the end, while the other two crews were safe.
Quest Crew has some familiar faces: Hok, Dominic and Ryan Conferido were all on So You Think You Can Dance in previous seasons, so they bring a wide fan-base. Very charismatic, very creative, and super-talented, they may be the early favorites. On the other hand, there could be some backlash if they are seen as too privileged because of that.
Fly Khicks, Miami Heat cheerleaders, high energy strip-club style. Ugh. Yeah they can dance, but I hate the hoochy-coochy stuff. Shane's reaction was exactly what I hate about it-- it was condescending. Kid Rainen called them on it gently: yeah, you can bring the sexy, but what else?
Ringmaster, a crew from Brooklyn did "flex" dancing (double-jointed, gruesome, "bone-breaking") popping their arms out of the sockets, yeow! along with a lot of hat tricks. Amazing, scary, nobody has ever seen moves like that, including a flip off a ten-foot ladder and a guy who came out of a suitcase: originality and goosebumps! "Cirque but in a raw, street form." L'il Mama cried for her hometown crew.
Fly Khicks was sent to battle it out.
Box Cuttahs (how do you spell that? why did they pick that dumb name?) did a well-choreographed routine, with theatrical touches, humor. One gal (Korean) and a bunch of guys with charm and skills- I think they are contenders.
OK, now, this was my big surprise: the return of the CLOGGAH! (and damn Dick Clark productions for yanking every SYTYCD-related fan video from YouTube). Brandon Norris, the guy who auditioned for SYTYCD and made such a great impression, is back with a group called Dynamic Edition (seven-time clogging champions) to do a number to Black-Eyed Peas "My humps" (too much!) They sold it. They know they are on the show to represent clogging to a new audience, and they impressed. The comments I read on Twitter last night, which was how I learned the show was on again, were positive.
Team Millenia had appeared in the auditions of a previous season, but they were cut, so this is their second chance. They chose to showcase a more "rock"-inspired choreo, to differentiate themselves from the style they did when they got cut, and the fans seem to be divided on whether or not they should have done it. The judges hinted that they shouldn't go too far in that direction, and I agree.
Box Cuttahz seemed surprised that the white kids aka the cloggers were kept, but this gave them a chance to show their skills again, and they were much better.
The crews had all been asked to prepare a 30-second routine to the same music, and this was where the choreography chops showed, or didn't show. G.O.P. pulled out their moves, but the cheerleaders are seasoned competitive performers, used to pulling together new choreo, and Box whatevers have a choreographer-leader, who worked the music really well. Bye bye earnest young men from Puerto Rico! Your fans will be mad at L'il Mama, but someone had to go.
I'll be able to watch the next round online next Friday, since I don't get MTV and have to wait until the voting is over to watch the whole show online.
The two classes of 4th-graders I talked to this morning had watched the show, and when I showed them Brazilian capoeira videos, we talked about the connections between breaking and Afro-Brazilian culture. So cute!
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