B-boyharry

Friday, 19 September 2014

Hip Hop Dance Expo Part 1.

Hip Hop Dance is great fun but very hard work if you want to dance well. So here is a flavour of what it's like to learn and lots of insider tips. And, most importantly, here is your chance to try out a full length dance class right now, in your own home, absolutely FREE!
Our very own instructional Hip Hop dance class is available for you to dance along with at home.
Just read through these pages, follow the information.....
They build to a full dance routine for beginners that features one of the most popular Street dance teachers ever.

So right here is everything you need to know to get dancing Hip Hop online.

Hip Hop Dance History

Hip Hop dance classes come under a variety of names. As Hip Hop is a cover-all term for modern Street dance, a lesson can draw its inspiration from many Street dancing styles, old and new.
Look out for these classes...

Funk
Street Style
Street Dance
Zoo
Hip Pop
Fusion
R n B Moves
Locking and Popping
Street Locking
Old School AKA Old Skool
New Wave
Free Style
Urban Groove
Urban Dance
Electric Boogaloo

And that's just a few!
The style of movement started back in the 1970's when disco and funk dancing became popular. So the roots of the dance you will do in a Hip Hop dance class can be directly traced back over 40 years.
In that time, many different types of moves and steps have been created. So you'll find there are very few set boundaries where one dance ends and another begins. You will dance a blend of styles in your Street dance class.

Therefore, you could find that after just a few lessons, you've experienced many of the classic Hip Hop dance techniques.
That way, perhaps you will feel a preference for one over the other, and as your dancing progresses you can go to a more specialist class.

So beginners classes are a fantastic way to learn a lot about most types of Street dancing in a fairly short time.
Ready to get dancing?
Clear a bit of space. And make sure you're wearing something comfortable - you're going to be warming up and cooling down like a pro dancer, so workout wear is best for this.
"I learnt your Hip Hop routine,
did it at my school talent show, and WON!"
Comment from one of my Students. :-)

What to Wear to Hip Hop Class

Hip Hop clothes can be more or less anything, but we've still got a few valuable tips for you.

While baggy street clothes are obviously popular, bear in mind that Hip Hop is incredibly hard work and it is sensible to wear something that is going to keep you as cool as possible.

Then you can put some street clothes on top for when you leave the lesson, and you won't cramp up as much.
This is particularly important if the class doesn't have a cool down period - but we've taken care of that and you can learn ours. Just follow the online class all the way through!

It is a good idea for beginners to tie their hair back for these classes. You do so much head, neck and shoulder movement that it'll just get in your way and you'll end up having to fish it out of your eyes, nose, mouth and your fellow pupil's face too, when actually you need to be concentrating on what the teacher is doing.
Save tossing your mane about for when you're a little more confident of your moves, OK?

Hip Hop Shoes

When you go to a Hip Hop class you must wear footwear the gives you really good arch and ankle support.
You are going to be doing a lot of hopping, stomping and stamps in a Hip Hop lesson. So to prevent injury, you must have a good pair of dance sneakers on.

You absolutely should not try a Hip Hop lesson in ballet shoes, socks or bare feet – you must have support.
(However, as Lil' J once said, if you are dancing on nice thick carpet at home, arch support isn't so important - but it really is if you are dancing on a hard floor.)
If you dance Hip Hop on a hard floor without arch and ankle support you'll jar your ligaments and lower back, and put enormous strain on your joints, which as every dancer knows, is something to be avoided at all costs.

So if you are going to take your dancing seriously, get yourself a seriously good pair of sneakers.

OK, that's the end of Part 1. We're just getting started!

B-boy Harry Foundation, Compass Nella Fitness Centre, Ongata Rongai.

Email: bboyharry@live.com - Phone: +254 700 472 451.

Wednesday, 17 September 2014

22 Things Good Dancers Do Differently!

We all like to look up to the good dancers. I support this; it’s great to have role models.
But how did they get so good? Stop spending such a massive quantity of your time wondering! It makes B-boy Harry sad.
As I’ve mentioned many times in My Workshops, it’s not magic. It’s also not “natural talent.”
Dancers get good by doing lots of things differently. Read on to find out 22 uncommon actions they take and why you should too.

NOTE: Most lindy hoppers I’ve asked aren’t 100% satisfied with their dancing. If you’re in that camp, follow the directions at the end to get the most out of this post.

Good dancers…

1. Overcome excuses about why they can’t practice. Ain’t no way you’re moving up if you can’t gain some momentum in your dance practice.
2. Take music seriously. If you need convincing, you’re not ready to advance.
3. Use both a mirror and video regularly in practice. Oh, I know there’s resistance to this. I dare you to try this every week for a month, then come tell me you failed. You won’t do it. Fail, I mean. It will be a raging success, and you’ll wish you’d gotten over yourself earlier.
4. Analyse themselves on video. It may pain you at first, but the cringing doesn’t last for long.
5. Ignore the haters. If everyone likes you, you’re probably boring.
6. Learn to dance without a partner. Relying on your partner is a crutch. If you can hold your own on the dance floor, nothing can stop you. Plus practising alone is surprisingly good for you.
7. Strive to constantly make new discoveries about dancing (rather than waiting to be spoon fed the answers). This is a crucial part of developing your unique perspective and voice. Don’t be a dance robot.
8. Seek out instructors/mentors they mesh with and who push them.
9. Practice the shit out of everything. Does this one need explaining? Of course you’ll need to do high-quality practice, not mindless practice.
10. Disregard their inner critics’ harsh thoughts. Your inner critic is just a little child trying to distract you from doing worthwhile things. Hit the ignore button.
11. Take aches and pains seriously. Our world is full of promising dancers who ignored their injuries and failed to excel. It’s never too late to start treating your body right.
12. Develop a unique voice and perspective on dance. You’ll need to figure out what this means to you. I can only promise that this is usually a difficult process. But hey, you’re looking for hard things to work on and making your own discoveries now, right?
13. Work on hard things. Most dancers focus on what comes easy. This is good for your ego in the short term, but so-so for your dancing. Look for and practice moves and concepts that challenge you. It gives you the most bang for you buck.

14. Listen to jazz [or insert your genre here] just for fun. Just because there’s a picture of a rubber ducky wearing a storm trooper helmet above doesn’t mean you can skip this.
15. Test themselves regularly. Practice is not “the thing.” Do The Thing you actually want to do! Perform, enter comps, choreograph, teach, film dance videos—whatever calls to you. Go do lots of that, then do lots more.
16. Always work on improving fitness. Good muscular balance and aerobic conditioning augment your dance ability. If you’re looking for a place to start, try glute exercises.
17. Avoid shit talking, complaining, and making excuses. This type of negativity just holds you back. Jealousy and self-sabotage anyone?
18. Ignore their judgemental thoughts. We all have ‘em, and they are terribly distracting. Go get to work!
19. Truly believe they can do it. It’s the difference between a fixed mindset and a growth mindset. You always have the ability to improve. Ponder that, take it to heart; it IS the truth.
20. Find friends who support them. Possibly the most confounding item on this list. Adults these days have a hard time finding good friends, don’t we? And then there’s the expectation that we should be able to do it all alone. Bullshit. Every successful person has a ton of support from their friends. This applies to dancers too.
21. Get consistent, accurate feedback during practice. Your partner, instructor, mirror, and video can all help.
22. Commit. You’re going to be doing this a long time. Keep going, even when it gets really tough. And it WILL get tough.

Do This Now!

Grab a notebook and ask yourself, “Which have I done well at? Which are falling through the cracks?” Evaluate yourself honestly; no one’s watching. For each action above you can improve on, jot down a few notes about how you can improve. For example, I want to analyse myself on video more often. My notes might say, “Take a 60 second video halfway through practice. Watch it 3 times, pick 2 things to work on, then work on them for the rest of practice.”

Then go try some of those plans.
Remember: It’s not magic. As soon as you start taking these actions to improve your dancing, you’ll see results. Go on, I dare you to try! For more help getting your practice groove on call me +254 700 472 451. Thus check out: https://www.facebook.com/pages/B-boy-Harry/285561131477940

B-boy Harry Foundation, Compass Nella Fitness Centre, Ongata Rongai.

Email: bboyharry@live.com - Phone: +254 700 472 451.