Dance Styles
"Street Dance" and "Club Dance" are umbrella terms for various dances, underground cultures and art forms. Get to know them prior to hiring us for a show, booking us for a workshop or joining a class.
HIP HOP
Hip Hop dance began in the 1970s in the Bronx, New York, created by Black and Latinx youth from poor communities as a way to freely express themselves and their reality. Rooted in styles like Breaking "Break Dance" and Party Dances, it reflects the music, community, and culture that shaped their environment.
HOUSE DANCE
House dance grew from the underground club scenes of Chicago, New York, Detroit, and Philadelphia in the late 1970s and 1980s, led by Black, Latino, and LGBTQ+ communities. Influenced by styles like Salsa, Capoeira, Hip Hop, Breaking, and other social dances, it celebrates rhythm, freedom, and connection through grooves, footwork, and improvisation.
WAACKING/WHACKING
Waacking/Whacking emerged in the 1970s from Los Angeles’ underground club scene, created by Black and Brown gay men - originally as "Punking". Influenced by 70's music and the dramatic poses of Black-and-white Hollywood films, it blends fast arm movements, expressive performance, and storytelling as a powerful form of pride, identity, and liberation.
AFRO/AFROBEATS
"Afro or Afrobeats" dance is a broad term describing the energetic social dances that have developed alongside Afrobeats music and other popular styles across the African diaspora. Influenced by movements from countries like Nigeria, Ghana, and South Africa - such as Azonto, Shaku Shaku, and Amapiano - it blends traditional African rhythms with new music and dance trends, celebrating joy, rhythm, and community.
POPPING
Popping originated in the 1970s on the West Coast of the United States, developed by Black and Latino dancers in California. Influenced by funk music and performance styles, it uses quick muscle contractions, hits, and isolated movements to create a “popping” effect, emphasizing rhythm, control, and expressive storytelling.
BREAKING "BREAK DANCE"
Breaking (often called “breakdance” in mainstream culture) originated in the 1970s in the Bronx, New York, created by Black and Latino youth from poor communities. Considered the first Hip Hop dance, it combines toprock, footwork, go-downs, freezes, and power moves, serving as a form of self-expression, competition, and community identity.
