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Breakdancing is probably connected to Urban Street Jazz or more likely
capoeira, an Afro-Brazilian dance/martial art. Breakdancing as we know it today
developed in New York City in the late 1970s and early 1980s, although there is
some controversy, and many argue that breakdancing was also developing in Los
Angeles at the same time.
In New York, DJ Kool Herc was the first person to coin the term 'b-boy' in 1969.
During performances where Herc would be DJing, he would yell out "b-boys go
down!" which cued the dancers to begin breakdancing. 1969 was also the year that
James Brown recorded "Get on the Good Foot," a song that promoted high-energy,
acrobatic dancing and that Afrika Bambaataa claims led to break dancing (Toop,
1991).
Prototypically the pioneers of breakdancing were young and of a lower
socioeconomic class. The majority of these were male, and most were Black or
Hispanic, and lived in dense urban areas (mostly New York). Many of them were
members of street gangs who taught themselves martial arts (particularly
capoeira) for self defense. The style was so full of dance-like moves that it
translated well to the nightclub, where breakdancers would battle. Breakdancing,
both in the nightclub and on the street is competitive in nature, much like the
other elements of hip-hop, as well as capoeira.
One story that is common is that Mestre Jelon Viera, a widely known master of
capoeira, was doing shows in New York City. He then formed the Rock Steady Crew,
teaching them movements from capoeira which they then integrated into a form of
dance which was to become breakdancing. Whether or not this is true, there is a
very strong similarity between many
breakdancing moves and many capoeira movements. For example, the movement
pictured in the stamp above is very similar to a capoeira movement called queda
de rijns. Capoeira also has the tradition of a pair of opponents playing a
flowing game in which they try to show their mastery inside a circle of
onlookers who sing and play music. In any case, the two arts have since diverged
sharply.
David Toop (1991) describes break dancing as being an adaptation of the Break, a
dance popular before being replaced by the Freak, fueled by Chic's "Le Freak" in
1978, but that was revived by Crazy Legs, Frosty Freeze, and The Rock Steady
Crew. He also explains, ""the word break or breaking is a music and dance term
(as well as a proverb) that goes back a long way. Some tunes, like "Buck
Dancer's Lament" from early this century, featured a two-bar silence in every
eight bars for the break - a quick showcase of improvised dance steps."
Breakdancing battles were very common. A
breakdancing battle is when dancers 'fight' against each other on the dance
floor without contact. They form a circle and take turns trying to show each
other up through either better style, more complex move combinations, or tougher
moves. Usually, breakdancing battles would take place between two opposing
breakdancing crews. Some of the major crews are the Zulu Nation, Rock Steady
Crew (RSC), Style Elements,Furious Styles Crew, Ichigeki, Team OHH, Fireworks,
Havikoro, Furious Five and Airforce Crew.
Today serious battles are usually held at organized breakdance events. The
battles are usually part of a tournament style competition with cash prizes, or
they are featured showcase battles, where each crew is paid to dance. It's not
uncommon that spontaneous battles will happen at events as well, when rival
crews show up with most of their members.
The largest competition each year is probably Battle of the Year (BOTY), held in
Germany since 1990, and featuring crews from around the world. Despite its name,
BOTY focuses on choreographed routines. After judges rate the routines, the
final winner, and de facto world champion crew, is decided in a final battle
(along with 2nd, 3rd, and 4th places). Recent winners have been from France,
Korea, Germany, and Hungary. While crews from the USA have won in the past, the
claim is that they are not often winners of BOTY, because competitions in the
USA are almost exclusively battles, rather than dance routine competitions as
are common in the rest of the world. Nonetheless, this is a good indicator of
how widespread the practice and high ability level of this American folk artform
has become.
In the 1980s, with the help of pop culture, breakdancing made its way to the
suburbs. Musicians such as Michael Jackson popularized much of the breakdancing
style in their music videos. Movies such as Flashdance, Wild Style, Beat Street,
Breakin' and Breakin 2: The Electric Boogaloo also contributed to breakdancing's
growing appeal.
Many oldschool breakdancers prefer to be referred to as b-boys. "B-boy"
was the original term for urban style dancers, while "breakdancer" is better
known as it has been used more commonly by the media. The 'B' in b-boy doesn't
correspond to a specific word, but most likely means "Boogaloo" or "Break."
Today, the term 'B-Girl' is used as well.
Credit: Wikipedia
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