“Of all the hip-hop arts, dance remains the least documented and most obscured by the mists of history. Millions know how to lock or pop…But precious few knew who the originators were.”

–from “Dancing on the Through-Line” by Jeff Chang

Looking to Hip-Hop’s Beginnings

Rennie Harris, one of hip-hop dance’s pioneers, looks back to African dance to understand the origins of hip-hop. “One of the things I realized is that the very first time in the Middle Passage that slaves were made to dance in shackles to rhythms of tea kettles is the birth of Black contemporary art.”

Hip-hop, as a form of street dance, was born of folk art traditions. And the forerunners of hip-hop dance have often been poorly introduced to the world they have affected. Since hip-hop’s beginnings, new styles have often been discovered within a “cipher,” the circle that forms around dancers performing on the floor. From these ciphers have come countless innovators who, through their cultural influences and through their own innovations, have influenced the history of hip-hop dance.

“Snake Hips,” James Brown, and Rap

The history of hip-hop dance is tied inextricably to the history of both hip-hop music—DJing and MCing, or rap—and graffiti. In 1973, hip-hop DJ Kool Herc, a Jamaican-American who arrived in the Bronx at age 12, began developing the sound that hip-hop dance artists have embraced as “break beats.”

But, the history of hip-hop reaches back to much earlier influences. In the 1920s, Earl Tucker, “Snake Hips,” performed at venues like the Cotton Club in New York City. In Tucker’s dance moves, one can see the beginnings of waving and sliding, or gliding, which are now fundamental elements of hip-hop dance.

Street dance flourished with the music of artists like James Brown, whose use of drummers like Clayton Fillyau influenced the beat of upcoming hip-hop music. As funk was changing in California on the US West Coast, it was also changing on the East Coast, namely in Philadelphia and in New York City. From these three centers, unique forms of hip-hop dance developed.

“Stepping,” “Uprocking,” and “BBoying”

In 1964, hip-hop dance master Rennie Harris was born in Philadelphia. He would learn dance during a period when Black social dance flourished, and he would grow up during the development of hip-hop. Harris learned “stepping” which was–in some of its techniques and in the way dance groups competed–similar to social tap-dance clubs. During the 1960s, the Black Arts movement prompted institutions to look more carefully at folk dances like “stepping.” A representative of the Smithsonian Folklife Center recognized Harris’s dance skills, and he hired the teenager to perform in local schools.

As Harris was stepping in North Philadelphia, dancers “Rubber Band” and “Apache” introduced Brooklyn gang dances into New York City’s discos. This introduced “uprocking,” or the “Brooklyn rock.”

Soon, the Bronx was following DJ Kool Herc’s break beats, and Kool Herc began calling the dancers at his parties “b-boys.” Fans and dancers interpreted this term to mean “break boys,” or “beat boys,” or “Bronx boys.” But regardless of interpretation, “b-boys” are part of modern hip-hop dance. As with Philadelphia’s stepping groups and California’s boogaloo groups—which transformed a dance called “strutting”—b-boys were also highly competitive. Battles were held between dancers, with the winners remembered as the masters of hip-hop dance.

“Campbellocking” and Popping

One of the most important hip-hop dance developments of the 1970s came out of Los Angeles, California when Don Campbell introduced a new style of dance. The “Campbellock,” as it was originally known, consisted of dance moves broken up by short, abrupt pauses. This style won Campbell a spot on Soul Train,

and eventually it became the modern hip-hop style known as “locking.”

Influenced by The Lockers and motivated by his own innovation, Boogaloo Sam created The Electronic Boogaloo Lockers in Fresno, California in 1977. In 1978, Boogaloo Sam—now known as the creator of popping and the master of boogaloo style—would reorganize his group as The Electric Boogaloos.

“Love Bug” Starski’s “Hip-Hop” Culture

In 1974,DJ/MC “Love Bug” Starski began referring to his culture as “hip-hop.” Today, he’s generally credited with coining the term.

With The Electric Boogaloos, several dance groups formed in the 1970s, including Granny & Robotroid, Inc.—a professional boogaloo and robotting group—and the Untouchable Four B.Boys—who expanded to form the original Rock Steady Crew.

Hip-Hop Reaches the World

In the 1980s, hip-hop dance took off internationally with the help of television. Rod Stewart’s “Young Turks” music video featured locker and popper “Cool Pockets” from the dance group Chain Reaction. And, popper “Poppin Pete” performed in a music video for The Talking Heads.

DJs had been rapping for years. But when Blondie released her album “Rapture,” she put rap music on pop charts for the first time. Other advances in hip-hop music during these years did a great deal to popularize the culture’s dance styles.

In 1981, the Lincoln Center in New York City hosted a battle between the Rock Steady Crew and b-boys The Dynamic Rockers. This event, which was covered by the New York Times, the Village Voice, the Daily News, National Geographic, and local news stations helped b-boying gain the world’s attention.

Fierce Battles, New Bonds

Throughout the 1980s, dance groups engaged in a number of famous battles. But in spite of the competitiveness, collaboration also occurred. Hip-hop dancers from the East and the West learned each other’s styles and took them home to teach and expand on them.

With increased collaboration, groups soon began touring together throughout the United States and throughout the world. In 1983, DJs, dancers, and graffiti artists began the international “Wild Style Tour,” which included performances in Japan.

Hip-Hop in Traditional Dance Venues

Hip-hop dance underwent mainstreaming during the 1980s. In 1983, top New York City hip-hop dancers performed at the Kennedy Center Honors for dancer and choreographer Katherine Dunham.

In 1986, Steve “Mr. Wiggles” Clemente became one of the first b-boys to appear in a Broadway show when he performed in Mystery of Edwin Drood. In 1991, Clemente’s group, which would eventually become GhettOriginal, presented a sold-out run of the evening-length musical, So What Happens Now? at P.S. 122. That year, the Rock Steady Crew and Rhythm Technicians performed again in the Kennedy Center Honors, this time in a tribute to the Nicholas Brothers.

Rediscovering Hip-Hop’s Origins

By the early 1990s, hip-hop groups from France, Germany, and the UK, as well as groups from within the US, were already trying to rediscover the roots of hip-hop dance. The 1994 creation of the “BBoy Summit” provided a venue for the world’s hip-hoppers to gather, meet, and compete.

Since the mid-1990s, hip-hop dance has continued evolving internationally. Several names continue turning up as innovators and leaders within that culture. Rennie Harris, who had created hip-hop dance shows at the request of Philadelphia Movement Theater International for the “New Voices New Views” festival, eventually formed the company Puremovement. This company’s work marries hip-hop, theater, and contemporary dance.

GhettOriginal continued performing and appeared in, among other shows, the off-Broadway Jam on The Groove at New York City’s Minnettea Lane Theater in 1995. And throughout the years, ballet and modern dance companies have featured b-boys in performances.

Commemorating Hip-Hop History and Continuing the Culture

In 1999, the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame honored hip-hop legends in the museum and conference “Roots, Rhymes, and Rage: The Hip-Hop Story.” The exhibit, which opened with 250 artifacts, was organized into five sections that outlined the chronology of hip-hop: “The Block Party”; “The Roots”; “The Golden Era”; “Controversy, Outrage & the Rise of Gangsta Rap”; and “Pop Goes the Culture”.

The annual Illadelph Legends Festival—begun by Rennie Harris over ten years ago—allows hip-hop dancers and the public to learn from the original hip-hop creators through lectures and master-classes. Many schools also now teach hip-hop to dance students. And increasingly, students of modern dance, jazz, and even ballet, seek out hip-hop instruction.

One of the arguments in today’s world of hip-hop dance concerns the work of those who teach it. Gabriel “Kwikstep” Dionisio, co-founder of the Full Circle Productions hip-hop group, and former member of GhettOriginal, has questioned whether hip-hoppers like Rennie Harris should be “deconstructing” hip-hop when teaching and combining it with forms of concert dance. He and his partner, b-girl Ana “Rockafella” Garcia, say that they recognize the importance of change in hip-hop. But, they also say that it’s important to tell the story of hip-hop that hasn’t been told yet.

Today, hip-hop competitions exist across the globe. And, new forms of dance continue to appear, with “clowning” and “krumping” being two recently mainstreamed styles out of Los Angeles.

The history of hip-hop hardly ends here. As we continue this series of posts on hip-hop dance, we’re going to look more closely at several fundamental styles. Then, we’re going to look at the question of teaching hip-hop dance, as well as the methods for teaching.

If you’d like to make any contributions to this series, we’d love to hear from you. Send us an e-mail, or leave a comment on this post!

Photo Sources:

Rennie Harris: http://www.illadelph.org/about_2007.html

YouTube: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7U4ww-MmAY4

The Electric Boogaloo: http://www.twilightplayers.com/private/halloffame.htm

Kwikstep: http://www.fullcirclesoul.com/home.html

Additional Sources: “Dancing on the Through-Line” by Jeff Chang