Breakdance, Bboy, Bgirl Tips

Written by VancouverBreakdancers.com

Quite often I get questioned regarding breakdancing, or the preferred term, breaking, as done by bgirls and bboys.  The artform is one of the forms and elements of hip hop culture and is very famous worldwide, however, was much more popular in the 80’s to the 90’s.  There has been some really bad movies made in regards to the artform which has likely turned some people away because the movies are really corny.  There’s many competitions and championships worldwide such as Redbull Breakdance Championships.  Here are a few tips to get yourself started in the art and perhaps you may well be the next dance king or queen of the block.

1)  Understand the roots and culture of the artform of breaking.  The term comes from the fact the dance was performed over the breaks of a song, which a deejay would loop over and over.  The breaks were popular portions of a song to dance and rap to, which the deejay would rock the floor to.  The dance form is highly influenced by martial arts, acrobatics and flashy footwork and broken down into four main facets of top rock (dancing while standing up), down rock (dancing while close to the ground), power moves (acrobatic kung fu like movements), and suicides/freezes (stylish poses).

2)  Have a good foundation of physical movements that are standard movements.  The standard moves will teach you how to move your body in a certain way.  Having a teacher is helpful but not necessary as many people teach themselves.  Having a background in martial arts and gymnastics helps a lot.

3)  Breakdance is only limited by the physics of each individual’s human body.  There’s no actual rules and it follows Bruce Lee’s philosophy of having a style with no style.  If it looks good, it looks good.  All the greats make up their own techniques and moves to incorporate, although some may take influence from others or outside arts.  Even if you are learning the foundations, just make up something here and there.  Read books and articles on physical movements, watch movies, watch sports, and just make up something!  It is a creative process and about expression.  As stated in number one, there are 4 elements but you can take those 4 elements to beyond and back.

4)  Practice and hard work.  Some people may be blessed with natural game and talent but even then it’s hard work and practice.  There’s no shortcuts.  Whether you are taking classes or choosing to teach yourself, dedicate time to the art and you will be effective at it.  Michael Jordan has likely shot millions of baskets and passes to get where he was at and believe it or not, many people doubted him at first.  Look at musicians like Master P, who built a fortune making a few cents to a few dollars a sale of a song and he’s worth a few hundred million – that is a lot of hard work to sell that many songs to make only a small profit off each sale.  You want to be good at something you have to put in the effort.

5)  The artform is a physical activity so it helps to exercise and make your body movement free.

6)  Plan out how to learn.  All breakdance moves are just the biology of the human body and physics.  Think about the essence of the technique and go with it.

7)  Have fun!