Expanding Hip Hop's Reach Globally

We've heard the stories over and over again. Hip hop has gone global. It touches many corners around the world and has inspired the minds of people everywhere. But what about hip hop dance? Many of us are somewhat familiar with the original hip hop dance - breakin'. And now in modern times, poppin' and lockin' have been grouped with breakin' to be part of the same family. In almost every major city, you can find a session spot or a dance studio that's teaching some form of these styles. But how can we expand the reach of hip hop dance across the globe?

Some of the dance capitals of the world have thrived because of the energy coming from a vibrant dance community within their borders. Tokyo, Paris, Los Angeles, New York, Montreal and many others are favorite visiting spots for international dancers who want to train and to network. But what about the other thousands of cities out there who are trying to educate and to provide supportive communities for their youth? Very little media attention or outside support is given to them from folks who aren't part of their cities. We hear about teachers traveling around the world giving master classes and workshops. Dancers will flock to their local studio to catch a lesson. But is this enough? Are we doing all that we can do to encourage dancers of all ages to grow?

Conversations about hip hop dance, technique, history are happening at a much faster rate and on a larger scale than years before, thanks to connections made through the Internet. We know how to network, how to start collaborations, and how to make things happen. We're moving in the right direction. But unfortunately, there's still not enough financial investment in the arts to expand the reach of hip hop dance. There are few individuals who will teach and share their gifts for free. And so, often we fall into a familiar pattern where international dancers save up their money and travel to cities like LA, New York, and Tokyo to train.

Can we flip the situation and bring teachers from these cities to other locales so that dancers can save their money for classes and not burn it on travel expenses? Monsters of Hip Hop is doing that with their conventions, bringing a selected faculty of choreographers to teach in cities across the U.S. This is a model that we'd like to see more of especially with styles like breakin', poppin', and lockin' that aren't often offered to larger classes. Boogiezone has expanded their reach to other countries like New Zealand, Germany, and Norway, after establishing their class network in southern California.

Maybe we're talking about a cultural shift here. It used to be that parents enrolled their kids in sports or musical instruments to instill values of discipline, perseverance, and teamwork. But what if parents sent their kids to dance classes instead? Today's upcoming generation are more open to embracing hip hop as their medium of expression. If parents accept that, then more money will be poured into supporting classes, teaching networks, and expanding hip hop dance's reach globally. Parental support is not the only factor, but it is one important factor to consider for the future. Many young people aren't financially independent yet and will depend on their parents for money to take classes. Newer parents in the early thirties today will likely be more open to hip hop dance classes for their children since they themselves had exposure to hip hop in their youth. So it's possible that the cultural shift we're looking for is starting to happen right now as a generational shift is happening.