“Nu-Style Rockers @ San Dimas, CA”

Here’s a list of 6 things that I wanted the crew to think about before meeting together as a crew:

• HIGHER STANDARDS. Raise your standards and push yourself to continue getting the move you want. It may not be fun falling and failing numerous times but you’ll be happy you got it when you practice! “Fall 7 times. Stand 8.” “Practice makes perfect.”

• LOVE MUSIC. In this day and age having a relationship with the music is important. Whatever that’s being played… musicality is important! There has to be a relationship to the music. It’s more than just doing steps to a song but adding your personality into whatever is being played. Even if it’s just a feeling inside that you have from how the song makes you feel, run with it. That feeling is you coming out, and with practice, testing yourself and experience, that feeling becomes your AURA which you project.

• CYPHER. Find or create that open space for yourself to do you! Perform your art socially! Even if you think you’re going to look “whack/bad”, how else are you going to improve? Test yourself. See how open you can get free with what you’re doing?

• BATTLE. If you’re working on your own style, take it out and apply it in battles (in the cypher especially). Even if you feel your “art is not ready to be presented to the world,” how else are you going to develop it? Keep it away from competitions sure, but this dance is built around battling in the cypher. Your art is to be developed in front of the community as well as in the lab, and if people choose to pay attention and copy you, so be it. If not, aim to be better than them by doing you.

• DIG DEEP. and examine your relationship with how you dance to the music. How much do you need (not want) it? Every dancer has a relationship with the music being played whether or not they deny it.

• SMILE. Ask yourself what really makes you happy when you get down. If you got into dancing to be happy and now you’re being molded by something that you don’t want and it doesn’t make you happy, then why keep doing it? The dance isn’t for anyone but you. You chose this path because it made you happy. It comes down to: if something seems wrong in your life and you’re not happy, ask yourself what it is and change it.

In response to the Kony 2012 video, legendary bboy Crazy Legs goes to Uganda using hip hop b-boy culture as a tool to battle the humanitarian crisis occurring there. The film features narration by Common & interviews with Will.I.Am, and K’Naan.

Bouncing Cats Trailer from Bouncing Cats on Vimeo.

TEKNYC received the Spy Award in 2011.

Criteria for eligibility to be considered for the Spy award, a Bboy or Bgirl must have at least 10 years of experience and excel in each of the following categories:

1. Complete Understanding of Foundation*
2. Arsenal of Moves
3. Rocks To The Beat*
4. Innovator Of Moves
5. Influential Style 

The Spy Awards is for one that Rock Steady Crew believes to represent to its highest degree of integrity. We feel that it is a great way to honor the new generation of Bboys and Bgirls that have been paying dues in today’s scene. Each year we will present at least one person with a Spy award at the Rock Steady Crew anniversary. We hope that this honor will serve as a source of inspiration for the next generation of Bboys / Bgirls to continue to preserve the essence of our art form while growing with the evolution of the dance as well. 

Teknyc is in a crew with Cloud, Venum, Spee-d, Flea Rock, Luigi, and Lil’ Demon just to name a few. They’re known as the 2009 UK Champion crew, Endangered Species but widely known as Skill Methodz established in Florida in 1995. On Saturday we collaborated. It was a pleasure to work with Teknyc to do a benefit workshop for Steelo. Steelo inspired me in the 90s when he was in his legendary California bboy crew called Style Elements. Style Elements consisted of 2011 World Bboy Redbull Champion Roxrite, Crumbs, Poe One, Remind, Wicket, & Stunts. Steelo now represents Killafornia. In 2011, Steelo suffered from a brain aneurysm.

On behalf of Steelo, Teknyc wanted to do a benefit workshop for him. We collaborated and I caught up with him to set up and as much as I wanted to to participate I wanted to capture the purpose of this benefit workshop instead. To have all proceeds and donations go to him is gracious. It’s not always about money. It’s about the support and family that counts. Everything else is secondary. Shout out to Gee, bboy Venum, bboy Spee-d and fam the entire bboyspot and last but not least, thank you Teknyc!

This is for your Steelo! -Albeeyap

Video on CNN!report: http://ireport.cnn.com/docs/DOC-752187

 Djing this evening was definitely one of my favorite times DJing. Being a Claremont resident DJ made me love the supporters here. They hype me up probably more than any other event I’ve djed before. Had family, friends, and coworkers come out to support me here.

Best of all I had familiar faces from the last time I DJed here. If you’re reading this I just wanted to let you know that I recognize you and I want to give you a big shout out for coming! You guys are awesome and I really do appreciate your presence! Until next time… =)

Pictures of the best people! @: http://bestbboy.com/gallery/Feb-9-2012

J Dilla (Feb 7, 1974 – Feb 10, 2006) was a major influence on the way I teach and listen to music. I grew up to his music. He is and will be the greatest hip hop producer of all time. Back in 2006, I was teaching my Chino Hills’ class to J Dilla’s music (Slum Village – Fall in Love clean ver./ Common – The Light). Keep in mind that these songs that I played for my students was in 2006. They were released in 1999 & 2000. 6-7 years later I’m still playing them especially for my newer students.

During a Friday evening teaching playing Dilla’s music, I was teaching how important it was to listen to the drums of these 2 songs. Class finished and I was on my way home. I turned on my car radio and the first thing I hear on Power 106 is that J Dilla died! It was February 10, 2006. His death impacted me. His music uplifted me especially during the times some of my family members passed away. I felt that his music/beats were like a companion to help me through my loved ones’ deaths. His instrumentals were so mesmerizing and melodic. It helped me during a time of mourning and his music was my sympathetic therapy.

Playing Dilla’s production for my students coincidentally on the day he passed away made it more meaningful to me for what I do. I felt like it was a calling for me to keep spreading awareness to a newer and younger generation.

During the time of Dilla’s passing, I took advantage of my opportunities when I was a VC2 producer for Current TV. I had a major interest to do a documentary for J Dilla. I eventually set up interviews for a majority of all the artists J Dilla has worked with. Unfortunately, I couldn’t complete it due to the conflict of artists’ schedules.

The project was too time consuming. I gave up without completing the documentary due to many artists contracts with major music labels. There were too many restrictions with musicians. I was disappointed because I was doing this straight from the heart and not from a business perspective. I invested my own finances to this project.

I have hours of interviewed Dilla footage. It was going to be a waste of film if I didn’t have anyone see point of views from many inspiring hip hop artists. So I decided to make them as separate edit cuts made viewable on youtube 4-5 years later. I did not want to waste the footage because I felt that it was important to view these artists in Dilla’s circle.

All interviews are copyright for AlbeeYapFilm/Current TV © 2012
All 4 members of the Pharcyde:

J Dilla’s brother, illa j:

J Dilla participated in Hezekiah’s beat battle events:

J Dilla’s close friend, Dave NY:

J Dilla producing De La Soul:

From the official documentary: Common & Erykah Badu on Dilla:

Artists that are heavily inspired by J Dilla:
DJ Renegade on J Dilla:

DJ Abel of Stacks Vinyl on J DIlla:

DJ Counterstrke from Divine Forces on J Dilla:

DJ Orator on J Dilla:

J Dilla was behind the music of many artists such as A Tribe Called Quest, The Pharcyde, Common, Busta Rhymes, and even Janet Jackson. Kanye West calls Dilla a drum god. He claims that Dilla’s drums can’t be touched. Pharrell Williams of N.E.RD. said that his favorite producer is J Dilla.

For 2012 on J Dilla’s birthday Tuesday Feb. 7th 2012 @ 10:30pm, I will be doing DJing a tribute set for Beat Cinema at Hip Kitty Jazz & Fondue in Claremont, CA

http://www.facebook.com/events/218534904902445/

Bboy/bgirling gear hasn’t changed for 3 decades! Bboy/bgirl fashion is a mentality. It is not about what you wear, it is how you wear it. Here’s a checklist:

Color schemes are important like a matching hat and shoes.

Track/sweat pants are comfortable to move in for fast quick leg movements for up-rocking etc..

…& why the Puma Suedes, Converse & Adidas?   Many bboys/bgirls like the white bottom of the sneaker. When they move fast with their footwork all that was visible was the white bottom of the sneaker. It looks like white flashes which makes the footwork look visible! Plus these sneakers can withstand wear and tear better than other shoes in bboying/bgirling.

Freestyle cap pad is for head freezes/stands/spins. It goes underneath snapback hats. Shout out to Cypherstyles for hooking it up with the bboy paddings. Freestyle cap pads are available for purchase @ http://bestbboy.com/store/ or you can purchase directly through me.

Bboy Roxrite is now the 2011 Redbull BC One World Bboy Champ! It was a pleasure working with him. Below is a skit from a documentary I created with Bboy Roxrite.

Roxrite proved that you dont have to do POWERMOVES or any technical hard moves to win a battle. But with the Knowledge and understanding you can win against the best bboys in the world. Roxrite had the hardest battles with the best bboys in the competition but still he made it to the end.
-Hakoomy

“You can make your goals a reality, just always work hard and never give up!” -Omar Delgado(roxrite)

I said it once, I’ll say it again. Every great bboy has one last great battle in them.

It’s Roxy’s night.
-Paranoid Android
Full Time Bboy with Roxrite, BBoy Ronnie & more

Post-performance at the Joselyn Center in Covina, CA

www.bestbboy.com is more than about music… it’s about society. “You never change things by fighting the existing reality. To change something, build a new model that makes the existing model obsolete.”

Live for today. Plant for tomorrow.

Majority of my family started living in the heart of Los Angeles particularly in a low income area. My family’s house was broken into which eventually made my family want to move and raise me in a safer neighborhood.

Revolving my lifestyle in Los Angeles made me who I am. I channel my frustrations of my upbringing through my art.  I incorporate bboying into my lifestyle regardless where I am I bboy and mirror myself 8-16 hrs a week. I usually train in my facilities like Claremont, Covina, Pomona, Chino Hills, West Covina, La Verne, Duarte and San Dimas.

Today, I encountered a dancer who is arrogant. He told me how much all this money he makes and claims that he is a bboy. Eventually, I had to put him in his place and I left saying… “I’ll never sell out”. I told him, “Never sell out.” He asked me what does that mean. I said It’s an old bboy saying…

A b-boy is not a term to be taken lightly, nor can it be given to just anyone. Many people that think they are down with hip-hop call themselves a b-boy or b-girl without actally knowing what the term means.

The ‘b’ in b-boy/girl stands for boogie or break because when the DJ spun the old school break beats, people started gettin down. In general, a b-boy is someone who is true to hip-hop whether they are male or female. In terms of dancing, being accepted as a b-boy is one of the highest honors a hip-hop dancer can get.

Being a b-boy means that you are a representative of the dance aspect of hip-hop culture and not a sell-out or a wannabe. It separates you from the rest of the dancers that think they are down with hip-hop because they learned a hip-hop dance routine at one point in their life.

A true b-boy lives and breathes hip-hop culture and dedicates his life to the pursuit of higher levels of hip-hop. Many technical dancers view hip-hop dance as a low-level form of dance (compared to jazz of ballet). Some of the more open-minded dancers are ‘cool’ with hip-hop and think that it is a neat form of dancing.

The latter especially are an insult to hip-hop because they act like they are down with it, yet they actually view it as a novelty, much like how an adult would smile at a child that is trying to act like an adult. In my opinion, the levels of technical dance are decreasing because the cutting edge is no longer being pushed.

I have seen the same ballet turns over and over as well as the leaps, kicks, jazz walks, etc… One of the big differences between hip-hop and technical dancing is that hip-hop dancers emphasize creating their own style and moves. Technical dancers stay in classrooms all day and learn choreography done by other people. There is no emphasis on the creation of personal moves, or personal styles. Uniformity and the ability to learn other people’s choreography is the emphasis and so the creative aspect of technical dancing is only embodied in the choreography rather than the actual process of dancing.

I have talked to many dance majors in college and none of them have every told me they practice dancing in the studios on their own time ‘just to get better’ or ‘just for the hell of it’. Of course there are exceptions to the rule but my belief is that there are not many. That is why being a b-boy is such a high title in the realm of hip-hop.

A b-boy is a dancer to the extreme, elevating the level of hip-hop through creation of both moves and style. B-boys are self-sufficient dancers. They have no need for choreographers or dance routines to dance. They can stand alone in the middle of a circle and wreck shop. Or they can get together in crews and dance routines… and still wreck shop.