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Bobby Tank - Learn from You

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by Seto Kit Yan  [email protected]

SOMEWHAT like how martial arts is the epitome of machismo, street dance has quickly become the millennium’s hallmark of cool for today’s trendy youth.

There are other similarities between street dance and its more traditional counterpart. Both disciplines require a high level of fitness and intensive training, much like any other sports. And where kung fu practitioners spar with one another, so do street dancers.

As the fascination with street dance grows steadily, so is the interest in reality TV dance shows. Popular dance crews enjoy pop-star adulation from cheering fans who come dressed in their colours.

Capitalising on the dance fever, Astro introduced Battleground, the first ever street dance competition on local television – on its Chinese-language channel Wah Lai Toi (Channel 311) in 2007. (Battlegroundwas last year made available in high definition on Astro Zhi Zun/Channel 310.)

Poised for its fifth season later this year, Battleground is considered one of the biggest street dance competitions in Malaysia and offers a total of RM50,000 in prize money besides a host of sponsored prizes. The competition is open to dancers aged 15 and above, regardless of race or nationality.

What is so compelling about street dancing that enthusiasts are known to expend a lot of time, effort and money on competitions? Let’s enter the fray and find out.

Bobby Tan’s energy and passion for dance is infectious. – LIM CHENG KIAT / The Star

From the heart

Street dance professional Bobby Tan, 28, say they are driven by a deep passion for dance. “They enjoy the environment and the vibe. But it’s hard to feel the vibe unless the organisers do it really well. It’s not just about the prize money. The stage, the music, the deejay, the emcee ... all these play an important part in ensuring a dancer’s enjoyment.

“Even we ourselves can throw a jam, with no prize money and no food at all, and still people would come to express themselves.”

Tan, one of the judges for Battleground Seasons One to Three (2007-09), explains: “Battleground is a competition that seeks versatile dancers who are adept at many styles. So if you are weak in one style, you may lose.

“Depending on the competition requirements, the criteria we have to consider are choreography, musicality and rhythm, technical skills, showmanship, costume and creativity.”

Most importantly, the dancer should express himself while grooving to the music.

“Don’t try to impress people because then you will not be feeling the music,” Tan advises.

Street dance, he reiterates, is a healthy sport that provides a platform for young people to exchange ideas and learn new skills while making new friends.

Tan, who founded his Street Nation Dance Studio four years ago with “Dance from the heart” as his motto (to encourage like-minded dancers to pursue their passion in a conducive environment and to participate in competitions), has had students from ages four to 60. It’s an indication of the popularity of the sport across different demographics.

One aspect that truly appeals to Tan is the limitless scope of dance.

“Contrary to public opinion, breakdance is a safe sport compared to other extreme sports like skate-boarding or BMX (bicycle motorcross). Having a good physique and co-ordination will give you an advantage. And those who have a background in martial arts, gymnastics, athletics, or other dance disciplines, even in playing musical instruments, will have a better foundation to build on,” he points out.

Apart from being an instructor/choreographer/judge/mentor, Tan currently helps to organise events for the local street dance community. He plans to organise the first ever international street dance event featuring foreign dancers.

“So far we’ve only had competitions among local dancers. When you have a gathering of international talent, that is when you can really experience an exchange of knowledge and learn new skills, ” says the personable young man, who often lends his expertise to street dance events by Rakan Muda and YMM (Young Malaysians Movement).

His passion and energy is evidently infectious. Every now and then he’ll break into dance to support his description. So inspired is The Star’s photo intern Lim Cheng Kiat that he lies prone on the ground to capture him in action.

Girl power: Battleground reigning champion Soul Krazy (led by Becky Lee, centre) is the first allgirl crew to top the dance competition. They beat 18 other groups last year.

Give and take

Tan is both mentor and friend to other street dancers from Battleground, including the 2009 winner Katoon Network and the reigning champion Soul Krazy, the first all-girl dance crew to top the competition after beating 18 other groups late last year.

Following their win, the five lasses – Becky Lee, 26, Von Ngai, 24, Yvonne Kan, 21, Cynthia Wong, 20, and Seven Phang, 19 – have featured in festive events and road shows organised by Astro.

With vastly different personalities, members of Soul Krazy found it a real challenge to collaborate as a group.

“It was hard when we started our crew. We had to learn to give and take. Now, we are so close that we share our food, drink, towel, bed, clothes and shoes,” reveals Lee, the Soul Krazy leader.

Lee, who also won the inaugural Battleground 2007 with a mixed dance crew named Racken Force, is an archetypal street dancer who’s relentless in her pursuit.

Despite emerging as the pioneer batch of Battleground winners, the group did not get much recognition.

“Maybe it’s because that was the very first time, it felt like we were just tossed aside,” recalls Lee.

But the gal did not give up.

“After skipping Season Two, I formed Street Wreckerz with Cynthia for Season Three, where we met Von and Yvonne who were with another group. Seven was their friend and after we went for dessert together, we decided to form Soul Krazy and set out to be the first all-girl crew to win Battleground.”

And they succeeded.

The girls estimate that collectively, they spent more than RM5,000 on costumes for the 10 rounds of competition.

“We’re girls and we want to look pretty,” Lee coos. “We’d throw open our closets to see if we had accessories to match. Sometimes we made our own costumes, too. Usually, we’d shop at the very last minute because we prefer to concentrate on our routines. Basically, we paid for everything from our own pockets until we almost went bankrupt.”

To rehearse together, the troupe members took time off work or cancelled classes.

“Every weekend during the competition we’d practise hard in the studio, usually from 2pm till evening or even late at night,” she says.

The five are planning to enter another dance competition in Singapore by mid-year. For now, though, they say they need to take some time out to rest and recuperate from their dance injuries.

Loving it: The guys of Katoon Network dream of putting Malaysia’s dance talent on the map. The group’s spokesperson Alex Lim is in the middle. – KEVIN TAN / The Star

Personal sacrifices

Crossover membership is common among the local dance crews, who actively feature on the competition circuit.

Katoon Network is one such group, formed by individuals from different dance crews and studios (Royal Phantom, Floor Fever, Street Nation).

It was a winning formula for the troupe as they outdid others including Battleground 2008 champion Elecoldxhot, the all-girl Dancologist and Malay crew Wakaka Fever to clinch the 2009 title.

The original five-man team who competed in Battleground 2009 comprised Kelvin Low (aka Mr Katoon), 27, Alex Lim (Poppin’ Rex), 23, Celica Chew, 25, Hazmi Khalib (Mimie), 27, and Chin Nyet Khim, 22. Now more active than ever, Katoon Network continues to perform with new members Bryant Low, 22, and Eric Chan, 22, to cope with busier periods.

The group’s spokesperson Lim, who took up street dancing after watching a video of renowned South Korean contemporary dancer Poppin’ Hyun Joon, says during the competition he’d live, eat and breathe dancing.

“We’d practise after 6pm or 10pm up till 3am. I even slept there. When I woke up, I’d be thinking of more ideas,” he notes.

It’s all a joint effort where “the concept and song selection came from everyone”.

“Kelvin was in charge of music and mixing. It was mostly up to me and him to finalise the routines,” says Lim.

Beyond sacrificing their time for dance practices, they also had to scrimp and save to fulfil their passion.

Spending their hard-earned cash on renting costumes and buying matching shirts for the 10 rounds of competition, members of Katoon Network echoed: “We never really counted but it was a struggle for us, and it was not just about the costumes. It was really quite pathetic. We almost always never had enough money for food but it did not matter.”

Ultimately, it boils down to personal satisfaction and achievement. And the positive influence of dance is not to be underestimated among these young people.

Street dancing, the Katoon Network boys agree, has changed their perspective on life.

“The reason why we constantly participate in competitions is because we want to keep improving as performers. Battleground has given us recognition, but we don’t want our crew to be complacent nor allow our skills to remain stagnant,” says Lim.

“So we hope to continue competing, not only here in Malaysia, but overseas as well. One day, we’ll make a name for ourselves that warrants worldwide touring. We want to put Malaysia on the map as a country with formidable dance talent. We’ll go to Singapore, then Taiwan. We’ll try our best to see how far we can go.”

True to their words, they have already ventured out of their comfort zone. Apart from competitions in Singapore, Kelvin Low was champion at Sydney’s Supreme Battleground in 2008 while Lim won the Gatsby Styling Dance Contest Asia Finals in Tokyo, Japan, last year.

Apart from participating in dance competitions, the guys also have dinner shows, road shows and charity events lined up.

(source: thestaronline; story also in Sunday Star > Starmag Variety > pages 2&3 > on Sunday 8 May 2011.)