Not many clubs or organizations here at Hopkins have the ability to clear a dance floor within seconds. This isn't to say there is a problem with that, but any member of the Bboys, the breakdancing club on campus, can instantly wow a group of college students. As soon as the dancing begins, people instantly back up and to see the moves that are in store for the day.
The Hopkins Bboys are a dance group on campus who primarily breakdance, but venture into other dance styles as well. They don't perform much in the fall however, so don't feel like you have missed out on their remarkable performances.
The fall is spent teaching new members how to breakdance and the particular dances the Bboys will be doing. However, most of the Spring is dedicated to shows and performances, once everyone is comfortable with all of their moves.
The Bboys have been around for six years, but just became an official club this fall. They broke off from the Entertainers, another group on campus.
The yearly highlight for the Bboys is a competition called the "Breakoff." The "Breakoff" is a yearly breakdance competition that the Bboys host where breakdancers from all over the east coast gather to compete for a prize. Hopkins has hosted the breakoff for four years now, with this year's competition being the fifth.
"Sometimes we even get people from other countries or areas of the United States. It is always very fun to watch because all the people competing are very high-level dancers," Vice President Andy Tien said.
"Last year we were able to have the competition in the Glass Pavilion thanks to the Spring Fair, and we even had a live band (Swami Jane Equation) at one point. It will, of course, happen again this year and we hope to do better than last year."
Most of the Bboys started in their freshman year at Hopkins, but some of the students had prior experience. There is an important distinction to be made however: the Bboys have a completely different style than other groups such as Eclectics and SLAM.
The main difference is that "Bboying," another term for breakdancing, is not choreographed. The focus of any Bboy member is on learning moves and incorporating a sense of innate musicality, which results in being able to dance to any music that is playing.
"When I teach newer members, I like to make an analogy to drawing. Generally, as a beginner artist, you will spend tons of hours just drilling basics and learning mechanics of the motion. It is very, very similar to how breaking is. Starting off as a beginner, you will have to spend a lot of hours drilling basic movements and gaining general body awareness," Tien said.
Regardless of the amount of talent one has, breakdancing is still a ton of hard work, and like any sport, practice makes perfect. The competitions and performances are what make all of the practice worth it for the Bboys.
"I actually started this summer in June, which is why I said I'm not one of the best, but I practice four to five days a week. Over the summer I would practice about six days a week for three hours or so, so I'm definitely building a solid foundation," junior Khalid Rich said.
Breakdancing serves as a perfect outlet for this group of students when it comes to relieving the stress of a busy schedule. For them, there is nothing better than leaving behind their frustrating work for a couple of hours and hitting the dance floor.
"It's insanely good at stress relieving. At this school almost anything not work related can relieve stress, but dancing does it the most for me," Rich said.
Since there are no set routines in the actual breakdancing performances, the Bboys make use of certain genres that they enjoy, which are generally called break beats. These break beats may consist of any of the hip music from the 80's or 90's, but many members also enjoy dancing to more modern music.
"We are generally ready to get down to anything with a great beat or good melody," Tien said.
Breakdancing has been around for over twenty years, so there are many different elements and movements that the Bboys teach to their new members.
However, the group stresses that the majority of their work is based on creativity and having the ability to make up their own moves, based on an enjoyable style.
"I pick my moves by observing other people do things either in a video or in real life. Then I take the move and try to make it my own. I pick songs based on the beat, test it out, and determine if the song suits me well," Rich said.
For more information for those with an interest in "Bboy-ing," check the student arts groups website for Hopkins.
"We are always open to new members, any time during the year. You do not need any prior experience. Just come to any of our practices in comfortable clothes.
"It is never too late to start, so don't be afraid to try breakdance. Maybe it'll turn out that it's not for you, or maybe you will discover that it is something you will come to love," Tien said.
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