Breakdancing has been part of American culture for decades. Introduced in the Bronx in the 1970’s, it’s synonymous with the birth of hip hop in this country. And while New York is often seen as the birthplace of the movement, California has its own long roots with breaking.
Zulu Gremlin is an LA-based dancer, MC and hip hop historian. “So remember that the soul and funk movement already existed in the West Coast and existed across America. And so music drives the dance and many parts of the culture. And as if you notice, whatever you do, you probably play music in the background while you’re doing what you do,” he said. “Los Angeles was already experiencing something that was happening here, and we all were exposed to it through Soul Train, a television show which locking style and the robotic styles of the Bay Area had already emerged, and we had seen it on television shows by this time, and the entire culture was already immersed in many different styles, which were all put under a big umbrella called breakdance.”
And now, breakdance will make its Olympic debut in Paris this summer. This comes after breaking was featured at the Summer Youth Olympic Games in Buenos Aires in 2018.