Talking about New Style can get pretty confusing, mainly because it is such a new “style” of hip-hop and it doesn’t have any set technique really. However, it is a dance style, and it is the style of which that I categorize myself to most likely.

New Style, short for New York Style. The name was dubbed by people who live outside of the US because they would see documentaries about dancers that live in New York. Dancers outside of the US wanted to move like the New York dancers, thus created New York Style, or New Style.

From a technical aspect, new style is urban dancing with choreography aspects put into it. It is characterized by hard-hitting moves and isolations. There is a very big relationship between the music and the dancer in New Style. Slow, soft parts require soft and light movements, while hard beats and loud songs require hard-hitting movements and a lot of movement in general. Musicality is very important in New Style, there is not necessarily a count when it comes to dancing New Style. When talking about street dance, which is a root of New Style, Timothy Solomon said that it is based on the crowds reaction. Hearing “ou”, “ah”, “aw”, and “tsi” is considered the dancers “count”.

Some of the best dancers I know, and arguably one of my favorites, are twins and dance duo “Les Twins”. Composed or Larry and Laurent Bourgeois. Dancing since they were about 2, they have taken the world by storm, spreading new style all around the world and showcasing their unique dancing ability. They are my inspiration and considered to be one of the best dancers that had ever lived. Here are some videos showcasing Les Twins talent.

World Of Dance San Diego 2013

Hiphop International 2012

World Of Dance 2012

World Of Dance San Diego 2010

One of my favorite dance styles, ever, Krumping. Not because I am a hip-hop dancer and I have bias, but because to do it well you need so much heart and energy that it is probably one of the most mentally demanding out of the hip-hop styles. Weirdly enough, it is also one of the most made fun of due to YouTube videos circulating around of many people who claim to Krump dance, but instead just flail their arms around.

Krumping is a street dance that became an idea sometime in the 1990’s. It is actually backronym for Kingdom Radically Uplifted Mighty Praise. It was created by Caesar “Tight Eyez” Willis and Jo’Artis “Big Mijo” Ratti by the early 2000’s in Southern LA and that’s when it got its popularization. Krumping is an extremely energetic dance that involves all parts of the body moving in very rapid ways. It is definitely one of the most cardiovascular demanding dance styles I can think of. Originally, it was used as a way to relieve anger, which is why it looks and feels like such an aggressive dance. It became very popular in urban and underdeveloped areas because many people sought to krumping as a way to connect with their community and relieve themselves of the anger they felt over the bad conditions. It is also used as a way to escape gang violence and to “release anger, aggression, and frustration positively, in a non-violent way”.

There are no specific set moves per-say for Krump style dancing. Much of the style is created from off the top of the head, which is why it was so popular, literally anyone could do it. Christopher “Lil C” Toler describes it as taking a ball of energy and holding it in a certain position, and then throwing to another part of your body and holding it again. Many people seem to think Krump is just flailing your body in hopes of looking half-decent, meanwhile although it doesn’t have a certain moveset, there is an etiquette to it.

Here are some examples of real krump dancing:

Lil C and Miss Prissy Krumping

Tight Eyez Krumping

Rebel Vs. Jigsaw

A documentary about the history of krump and everyone involved in it is Rize. It is a very good documentary and I highly suggest you watch it if you more interested about the topic of Krump.

Locking, a dance style that is not nearly as big as it used to be, is one of the earliest styles of hip hop dancing. How the dance is done is self-explanatory to the name, you lock your position after a series of rapid movements.

The beginning of locking can be traced all the way back to Don Campbell. The style was actually created on accident, because Campbell was not able to perform a move called “The Robot Sweep”. He would stop at a certain point during the move, which created the locking effect in his body. Campbell thought these sudden halts in his body created a very nice effect, so he started to incorporate them into his routines and choreographies, thus created the dance style Locking. From then on, Campbell formed a group called The Lockers and they popularized locking around the nation. The Lockers danced for many entertainers (including Frank Sinatra!) and were showed on a lot of TV shows, giving locking and hip-hop dance a very large audience, especially with how small hip-hop dance was at the time.

Locking “music” is basically Funk music. With a strong and steady beat, it is the perfect music for locking. Some examples include:

Ren Woods – I Don’t Wanna Stop

Jap’s Gaps – Dance To The Music

Funky Bureau – Clap Your Hands Together

Here are some examples of the dance style in action:

Koreas Got Talent – Khan and Moon

The Lockers

P-Lock & J. Soul Vs. Masato & Cio – Juste Debout Locking Semi-Finals

I hope you enjoyed the blog post! Keep dancing!