How to Hip Hop Dance

You'll learn everything you need to know to dance hip hop, from understanding music to where to find hip hop dance classes in your community. Ready to learn Hip Hop Dance? let's get moving.

Part 1: Musicality

What is dance musicality? Why is it important to learn hip hop dance? Dance musicality is how dancers listen to, interpret and dance to music. It sets the tone for our movements and gives the sounds to follow.

But, to start learning about music and how we dance to it, the first step is to learn how to count music.

What is an 8-count?

We use 8-counts to break up the structure of the music. Knowing when you make a certain move is like a map. For example, if a choreographer says that a move should be performed on "The 5," you're going to count the beats of the music like this: "One, two, three, four, move."

TRY THIS:

Listen to a song, a song, and try to count in your mind - "One, two, three, four, five, six, seven, eight." Match your count to the tempo of the song - this is something you will naturally turn your head or clap your hands into.

Different musicalelements of a song

We are not going to go into every single sound found in the history of music! Just the basics, so as not to get overwhelmed or overcomplicated.

LYRICS

The words the singer is singing! The song is probably the easiest to distinguish, but the hardest to count/dance, as the vocals don't always match the strict 8-count structure. Sometimes, choreographers make moves that correlate with the song by imitating actions that match what the singer is talking about.

BASS‍

The bass is the lowest of the standard four voice ranges (bass, tenor, alto, soprano), or, the lowest sound in a musical composition - it is meant to support the melody. Various instruments can produce a bass sound (often drums or bass guitar). Dancers often use onomatopoeia "boom" to describe a bass sound, and we tend to associate bass sounds with strong, ground movements such as a foot stomp or wow.

SNARE‍

It's the loud, staccato drum sound heard in most hip hop songs, similar to the sound you make when you snap a rubber band. Dancers often describe a snare "Ka!" do as. When they talk about their routine. Dancers usually make fast, fast movements to match this sound. Think about how a dancer might suddenly shoot their hand to the side and snap their fingers, or quickly turn their head for the audience to watch.

HI-HAT‍

The hi-hat is produced by a hi-hat cymbal. Dancers often describe this sound as a "tss tss" sound. Hi-hats are usually combined with sharp movements, but if the sound of the cymbals produces a reverb-y resonance, they can melt into something groovier. Think about how a dancer can pop their chest properly when the hi-hat is hit, and then add a few small pops right after the first one to mimic the hi-hat's echoes.

SYNTH

A sound synthesizer produces electrical signals converted into sound through amps and loudspeakers. A common type of synth is the synth piano, which can sound like a long, slow bass—a "wobble" sound. This sound sounds great with a buzzing tempo – you want to mimic the way a sound wave is doing, using resistance and ripples in your movement. A dancer can do this by slowly moving her chest in the synth.

STRINGS

For more instrumental/acoustic songs, the guitar playing and melodies are also worth noting. You can do whatever feels right at the moment for songs like this!

‍KEYBOARD/PIANO

The sounds of the piano will also accentuate, or set the tone/harmony of the song. You can dance to these sounds separately or as a melody. If you listen to a high-pitched piano note over and over, you can hit that note with small upper-body-focused moves. If you hear a rich set of chords, you can do some flowy, full-body moves to convey how rich those sounds are.

Try this:

You'll start to see patterns when you listen to the music more carefully. Maybe a bass drum on every first and fifth count or a snare on every even number. When you're clapping or bouncing or whatever you're doing to mark the beats in the music, pay attention to the sound patterns in it. This will tell you about the musicality you should use while dancing.

What does Hip Hop dance musicality look like?

Dance music is performed in a number of ways, depending on the dancer's style, lyrics, and how they choose to interpret the music. Check out these 2 pieces of the same song, which are completely different in both styles of dance and choice of music.

Everyone listens to music differently, as you can probably tell from these two pieces. Choreographers use different images and textures to depict how they listen to the song.

Great choreographers have unique ways of approaching music that create sounds you wouldn't have heard when you were just listening to the song. Now you know what it means when someone says it. "Ugh, his musicality is so sick!" By becoming more familiar with the different sounds that make up a song and their relationship to its flow, you'll have a better understanding of how to execute the moves to more closely embody those sounds.

Body Awareness

Have you ever taken a yoga class? Then you will realize that a greater purpose of yoga is simply to be present – in mind and body. By doing this, you are bringing your mental and physical selves closer together. Similarly, as a dancer, your mind and body will be working together – your mind is the part that understands the music and the intention behind movement, and your body is the actual tool for moving. Here are ways to train your body to learn hip hop dance.

Try this:

Lie on the floor, and close your eyes. (Turn on some light music here, if you'd like.)

Then, look at this list of body parts, and focus your thoughts and feelings on each one. Flex or move the part to draw more attention to it. Once you're completely comfortable with where it is and how it feels, move on to the next one.

Weapons
Shoulder
forearm
Wrist
Fingers
Foot
The Thigh
Knees
Calves
Ankles
Foot
Toes
Hips (try moving them in and out)
Chest
Upper chest
Core (abdominal region)
Lower abdomen
Neck (try twisting your neck, and turn it clockwise- and counter-clockwise)

It sounds almost too easy to be effective - but the key here isn't the difficulty of the movement (which is obviously very low). The key is how familiar you are with these body parts, which surprisingly require a lot of attention. Muscle memory starts with muscle awareness! By devoting your time and energy to getting to know your body, you are training your most important instrument as a dancer!

Body Placements In Dance

Cool, so we're getting to know how each part of the body feels in a state of rest. Let's draw some pictures to find out how our body looks and feels in certain places. We will use 3 main ideas for these exercises:

Focus

"Focus" in dance refers to the direction your face is facing. Timed right with a committed face, your focus has the power to make or break a piece.

Whatever posture you are holding or the path you are leading, your focus is usually directly on the mirror (not the greatest habit, but it is good to look at yourself first when developing body awareness), To the right, left, up, down - and to varying degrees.

For example, "Right 45" might mean turning your face to the right, but only halfway and your right side straight ahead. "Bottom Left 45" signs Looking slightly left, your chin is pointed down, so that your eyes are aimed at the bottom corner of the wall. Focus changes will flow naturally as you learn choreography, but sometimes the choreographer will specify certain pictures and combinations for a certain focus.

Try this:

Stretch your neck to the rhythm of a song, by looking to the

Right, left, right-left, then switch
Up, down, up, down
Then hit the diagonals! I
Then turn your neck around so that your eyes make a big circle and change direction

Posture

The posture has a lot to do with the style or mood of the piece. For example, Whacking will ask to keep your chest more open, and your focus sharp and purposeful. In a more swaggy, laid-back-feeling piece, your posture can be relaxed with the torso and shoulders directed more toward the ground. Think of posture as a large part of your body language that communicates tone and mood.

Picture

Before getting into full body motion, let's study how your body feels when hit from certain angles. When you break down the movements of hip hop dance, you will see certain pauses in the movement or pictures.

Practice drawing different pictures in the mirror, and notice how they make you feel.

Do you feel powerful when your feet are apart and your hands are on your hips?

Do you feel weak when you shrug your shoulders and keep your knees inward?

Part 3: Execution of movement

Practice drawing different pictures in the mirror, and notice how they make you feel.

Do you feel powerful when your feet are apart and your hands are on your hips?

Do you feel weak when you shrug your shoulders and keep your knees inward?

Grooving!!!

Chances are, you probably already know how to dance. When you go to a club, or listen to music on the radio, do you shake your head or walk side by side? These grooves are the foundation of hip hop dance and open style choreography. Hip hop dance grooves were invented by people who were dancing to have fun with each other in clubs and parties.

What to know when you take a Hip Hop dance class

The choreographer will begin (most likely) by introducing himself, and lead a quick stretch. In addition to the actual learning process (which we will talk about in the next section)

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