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Along with DJing, these "breakbeats" laid the foundation for the two more elements of the Hip Hop culture: MCing and B-Boying. It became the MC’s (Master of Ceremony) job to amuse, excite, and motivate the crowd to dance by using Rhythmic Accentuated Poetry (RAP) over those breakbeats. B-Boys were the ones who would dance or "freak out," "bust moves," and "go-off" on the dancefloor with their steps and freezes. These three elements along with graffiti art or writing are what make up the hip hop culture.
Influence
Most heads consider James Brown’s hit "Get on the Good Foot" the starting point for B-Boy culture. After its release, people started mimicking Brown’s footworks and began dancing the "Good Foot." Early B-Boying was based largely on an extended version of the Good Foot, also known as Rockin’. So essentially, James Brown was the first B-Boy.
The word (B-)Boying most likely came from the African word "Boioing" which means to hop or jump, and is just one of the indicators of the influence African dance. It was the African people’s dance culture which brought the heavy rhythm and the idea of dancing in a circle, but it was definitely a variety of influences that made up early B-Boying including gymnastics, Eastern martial arts, tap dance, Salsa, Afro-Cuban and Native American dances. One of the most influential dances was a South American martial arts/fighting dance known as the Capoeira. Contrary to many rumors, B-Boying didn’t originate from the Capoeira but it played a large role in its early development.
The Capoeira originated in the 16th century and was practiced by many of the millions of African slaves brought to Brazil. Since fighting was not allowed but singing and dancing was permitted, the slaves prepared for their resistance by incorporating fighting moves into their dancing. The fight-dance was performed in a circle with a crowd surrounding it, and as soon as a guard or official came close, the fighting would turn into a dance again. Eventually the dancing the Capoeira became forbidden and most of the slaves who practiced the Capoeira died after their five years of service, yet a few managed to escape into the forests of Brazil. The Capoeira lived on in the forest villages of the escaped slaves and Brazilian slums throughout the centuries until it became legal again in the 20th century. When B-Boying started to become popular, a lot of the Capoeira moves, punches, and spins were integrated into B-Boying.
Progression
In the early 1970’s B-Boying was also referred to as rockin’ or breakin’. At first breaking mainly consisted of toprocks, floorrocks (footworks) and other steps that always ended in a freeze (no spins). Different B-Boy crews were formed who would often battle each other--the main point of the battle being to be more creative than the other crew and by doing better and faster moves. Toward the late 70’s a lot of the early B-Boys retired and the new generation of B-Boy’s combined the early moves with spins and power moves on different parts of the body.
Popping was a west coast dance form in the late 70’s that eventually made its way to the east coast around 1980 where it was called Boogaloo or Electric Boogaloo. B-Boying should not be confused with poppin or lockin. The breakers and boogaloo dancers both ended up sharing the B-Boy name, but poppin and lockin are definitely danceforms of their own and should be treated as just that.
Breakin started blowing up in the early 80’s as a lot of the top crew rivalries were beginning to attract media attention. Early performances and battles of crews like the Rock Steady Crew and Dynamic Rockers were aired on nationally TV. In 1983, movies like Flashdance and Buffalo Gals which featured the Rock Steady Crew broke the scene wide open when breaking could finally be scene internationally. The media made up the name "Breakdancing" and the world went rap dance crazy.
Over the next few years, breakdancing became the trend. Some of the more famous crews were featured in movies (Wildstyle, Beat Street, Breakin/Breakin 2), commercials (milk, Right Guard, Burger King…) and TV shows (Fame, That’s Incredible!, David Letterman, and as regular contestants on Star Search). When the Summer Olympics came to Los Angeles in 1984, the closing ceremonies featured a performance by over 100 B-Boys and B-Girls.
In 1987, after years of being gimmicked and ridiculed, "Breakdancing" was completely played out and the media had completely trashed the entire B-Boy culture. Very few dancers continued practicing and dancing seriously, and the one’s who did were often met with ridicule when it was revealed that they still breakdance. Today the breakin’ name has been cleared and is continuing regain its reputation as a respected dance form. Hopefully this time around people will realize not just a new fad or trend, but something to be appreciated and taken seriously.
The Seventies
Whether it began on the left or right side of America remains open to debate. Here in the U.K. we prefer to think both Los Angeles and New York contributed to its development. In New York, it was Kool DJ Herc, the very first Hip-Hop DJ, who coined the phrase B-Boy in 1969. The Jamaican-born performer had developed a technique of mixing records so that the dancing sounds never stopped. His particular skill, later copies by legions of others, was to meld the percussion breaks from two identical records, playing the break over and over, switching from one deck to the other. Kool Herc called these 'Cutting Breaks'.
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