Field Guide to the Eugene Hip Hop Dance Scene

For the field guide project, I want to explore the Eugene Hip Hop dance scene. Hip Hop is an interesting type of artistic expression because of the sharp body movements and fast rhythm of the music which makes Hip Hop its own small culture within the Eugene community. There has also been controversy over this dance type due to deviance from the norm within the dance world. However, due to its popularity with the younger generations, Hip Hop has made its way to a top dance practice. Since the practice of Hip Hop is a relatively newer form of dance and the fast beats and the sharp body movements make this type of performance unique, I wanted to do my field guide on the Eugene Hip Hop dance scene because of the cultural world that the Hip Hop crews in Eugene have created. The idea behind this field guide is to present a better understanding of the Hip Hop culture to the Eugene community. In the field guide I want to explore certain pieces of the Hip Hop culture in Eugene. I want to explore where hip hop lessons take place, who participates in the dance lessons, is rap music still a large contributor to the hip hop movement, what style of clothing should people wear If they want to participate, what are the hip hop dance crews in Eugene, and finally is hip hop growing in popularity among the Eugene community? These questions as well as others, will be answered in my field guide of hip hop dance in the Eugene area.

The Hip Hop culture developed the same way as any other dance form: a need for change within the dance world. Hip hop was created in response to the rap music that was becoming popular within the African American community in New York. This form of dance has many different subcategories attached to the overarching form. Breakdancing, popping, locking, pogoing, air guitar, and many more can be thought of as the general term of hip hop. Through my own experience of taking hip hop classes, I found that the class did not focus on one subcategory but on many of them, incorporating different moves and different styles into one complete dance. For the field guide assignment, I want to focus on why many dance studios teach their students a mixture of all the different types of hip hop subcategories. Each subcategory of hip hop is unique and express a different kind of attitude and I find it intriguing that many studios are incorporating a mixture of varying types of these subcategories when teaching the dance form of hip hop.

The Rap music that was being created, however, was underappreciated and thought of as crude and unworthy of appreciation. Because of the critical view of the rap music, hip hop was also seen as crude and unworthy of attention or appreciation. The idea that a dance form could be looked upon with such disdain is interesting due to the fact that hip hop is now an extremely popular form of dance throughout the United States. Looking at the Eugene community specifically will be fascinating because of the demographic that populates the Eugene area. Will hip hop be popular in this area because of the younger, mostly college student crowd? Or will hip hop be seen as unpopular and prove to be unwanted in the Eugene area? Looking at these questions will encourage critical thinking in the field guide I will provide on the Eugene area hip hop dance scene.

I am interested to see what I will learn about the Eugene hip hop dance scene and discover who is a part of the hip hop dance culture. I would like to take part in what is known as the Eugene hip hop culture and see how large is the hip hop culture in Eugene. I am also curious as to if the people who participate in the hip hop dance scene know the history of the dance and whether they believe that hip hop is growing in popularity in the Eugene area. I also would like to interview the hip hop dance crews around town to find out how they support themselves within the Eugene area and how they promote the participation of the hip hop dance form. This field guide will be an exploration into the depths of the hip hop dance culture within the Eugene area community.

Here are a few videos about the hip hop scene in Eugene:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=y0gbTxVTYwA

http://www.eugenedancefactory.com/Classes.html#

http://www.unityschoolofdance.com/Unity_School_of_Dance/Kings_Krew/Kings_Krew.html

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=E3TDd3LjCR0&index=21&list=PL9495EF2668DF4224

 

The sources used in part A were

Derrick P. Alridge and James B. Stewart The Journal of African American History, Vol. 90, No. 3, The History of Hip Hop (Summer, 2005), pp. 190-195

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_hip_hop_genres

Ralph, M. (2009). Hip-Hop. Social Text, 27(3_100), 141-146. doi:10.1215/01642472-2009-025