Read this: C-Bass (Step x Step Dance) on dancers and respect.

C-Bass of Step X Step Dance posted this on Facebook. I'm copying it in its entirety because I agree with it 100%:

*sigh* I need to get something off my chest! First of all dance whether its commercial or underground is a language, an art, expression, and a culture! We do not know what a dancer or group of dancers has been through in their life, we must never judge!

So when it comes to shows like ABDC, whether you are a fan of a crew in the finals, in the Top 10, or a crew that auditioned - respect for all dancers is important! If you don't agree with the outcome thats fine, but to be disrespectful and classless - there is NO ROOM FOR THAT! Respect all dancers for what they bring and share. It's ok to have an opinion about crews, dancers, shows, judges, etc...but when you step over the line of offensive and disrespectful talk it's time to look in the mirror and ask yourself some questions!

We are all here on this earth at the same time trying to find happiness and progress! We each are ordinary people who have individuals talents that if we combined our forces for good we could be EXTRAORDINARY! We try to share positive, uplifting videos, photos, interviews, events, and more that will help you grow your love of dance! Please share this and spread the knowledge of looking to a bright future!
We love you!

Video: 787 Crew audition for Cirque du Soleil Michael Jackson show - they made it!

787 Crew (America's Best Dance Crew Season 6) auditioned for Cirque Du Soleil in May 2012. They were chosen and will be part of the new Michael Jackson show that will start at 2013 at The Mandalay Bay Hotel and Casino in Las Vegas. Their audition starts around 2:21. From gop Youtube.

The end is here - last chance to enter the ABDC Elimination Challenge Contest and win!

Time for the next installment in our ABDC Season 7 Elimination Challenge: Which crews will be in the bottom 2 each week? Who will be eliminated? Enter each week and the person with the highest cumulative score for Season 7 will win an ABDC crew shirt of their choice and size (up to $35 retail).

This week, it's simple to enter: 
1. Leave a comment with the name of the crew that wins the Season 7 America's Best Dance Crew prize. The correct answer is worth 2 points. 
2. In your comment, predict what Mario will say were the number of votes cast this week and the total number of votes for the season (I don't know which he'll mention this time). This week's entries will be accepted from now until 6pm East Coast time on Wednesday June 13
3. If you want your vote to count, use the same commenting name you've used for the duration of this contest. 

Right now, JabbaJake, Sassy and Wings are tied for first --   but there are several people who could still steal the prize. hot on her trail. And, don't you want everyone to know what you think anyway? So go ahead and tell us the fate of next week's crews!

Video: Jaja (IaMmE) and Street Kingdom krump session

Jaja Vankova (IaMmE) had her first krump session, learning from the originators and masters of the style -- Tighteyez and Street Kingdom. Great to see both of these talents from America's Best Dance Crew Season 6 in collaboration. From jajavankovatv Youtube. Thanks for the tip, Tyreek!

SYTYCD | Atlanta Auditions - Dragon House

Once again, So You Think You Can Dance hits up Atlanta and finds that southern swag to bring to their show. While we'll share the rest of the Atlanta auditions in a later post, we really wanted to highlight this trio of dancers.

By their own word, Dragon House Crew is a group of dancers/roommates who love to dance. This isn't the first time we've seen them. Remote Kontrol Crew, featuring iGlide, Chibi (with his unforgettable Fireflies routine), and Nonstop (with his recordbreaking Pumped up Kicks video) are also members of this collective. The three dancers that showed up this time are Boris Penton, Andre Rucker, and Cyrus "Glitch" Spencer (seen below). They all got a well-deserved ticket to Vegas. Check it out!


Make sure you check out the rest of Dragon House Crew on their Youtube channel here!

Chachi (IaMmE) at ABDC Guetta week answering fan questions and gives shoutouts (Part 2)

 Chris Trondsen interviewed Chachi Gonzales (IaMmE) backstage at America's Best Dance Crew's David Guetta Challenge. In this second of two part interview, Chachi answers fan questions including what she last listened to on her ipod, communicating with her fans, shows super base, .her tour plans, her album, her likes, what she misses most about ABDC (the smells!), her favorite performance on ABDC, what she'd name a pet koala, who she's a big fan of, and the most embarrassing moment in her life.

Recaps from anywhere I can find them - ABDC David Guetta Challenge

- Daily Princetonian is really, REALLY pissed about the show and uses a lot of language that I didn't know the Daily Princetonian would allow. And she has a nifty summary (by time) of the crews' moves.
- AV Club says that this was one of the three best America's Best Dance Crew episodes ever (the other two being Season 2's Missy Elliot Challenge and Season 3's Hip Hop Decathlon. They also like the change to having a battle of the bottom 2, rather than the last chance challenge with the 2 finalists
- Screen Invasion thinks that camera work (rather than dancing) diminished Mos Wanted's TV impact both for the David Guetta Challenge and the battle
- WhatsthatMusicGuy thought Elektrolytes won the battle, but would have preferred a Mos Wanted Crew/Elektrolytes finale
- BigTashia has a video recap and she's psyched for the finale!

Byeynyn's review - ABDC David Guetta Challenge

Last week, four crews performed to LMFAO’s music, and RNG was forced to shuffle off stage. It’s now down to 8 Flavahz, Elektrolytes, and Mos Wanted Crew. This week, the three crews will perform to the music of “superstar DJ” David Guetta (who?) and one will be sent packing. Like most Top 3 episodes, the crews will all be given the same music and challenges. Unlike most Top 3 episodes, the safe crew will be revealed after all three crews perform, and there will be also be a dance battle between the bottom two crews instead of a last chance challenge with the top two crews. Weird.

Click here to read the full review. Thanks Byeynyn!

Exclusive: Chachi (IaMmE) at ABDC Guetta taping answers fan questions (Part I)

Chris Trondsen interviewed Chachi Gonzales (IaMmE) backstage at the taping of America's Best Dance Crew's David Guetta Challenge, In this first of two parts of the interview, she answers fan questions on her favorite go-to dance move, where she wants to be in five years, Facebook vs. Twitter vs. Instagram,  her impressions of the Philippines, her favorite hair product ("you don't want it falling off and stuff"), her reactions to seeing Justin Bieber calling her and wearing the Chachi Mama pants, her height (5'4"), and advice to girls who want to get into dance.
We will post Part II tomorrow - stay tuned!

Join 8 Flavahz & Elektrolytes at Relay for Life in LA June 9

Elektrolytes and 8 Flavahz -- the  top two crews for America's Best Dance Crew will be at Race for Life in Los Angeles on Saturday June 9 to support, perform, and help out at the event. 

The American Cancer Society "Relay for Life" is a 24-hour fundraising event that happens in communities all around the globe raising awareness for everyone who has been touched by cancer.  In LA, The ABDC crews will be at the event from 9AM to 12:30PM, to help out and to film the charity package for the finale. The location: John Marshall High School Track- Football field, 3939 Tracy Street (enter off of Griffith Park Blvd, Los Angeles. Click here for more info.

So go out, support the cause and see the crews. If you attend, please send us a report and any photos or videos. Thanks!

Video: PusWood Collection - Puspos & Eastwood driving home after ABDC + garage dancing

Brianpuspos Youtube just released a video of his drive home with Ian Eastwood the day after Mos Wanted Crew was eliminated on America's Best Dance Crew. They talk and joke about the experience. Then, starting at 5:00 they dance in the garage with Ade Willis. Interesting for the conversation, but the dance is the reason to watch this video. Thanks for the tip, Austin!

This is the end -- last chance to enter our ABDC Top 4 challenge

Thanks to all of you who submitted entries on which ABDC crews will be in the top 4 at the end of this season, in the order of their elimination.   Click here for contest rules and prizes.

At this point, all the options are taken.  Here's the ranking:

•  Dance was the first to predict a top 4 of 1. 8 Flavahz, 2. Elektrolytes, 3. MWC, 4. RNG, back in week 7 (2 weeks ago). If that's the final ranking -- she wins!
• Wings and zomgwtfbbqxd were the first two to predict a top 4 of 1. Elektrolytes, 2. 8 Flavahz, 3. MWC, 4. RNG -- both just last week! THE TWO OF YOU NEED TO lLEAVE A COMMENT PREDICTING WHAT MARIO WILL SAY WAS THE NUMBER OF VOTES CAST 1. THIS WEEK AND 2. FOR THE SEASON (I don't know which he'll say). If this is the final ranking, then whoever is closest to the vote prediction wins!
• Anyone else can leave a predictive comment showing how you think the season will or should shake out.

 ENTRIES WILL BE ACCEPTED UNTIL 6pm (East Coast Time) on WEDNESDAY JUNE 13.

Send Some Love to Mos Wanted Crew!

I must admit: when I heard that Mos Wanted Crew was accepted for America's Best Dance Crew Season 7, I thought it extremely likely that they'd make the Top 2. By far, the crew has the largest collection of talented dancers and choreographers that has ever been fielded on the show. Onstage, they've shown prowess, range, humor, and creativity throughout the season. They took risks to show something new every week. Luckily for dance fans, I expect they will continue to appear at World of Dance events -- we need to see more!


This post is only for positive comments about Mos Wanted Crew. If you have anything else to say, please take it to the Party Room/Critics Corner.

Survey: What was your favorite performance during the ABDC David Guetta Challenge?

poll by twiigs.com

Survey: What was your least favorite performance during the ABDC David Guetta Challenge?

poll by twiigs.com

Vote now to determine the crew who wins ABDC Season 7 -- here's the MTV info for online, phone & text voting!

The online voting is now open from now until Wednesday June 13 at 1pm Eastern time. If you want to protect your favorite crew, act now! Remember -- the winner is determined by votes, not by the judges. Click here to vote online at MTV.com . Performance videos are up now on the website to aid in your choices. 

If you want to phone or text instead, the numbers are: Phone: 1-855-4CREW + (0 +number): OR Text: 22444 then (number):
*  8 Flavahz- 1 (so you would dial 855-4CREW01)
*  Elektrolytes -  2 (so you would dial 855-4CREW02)

After you vote (or while you're obsessively voting all night long), join us back at the Party Room!

The Party Room/Critics Corner for ABDC's David Guetta Challenge is now open -- join us!

The Party Room/Critics Corner for ABDC 7's Episode 9 -- the David Guetta Challenge -- is now open! Join lots of other readers and fans as they scrutinize the Final 3 and the strangeness that we call Return of the Superstars. IMPORTANT: If you want to write a long comment, write in in NotePad or Word and then paste it into the comments field.

After the show is over: The party has just started, so stick around for more action, reaction, interaction, and satisfaction. How do you feel about tonight's song and dance?  What would you like to see in the ABDC finale?  Do we have the right Final 2, or do you think something is not quite right? This is your party -- humor,  conspiracy theory, nostalgia and almost everything else (except obscenity and abject disrespect) are expected and welcome!

Join us now for Live Play-by-Play of ABDC's David Guetta Challenge

Del, TBone, NamesAreOverrated, Mike, Wings and Nancy will be co-hosts of this live play-by-play of America's Best Dance Crew Season 7's Episode 9-- the David Guetta Challenge. Feel free to follow along (particularly if you cannot watch it until later). Please be aware that your comments might not be posted immediately (or at all) as we have to moderate them, watch the show, and type at the same time. If you want to leave longer comments and be sure they're used, go to the Party Room (the post above this one).

Ninjaboi's LMFAO Review

Really sorry about being late with this guys (as in 2 hours before the next episode late). Between moderating comments, covering dance events and this internship, I've been pretty tired lately, so I really can't find time to sit down and do the whole review in one sitting, so it keeps on getting pushed back till pretty much now. I won't be going in depth as much as I usually do, but trust me I've been thinking about these rankings all week. 


Shoutouts to Molasses Gang, Maxxann, Empire the Crew, NancyT, Wings, and City Dance Studios.


Click here for Ninjaboi's LMFAO Episode review

Video: Sneak peek preview Elektrolytes on ABDC David Guetta Week

The Hollywood Reporter posted an article about David Guetta's visit to the America's Best Dance Crew set, and includes a sneak preview Electrolytes performance on the episode

Exclusive: Marcus (Elektrolytes) impersonates members of top 3 crews, does accents; plus a scary Mos Wanted Moment

Chris Trondsen interviews Marcus of Elektrolytes before the taping of America's Best Dance Crew's David Guetta Challenge. Marcus shows us impersonations and accents for members of Mos Wanted Crew, 8 Flavahz, and Elektrolytes, plus an Eddie Murphy impersonation and some accents. And, there's a strange interlude from some of the Mos Wanted Crew members.

SF Dance Events | R16, Go Hard or Go Home, AOV Auditions, Quest Crew

So by happenstance (and I've alluded to this in past posts), I've been lucky enough to have an internship for the summer in the Bay Area. No, I won't get into more specifics cuz that's creepy, but suffice to say, in the short time I've been here thus far, I've been blown away by the dance community out here. Not only that, but there are a ton of dance events that are in the area. Here are just a couple. If you have an event you know of I don't mention here, leave a comment below! 
---
First up, is the big one. R16, the International Bboy event that makes use of Dyzee's OUR System will be holding the US Finals on June 9th. Preliminaries will be held the day before, but only dancers and family can attend. The main event will be held at the Palace of Fine Arts. Buy your ticket ahead of time here, and get more info on the event on the Facebook page. There is also a 21+ afterparty, more info also on the Facebook page. With 8v8 and 1v1 Bboy Battles, as well as 1v1 Popping and Locking, you definitely get your money's worth, especially for less than $20

I will be attending the Finals on that Saturday. If you're not able to go, I will be live-tweeting the event @Ninjaboi333 with the hashtag #R16, so you can follow along! I'll also *hopefully* be able to get footage to share with you guys.


Click here for more events, including workshops, battles, auditions, and celebrity appearances.

Exclusive interview with Moon (IaMmE) backstage at ABDC Guetta week: Impressions about pressure on the top 3 crews, ABDC7's top 5 crews, his upcoming plans

 Chris Trondsen interviews Moon from IaMmE backstage at the America's Best Dance Crew David Guetta Challenge. Moon talks about the pressure of preparing as one of the top 3 crews, what it's like to return to the ABDC stage, his impressions of this season's crews (including Fanny Pak and RNG), his remembrances of their recent international tour and workshops,  more tour plans, and how to follow him.

Join us tonight for the ABDC David Guetta Challenge: live play-by-play, Party Room, MTV voting info, surveys & more

The end is getting REALLY close! Watch America's Best Dance Crew Season 7 David Guetta Week with us tonight! The Party Room/Critics Corner opens at 9:45 ET and stays open as long as you want, so that everyone can comment on anything remotely related to ABDC.  What did you think about the challenges? Is this the final 2 you wanted? Should ABDC return for a Season 8 or is it time for ABDC to walk it out?

Starting around 9:30 PM ET and continuing through the episode airing on the East Coast,  I will be doing live play-by-play while watching the show along with Del, Mike, TBone, Names are Overrated and Wings so feel free to tune in and make fun of us or get a sneak preview of the action (for those of you from the West Coast or other ABDC-deprived zones). Afterwards, we'll have all the info on how to vote for tonight's favorites on MTV's site, phonelines and textlines. Tomorrow morning, please vote in our polls on the best and worst performances. Plus we hope to have recaps, more videos and more coverage.   Join us!

DAMSF - All Ages Edition

This past Saturday I was able to attend an event called DAMSF. DAMSF Stands for "Dance, Arts, Music, Style, and Fashion", and is showcase of individuals and groups in the Bay Area to share their talent through live performances. This particular event was actually an all-ages edition, so that younger kids who wanted to perform could attend as well.

 Performers include Mix'd Ingrdnts, an all female dance collective, Daniel Gutierrez and Gerick Catimbang of First Class Arts along with their students, iBeast, Dopest Outsiders, Michelle Nakayoshi, Dominique Battiste, Tufin 24/7, and of special interest to BABDC fans of Urban Empire, Ysabelle Capitule, aka Lil Bigz. Check out her video tomorrow (with BABDC shoutout!), and make sure you also click on the names above to check more events from the event.

The next event (they said at this event) will be an 18+ event on July 19th. More details to follow as we get them

Elektrolytes pre-ABDC Guetta taping on fan questions: ladies, favorite performance, unusual talents, feelings on final 3!

 Moon (IaMmE), Bebo (Phunk Phenomenon) and Chris Trondsen interviewed Elektrolytes before the taping of America's Best Dance Crew's David Guetta Challenge. The crew answers fan questions including identifying the lady's man, their favorite performance this season, unusual talents (including a demonstration of dexterity), feelings about the top 3, and what it would take to win ABDC.

Mos Wanted Crew pre-ABDC Guetta taping answer fan questions:tattoos, first impressions of each other, boxers/briefs

 Moon (IaMmE), Bebo (Phunk Phenomenon) and Chris Trondsen interviewed Mos Wanted Crew before the taping of America's Best Dance Crew's David Guetta Challenge. They answer fan questions including the meaning of their tattoos,first impressions of each other, and 'boxers vs briefs'.

Exclusive interview with 8 Flavahz before ABDC Guetta taping: crazy happenings, judges' flavors, boyfriends, Halloween costumes

Moon (IaMmE), Bebo (Phunk Phenomenon and Chris Trondsen interviewed 8 Flavahz before the taping of America's Beet Dance Crew's David Guetta Challenge. They answer fan questions including: the craziest thing that's happened to them since ABDC 7 started,  what they'd do with the money if they'd win (no Barbies!), the flavors for the judges (guess which judge is a hot tamale, enchiladas, organic raisin bran/tofu, or a Gusher!), whether they've had boyfriends, which one is the best free-styler, and favorite Halloween costume they've ever had (guess which one was Snow Black, Sailor Moon, Destiny's Child, or Chucky!) 

Backstage Photos from ABDC Guetta week: Season 6 top 3 + alums from ICONic Boyz, IaMmE, Phunk Phenomenon

Sthanlee Mirador and Chris Trondsen posted photos of many of the backstage celebrities from America's Best Dance Crew David Guettaq week taping. 

Sthanlee has his usual outstanding backstage photos including a reunion of some ABDC Season 6 alums: Chachi and Moon from IaMmE, Vinny from ICONic Boyz, and Bebo from Phunk Phenomenon.
Click here to see photos of Mos Wanted Crew, 8 Flavahz, Elektrolytes and more of the Season 6 alums.  Note: we will post interviews with ALL of the people in the pictures over the next few days! So stay tuned.

News from ABDC David Guetta Taping: this week's playlist; next week - Katy Perry!

Here's the songlist for America's Best Dance Crew's David Guetta Challenge, based on reports from Freeze and others at the taping:

- Group Performance - "Titanium" 
- Master mix performed by all three crews - "Different Mixes of Memories", "Without You", "Turn Me On"   
- Bottom Two Crews battle with individual songs (we won't reveal who performed which one, as that would be a spoiler)
      - One Crew in the bottom - "Somebody that i used to know" 
      - The Other Crew in the bottom - "Feel so close"

There was no last chance challenge.  

The superstar for America's Best Dance Crew Season 7 finale: Katy Perry! 

REMINDER: DO NOT POST ANY SPOILERS ABOUT ANY OF THE CREWS HERE OR YOU WILL BE BANNED!

Videos: Instant Noodles at Ohio Festivals - enacting how they chose their name, group & individual dancing

Instant Noodles (ABDC Season 6) toured Ohio in May 2012. There are two noteworthy videos of their performances:
- At the Columbus Asian Festival, the crew explains why they chose the name 'Instant Noodles' and dances as a group. From Laoballah419 Youtube.

-At their Cleveland appearance, the members show their individual freestyle moves. From GreatLakesGeek Youtube.

Survey results for ABDC LMFAO Week: 8 Flavahz had both the favorite AND least favorite performance!

Here are the results from our surveys on the best performances for America's Best Dance Crew's LMFAO Challenge. Clearly there was two different factions with very different opinions

• Out of 1979 votes, 8 Flavahz had the favorite performance (35%), followed by Elektrolytes (26%). Full results here.
• Out of 1474 votes, 8 Flavahz had the least favorite performance (41%), followed by Mos Wanted Crew (34%) Full results here.

Let us know if you attend tonight's ABDC taping!

America's Best Dance Crew Season 7 (aka the Superstar Season) will be taped tonight, with the 3 remaining crews dancing to David Guetta songs, and a last-chance challenge. If you attend the taping, leave a comment and let us know what it was like -- the dances, the challenges, the judges, the songs, the crowd, the crews, the costumes, celebrities in the audience, oddities and funny moments, etc.
 
EXTREMELY IMPORTANT -- NO SPOILERS. DO NOT TELL THE RESULTS FROM THE SHOW, INCLUDING WHICH CREWS WERE IN THE BOTTOM OR ELIMINATED! 

Videos: Riquel Olander (We are Heroes) and Shane Sparks -- showing their non-dance skills!

What do talented dancers and choreographers do when they're not dancing? Here are videos showing another side of America's Best Dance Crew people:
- Riquel Olander (We are Heroes) gave the commencement speech at her old high school in Twin Falls, ID. KMVT-TV filmed a few clips of the event, as well as a workshop she held afterward

Shane Sparks (ex-judge on America's Best Dance Crew) appeared on The Kiya Show, talking about his work dancing, singing and designing clothing for dancers.

Video: Something completely different - Murmuration - a must-watch!

Who says we have to define dance as a distinctly human activity? Here's my favorite dance crew of the day - starling coordinated movement called murmuration. No one knows why they do it. Yet each fall, thousands of starlings dance in the twilight above England and Scotland. The birds gather in shape-shifting flocks, having migrated in the millions from Russia and Scandinavia to escape winter’s frigid bite. Scientists aren’t sure how they do it, either. The starlings' murmurations are manifestations of swarm intelligence, which in different contexts is practised by schools of fish, swarms of bees and colonies of ants. Even complex algorithmic models haven’t yet explained the starlings’ aerobatics, which rely on the tiny birds' quicksilver reaction time of under 100 milliseconds to avoid aerial collisions—and predators—in the giant flock. From Islands & Rivers Vimeo.

Video: Highlights reel and final battle from 2012 Massive Monkees Day

BBoy Network posted a short highlights reel from Massive Monkees Day, held in Seattle in April 2012. The reel includes Crisis Crew, Cros1,  Dirty Rotten Soundrelz,  Profo One (Floor Gangz), Pele (BYC), and a solo by Massive Monkees' Twixx (from ABDC Season 4), as well as B-Boys/B-Girls giving  their testimonies about Massive Monkees and the event. The final battle: Rocksteady Crew vs. Beast.

Video: Ricky Cole (Mos Wanted Crew) - "End of the Road" Freestyle

Recently, Ricky Cole of Mos Wanted Crew uploaded some session footage to his Youtube Channel sharing this message about the way he dances:

"This is footage from a Soul Fresh Fam rehearsal. We have been working on getting into a zone while freestyling, where you Don't Think about how it looks, you base your movement off how it feels... Its one thing to be able to Dance with feeling but another to be able to Get in to this Zone while dancing and Stay committed.. This was just an training experiment that i wanted to share, hope you enjoy."

Wings reviews ABDC LMFAO Challenge: tricks, cuteness, challenges, camera angles, judges & other reality show necessities!

NOTE: This review is meant for entertainment purposes only. Please do not take this serious. Enjoy!

Look at all those wonderful faces. Specifically, you really look wonderful today! Yes you! No need to thank me, I’m just a kind soul giving you a compliment and in no way trying to butter you up so you read this review. Psshhhh that would be sneaky and I’m above that. So why don’t you forget that last sentence and take those beautiful eyes of yours and go and gander at my lovely piece of writing. After all, an angel like yourself should spend your time wisely.

……That was creepy. Ya so if you aren’t turned away yet this week came out full blast. We saw some shuffling, some wiggling, some more wiggling, and some party rocking. As always then another review arose from the darkness and planted itself on this blog. This week I didn’t change any of the sections because I was absorbed by your gorgeous gaze. But seriously, sit back, grab yourself a pina-colada, and flip on your inner laughing switch because it my goal to make you lol, rofl, roflcopter, or LMFAO for this week. Annnnnd. Here. We. Go.

Shoutouts to the fellow reviewers, Ninjaboi, Byenyn, and iNSIGHT for balancing out my absurdity with some logic week to week.
Click here to read the whole review. We dare you.

Video: District 78 at ABDC LMFAO week: all about their new "Thanks for the Falcon" album

Chris Trondsen and Riquel Olander (We are Heroes) interview members of District 78, the group that creates the master mixes for ABDC, backstage at the America's Best Dance Crew LMFAO Challenge. They talk about their new album "Thanks for the Falcon", including how it difers from their work for ABDC, Chris's favorite track "Like a Criminal", the types of music represented, and their plans (including video) for the music

SYTYCD9 | Toshihiko Nakazawa

Certainly one of the most vibrant of dancers I've seen in a while, unfortunately Toshihiko didn't stick around past the choreography round of the New York audition. Still, this bright red dancer from Japan had a most entertaining audition, so enjoy!