ABDC almost gets a shout-out on The Simpson's 20th Anniversary Special

Fox TV aired The Simpson's 20th Anniversary Special! In 3D! On Ice! on January 10, 2010. At the end of the show, creators and others try to imagine a world without The Simpsons. Actor David Cross (Arrested Development, both Alvin and the Chipmunk movies) muses: "We'd still have 'So You Think You Can Dance' and 'America's Next Dance' and 'Now That's What I Call Dancing'". Get it right, David!

Videos: Beat Freaks + Vogue Evolution = Freak the Vogue

Vogue Evolution (ABDC Season 4) members Pony and Daschaun and Beat Freaks (ABDC Season 3) members Lindsay B, Maryss, Rino, and Keeley worked together on a documentary called "Freak the Vogue". You can watch excerpts now that cover  the history of voguing, how to do the dip and the hands, and this video showing how to do the catwalk and the duckwalk. Thanks for the links TK!

Field report from Chris Trondsen: LA ABDC5 auditions

Chris Trondsen covered both days of the Los Angeles auditions for America's Best Dance Crew Season 5 for us and for dancetag.tv.  Here's his written report, which gives a feel for the audition process and what's different about Season 5.  

Around 400 people showed up to represent the over 40 crews that auditioned in LA to be on this season of “America’s Best Dance Crew.”  So many different styles of dance were represented at the auditions.  There were BBoys, Poppers, House Dancers, Dancehall, Bollywood, straight hip hop, choreo crews, even a guy on stilts.  Not only were there a bunch of different styles represented, but different locations as well.  Of course you had many crews from the LA/Southern Cali area but you also had many crews from Northern California, Washington, Portland Oregon, and even a crew from Hawaii, Jamaica, and the mid-west.  They lined up as early as 7 in the morning and some crews were there till 8pm auditioning.

Click here to read the rest of Chris's report including how ABDC auditions differ from American Idol, one key difference about this season's auditioners, Randy Jackson, and more! Thanks, Chris!

Videos: 'Blaze the Show' UK Streetdance auditions

"Blaze the Show" is a live show that will feature b-boys and other street dancers. It is set to tour Europe in Spring 2010. The show has been conducting auditions in London and sharing some of them on BlazetheShow Youtube Channel. Here's a sample:

Empower II featuring Fanny Pak and Supreme Soul Jan 16-17

Soulciety presents Empower II in Hayward, CA on January 16-17, 2010. This year's show  features Fanny Pak, Supreme Soul, Headhunters Crew, Rocko from Boxcuttuhz, and dozens of other dancers. The event is a benefit for The Bridge, which provides education and resources to disadvantaged kids overseas. Click here to learn more and to buy tickets -- pre-sale ticket buyers will have a chance to meet Fanny Pak.

Mailbox: Sugar Bowl without Shane Sparks, GradNites with Quest and Beat Freaks

• No word yet on whether Shane Sparks will be part of America's Best Dance Crew in Season 5, but his recent arrest resulted in his absence from the Sugar Bowl this year. According to a report in Cincinnati.com, the 300 cheerleaders who had already learned a Shane Sparks routine for the Sugar Bowl show were greeted with the news that Shane would not be in attendance. Instead, Dave Scott filled in for Shane at the last minute, so that the 300 dancers from around the country had to start from scratch when they arrived Dec. 30. Early morning rehearsal and 12 hours to 14 hours of dancing a new routine followed on New Year's Eve day.St Columban coach Brend Elmore said. "I told them it would be hard; that they might even want to cry." 
• Quest and Beat Freaks will be among the special entertainment at this spring's Grad Nites at the Magic Kingdom in Walt Disney World. Graduating high school seniors can read all about it and sign up here.
  

Update on ABDC auditioners: Second 2 None

Second 2 None auditioned in Houston for America's Best Dance Crew Season 5. Since we didn't have the video for them for the original post, we wanted to share it now -- here's a practice for their ABDC5 audition. NOTE: This loads EXTREMELY slowly, but does work eventually. Thanks for the link Hi :)

Update and video on auditioners: Xtreme Motion

When we first prepared our post about the crews that auditioned in Houston for America's Best Dance Crew Season 5, we had no information about Xtreme Motion. Here's an update from their XTremeMotionTV Youtube Channel: "X-Treme Motion Dance Crew is a Houston Based Crew from "The Motion of the Ocean" Majorettes at Texas Southern University.. They specialize in Hip-Hop, Jazz, Ballet, Funky Jazz, and Modern. But, Showcasing and bring their own dance style called "Bucking" to the forefront." Their website is XtremeLevelDance.com. Thanks for the tip, Raven!

'B-Girl' Contest - learn dance moves to win prizes

Beat Freaks Lady Jules and the makers of "B-Girl" have a contest to promote the release of the DVD on January 26. As described in this video, just to to the B-Girl Facebook page, learn the dance move in the video, film your performance and post it on your Facebook page, and send a link to back to the B-Girl page. Prizes include Tshirts, signed posters, and one mystery grand prize.

Watch the Season 5 ABDC trailer with We Are Heroes

MTV. com posted the promotional trailer for America's Best Dance Crew Season 5, featuring We Are Heroes.

MTV Shows

Video Mash-up of Every Crew in ABDC Seasons 1-4: Just Dance!

RhodaBoat56 created a mash-up that incorporates every group that competed on America's Best Dance Crew so far. This is as powerful an ad for ABDC as I've ever seen.

CONTEST: Predict the ABDC5 'Top 9'

Who will compete on America's Best Dance Crew Season 5?  We don't know, and but we want to know what you think.  So, here's a contest to let you 'cast' which of the crews you think should make it to ABDC5 Top 9. The top 9 are the crews that get through the 3 regional audition shows to be aired Jan. 28-Feb. 11,  and compete on February 18 in the first 'national' show.  Prize: Tshirt from the T-Mobile tour autographed by Quest and major bragging rights. RULES:

• Pick up to 9 crews from our list of auditioners (below). To have a better chance, pick 3 from each region, since we believe that is how MTV will do it.  The regions are: South (Atlanta, Houston), West (Denver, Los Angeles), East (Boston, New York)
• Leave a comment with your picks ON THIS POST (comments at any other post will NOT be counted) with your picks. 
• In the comments, you HAVE to leave a user name (not just GUEST), and please make it as distinctive as possible (not just your first name). I can no longer track commenters' email addresses, so I will need a good commenter name to track you and announce a winner. 
  
• You can enter once a week.
  
• Please don't enter if you work for MTV or have other MAJOR inside info!
  
• Contest ends as soon as MTV announces the names of ANY crews competing for the top 15 or on any of the live regional shows. 
• The winner will be announced on this site once the 3 live audition shows end.  Since I cannot contact you by email (I have no access to your email addresses), you will have to come here to find out if you won
  

Here's the list auditioning crews that we know about. If you know about other ABDC5 auditioners,  leave a comment and we'll try to add them to the list. Any crews not on the list WILL NOT be counted even if they make the top 9! Note: the crews listed in gray have publicly announced that they are not in the running for Top 9.
SOUTH:  
Atlanta - Click here for info on these crews: Jungle Boogies, Motion Sickness, N3m3s!s, Royal Flush, Stillettoes, Swagger Crew, U4ria, Vixenz, Xternal Technique, Detroit Danz'Zone

Houston - Click here for info on these crews: Brown Bag Special,Coalition, Extreme Dance Level, Final Phaze,Foot Soulgerz, Ghost Crew,Impulse,Second to None,Shhh!,Xtreme Motion,Austin City Showgirls, Dirty South,Soraya and La Zambra
Note: Smash (see NY) might also be included as South since they are from Puerto Rico.

WEST:

Denver - Click here and here for info: Bandits,Boom Unit,BreakeFX,Elektrolytes,Ground Zero, Illmatik Phlo Krew,Motion Underground,Rocky Mountain Rockstars,Ricochet,True 2 Form
Los Angeles - Click here, here, here, and here! for info: AXXENT, Beast Mode, Beat Squad, Blended Projekt, Capital Iggz, Destined 2 Be, Flex Flav, Heavy Hitters, Inside the Box, Instant Noodles, Kings Breakers (Sacramento), Klaamation, Knucklehead Zoo, L2D, L0st Kids, Loyal Citizens of Zamunda, Mixd Elements, Molodi 5, Neverland, No Label, One Nation Crew, Pandora's Myth, Poreotics, Rumba Ta, Sheroes, Soul Project, The Asylum, The Detail, The Hype, The Waackers, Tripl3 Threat, VIP San Jose, Xposed Dance, Z-train

EAST:

Boston - Click here and here for info:  Beat Connectionz, Blackout Pro (dropped out of Regionals due to scheduling conflict), Boston Tap, Dance Hall, Darkside, Draztik Crew, Geek Chic, N-10-City, NIA, Phunk Phenomenon, Static Noyze, Street Legends, Wrush
New York - Click here, here, here, and here for info:  Blueprint, Bollywood Funk, Coalescence, Cosmic Swagga, Counter Rhythm, Da Emperorz, Dv8, E3, Erafusion, Fynul Destination, II an Extreme, llmatic, Kick Rocks, Knemesis, Lb 4 Pound, Majestic Crew, Members Only, Moms-in-da-Hood, Next Level, Part Time Models, Round One, Saltare, Smash, Special Delivery, Tha Truth, Unstoppable, Xpose

Upcoming Events - Week of January 8, 2010

• 1/8: Massive Monkees host Vancouver's Best Dance Crews
• 1/9: SoReal Cru workshop in Chicago with Brian Puspos and Ailyn Isidro
• 1/9: Fanny Pak workshops in Oxnard CA 
• 1/9-10: Fr3sh auditions in Matawan, NJ
  
• 1/10: Quest performs at Praying for Abbey, an event to raise funds for a young leukemia fighter, in Canton, OH
• 1/14: Leiomy of Vogue Evolution featured at National Talent Search in Atlanta
• 1/15: Screening of B-Girl movie, with Beat Freaks Lady Jules Q&A in Austin, TX
  

Spotlight - NY Auditions Pt. 4: Round One, Saltare, Smash, Tha Truth, Unstoppables, Special Delivery, Xpose

Tomorrow we will run a contest to let you 'cast' which of the crews you think should make it to ABDC5 Top 9.  To help you choose and give these crews some exposure, we'll spotlight each of them and show any recent performance videos we can find. We know of 27 crews that auditioned in New York on December 12, 2009, so we will covere them (in alphabetical order) over several days. If you have further information, links or videos to share for auditioning crews, please leave a comment or email us at BloggingBestDanceCrew@gmail.com

• Round One from New Jersey has had strong ABDC auditions since Season 2. Watch their auditions for Season 3, Season 4 audition and their Season 4 callback, and Season 5.  They also recently appeared on 106th and Park.

 

• Saltare is composed of East Coast college students. They combine hip hop dance with double dutch and other jump rope mastery. No video found, but here's a photo of most of the crew outside the Season 5 auditions.
• Smash Crew from Puerto Rico has gotten major support from our readers. You can learn more about them from this video and watch older performances of the larger group on AlexBrit's Youtube Channel. Click here to watch our exclusive video of Smash's ABDC5 audition.
• Special Delivery are part of a Harlem team called Untouchable Shorties. Here's a video of Untouchable Shorties. Thanks for the tip Sean!

• Tha Truth from New Jersey is also a return auditioner. Click here to read their commentary and watch their audition for Season 3, and click here to see their ABDC4 audition.
• Unstoppables came in from Detroit with an original musical arrangements and a Funkateer style. Click here to watch our exclusive video of their audition.
  
• We need information and videos for Xpose. We found information about a crew with this names, but it isn't East Coast. If you have info about the Xpose that auditioned, please let us know!
  

VIBE XV on Jan.31: Boxcuttuhz, KM Legacy + 21 more performers & competitors!

VIBE XV is the first major hip hop dance event for 2010, and it's got an impressive lineup. Exhibition crews include  Boxcuttuhz, Culture Shock LA, Funkanometry SF, KM Legacy, Sheroes, and others. Competitors include Choreo Cookies, defending champions CADC, and 9 other crews. Rino from Beat Freakz and Beau from Fanny Pak will be on the judging panel.

VIBE XV will be held Sunday January 31, 2009 at UC Irvine. For all the details and ticket information, visit vibedancecompetition.com.

Videos: Quest's TMobile Tour

Quest undertook a 5 City Tour in December 2009. T-Mobile sponsored the free shows, and thousands of fans came out to see them. Two videos to document the tour: 

• My video of Quest's new routine created for the tour. This was filmed in Long Island, NY. Because of ridiculous traffic, I arrived too late to interview them (though I did get enough time with them to exchange off-camera holiday wishes and information on upcoming events, as well as getting an autographed shirt for a contest prize

• Behind the scenes footage from the tour photographer:

Spotlight - NY Auditions Pt. 3: Majestic Crew, Lb for Pound, Members Only, Momz-n-da Hood, Part Time Models, Next Level

Early in January, we will run a contest to let you 'cast' which of the crews you think should make it to ABDC5 Top 9.  To help you choose and give these crews some exposure, we'll spotlight each of them and show any recent performance videos we can find. We know of 27 crews that auditioned in New York on December 12, 2009, so we will covere them (in alphabetical order) over several days. If you have further information, links or videos to share for auditioning crews, please leave a comment or email us at BloggingBestDanceCrew@gmail.com

• Lb For Pound from New York. Click here to watch our exclusive video of the ABDC5 audition.
• Majestic Crew from Madison, WI was also being filmed by MTV for an upcoming episode of MADE. No videos of their performance, and we had to leave the room when they were being taped.
• Members Only came in from Norfolk, VA. Their bags were stolen on the trip to the NY auditions, but they still had a good spirit and attitude at the auditions. Here's an exclusive video of their ABDC5 audition: 

WE'VE GOT MUCH MORE TODAY -- Be sure to click here to see info and videos on Momz-n-Da Hood, Next Level, and Part Time Models

Tickets for ABDC5 tapings now available

America's Best Dance Crew Season 5 begins taping on Tuesday, January 26. Go to 1iota.com to get your free tickets for this taping and for Week 2 taping on February 2.

Video: the Female Side of Coalition

From KeyPlayerDancers Youtube Channel: This performance from Houston Choreographers Carnival features (mostly) the female members of Coalition, a crew composed of members of SoReal Cru/Distorted X/Marvelous Motion which auditioned for America's Best Dance Crew Season 5 in Houston. Thanks for the tip, Brandon!

Mailbox: Brandon Mitchell (Strikers), Brian Martin (Boxcuttuhz), Layla Kayleigh

• Striker All-Stars Member Brandon Mitchell talked to Luxe7 Magazine about 'dance politics', dancing in Florida vs. Los Angeles, and advise for aspiring dancers
• Soundbox Studios in Houston will celebrate its grand opening on January 23 with workshops from Brian Martin of Buxcuttuhz, as well as members of Choreo Cookies, Wyldstyl, and Illovation
• Layla Kayleigh blogs about Christmas with her family, including a picture of Melody Rain with Santa
  

Which ABDC5 auditioners PUBLICLY announced that they didn't make the regional cut?

Later this week we will post a new contest, where readers can win a prize for predicting which crews that auditioned for ABDC Season 5 will make the Top 9. To make the contest fairer, we'd like to include information on the crews which publicly announced that they are out of the running. Public sources include Facebook, MySpace, Twitter, Youtube, their own websites, and comments FROM THEM here or on MTV.com; it doesn't include comments or speculation by people not in the crews themselves. Before past ABDC seasons, some outsider comments and speculation proved incorrect, and I want to avoid that mistake.

So, if you have information, please list it in the comments. Be sure to include the public source -- I will eventuall delete/edit any comment that doesn't include the source. Thanks!

Spotlight - NY Auditions Pt. 2: E3, Erafusion, Fynul Destination, Illmatic, Knemesis, Kick Rocks, II an Extreme

Who will compete on America's Best Dance Crew Season 5?  Early in January, we will run a contest to let you 'cast' which of the crews you think should make it to ABDC5 Top 9.  To help you choose and give these crews some exposure, we'll spotlight each of them and show any recent performance videos we can find. We know of 27 of the 31 crews that auditioned in New York on December 12, 2009, so we'll covered them (in alphabetical order) over several days. If you have further information, links or videos to share for auditioning crews, please leave a comment or email us at BloggingBestDanceCrew@gmail.com

• E3 from Newington CT was a hit with our fans when they auditioned for ABDC4 - watch that season's audition and callback.  They were 2008 dance champions on Showtime at the Apollo and in 2009, competed on 106th and Park.  Click here to see our exclusive audition of their ABDC5 audition.
  
• Erafusion is a New York dance group. Here's their rehearsal for the ABDC5 audition:
  

• Fynul Destination came to NY from Flint, Michigan. They won first place at Saginaw Dance Crew competition.
• Illmatic from New York set the auditions on fire - literally! -- by shooting fire out of one member's fingertips during the callback challenge. Click here to watch our video of their ABDC5 audition.  Several videos of Illmatic are available at BrickCityDance Youtube Channel, including this NJ performance for the ABDC tour in October 2008:

• Kick Rocks is an all-girl dance crew from the DC area, with members from Culture Shock DC. They debuted in the pre-show for Culture Shock DC 2009. I wasn't allowed to film their routine, but here's a still from it. I haven't identified any performance videos of them yet.
• Knemesis from Albany NY incorporate such diverse styles as African, salsa, and contemporary in their hop hop style. In 2009, they won 106th and Park's Wild Out Wednesday and appeared on the show twice . FLBofUSA has many Knemesis videos including this recent video and their win at Albany's Best Dance Crew:

 

• II an Extreme: we don't have information or videos yet -- let us know if you can help!

 Tomorrow: 7 more crews from the New York auditions!

ABDC ranks in "The Best Reality Shows of the 00s"

The Awl  writer Jon Caramanica (who also writes for the New York Time) ranks America's Best Dance Crew Season 3 as the 58th best reality show  'of the 00s', out of 348. ABDC Season 1 is ranked #289. No telling where he'd put Season 4.

Video: Beat Freaks on Anjelah Johnson show

Beat Freaks appeared on Comedy Central's "This is How We Do It" with Anjelah Johnson on December 28, 2009. Thanks for the link Jessica!

Spotlight - NY auditions Pt.1: Blueprint, Bollywood Funk, Da Emperoz, Cosmic Swagga, DV8, Counter Rhythm, Coalescence

Who will compete on America's Best Dance Crew Season 5?  Early in January, we will run a contest to let you 'cast' which of the crews you think should make it to ABDC5 Top 9.  To help you choose and give these crews some exposure, we'll spotlight each of them and show any recent performance videos we can find. We know of 27 crews that auditioned in New York on December 12, 2009, so we will covere them (in alphabetical order) over several days. If you have further information, links or videos to share for auditioning crews, please leave a comment or email us at BloggingBestDanceCrew@gmail.com

• Blueprint from Canada won Monsters of Hip Hop 2008 (albeit with different members than the crew that auditioned for ABDC)-click here for a video of the winning choreography. They are all members of 8Count; you can watch other videos of Blueprint and 8 Count at the 8CountDance Youtube Channel. If the crew is chosen, they will need to obtain US work visas. Click here to watch their Season 5 audition -- it's one of our reader favorites so far.
• Bollywood Funk was one of our favorites at the ABDC4 auditions in NY; click here to watch that earlier audition and callback. They are part of a larger group; info and videos available at BollywoodFunkNYC.com  Here's a recent performance (with a slightly larger group) at a NY Diwali Festival:

• Da Emperorz come from East Orange, NJ. Meet Da Emperorz in this video. EmpzTV has several videos, including a battle against Illmatic Crew and this performance:  

• DV8 from Woodbridge, VA has auditioned for ABDC several times, including Season 4; they always come with something interesting. Here's their Season 5 audition:

• No definitive info on Coalescence, Cosmic Swagga, or Counter Rhythm. If you know the crew that auditioned, please contact us with more details, photos and videos!
  

Video: Beat Squad ABDC audition

Beat Squad auditioned for America's Best Dance Crew Season 5 in Los Angeles on December 5, 2009. There were excluded from our post on LA auditioners since they are under 18 years old and technically not eligible to compete on the program. Here's a rehearsal of their audition routine:

Trailer: Street Dance 3D, starring crews from Britain's Got Talent

Street Dance 3D will be released May 2010. It will feature from Britain's Got Talent crews Diversity (which beat out Susan Boyle for the BGT Title) and Flawless. The plot according to IMBD: "In order to win the Street Dance Championships, a dance crew is forced to work with ballet dancers from the Royal Dance School in exchange for rehearsal space." Thanks for the tip, Marienie!

Spotlight on Boston ABDC5 Auditioners Part 2: NIA, Phunk Phenomenon, Static Noyze, Street Legendz, Wrush

Who will compete on America's Best Dance Crew Season 5?  Early in January, we will run a contest to let you 'cast' which of the crews you think should make it to ABDC5 Top 9.  To help you choose and give these crews some exposure, we'll spotlight each of them and show any recent performance videos we can find. We know of 13 crews that auditioned in Boston on December 11, 2009, so we've covered them (in alphabetical order) over 2 days. If you have further information, links or videos to share for auditioning crews, please leave a comment or email us at BloggingBestDanceCrew@gmail.com

• NIA incorporates African influences into their hip hop style. Click here to watch their ABDC4 audition and callback performances, and click here for their performance at East Coast Throwdown 2009.  You can learn more about them from their brief report on the ABDC5 audition and on their MySpace page. Click here for their Here's a recent performance:
• Phunk Phenomenon from the Boston area has competed in regional and national events  including Prelude EC 2008 (where they took 1st place), Prelude EC 2009, ALC Showdown, Elements (Elements X peformance here), and Hip Hop International. Here's a recent performance at Bentley University that does justice to the group's precision and intensity:

• Static Noyze from Boston performs "contemporary and theatrical hip hop choreography".  Visit their Youtube Channel to see their workshops and recent performances. They won Elements X in November 2009 with this performance:

• Street Legendz from Boston is the most recent incarnation of Status Quo, a crew that came in second in ABDC1.  A group with many of the original Status Quo members auditioned in New York for ABDC3 and ABDC4 (click here for the Season 4 audition and callback). More recently, SQ Entertainment did well on 2009's America's Got Talent.
• Wrush from Boston combines hip hop with contemporary and Latin dancing. They've appeared on 106th and Park, their choreographer was featured on Made, and they've competed in a number of regional dance events including Main Event and Elements -- most of which is documented in Dynamiktiggz Youtube Channel. They also auditioned for ABDC4 - watch their audition and choreography callback. Here's their World of Dance NY routine:

ABDC4 Holiday card design from Kara Saun

HeyDay Footwear posted this photo of a holiday/thank you card they received from Kara Saun, the costume designer for America's Best Dance Crew. 
Here's to another season of fabulous ABDC costumes! And, sneaker fans should definitely check out HeyDay's designs.

Video: Beast Mode Crew at We Are Heroes Party

Beast Mode performed at the We Are Heroes party in December 2009. We have heard that Taeko (a Beast Mode member who also performed in America's Best Dance Crew Season 1 in Fysh N Chicks) would not be allowed to perform with Beast Mode if they made it onto Season 5 because of her previous involvement in the show.

Video: Fanny Pak at Gridlock New Year's Eve Party

From the ILike2TapDance Youtube Channel:

Spotlight on Boston ABDC5 auditioners Part I: BlackOut, Draztik, N-10-City, Geek Chic & more!

Who will compete on America's Best Dance Crew Season 5?  Early in January, we will run a contest to let you 'cast' which of the crews you think should make it to ABDC5 Top 9.  To help you choose and give these crews some exposure, we'll spotlight each of them and show any recent performance videos we can find. We know of 13 crews that auditioned in Boston on December 11, 2009, so we've covered them (in alphabetical order) over 2 days. If you have further information, links or videos to share for auditioning crews, please leave a comment or email us at BloggingBestDanceCrew@gmail.com

•  We have no reliable information yet on Beat Connectionz, Dancehall (photo here), or Darkside. Please comment or email us if you have information, links, or videos on these crews.
• BlackOut Pro is part of an all-male crew from Tufts University specializing in percussive and step dancing. They are undefeated in their last three years of competition. Keith Frankel (Captain) was featured as an assistant coach on MADE (the same episode with Marcos Aguirre, leader of Wrush, Suzette Sagisi, leader of Static Noyze, and E-knock (from Street Legends.)Here's a performance at Elements X:
  

• Boston Tap Company: a larger group than the ABDC auditioners performed this piece at the 2009 Peace Hip Hop Festival 
• Draztik hails from Rhode Island. Draztik member Kelvin Fabian's dance credits include freestyling on Showtime at the Apollo; more available at Kelvint2123 Youtube Channel. Here's a Draztik performance:

• Geek Chic is composed of MIT and Harvard students. Photo here; no video available!
• N-10-City comes from Milwaukee, WI. Learn about the crew and watch their part of ABDC audition rehearsal (starting at 3:05) here:

ABDC 5 promo with We Are Heroes now airing on MTV

MTV just unveiled their Season 5 promo for America's Best Dance Crew. It features ABDC 4 winners We Are Heroes popping and tutting using old-style Japanese phone booths, playing off the superhero theme. We'll post photos or videos as soon as available. Thanks, Word and FiredUp!

Exclusive from NY auditions: Lb for Pound

We were invited to watch a few hours of the auditions and callbacks for America's Best Dance Crew Season 5 in New York. IMPORTANT: we have no inside information or influence with the MTV decision makers.


Here's Lb for Pound, from New York. Obviously, their gimmick is their weight, but that physical attribute doesn't stop the crew members from some intense and impressive dancing.
 

Latest SoReal Cru: New Dances, new Youtube Channel

SoReal Cru has been busy with touring, new choreography, and videos. They have a new Youtube Channel called SoRealStudioTV, and the first episode is a performance by Phillip Geniza. The latest in their SoReal Cru TV series is an intricate solo by Andrew Baterina called "Panty Droppa". And, here's a dance by Geniza with several SoReal Cru members called "Papers". Thanks for all the info, Dominique!

Spotlight on LA ABDC5 auditioners: Asylum, The Hype, Tripl3 Threat, Z-train, Xposed Dance, Waackers, The Detail, Soulidified Project

Who will compete on America's Best Dance Crew Season 5?  Early in January, we will run a contest to let you 'cast' which of the crews you think should make it to ABDC5 Top 9.  To help you choose and give these crews some exposure, we'll spotlight each of them and show any recent performance videos we can find. We know of 32 crews that auditioned in Los Angeles on December 5, 2009, so we've covered them (in alphabetical order) over 4 days. If you have further information, links or videos to share for auditioning crews, please leave a comment or email us at BloggingBestDanceCrew@gmail.com

• Soulidified Project from Fremont, CA. Their style is R&B/soul but incorporates housing and technical choreography. The larger group debuted at World of Dance 2008, and have also performed at Collaboration 2009 and SoulNation. Pacific Rim interviewed the auditioning group.
  
• The Asylum, from Los Angeles, was formed in 2008. Their style (according to their MySpace profile: "house, jazz funk, isolations, hip-hop, theatrical, old school, sass, fusion, wacking, tutting, breaking, popping and maybe some ballroom if there ever comes a point." The larger group includes members of ASIID, Fr3sh, Femme 5, Fanny Pak, Funkanometry SF, Mix'd Elements, Expressive Doubt, and Automatic Response. Automatic Responseand Fanny Pak, and here's an Asylum performance at San Francisco's Palace of Fine Arts that features members of ASIID and Fanny Pak.  Several good videos of the larger group are available at AsylumDanceTV.   Update: here's a performance of Asylum's ABDC5 audition routine:
  

• The Detail from Portland, Oregon have performed together since 2000. Styles supplementing hip hop include African, Tap, contemporary/Modern, jazz and Ballet. Members have performed in music videos with Britney Spears, Jessica Simpson, Black Eyed Peas, and Janet Jackson. Crew members have also opened for live shows for Snoop Dogg, Ciara, Ashanti, and Fabolous. Click here to watch their audition for America's Best Dance Crew Season 5.
• The Hype, from Hawaii, also auditioned for ABDC Season 3 and Season 4. Here's their interview with Pacific Rim at the ABDC 5 auditions.  Here's their latest video (thanks TheEmp!)

BUT WAIT --THERE'S MORE!! CLICK HERE to read and watch performance videos for The Waackers, Tripl3 Threat, VIP San Jose, Xposed Dance, and Ztrain.

Video: Phillip Chbeeb (Marvelous Motion), Brandon Harrell (Coalition) in "Rise and Fall"

From Pacman's Youtube Channel: "The Rise and Fall". This is a must-watch video, with powerful choreography by Brandon Harrell (Coalition) and Phillip Chbeeb (Marvelous Motion, SYTYCD veteran) as well as great freestyling by Jordan Kolar (sifu)  and others.

Upcoming Events: Week of January 1-14, 2010

Happy New Year! Here are some things to look forward to the next two weeks. I am expanding the calendar to two weeks at a time to give enough advance notice for some events. Let me know if you have events to add here or upcoming events you'd like to publicize.

• 1/2: Rainen (JabbaWockeeZ),Ronnie (Super Cr3w), and Hong 10 (former RedBull BC One Champion) will be judges at Deuces Wild competition in Las Vegas. 
  
• 1/2: Fr3sh is throwing a semi-formal Masquerade with food, drink and performances in Piscataway, NJ. For tickets, call (732) 221-2110 or email Fr3shDanceTroupeLLC@gmail.com 
• Quest Crew and Beat Freaks Shorty in Alvin and the Chipmunks the Squeakuel, in theaters everywhere!
• 1/7: B-Girl Screening in New York including Q&A with Lady Jules
  
• 1/8: Massive Monkees host Vancouver's Best Dance Crews
• 1/9: SoReal Cru workshop in Chicago with Brian Puspos and Ailyn Isidro
• 1/10: Quest performs at Praying for Abbey, an event to raise funds for a young leukemia fighter, in Canton, OH
• 1/14: Leiomy of Vogue Evolution featured at National Talent Search in Atlanta
  

We Are Heroes Interview and Performance at their Celebration Party

The Yuri and Taeko Show attended the We Are Heroes celebration in December. They interview the ABDC4 winners and show their performance. Thanks, Jessica!

Spotlight on LA ABDC5 Auditions: Neverland, Poreotics, Mixd Elements, Molodi 5, Sheroes, No Label, Pandora's Myth, more

Who will compete on America's Best Dance Crew Season 5?  Don't ask us! But we DO know names for most of the crews that auditioned.  Early in January, we will run a contest to let you 'cast' which of the crews you think should make it to ABDC5 Top 9.  To help you choose and give these crews some exposure, we'll spotlight each of them and show any recent performance videos we can find. We know of 32 crews that auditioned in Los Angeles on December 5, 2009, so we're covering them (in alphabetical order) over 4 days. If you have further information, links or videos to share for auditioning crews, please leave a comment or email us at BloggingBestDanceCrew@gmail.com

• Mix'd Elements from California is another auditioning crew with a loyal following. Here's a Pacific Rim interview with them in September 2009. They won 1st place at a KIIS FM contest and came in second at World of Dance San Diego with this routine:

• Molodi 5, from Las Vegas, incorporates body percussion, as well as step and tap in their hip hop. Pacific Rim interviewed them at the ABDC5 auditions, with a demo. Here's a demo reel for Molodi  from 2008:

• Neverland, from California, is affiliated with L0st Kids. They made their debut at Elements X in November 2009; click here for a workshop video of "Might Like You Better" featuring many of the crew members.  Their audition differed from most other crews in that they tried out with 9 members, and will probably field 10 if they are chosen for ABDC5. 
• One Nation Crew came together from all over the world. Talk of Fame briefly interviewed them at the auditions (starting at 2:07). I didn't find a performance video for them.
  

THERE'S STILL MORE TODAY -- Click here for the rest of this 'spotlight', including info and performance videos for Poreotics, Sheroes, No Label, Rumba Ta, and Pandora's Myth.

Update on ABDC auditioners: Illmatik Phlo Crew

When we profiled the Denver auditions, we had no information about Illmatik Phlo from Miami. Update on the crew: Members come from 4 different crews: Ground Zero Crew, IllMoves Crew, ThunderCatz, and mystikal. Their MySpace page has videos for each of the 4 crews, but nothing for the Illmatik Phlo crew itself. Given the crew's pedigree and b-boy skills, they could be strong contenders for ABDC5.

Remembering 2009: United State of Pop

For your New Years Eve reminiscence: a mash-up of 25 top tunes and videos, created by DJ Earworm. 

Video from LA ABDC auditions: The Detail

At the Los Angeles ABDC 5 auditions, our Los Angeles team (Chris Trondsen and Glenda Morales) were allowed to film about an hour of Day 1 performances and a few of the callbacks. 
Here's The Detail, from Portland, Oregon. The group has performed together since 2000.  Members have perfomed in music videos with Britney Spears, Jessica Simpson, Black Eyed Peas, and Janet Jackson. Crew members have also opened for live shows for Snoop Dogg, Ciara, Ashanti, and Fabolous. NOTE: we posted this video earlier, but erred in identifying the crew.

Spotlight - LA Auditions Pt. 2: Klaamation, L0st Kids, Inside the Box, Instant Noodles, L2D,KHZ, Sac. Kings Breakers,Loyal Citizens of Zamunda

Who will compete on America's Best Dance Crew Season 5?  We have no idea! But we DO know names for most of the crews that auditioned.  Early in January, we will run a contest to let you 'cast' which of the crews you think should make it to ABDC5 Top 9.  To help you choose and give these crews some exposure, we'll spotlight each of them and show any recent performance videos we can find. We know of 32 crews that auditioned in Los Angeles on December 5, 2009, so we're covering them (in alphabetical order) over 4 days. If you have further information, links or videos to share for auditioning crews, please leave a comment or email us at BloggingBestDanceCrew@gmail.com

• Inside the Box from Pomona, CA also auditioned for ABDC Season 4.  More: watch their winning performance at Maxt Out, an interview with the crew at the Season 5 auditions, and here to see their Season 5 audition.
• Instant Noodles from California (whose members are originally from Taiwan) was interviewed by Pacific Rim at the ABDC5 auditions. Here's their performance at World of Dance San Mateo in October 2009:

• Sacramento Kings Breakers perform regularly at the Sacramento Kings half-time shows and were interviewed by Pacific Rim at the ABDC5 auditions.  KingsVideo Youtube Channel has several videos showing individual members' breaking skills, and this group performance:
  

THERE'S STILL MORE TODAY -- CLICK HERE for more Los Angeles auditioner information and videos, including Klaamation, Knucklehead Zoo, L2D, L0st Kids, and Loyal Citizens of Zamunda.

Mailbox: AXXENT- We Are Heroes connection, JC Chasez, Fan-made ABDC5 Teaser

• AXXENT is one of the crews that auditioned in Los Angeles for America's Best Dance Crew Season 5. Since we first profiled AXXENT yesterday, we learned that Hiro from We Are Heroes (ABDC4) was a long-time member of the crew. Click here for a video of AXXENT with Hiro dancing. The crew also peformed at the We Are Heroes celebration party hosted by Shane Sparks on December 17, 2009. 
  
• ABDC judge JC Chasez just had a lien filed against him by the state of Mississippi accusing him of owing $206,965 in delinquent taxes. According to Chasez' manager Eric Podwall: The lien stems from a business dispute between 'N Sync and Mississippi over revenue from a concert about seven years ago... The lien was filed against Chasez because he was the principal member of the band's corporation, which is defunct. But the tax lien is a corporate matter, not personal...The lien is being addressed. Source: Detroit News. Thanks for the additional info, Guest!
  
•  FIREBurner created a second trailer/teaser for ABDC5 that is new, improved, and briefer

Video: Super Cr3w appearance on Latination

ABDC 2 winners Super Cr3w were featured on a recent LatiNation TV segment, with performance clips and an interview. They talk about about how America's Best Dance Crew helped bring b-boying to a greater audience and helped them become headliners. Thanks for the clip Supercr3w.com!

Spotlight on ABDC5 LA auditioners - Part I of 4

Who will compete on America's Best Dance Crew Season 5?  We have no idea! But we DO know names for most of the crews that auditioned.  Early in January, we will run a contest to let you 'cast' which of the crews you think should make it to ABDC5 Top 9.  To help you choose and give these crews some exposure, we'll spotlight each of them and show any recent performance videos we can find. We know of 32 crews that auditioned in Los Angeles on December 5, 2009, so we're covering them (in alphabetical order) over 4 days. If you have further information, links or videos to share for auditioning crews, please leave a comment or email us at BloggingBestDanceCrew@gmail.com

• AXXENT crew, from California, Axxent is both a music group and dance crew. Hiroka from We are Heroes (ABDC 4 winners) was once an AXXENT dancer.   Here is a video of the group with Hiro:

 

• Beast Mode from North Hollywood formed in 2006. They also auditioned for ABDC Season 4.Pacific Rim interviewed the crew at the ABDC5 auditions. There are several videos at the BeastModeCrew Youtube channel, including a freestyle session called 'Soul Fresh' and this performance at Blvd 3 (where unfortunately one of the members was absent):

• Blended Projekt is a crew from the Dance Effect studio in West Covina, CA.  We couldn't find any performance videos for them
• Capital Iggz are reportedly 'over the top' (shown in our interview with them at the ABDC5 auditions) but we have no performance video for them
• Destined 2 Be hails from Indianapolis, Indiana. Two videos: a demo video for Step Up 3D casting, and a performance on America's Got Talent Season 4
  

• Flex Flav from Sacramento, CA was one of our favorite auditions from the LA's ABDC4. Pacific Rim interviewed the crew at the ABDC5 auditions. And, here's a recent battle against Berzerkely:

• Heavy Hitters . They 'represent' bigger fellows with krumping, tricks, jazz, and other surprises. Pacific Rim interviewed them at the ABDC5 audition. No further info or performance videos.
  

Happy holidays from JabbaWockeeZ

From The BangerZ: JabbaWockeeZ send holiday greetings!

NY Audition Video: Unstoppables

At the New York auditions for America's Best Dance Crew Season 5, we were able to watch about an hour of day one and a few hours of the callbacks. We were also permitted to film a few auditioning crews during that time.  IMPORTANT: we have no inside information or influence with the ABDC decision makers.
The Unstoppables from Detroit stood out from the competition for many reasons: their being older than the typical dancer (one judge said that when they walked in she thought they were just like her uncles, but then they wowed her), their distinctive Funkateering style, and the "Unstoppables" track that they created.

Fanmade Trailer for ABDC5

FIREBurner created a trailer for America's Best Dance Crew Season 5 with highlights of the past 4 seasons and some footage from ABDC5 auditioners. This may be fan-made, but it rivals all the ABDC promos that MTV produced for the past few seasons!

Spotlight on Denver Auditioners, Part II

Who will compete on America's Best Dance Crew Season 5?  We have no idea! But we DO know names for most of the crews that auditioned.  Early in January, we will run a contest to let you 'cast' which of the crews you think should make it to ABDC5 Top 9.  To help you choose and give these crews some exposure, we'll spotlight each of them and show any recent performance videos we can find. Yesterday and today: spotlight on crews that auditioned in Denver. 

• Motion Underground hails from Denver. DayOneVideos posted several of their performances, including this:

• Rocky Mountain Rockstarz consists of former professional cheerleaders and dancers affiliated with LA Lakers, Denver Nuggets, and other teams. Here's a performance at a 2009 party:

•  True II Form from Denver have performed all over Colorado. They have an eclectic hip-hop based style. Many videos of them are available at WendyWut's Youtube Channel, including some bboy freestyles and this performance from Verve 2009:

 

• Illmatik Phlo Krew from Miami. Members come from 4 different crews: Ground Zero Crew, IllMoves Crew, ThunderCatz, and mystika. Their MySpace page has videos for each of the 4 crews, but nothing for the Illmatik Phlo crew itself.
  

• We lack videos for: Bandits (a bboy crew from Texas),  Ricochet (a contemporary burlesque group that was part of The Damsels Dance company from Denver)
  

Videos: Lil Mama's Birthday party, with Beat Freaks

From Hype Video  Productions: coverage of Lil Mama's 21st birthday party. Beat Freaks perform in the first video. According to the Youtube description, in early 2010 MTV will air a special with all more footage from this event. Thanks for the tip, abdc!

Updates on earlier audition posts: BreakEFX

We are trying to provide information on all of the crews that auditioned for America's Best Dance Crew Season 5. Since posting information about Atlanta, Houston, and some of the Denver crews, we've received corrections, additional information, and better videos. Please email us at BloggingBestDanceCrew.com if you want us to modify our posts about your crew. The posts have been updated with the new material, but we also make new posts to make sure you see the best work of these crews.
So, here's more of BreakEFX from Colorado. Click here  for a very recent video that highlights their breaking skills. And, here's their promo reel:

Survey results: favorite dance movies - Step Up 2, You Got Served

About 450 votes were cast in our survey on your favorite dance movies. The two on top: Step Up 2 (25%) and You Got Served (24%).

poll by twiigs.com

Spotlight on Denver Auditioners - Part I

Who will compete on America's Best Dance Crew Season 5?  We have no idea! But we DO know names for most of the crews that auditioned.  Early in January, we will run a contest to let you 'cast' which of the crews you think should make it to ABDC5 Top 9.  To help you choose and give these crews some exposure, we'll spotlight each of them and show any recent performance videos we can find.

Today and tomorrow: crews that auditioned in Denver. The auditions seem to have brought out some of the best breakers in the United States. 

• Boom Unit is composed of some members of Streetside. Here's a Streetside performance with some of the Boom Unit members at Colorado's Best Dance Crew 2009 where they took third place in Week 4. UPDATE: Here is a video of Boom Unit from a 2008 Verve competition
  

• BreakEFX from Colorado won Verve Collizionz 2009. UPDATE: Here's a recent video showing their dance and breaking skills:

 

• ElektroLytes, from Arizona, were formerly known as Fresh 2 Def. They auditioned for ABDC4 in Los Angeles (watch here).  Here's their performance at Arizona's Best Dance Crew, where they took first place:

• Ground Zero is well known on the Bboy battle scene. Click here to watch a demo video and a battle against ABDC2 winners Super Cr3w.
  

Video: Neverland members "Might Like You Better"

From Kyle Hanagami's Youtube Channel, a new workshop video with Neverland members and others dancing to Amanda Blanks "Might Like You Better."

Last Day to enter our "Favorite Dance Movie" survey

If you haven't voted yet in our survey on favorite dance movies, do it today! Click here for the survey; please pick up to 3 films.

Exclusive video from NY ABDC Auditions: Round One

We attended part of the New York auditions for America's Best Dance Crew Season 5, and were allowed to film a few crews during the initial auditions and the callbacks. IMPORTANT: we have no inside knowledge and no influence with the ABDC decision makers.
Here's Round One from New Jersey. They auditioned for ABDC Season 3 and Season 4 (here's some footage outside the audition space, their audition, and their callback). Round One also recently performed on 106th and Park. Note: this video is missing the very beginning of the audition; sorry about that!)

Video: Freak the Vogue trailer with Beat Freaks and Vogue Evolution

Beat Freaks Maryss, Lindsey, Rino, and Keeley learned to vogue at a class from Pony Zion and Dashaun of Vogue Evolution and learned how to vogue. This is a trailer for a documentary called “Freak the Vogue”! Thanks, guest!

 

Video: Quest bowling headspin

Quest member Ryan Conferido shows off his mad bboy skills in an unlikely setting: the bowling alley.