NEON Mag

NEON MAG PREMIERE HIP HOP DANCE MAGAZINE

[ spring 2015 ]

[ jazy z ]

[ jay–z ]

TEN Q-TIP BREAKS DOWN HIP HOP HISTORY twelve decoding hip hop’s cultural impact sixteen iggy azalea just blew up twenty–four maya angelou’s harlem hopscotch twenty–six kingdom radically uplifted mighty praise thirty–six the queen of polyswagg fourty–eight ultimate tutorial sensation fifty–two sia’s new mini-me NEON MAG 7

credits [ NEON wouldn’t be the same without your help ]

[ articles ]

[ photos ]

“The Rise and Rise of Parris Goebel.” Stuff.

Web. 6 Apr. 2015.

“Q-Tip Low End Theory at the Airliner.”

Soul Bounce. Web. 6 Apr. 2015.

“Q-Tip Breaks Down Hip-Hop History For Iggy Azalea.” Web. 6 Apr. 2015.

All Hip Hop. Web. 6 Apr. 2015.

“Interview with Matt Steffanina: An Incredibly Talented Dancer Who Worked with Chris Brown and Many Others.”

YouQueen Interview with Matt Steffanina A Professional Dancer Choreographer and Teacher Comments. 27 Dec. 2014.

Web. 6 Apr. 2015.

“History of Krump Dance - Dance History Articles.” History of Krump Dance - Dance History Articles. Web. 6 Apr. 2015.

“Sia’s Dancer Mini-me, Maddie Ziegler, Talks ‘Chandelier,’ ‘Elastic Heart,’ and Dance-fighting with Shia LaBeouf.”

Entertainment Weekly’s EW.com.

Web. 6 Apr. 2015.

“Hip-Hop’s Huge Problem With Iggy Azalea Just Blew Up - And She Completely Deserves It.” Mic. 22 Dec. 2014. Web. 6 Apr. 2015. “’SYTYCD’ Choreographers Tabitha and Napoleon Create Funky New Dance for Maya Angelou’s ‘Harlem Hopscotch’ (EXCLUSIVE).” Headlines Global News RSS. 24 Dec. 2014. Web. 6 Apr. 2015.

“NYC Cop Apologizes for Racist Rant Against South Asian.” Diverse. Web. 6 Apr. 2015.

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“Desktop Backgrounds.” Wall J-peg.

Web. 6 Apr. 2015.

“Iggy Azalea.” Fuzfeed. Web. 6 Apr. 2015.

“Maya Angelou’s Harlem Hopscotch: Official Music Video | Oprah Winfrey Network.” YouTube. YouTube. Web. 6 Apr. 2015.

Parris Goebel. Web. 7 Apr. 2015.

Request Dance Crew. Digital image.

Http://www.australianfilipina.com/ Uploads/Hiphopjuly/Dancers Give It All.jpg. Web. “Adidas Bounce The Block.” Behance. Web. 7 Apr. 2015. <https://www.behance.net/ gallery/218862/adidas-Bounce-The-Block>.

America’s Next Top Model Cycle 6.

Digital image. Blogger. Web. Power-full Creations Photography.

Digital image. Blogger. Web. Step Up All In 2 - Parris Goebel. Digital image. Http://hdwallpaper480.com/ wp-content/uploads/2014/08/still-ofbriana-evigan-luis-rosado-chadd-smithmari-koda-christopher-scott-ryan-guzmancyrus-spencer-and-parris-goebel-in-stepup-all-in-2014-large-picture.jpg. Web.

Matt Steffanina. Digital image.

Http://i.ytimg.com/vi/FilAqHlMOLw/ maxresdefault.jpg. Web. “Dancer. Choreographer. Teacher. - Matt Steffanina.” Matt Steffanina. Web. 7 Apr. 2015. <http://mattsteffanina.com/>.

Maddie Ziegler Chandelier. Digital image. Https://media.zenfs.com/en-US/ video/video.clevvernews.alloy.com/c8 30e2b82c3d75433c1219f21494e9c7.

Web. Maddie Ziegler Elastic Heart. Digital image. Http://colorising.com/wpcontent/uploads/2015/01/sia.jpg. Web. Krumping Converse. Digital image.

IDM Mag. Web.

LETTER [ from the editor ]

[ what is NEON mag ] NEON mag is a visual representation aimed at merging the physical movement of dance with the cultural implications of the hip-hop movement. The goal is to bring life to a static print publication depicting the importance and excitement of dance. The title is derived from two parts: the first is a reference to my inexplicable obsession of incorporating neon clothing into my everyday wardrobe while the second is a reference to the electrifying and attention–grabbing aesthetics of hip–hop dance. The magazine focuses on bringing light to issues surrounding the cultural movement of hip-hop while showcasing different hip–hop groups, choreographers and dancers from around the world. Hip-hop dance is growing at an exponential rate; it’s about time we capture this unique merge of movements for years to come.

[ what inspired NEON mag ] NEON mag was inspired by the gap in the market of mainstream dance magazines let alone mainstream magazines more specifically focused on hip–hop dance. The goal was to create a product that hasn’t yet been created on a larger scale. As dance continues to take over film media with thousands of viral videos, dance competition shows and movie plots with a focus in dance, I decided it was about time for this art form to take over the print media world as well.

The main challenge to overcome was to capture the energy of the movements in a static media.

[ who’s behind NEON mag ] I created NEON mag as my senior capstone project at Washington University in St. Louis.

Hailing from the nation’s capital, I relocated to the nation’s heartland to spend the next four years learning the trick of the trade of communication design while avoiding all things ‘gooey butter cake.’ Inspired by the dancer’s visual electric magnetism and inherent confidence, I enrolled into multiple hip–hop dance classes so that I wouldn’t be so awkward at parties anymore. Although not a professional–level dancer yet, I’ve been able to evoke some of that confidence and sharpness on the dance floor — at least that’s what I tell myself. Outside of dance, I continue to refine my attempt at daily witty sarcasm as well as generally avoiding eating foods that I cannot spell.

[ sincerely ]

NEON MAG 9

FOUNDING MEMBER OF A TRIBE CALLED QUEST GIVES US A MUCH NEEDED HISTORY LESSON

10 NEON MAG SPRING 2015

TWITTER’S NEVER BEEN the most ideal “@IGGYAZALEA but! Being a spirited, way for expressing ideas in depth since the rhythmic & expressive people music social network’s limited to 140 characters. art dance outlined our existence” But that didn’t stop Q–Tip for directing a “@IGGYAZALEA it proved a way for us stream of updates at Iggy Azalea with a full to exhault to scream to dance to laugh discourse on Hip–Hop culture and music an and find OUR VOICE” “artistic and socio-political movement.” “@IGGYAZALEA we weren’t at the time Of course, the conversation began skilled musicians as kids. We had records, indirectly with the past few days’ master turntables, ideas and INGENUITY” of ceremonies Azealia Banks and her recent Twitter spats with first Iggy, then Action “@IGGYAZALEA being natural chemist we Bronson. I think Ryan mentioned it but took from whatever was availed to us and no matter anyone’s surface level thoughts we created something mighty and special” regarding Banks, she’s ultimately doing a “@IGGYAZALEA we cut breakbeats back n lot to spark conversations that may begin forth we took a hybrid of Jamaican toasting with negative undertones, however, they along w/ radio jock rap (hank Spann, Gary can bring about enlightening moments like Byrd, ect.) and we put our rap down..” what Q–Tip creates here. “@IGGYAZALEA it was a neighborhood Fact of the matter is Iggy’s not the only thing. Black and Latino Kids were carving one who may need to be brought up to out their space and it became infectious” speed on what Hip-Hop – not rap, there’s a difference — was founded on. Because cash ruled and ruined, there was a cultural aspect that included the music as a component and not the other way around where the culture became an afterthought.

It’s the communal spirit that’s been lost across generations, black and white, and we have to maintain in order for the actually matter and have an impact. While he was mentioning her, chances are your favorite rapper should read it, too. “@IGGYAZALEA HipHop is a artistic and socio–political movement/culture that sprang from the disparate ghettos of NY in the early 70’s” “@IGGYAZALEA Coming off the heels of the CIVIL RIGHTS MOVEMENT and approaching the end of the Vietnam war it was a crossroads 4 America”

HipHop is a artistic and socio– political movement

“@IGGYAZALEA specially for blacks in the “@IGGYAZALEA eventually Keith Cowboy US our neighborhoods were PROLIFERATED coined the phrase hip–hop. Yrs later the w/a rush of HEROINE” first rap record was recorded and now we are moving” “@IGGYAZALEA our school systems here in NY dungeon traps with light for learning” “@IGGYAZALEA but during these strides this country still had the monster of racism “@IGGYAZALEA blk men some of whom and racial insensitivity breathing and ruling” didn’t return from tours of duty n the ones who did came w/war baggage (agent “@IGGYAZALEA believe it or not young orange, addiction, etc...) black n Latino lives specifically weren’t acknowledged in mainstream American “@IGGYAZALEA these men had families but culture unless Ofcourse..” due to these events and throw into the mix the public emaculation...” “@IGGYAZALEA the convo was abt gangs , being criminals or uneducated. And hey! “@IGGYAZALEA they proved to be Like I stated early our families were rushed handicapped parents. The surrogate our schools sucked and we were left to put parents? The STREETS” devices to survive” “@IGGYAZALEA the streets of gangs, “@IGGYAZALEA but HIPHOP showed that crimes, and the hustlers coddled us we had DEPTCH, fire, and BRILLIANCE” and swept us up”

“@IGGYAZALEA the music was undeniable! It moved from NY n became national and even GLOBAL” “@IGGYAZALEA hiphop now was FOR EVERYBODY!! All of those who cld relate to the roots, the spirit, the history, the energy.. It reached YOU” “@IGGYAZALEA it touched your spirit n took u up. We magnetized you!

That’s what BRILLIANCE does” “@IGGYAZALEA now u are fulfilling your dreams ... BUT! you have to take into account the HISTORY as you move underneath the banner of hip–hop. As I said before” “@IGGYAZALEA hiphop is fun it’s vile it’s dance it’s traditional it’s light hearted but 1 thing it can never detach itself from” “@IGGYAZALEA is being a SOCIO–Political movement. U may ask why ... Well” “@IGGYAZALEA once you are born black your existence I believe is joined with socio–political epitaph and philos” “@IGGYAZALEA based on the tangled and treacherous history SLAVERY alone this is the case” “@IGGYAZALEA it never leaves our conversation... Ever. WeAther in our universities our dinner tables our studios or jail cells.” “@IGGYAZALEA the effects still resonates with us. It hurts... We get emotional and angry and melancholy” “@IGGYAZALEA did u know president Clinton was the ONLY PRESIDENT to apologize for it?” “@IGGYAZALEA did u know that remnants of slavery exist today thru white privilege?

When certain “niceties” r extended your way because of” “@IGGYAZALEA how u look? Isn’t that crazy? I say this 2 say u are a hiphop artist who has the right 2 express herself however she wishes” “@IGGYAZALEA this is not a chastisement this is not admonishment at ALL this is just one artist reaching to another hoping to spark insight” “@IGGYAZALEA into the field you r in.

I say this in the spirit of a hopeful and healthy dialogue that maybe one day we can continue” “@IGGYAZALEA I’ve been on twitter a long time and this will probably be my last series of tweets but I’m Kool with it as long as I got to share this w u. Zzzzz’s up! Peace!”

NEON MAG 11

AS A CULTURAL MOVEMENT, hip-hop manages to get billed as both a positive and negative influence on young people, especially on Black and Latino youth. On one hand, there are African American activists, artists and entrepreneurs, such as Russell Simmons, who seek to build a progressive political movement among young hip–hop fans and who have had modest success with voter registration efforts. On the other hand, there’s no shortage of critics who denounce the negative portrayals of Black people, especially women, in hip-hop lyrics and videos.

Recently, a few critics in major U.S. newspapers took note of a well– publicized marketing firm study that cited the cultural influence of hip-hop and reported on sexuality among African American youth in households earning less than $25,000 per year in 10 cities. The study revealed that Black adolescents are becoming sexually active at ages younger than other youth and are suffering from HIV/AIDS at a rate higher than other groups.

“The teens did display attitudes consistent with the macho pose 12 NEON MAG SPRING 2015

of hip-hop rappers. Their motto: ‘Use or be used,’ among others.

And ‘Get it while you can.’ And consistent with a culture that uses ‘bitches’ and ‘hos’ as labels for every woman but one’s mama, the study reveals ‘Black females are dissed by almost everyone,’ including other Black females,” wrote nationally syndicated columnist Clarence Page.

“The study of the hip-hop generation fails to pin down the big question: Does rap music and other traits of the hip–hop culture influence teens or merely mirror the culture that teens have created? The answer is probably both,” Page noted.

After more than two decades of hip-hop’s growth, an emerging cohort of young scholars may very well provide clear answers to questions of hip-hop’s influence. “At one level, we need to document the genre. On a more sophisticated level, we need to determine how African American and Latino students perceive their social identity with respect to hip-hop’s content, expressions and context. It is also important that we examine the perspectives

of both the producers and consumers of hip-hop,” says Dr. Beatrice Bridglall, the assistant director of the Institute for Urban and Minority Education at Columbia University.

Dr. S. Craig Watkins, a professor of sociology, African American studies, and radio, television, and film at the University of Texas at Austin, is among a group of social scientists who have taken up the charge to examine exactly what impact hip–hop is having on its young audiences. For the most part, Watkins says that hip–hop scholarship has focused on analyzing content and cultural interpretation. That trend will change as scholars examine the effect the music and media images from hip-hop culture are having on the social identity and values of young people.

Previously, scholars, wondering whether the music and the culture would last, tended not to focus on the impact it was having upon its audience, Watkins explains. He also contends that a number of scholars embraced hip–hop with an uncritical, celebratory slant in their scholarship. With the passage of time and hip–hop’s NEON MAG 13

unimpeachable commercial success, it’s become critical to explore its cultural impact, he says. “For young Blacks, it’s important as culture because they see it as something that represents them,” Watkins notes.

She adds that there’s been little scholarship that examines hip–hop in terms of Black women’s representation, as well the effects the culture has on the self-image, social identity, and values of young Black women.

Since the 1990s, Watkins has examined questions such as “What accounts for the global popularity of hip-hop culture products such as rap?” and “What has the ‘commodification of blackness’ done to the Black community?” That has led him to closely study media representations of hip–hop culture as a way to “explore what’s going on with young people — their values, attitudes and behaviors,” he says.

Dr. Cynthia Winston, an assistant professor of psychology at Howard University, says research psychologists can expect to wage a struggle to gain acceptance for work that assesses the impact of hip–hip culture upon youth social identity. In her own work, which investigates the psychology of high–achieving African American students, her subjects relate that hip–hop culture has helped shape their identity as young Blacks. Winston’s research on African American achievement has been awarded a National Science Foundation career grant.

Currently, Watkins is planning a survey project that will initially study the attitudes and beliefs of 100 to 200 Texas youth of different races and ethnicities to determine what kind of media culture engages them. The study cohort will be made of seventh, eighth and ninth graders. “I want to see how that shapes their behavior, lifestyle, self-esteem, mental health and attitudes toward their peers and society,” he says.

Watkins expects to have the first round of studies on the Texas youths ready by spring 2005.

He estimates that to do a high-end, first-round investigation will cost between $300,000 and $400,000.

Dr. Gwendolyn Pough, a professor of women’s studies at the University of Minnesota, says her research of hip–hop culture has looked at the content and form of hip–hop performance, as well as the assessment of performance, lyrics and media images upon its audience. In her upcoming book, Check It While I Wreck It: Black Womanhood, Hip Hop Culture, and the Public Sphere, Pough is said to show “how influential women rappers such as Queen Latifah, Missy Elliot and Lil’ Kim are building on the legacy of earlier generations of women — from Sojourner Truth to sisters of the Black power and civil rights movements — to disrupt and break into the dominant patriarchal public sphere.” She says that while women have sought to empower themselves through hip-hop, males have all too willingly used the culture to denigrate them.

“My work looks at how hip-hop affects Black women,” Pough says.

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“My sense is that most young African Americans strongly relate to the influence of hip-hop culture,” she says.

Winston expects to be very encouraging of psychology students who want to examine hip–hop culture in their research. It will be imperative for researchers to aggressively employ sound research methodology to ensure their work is taken seriously in the research community, Winston says. She notes that psychology research based on Black culture ideas and theories is still finding acceptance in the academy.

“If you’re rooting your research and your findings in something that is very much intimately involved with Black cultural experiences and phenomena, there is a hesitancy because there’s so many things that have to be revisited,” says David Wall Rice, a Howard graduate psychology student under Winston.

He is writing a dissertation on “race self–complexity and identity construction of African American male adolescents,” which acknowledges that hip-hop culture plays a significant role in young Black male identity.

“It’s a topic and an interest that will always be a part of my research.

I don’t know if it would be a main focus, but it’s something that will be part of it because it’s part of the people that I’m doing research on,” Rice says.

Dr. Anthony Kwame Harrison, a newly minted Ph.D. in anthropology from Syracuse University who wrote his dissertation on West Coast underground rap music, believes that scholars who assess hip–hop’s impact on youth should be clear to make distinctions among the various genres of rap music, as well as the media and corporate entities that promote hip–hop culture. Harrison, a devotee of progressive hip-hop culture which includes underground rap, says it’s incumbent upon scholars to examine the corporate culture that promotes the hip-hop music most commonly heard on radio and viewed as music videos on television.

Since the early 1990s, the biggest selling hip–hop artists have been the ones most associated with “gangsta” rap; the “bling–bling” rap that celebrates materialism; and the “big pimping” rap that denigrates women, according to Harrison, who teaches in the sociology department at Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University. “It’s the partnership of hip–hop and corporate media that’s brought us the negative images and the rap music that people complain most about,” Harrison says.

He says it’s significant to note that since Whites have become the biggest consumers of rap music, a trend which dates back to the early to mid–1990s, the exposure of hip-hop artists tends to go to those who push the most negative images and morally questionable lyrics. “(Scholars) have to be conscious of who gets promoted and the entities that support them,” he says.

[ dr. s. craig watkins ] NEON MAG 15

hip-hopâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s problem with iggy azalea

[ and she completely deserves it ]

WHEN FORBES DECLARED in May that “Hip–Hop Is Run by a White, Blonde, Australian Woman,” they quickly realized their mistake. Yet in the months since, that mistake has come to seem like a sick prophesy: Iggy Azalea has, in fact, run the rap game from a numerical perspective. She has made history by shattering records. She released a platinum single. She snagged fistfuls of Grammy nominations.

And this weekend, she lit a fuse on the powder keg of race issues in hip–hop.

The whole hip–hop community has finally taken Azalea to task for building her career by stealing black musical sounds and styles and using her whiteness to sell them to the masses. In the process, she has done little to actually give back to the hip-hop community except be flagrantly offensive. And black hip-hop artists aren’t standing for it any longer. [tweet] Azealia Banks: its funny to see people Like Igloo Australia silent when these things happen... Black Culture is cool, but black issues suer aren’t huh?

How did it start? Azealia Banks was one of the first to call her out on this.

Originally, Banks slammed Iggy for ignoring black issues in the wake of

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Ferguson and Eric Garner, dubbing her “Igloo Australia.” Banks is noted for her Twitter outbursts, but just a little while later, J. Cole gave an interview in which he explained that hip–hop would become a white genre in 20 years, citing Azalea as a mark of the change. Banks resumed her public criticism of Azalea just this past weekend, but suddenly she wasn’t alone anymore.

That’s partially because Azalea fired back at her with comments that outraged many in the hip-hop community — she denied that hip-hop is fundamentally political music. [tweet] Iggy Azalea: Now! Rant, Make it Racial! Make it political! Make it whatever but I guarantee it won’t make you likeable & THAT’S why ur crying on the radio.

And she showed her own total lack of awareness by pointing out that her feud with Banks is probably the means by which most people in the mainstream are currently discovering Banks: [tweet] Iggy Azalea: Enjoy continuing to bang your head against that metaphoric brick wall & Savor this attention. I’m the only way you get ANY. It turns out that many people in the

hip–hop community feel that Azalea is actively working against black interests because she appropriates traditionally black styles and totally divorces them from their political content. That’s why rapper Tyler, The Creator, A Tribe Called Quest’s Q-Tip and R&B singer Solange Knowles all came to Banks’ defense, thanking her for speaking openly and passionately about the issue of cultural appropriation. Kreayshawn also stepped up to the plate, accusing Azalea of ignoring racism in her home country as well as in America.

But it was New York-raised hip–hop legend Q-Tip who has the most inspiring response — he gave Azalea a full hip–hop history lesson in 40 tweets.

Hip-hop is always political. Q–Tip took the Twitterverse all the way back to hip-hop’s very beginnings. He described the conditions black people were living under in 1970s New York, which hip–hop sought to address. He cited Vietnam, the rampant drug trade in New York’s ghettos and their crumbling school systems.

These factors, crippled children’s support structures, “emasculated” their parents and forced children to turn to the streets and gangs for support.

its funny to see people Like Igloo Australia silent when these things happenâ&#x20AC;Ś

BLACK CULTURE IS cool,

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But thankfully, hip-hop was born. With it, youth found a direction, and a way to channel their energies in a positive direction.

“Hip-hop is fun,” he said, “but one thing it can never detach itself from is being a sociopolitical movement.” He described other hip–hop milestones, and revealed how black rappers are mistreated by the industry — how the music industry encouraged black rappers to rap about “being criminals or uneducated” as a way to sell records. That legacy is precisely why Azalea, as a white woman capable of making traditionally black–sounding music, sees such extreme success when so many talented black rappers go unnoticed.

But not everyone was against Iggy Azalea. After Q–Tip finished, T.I.— Azalea’s label boss and biggest supporter — took to Twitter for his own rant, defending her.

T.I. agreed with Q-Tip’s facts, but argued that his points encourage an “All White People Wanna Steal Our Shit’ mentality.” He ended on a positive note for Azalea: [tweet] T.I.: So in a nutshell, absorb da info…apply it where most useful, and above all KEEP SHINING, FOLLOW YOUR HEART, & STAY TRUE TO WHO U ARE!!!

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It may seem mean, but she completely deserves it.

Iggy Azalea has been manipulating hip–hop culture for her own gain, and she cares not at all for the broader hip–hop community or the music’s place in our culture.

She’s taken hip–hop’s sounds, but hasn’t given back to the culture in any meaningful way when many white rappers have done the opposite. Macklemore has showed support for Ferguson protestors. Action Bronson passed judgment on the Eric Garner ruling, calling it “disgusting.”

The Iggy–centered Twitter war has brought attention to a key issue in the genre, one that stretches beyond race.

As hip-hop becomes more mainstream and commodified, it cannot lose its revolutionary origins. Hip–hop artists need to use their exalted social platforms to speak out on social and political issues important to underprivileged communities. Otherwise it will only become empty dance music, with none of what makes it a vital art form.

Azalea herself has yet to tweet anything since Q–Tip took her to school. But when she does, we can only hope she’ll have learned what hip-hop really means.

is s u s e [ azealia banks ]

[ maya angelou ]

24 NEON MAG SPRING 2015

BEFORE FAMED POET Maya Angelou’s death in May, she was working on a rather unique music project involving some of her most cherished work. The 86–year–old author had teamed up with producers Shawn Rivera and RoccStar to create “Caged Bird Songs,” a collection of her poems synced with music beats.

“Maya Angelou’s estate came to us, and she had put together some of her poetry with a hip–hop producer as a way to reach the new generation,” Napoleon told HNGN. com in an exclusive interview. “She said this whole rap thing is kind of like what she was doing with music and poetry in the 1950s and 1960s.”

The album, which was released in November, was designed to help reach a younger generation.

“Maya and the producer put some beats behind her voice reading the ‘Harlem Hopscotch’, a poem she wrote in 1969, and we created a hip hop line dance and directed a dance video to go with the music,’” he continued.

“This project is important,” Angelou told Rolling Stone before her death. “It’s woven into the tapestry of our lives, and we’re being serious and giving and kind about it. So obviously, it’s going somewhere.

And we have to release it to go there.”

Not only did Angelou and her estate rework her poems into catchy tunes, but they recruited two–time Emmy award–winning choreographers Tabitha and Napoleon D’Umo (also known as NappyTabs) to create a funky, new dance.

The duo, married 16 years, put their talents together to create a hip–hop line dance to Angelou’s “Harlem Hopscotch.”

Napoleon said the process to create the dance didn’t take them long but they wanted to make sure that it was easy enough for anybody — no matter their dance level — to do. Once the choreography was finished, Tabitha and Napoleon recruited a few celebrities and fellow dancers to help them perform the routine for a video. The choreographers filmed the music video in Harlem and at different locations in Los Angeles.

On Tuesday Dec. 23, the Oprah Winfrey Network (OWN) released the video which featured cameos by “Pretty Little Liars” star Nia Peeples, “Dancing with the Stars” pros Derek Hough and Witney Carson and Season 19 winner Alfonso Ribeiro. Actress and dancer Zendaya Coleman was also seen getting down to the song, along with choreographer Ian Eastwood and dancers from “So You Think You Can Dance” and “America’s Best Dance Crew.”

“We are thrilled and honored to be a part of Maya Angelou’s legacy,” Tabitha said.

“We know she is Hopscotching up in Heaven watching the world learn this dance and relive this great poem.”

“Harlem Hopscotch” is the lead single from Angelou’s “Caged Bird Songs.”

The 13–track album, named after her 1969 autobiography I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings, also includes “Pow Pow,” “Still I Rise,” “One More Round” and “Come and Be My Baby.”

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KRUMPING IS A STREET DANCE originating in South Central, Los Angeles during the early 2000s. The root word “Krump” is a backronym for Kingdom Radically Uplifted Mighty Praise, presenting krumping as a faith-based art form.

It came out of the earlier clowning style of Tommy the Clown begun in the early 1990s and his “Battle Zone: dance competition.

Krump is an aggressive dance, characterized by free, expressive, exaggerated and highly energetic movement. The African–American youths who started krumping saw the dance as a way for them to escape gang life and

to release anger, aggression and frustration positively, in a non-violent way.

Krumping is rarely choreographed; it is almost entirely freestyle and is danced most frequently in battles or sessions rather than on a stage.

It is danced upright to upbeat and fast-paced music. In recent years, krumping has made an increasing amount of mainstream appearances in TV shows such as America’s Next Top Model and various advertisements for companies such as Adidas. Companies such as Red Bull and Converse have even taken to sponsoring many krumping battles and competitions.

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[ Payless Shoes ]

[ Payless Shoes ]

[ Adidas ]

[ Adidas ]

[ Red Bull ]

[ Converse ]

the que en of

pol s 36 NEON MAG SPRING 2015

g s ag NEON MAG 37

38 NEON MAG SPRING 2015

THE YOUNG NEW ZEALANDER of the year is tapping a bright orange nail against her cut–off jeans.

“It was pretty cool; I mean, it wasn’t all magical. I liked the people. I didn’t like dancing on camera that much. It’s a little bit boring.”

She shrugs. Next question.

Never mind that she’s just made her role in the latest installment of the multi–million–dollar Hollywood dance movie franchise Step Up sound like it was a bit–part in a televised Christmas pageant.

Really? You didn’t enjoy it?

“I mean, obviously I’m not going to be doing movies on day, so it was good to be part of that.”

She smiles, unapologetic.

Meet the force that is Parris Goebel.

Dancer and choreographer to Jennifer Lopez and three–time World Hip–Hop Dance Champion with her dance crew,

The Royal Family. Daughter of Brett and LeeAnn, aunt to eight wee cherubs who appear regularly on her Instagram feed — alongside glamorous Los Angeles streetscapes, magazine shoots, fan mail and of course a picture of her smiling with buddy Lorde.

Brett “Big Poppa” Goebel, as he’s affectionately known, wanders through, stopping to chat to individuals before loudly chiding the room at large that they’ll never get anywhere if they don’t work hard. Parris, who has been lying on the floor, gets up.

At an age where most people are just trying to make it to work or the pub on time, Goebel is living a life that, to be honest, barely seems possible.

Standing up the front, she begins to dance. As she does, the formerly chaotic space is transformed and without a word dancers fall into place behind her.

It’s a Thursday night at the Goebel– owned Palace dance studio in industrial Penrose, Auckland, but it feels more like a high school social. Teenagers are leaning on each other, hugging, peeling off to dance a few steps. A boy and a girl dance together, she flicks her hair extensions to one side, kicking one silver Air Jordan over the other.

“I wouldn’t say it’s the highlight of my career,” the 22–year–old says, looking up at him coquettishly, he moving closer, until they break character and fall about laughing.

“Shimmy, shimmy, shimmy, freeze, bounce, nod, nod, boom,” she breathes, shoving her body through the air as if daring it to push back. Sneakers squeak, baggy T–shirts billow.

The Royal Family, The Palace’s premiere dance crew, is practicing for a series of shows across Australia and the North Island. They’re fundraising to go back and defend their title at the World Hip Hop Dance Championships in the United States later this month.

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Dancers at The Palace can audition to be in one of the studio’s crews, commonly known as dance teams, whose members perform and compete worldwide.

Eight–year–olds can join junior crew Bubblegum, moving up through Sorority, Duchess, all–girl crew ReQuest and megacrew The Royal Family.

It’s unlike any dance rehearsal I’ve seen. There’s barely any counting, for one. Parris busts a move, the rest of the dancers follow her, and if she likes the way it looks, it stays. Her dance style is so famous now it even has a name: Polyswagg.

“Girls, come on,” she says, snapping her fingers at a couple of dancers who are talking. They look ashamed, and run over to stand beside her.

An hour, multiple run–throughs and several changes later, and she’s happy with it.

“Oh perfect, that couldn’t have gone any more perfect. That was the one,” she says, and the room lets out a breath.

A choreographed clap, a fierce smolder tossed at the mirror and practice is over.

“Crowns up!” she says, and the dancers perform a final salute.

Parris has always known what she wants.

Home videos show an impossibly cute three–year–old in the lounge, limbs too short to cooperate with ambitious dance routines.

“No one in my family danced or anything like that, but my parents definitely brought me up on hip–hop and R&B,” Parris says.

“I just remember watching video clips all the time, and watching movies like You Got Served and wanting to be on them.”

As the youngest of four kids growing up in Manurewa, Auckland, she tried every dance genre before stumbling into hip–hop at age 10. Within a year she was taking classes and by 15 she’d outgrown the dance school. That’s when she decided to start ReQuest, her own all–girl crew.

They trained in an aunt’s garage, before moving to her Dad’s warehouse. Brett, who runs a promotions company, even stacked mirrors against the wall for his daughter and her friends to dance.

[ andy funk ] 40 NEON MAG SPRING 2015

“It was funny; we had to get a real old carpet in because the concrete was too hard to train on every day. They squeezed into whatever space, so if

we had pallets or deliveries come in, they would be dancing among those,” he says. “Sometimes when it was full we had to cancel practice.”

ReQuest was good. After about a year of rehearsals, Brett took them to Phoenix in the US for the Monsters of Hip Hop Dance Convention. There, Parris was picked from thousands of dancers for a spot in the finale.

Monsters of Hip Hop director Andy Funk later told TVNZ’s NZ Story: “I remember this very humble, appreciative, quiet person, and you step into the ballroom and then there’s this beast on the dance floor … she was about to be found, and she was not going to be stopped.”

Brett, who is also Parris’s manager, says it was validation enough for him and LeeAnn that their daughter was on the right track. Back in Auckland, after one particularly hairy parent-teacher interview at Auckland Girls’ Grammar, they decided it would be better if she focused on her talent.

“We went to the parent interviews, and I’m sitting there and this geography teacher is just going on about my

daughter and saying like: ‘She’s not very good at essay writing, and she’s got to apply herself and put more energy into school,’ and I said: ‘Not to be rude, but she wants to be a dancer,’” Brett says.

“I went outside, got Parris and said, ‘You can leave school tomorrow,’ and that was it. I just said to her: ‘Go and be a dancer.’”

In 2009, she and ReQuest won the Varsity section of the World Hip Hop Dance Championships. The next year, they won it again. The year after that, The Royal Family won the megacrew title, which they have retained for the past three years.

Then in 2012, Jennifer Lopez — that’s right, J–Lo, Jenny from the block — saw a clip Parris had put on YouTube and asked her to choreograph for her.

That, Parris admits, was exciting. “I definitely cried. I sobbed like a two– year–old child; it was really emotional,” she says. “I really like her. She just works so hard, and it’s really cool to be around an older woman who is successful and doesn’t settle for anything less. She just keeps pushing.”

The ball hadn’t just started rolling, it was hurtling down the hill. After choreographing Lopez’s Dance Again World Tour, Goebel went on to perform with Lopez on the season 11 finale of American Idol and danced with ReQuest in Lopez’s music video ‘Goin’ In’.

She has since helped to choreograph Cirque du Soleil’s tribute to Michael Jackson’s life and music, One, and been approached by rap superstars like Missy Elliott.

American dance film Step Up: All In, due for international release on August 8, features Parris in the role of Violet, an exchange student from New Zealand. She even choreographed parts of the movie.

And her success isn’t exclusive to the States — a dance she choreographed for K-pop singer Taeyang last year currently has more than 20 million views on YouTube. ReQuest and The Royal Family are in demand all the way from Japan to Brazil.

If it all sounds exhausting, well, it is.

When Parris isn’t working out, touring, filming, doing promotional work or taking workshops, she’s teaching. “If NEON MAG 41

[ parris goebel ] 42 NEON MAG SPRING 2015

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I’m at home, I like to try to be normal, so I go out to dinner or something and be with my family.

I feel like my life is so insane, so when I have free time I just normalise my life.

If I go to a movie it’s a miracle,” she says.

“But I always fall asleep since I’m so tired.”

This also means romance isn’t really on the agenda. “I’m so single it’s not even funny. I mean, if I want to go on a date with someone I will. But the only guys I do meet are dancers, and they’re kind of sleazy anyway,” she laughs.

Not that she’s complaining about the work. Dance for her is an outlet. On the floor she’s not Parris Goebel; she’s Parris, Queen of Polyswagg, head of The Royal Family. She is a beast.

and fierce... I’m kind of intimidating and mean. People get quite scared of me.”

“For me, the story I tell when I’m dancing is being the underdog, and telling people it hasn’t been easy, but I’m a confident, successful young woman who has made it and is following my dreams.”

Just how successful is she, then?

Does she have any idea how much money she makes?

“No I don’t — my dad doesn’t tell me. It’s a lot though,” she says. “It’s like a lot of money. Maybe for a big job I can get, like, $30,000 for two weeks’ work. I don’t think I live anything differently — even if I get paid well I don’t spend my money.”

“I feel really, really different. I feel the complete opposite. I feel really free and indestructible, like nothing can stop me and hurt me. I just get really confident

From the car where he’s driving to a Royal Family gig later that week, Brett’s laugh crackles down the speaker phone.

“Yeah, she has no idea what she earns.

It’s irrelevant to her. All she’s interested in is what the job is, and how she’s going to make it amazing. She knows she has

THE GIRLS HAVE NOW danced their way into The Palace’s crews, and have both travelled to the World Hip Hop Dance Championships. Kaea is home– schooled, so her studies can fit around her full-time dance commitments.

can get quite angry about it. In a 2010 interview with the New Zealand Herald, she voiced her annoyance at the “lack of recognition and support” when ReQuest got back from the World Champs: “No one even showed at the airport.”

Pearce sometimes thinks she was crazy to move cities, but that changes when she watches her daughters dance.

“Yeah, I feel like Polynesian youth are just overlooked sometimes; that’s how I feel,” she says. “It’s always a surprise to [other people] when Polynesians do well, for some reason. I feel like people don’t expect big things from Polynesians.

“When they’re dancing they’re like different people — I can’t put my finger on it. They’re just excelling; they’re excelling in an area that isn’t seen as sustainable but Parris has shown that it can be. My family sometimes looks at me sideways because I’m an academic, but the girls are living their dream.

“We didn’t move to Auckland to muck around — this is what I wanted my children to do and I knew she would provide results.”

Parris is proud of both being Polynesian and from South Auckland. Actually, she 44 NEON MAG SPRING 2015

“I’m really inspired by black women.

I really, really like Oprah [Winfrey].

Growing up, my mum was obsessed with Oprah, and I think I actually learnt a lot of life lessons from Oprah. I hope I meet her one day because I’m really inspired by her.”

Right now, Parris is preparing for The Royal Family’s sold–out Gold Mynd dance shows, in which she is reimagined as a 13–year–old who gives herself 11 pieces of advice for the future.

money, but the bigger thing for her is that she’s able to live her dream and get paid for it.”

To be honest, they no longer need to keep The Palace open, he says. To take an external dance workshop, Parris’s daily rate is now around NZ$2900.

“We could close The Palace tomorrow,” he says, “but she says, ‘Dad, I can’t talk about people following their dreams and not have a place in this country where they can come to.’ It’s rewarding for her coming into the studio and seeing the kids believing in themselves.”

Auckland University education lecturer Marian Pearce moved from Whangarei five years ago with her husband and two girls Kaea, 17, and Ruthy, 13, so her daughters could dance with Parris.

“Coming from Whangarei, I thought for them to make a career out of it we needed to move to the city. We just took a gamble, really, to see if it would work.”

She’s just held rehearsals for New Zealand’s first hip-hop feature film Born to Dance, written by playwright Hone Kouka, directed by Tammy Davis and supported by the Film Commission.

But this is really just the beginning, obviously. She hasn’t even worked with Beyoncé or Madonna yet.

“I want to do shows — more shows.

Films, shows, producing, dancing; all that stuff. I really want to create things that don’t exist yet.”

She leans forward, grabbing a lollipop from a bowl on the table. “I don’t like talking too much, I like showing an example in my actions. I grew up in Manurewa and I ended up choreographing for J–Lo. I feel like I don’t need to tell people that. If they just know it, that’s enough to know they can chase their dreams.”

[ parris goebel ]

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I want to do shows â&#x20AC;&#x201D; more shows. Films, shows, producing, dancing; all that stuff. [ parris goebel ]

46 NEON MAG SPRING 2015

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m at t s te 48 NEON MAG SPRING 2015

ultimate tutorial sensation MATT STEFFANINA WALKS US THROUGH HIS ROAD TO STARDOM

n n f f a i e a NEON MAG 49

DANCING WAS THE FURTHEST thing from his mind, but now, Matt Steffanina is an incredible dancing sensation. Having worked with names such as Chris Brown, Taylor Swift and Lil Wayne, it’s no wonder he’s racked up millions upon millions of YouTube views.

Matt was born in Virginia and grew up playing all types of sports, but dancing was the last thing he ever thought he’d get into. Around the age of 17 Matt was a competitive snowboarder and training on the trampolines for the next season, when he noticed some break-dancers.

He thought it was the coolest thing ever, and along with his high school best friend, he started learning by himself.

Six years later in 2010, Matt decided he wanted to move to LA and make it his career. These days, Steffanina splits his time between working as a professional dancer, choreographer, teacher and CEO of Dance Tutorials Live, an online dance instruction company.

NEON: Who was your inspiration on your road to becoming a dancer and a choreographer? What was your big breakthrough?

Matt Steffanina: My first inspiration was Usher — Everything he did always seemed effortless, I started gliding everywhere I went, always practicing the moves from his music videos. I can still see some of his style in my choreography today. My big breakthrough was my first professional job, dancing on The Tonight Show as Jay Leno’s breakdancing body double!

You are an amazing dancer, how many hours (or should I say years) of rehearsals and training does it take to reach the level you are on today?

I’ve been dancing for 10 years, but I learned 80% of it in my first 6 months in LA because I wasn’t working any other jobs. I would take class for 8 hours, go home and practice until 2 in the morning. When you have drive and determination you can pass up a lot of people that are ‘talented’.

50 NEON MAG SPRING 2015

Can you describe us the process of making choreography? How do you get the inspiration for the moves?

Is there some special place you are most inspired in when making choreography?

When I’m choreographing, it’s all about feeling and connecting to the music.

On the way to the studio I’ll listen to the song on repeat and find the character that feels right for the song.

Once I have the character it’s much easier to find the right movements, but every piece is different — I have routines that I literally made up in 20 minutes, everything flows and fits right into place. The next piece could take me 4 hours. I’m a bit of a perfectionist so I like to keep working on a piece until it really feels right.

What is it like to work with kids such as Taylor Hatala and Aidan Prince?

It’s really fun because they truly have no inhibitions. They make mistakes just like everybody else, but because they don’t judge themselves the way we do as adults, they learn SO much faster.

While we’re beating ourselves up, they’ve already corrected it and learned the next 30 seconds of choreography. And since I teach them so often, I become really close with them and their families.

LA can be a difficult place, especially for a kid, so I look after them like little brothers and sisters.

You also work and dance with your fiancée Dana Alexa. Mixing love and work can be tricky sometimes. What’s that like for you?

It’s great to be able to share what you love with whom you love. I’m very fortunate to be able to bring her on the road with me when I teach and take days off traveling together.

You worked with many famous artists, such as Chris Brown, Taylor Swift, Busta Rhymes, Lil Wayne, Snoop Dogg and others.

Who was the easiest to work with, and who was the most fun one?

Are there any Artists/Dancers you want to work with, but haven’t had the chance?

I would love to work with Usher since he was the first person that inspired me to get into hip hop & I’d love to dance with Chris Brown again. I’m also a huge Eminem and Dave Matthews Band fan, neither of which use dancers. I’d like to change that…

What are your favorite tracks that always lift you from your seat and make you move?

Play any hype Tyga or Skrillex tracks and you got me up.

What is the funniest memory in your hip hop career?

Almost everyone sings in the shower, do you dance in the shower?

It was probably shooting with Jay Leno.

We were ‘twinning’ in Beverly Hills…. I had the wig, fat suit, and even the full denim outfit. Everyone was trying to get pictures and figure out what was going on. He was the nicest guy you’ll ever meet; it was like seeing a long lost uncle. He even called my mom to say hi when he found out she was a huge fan.

I dance everywhere.

I have to say Chris Brown was the most exciting. He is the most talented performer and hardest worker I’ve ever seen. I learned a lot by watching his dedication and work ethic on set. I’ve had good experiences with all the artists I’ve worked with, but Taylor Swift was another one of my favorites. She comes in to rehearsal Who are some of your favorite every morning, sings full out while going dancers on today’s Hip Hop scene? through the choreography and sounds perfect every time.

Oh man,so many! My friends Tucker Barkley, CJ Salvador & Cyrus are definitely up there at the top, but I’d also have to put Les Twins, Madd Chadd and Kid David on that list. All truly masters at the styles they do.

What are you working on now?

Lots of exciting stuff — I’m finishing up a new instructional series for DanceTutorialsLive on YouTube, Choreographing a few music videos, working on an iPhone app which will be available in early 2015, and I’ll be teaching internationally a lot next year, so we’re in the process of getting those tours finalized.

You can pass up a lot of people that are ‘talented’ NEON MAG 51

maddie ziegler siaâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s new mini-me

how the girl in the blonde bob became a viral sensation

what to expect, but the second she saw me, she just ran and gave me a big hug. We just felt like we knew each other, really.

SIA FOUND HERSELF with a juggernaut on her hands last May, when she released the lead, platinum-selling single “Chandelier” from her sixth LP, 1,000 Forms of Fear.

Instead of slapping on some makeup and thigh–high boots to star in that song’s video, she let a kid take the spotlight—in a Sia–esque blonde wig and a nude leotard.

It was an outfit that launched a thousand parodies and tribute Halloween costumes.

The tween at the center of the meme was dancer Maddie Ziegler, star of reality show Dance Moms. In the video, she delivers a performance that’s spookily intense, delightfully weird, and thoroughly twitchy—one that placed Maddie squarely in music video history.

Sia tapped the now 12–year–old Maddie to star alongside Shia LaBeouf in her latest video, which spotlights the single “Elastic Heart. The result — a tough–to– deconstruct face-off between Maddie and the temperamental actor — is already the subject of controversy and a slew of think pieces. We chatted with Maddie about being “family” with Sia, her place in the pop–culture pantheon, and what she really thinks of Shia’s dance skills.

neon mag: how did you first meet sia?

Maddie Ziegler: I met Sia last year. She tweeted me, and she was like, “I’m a big fan of the show, and I would like you to be in the video for my new song, ‘Chandelier.’” I didn’t even see [the tweet] — it was my mom or someone on my team that saw it, and I was like, “This isn’t even real. Someone’s trying to prank me.” So then everyone started to look into it, and believe it or not, I actually flew to L.A., like, two weeks later. It was real.

I didn’t even know if I could do it, because we’re filming our show, Dance Moms. But it was amazing. They gave me four days to learn the dance, because they were like, “She won’t be able to learn it in less than that.” So they gave me four days, and I learned it in three hours, I think?

When Sia walked in — she was at the rehearsal place — I was nervous. I didn’t know what to expect from her, because there’s obviously pictures of her when she was younger, and videos, but there wasn’t any new pictures of her, because she hasn’t shown her face in a while. So I didn’t know

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how often do you see her now? i imagine you guys having breakfast together every day, but i’m sure that’s not the case. [laughs] Every time I’m in L.A., we meet up, or we’re doing a performance somewhere together. We’re doing SNL next week, or some time. But we like, randomly see each other. When we’re in L.A., we meet up or go do something. Like I said, we’re doing talk shows, and when we do those together, it’s like, “Oh cool, I get to see Sia.” But we really have become a family. We really have.

where you a fan of her music before she got in touch with you?

they were like, “Whaaat? That doesn’t make any sense at all.” I didn’t even know what to say. It was such a big change for me, because I’m not used to doing that style in normal dance competitions. It was definitely very different for me, but I love being able to do that kind of style.

what even is that style?

I don’t know! It’s like, quirky, kind of contemporary. It’s pretty much all different things put together, because some parts are really soft, some parts are quirky, and then there’s the huge dance break. It’s all different.

how has it been essentially being a replacement–sia for all these performances?

It’s just amazing that Sia’s let me take over part of her, you know?

you’re kind of “speaking” for

I was familiar with her songs, but I wasn’t her, in a weird way. a humongous fan. Because it’s not like she shows her face. Most artists are like, putting Yeah, totally. I’m her mini–me, pretty much. all that stuff out there, music videos and all what do you guys talk about that stuff. But she didn’t really have a lot of when you’re together? that, except when she was younger. But I met her, and actually, when were filming MZ: I don’t even know. Well, she loves dogs, “Elastic Heart,” I was singing one of her songs and I love dogs, too. We talk about animals from a while ago, “I’m in Here,” and she was a lot. And she’ll just tell us crazy stories that like, “Oh, you’re singing my song!” and I go, happen to her and her husband. I love “That’s your song?” Like, all of my favorite them — they’re so sweet. songs are Sia’s and I didn’t even realize it! I didn’t even know it was her. All I listen to is have you started planning for her album, literally.

snl yet?

obviously working with sia changed everything for you. how has your life been different since this all started?

I’m surprised people recognize me. People used to say, “Oh you’re Maddie from Dance Moms,” but now, most people are like, “Oh, you’re the girl from the ‘Chandelier’ video!’” But it’s like, “How did you even recognize me? I was in a blond wig!” But everything’s changed for me. I’ve had so many opportunities. Getting to do another Sia video is just crazy. It’s been a lot of fun, and definitely a lot more special appearances and cool performances with Sia. I didn’t get to do that before.

When I came back from filming the “Chandelier” video, everyone was like, “So what’d you wear? What did the room look like? How many chandeliers were there?” And I was like, “Well, I wore a blond wig, a nude leotard, the room was dirty, and there was no chandelier.” And

Not really. Next week, I leave, so…

can you spill any secrets about what you’re doing on the show?

To be honest with you, I really don’t know.

I know I’m probably gonna dance. Every time I do a talk show or something, I’ll be like, “I’m doing ‘Chandelier’ right?” and they’re like, “No, you’re doing a skit and three dances.”

It’s different every time. I never really know what I’m doing until the day before.

the “chandelier” video isn’t just popular—it became this huge “moment.”

It’s crazy. I don’t even know.

do you have anything else in the works with sia?

Uhhh, not really, uhhh…. I can’t really say anything else.

[ Maddie Ziegler ] delivers a performance that’s spookily intense, delightfully weird, and thoroughly twitchy

what was the “elastic heart” shoot like, where you teamed up with Shia?

It was amazing. The story behind it is a lot different than the “Chandelier” video. When I did “Elastic Heart” obviously it was the same concept with my leotard and wig, but we were really dirty. I’m going to be honest with you, it was the most dirty I’ve ever been in my life. My shower was disgusting, and the water was like…ugh. It was gross. We had to rehearse in the cage, to get used to it, and we just kept getting dirtier and dirtier. And I brought wipes and everything and a change of clothes for when we left, and I was like, “Shia, you’re gonna need these,” and I kept giving him wipes.

But he was like, fine with it, and I was like, “Ewwww! I don’t like being dirty!”

what did they put on you? plain ol’ dirt?

No, it was makeup, but we also had real dirt from the floor. I don’t know, boys are different — they don’t care about being dirty. And girls are just like, “Ew, I don’t like this!” Shia is known for being an unconventional guy.

so how did you get along?

Actually, it was the same as with Sia — I felt like I knew him when I met him. Before we

started filming “Elastic Heart,” he took my mom and I to eat, just to start to know each other and stuff. You have to get used to your dance partner. Even though we’re battling and fighting against each other, we still have to know each other, you know? You can’t just walk in and be like, “Hey, let’s start dancing with each other!”

what’d you think of his dancing?

I was confused, like, “Wait, Shia’s not a dancer, is he?” And everyone was like, “No.” But he actually did really well, he did. He wasn’t a bad dancer at all. For him, it was mainly fighting, and acting, and running around. And screaming. [laughs]

well, he definitely wasn’t maddie–level, but he’ll do, i suppose. i don’t know what abby lee miller, your teacher, would have to say.

She really loved the video. I wouldn’t expect her not to. But she really liked it. It was completely different from what Miss Abby and everyone expected, and that’s what I liked about it. About five or six people yesterday, my friends were calling me, and saying, “Can you tell me what the story is about ‘Elastic Heart’?” No one knows what the story’s about, and that’s a good thing,

because you have to keep people guessing.

You know what I mean? I like that. I like when people have to figure out what it is.

there’s been some controversy over people maybe misinterpreting the “elastic heart” video, what do you think about all that?

I think it’s funny when people, they try to imitate the “Chandelier” video. I think it’s hilarious. But the “Elastic Heart” video, it was a whole step ahead. It was completely different. That’s what I like. Because people have already seen that. Obviously I’m going to stay in the same wig and leotard, but it’s a different story.

what other kinds of music do you like?

I like Sam Smith and Taylor Swift. I love pop music, but I also like Sam Smith’s slow songs. That would be more to dance to. I think dancers like different genres of music, compared to just a regular person. Not that we’re not regular, but you know what I mean?

thank you so much for talking with us today!

No problem! Thank you!

NEON MAG 55

hip hop culture is probably one of the most powerful things to come out of america in a long time â&#x20AC;&#x201D; everything from the music to the art to the dance to the language [ will.i.am ]

[ NEON mag â&#x20AC;&#x201D; brought to you by michael tarazi ]