2008 YDW Techno Contra

Contra Dancing to Tensta's My Cool... some are confused, the music in the video is what we are dancing to.

Song: Adam Tensta - My Cool
Director: Forrest O.
Caller: Charlotte C.
Dancers: YDW 2008 (http://youthdanceweekend.org/)
Choreography: neighbor balance and swing, chain, half hey, partner balance and swing, chain, half hey, start over with a new neighbor...

While the progression is based on contra, a kind of folk dancing, the music is Swedish hiphop and the dancers pull from swing, hiphop, sexy, tango, dirty... anything goes really, as long as it is on the rhythm. Mixmashing cultures and styles to our whim is what we are all about. The basic progression is agreed upon, and every thing else is improv around it.

I think that there should be more social dance frameworks for techno/hiphop/club dancing. You almost never see men and women dancing together in music/dance videos; it is usually taking turns to strut your stuff, then maybe grinding a little bit.

This kind of choreography is simple enough that calling could be integrated into the lyrics of a song. Somewhere between Crank Dat and singing squares I think that there is a niche like this waiting to be filled. If I were a dance music producer, I'd consult with me on making an album of this. Or at least a music video.

PS: after the cameras went off Girl Talk came on and we danced another for 40 minutes straight, thanks to the endless mix.