Rock Steady Crew
The Rock Steady Crew is a breakdance group that formed in 1977 in the Bronx , New York . The founders were the b-boys Jimmy D and Jojo, who were among the first known break dancers. In order to be accepted into the crew, the contenders had to defeat another crew member in a "dance battle".
history
Around 1979 the breakdance scene in New York got into a crisis. At this point in time, the b-boys Crazy Legs and Lenny Len were accepted into the crew, who, as extremely talented breakdancers, prevented the crew from breaking up. Crazy Legs moved to Manhattan shortly afterwards and wanted to start their own crew there, which would be considered the chapter of the Rock Steady Crew. Since he needed Jimmy D's permission, but couldn't get it, he joined a rival group - the Rockwell Association - and with their permission founded the Manhattan chapter.
It wasn't until 1981 that Jimmy D agreed to found the Rock Steady Crew in Manhattan. Crazy Legs then changed the name of his crew to Rock Steady Crew and took over all of its previous members, although none of his group ever had to compete against an original member of the Rock Steady Crew. This chapter soon became the actual core of the Rock Steady Crew, which increased the popularity of breakdancing in New York again.
In August 1981, the crew was made an offer by photographer Henry Chalfant to appear on the Lincoln Center outdoor program . Through this performance, the crew came into the area of interest of the local New York television stations and various newspapers such as The New York Times , The Village Voice , Daily News and National Geographic . The show offered there, a battle against the rival crew The Dynamic Rockers , made them known. Jimmy D was so excited about the only TV show that he made Crazy Legs president of the entire Rock Steady Crew. Crazy Legs named Frosty Freeze and Prince Ken Swift , both of the Manhattan Chapter, as co-presidents.
In the winter of 1982 the Rock Steady Crew was invited to a show at the Ritz nightclub, together with the punk band Bow Wow Wow , Afrika Bambaataa and the Jazzy 5 . After the show, Crazy Legs and Frosty Freeze asked Afrika Bambaataa if he would accept them into the Zulu Kings , whereupon the entire crew with all members was integrated into the Zulu Nation . Shortly thereafter, the crew became popular across the New York club scene. The crew itself grew into a large hip-hop family that also included women, children, roller skaters , graffiti artists and DJs . At this point, breakdancing was also becoming better known and more popular outside of New York.
In 1983 the crew received a manager in the form of Kool Lady Blue , who they booked for the Roxy Tour , which was hosted by Europe One Radio . Together with Afrika Bambaataa, Fab Five Freddie , the McDonalds Double Dutch Girls , several DJs and graffiti artists, the crew went on the first international hip-hop tour, which also took them to the European metropolises of London and Paris . In November of that year, the British Queen asked them to appear in the Royal Variety Performance . They also played in the hip-hop film Wild Style in 1982 (as well as in Beat Street in 1984 ).
This gig led to the crew's record deal with Charisma Records . They released their hit Hey You, The Rock Steady Crew , which became a top 10 hit in several countries, going gold in the Netherlands and silver in the UK. Financially, however, the crew saw very little of the success. A second single, Uprock , and an album followed. After the dissolution of Charisma Records, the contract went to Virgin Records , which put it on hold for the time being. Within the crew there was anger and dispute about the contract and it was decided to turn to other projects first.
The crew was not reanimated until 1989 after Crazy Legs returned to the club scene under pressure from b-boy Jerry "Fast Feet" Fontanez and in collaboration with rapper Q-Unique . In 1991, Mr. Wiggles approached Crazy Legs and suggested a musical called So, What Happens Now? in front. Ken Swift and Buck 4 got in and helped set up a scene. In 1992 the crew performed at the Kennedy Center Honors and received massive applause, led by Gregory Hines and in the presence of US President George HW Bush and Gregory Peck .
Crazy Legs is still president of the crew today, with Fabel and Easy Roc at his side as co-presidents. There are now chapters in several larger cities in the USA ( Las Vegas , Miami and Los Angeles ), as well as in Japan ( Rock Steady Crew Japan ), Great Britain and Italy . One of the current goals is to set up a Rock Steady Foundation for children to give them dance education and other activities outside of school. Every year the Rock Steady Crew commemorates the Bronx, introducing many new MCs, breakdancers, and other artists and commemorating deceased members. July 26, 2003 was also named Rock Steady Crew Day by New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg .
Known members
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Discography
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Albums
- 1984: Ready For Battle
- 2007: 30 Years To The Day
Singles
- 1983: (Hey You) The Rock Steady Crew
- 1983: Ready For Battle
- 1984: Uprock
- 1984: She's Fresh
- 2000: Used To Wish I Could Break With Rock Steady
Web links
- Rock Steady Crew Est. 1977 ( Memento from April 15, 2005 in the Internet Archive )
- The Freshest Kids: A History of the B-Boy in the Internet Movie Database (English)