If your child is looking for a fun, energetic, and fast-paced dance class, hip-hop may be the perfect fit. Hip-hop is an ever-evolving dance form that has seen a diverse range styles emerge from its origins in the 1970s. Although there are too many interesting hip-hop dance styles to count, here are a few your little dancer may enjoy in class.

A Guide to Common Hip-Hop Dance Styles

1. Funk

This hip-hop dance style is very high-energy and looks great in music videos and live performances. Often considered a combination of disco and soul, funk masterfully blends sharp and fluid movements. It gives dancers a good full-body workout and provides an excellent introduction to hip-hop for beginners. 

2. Breaking

Perhaps the very first style of hip-hop dance was breaking, breakdancing, or b-boying. This form of dance is known for its dramatic, vigorous movements, where complex footwork, toughness, and originality are key. There are no choreographed or standard routines. Instead, dancers must improvise and anticipate the rhythm. 

3. Popping

This technique requires dancers to rapidly tighten and relax their muscles to create a fluid jerking effect on a beat, known as popping. For the audience, this creates an illusion where the dancer appears to have no bones or resembles a cartoon. This style encompasses many variations, including botting (the robot), strobing, and tutting.

4. Locking

As the name suggests, this dance is relies on “locking” your movements, or freezing and holding a position. Derived from funk, locking delivers fast moves, sharp and sudden pauses, and exaggerated gestures. It requires you to feel the music and add your own personality. Popping and locking often go hand-in-hand, with many dancers choosing to combine the contrasting techniques into the pop and lock.

5. Freestyle

Freestyle is all about creativity, originality, and improvisation. A dancer must pull from their vast knowledge of all hip-hop dance techniques and match them to the beats and rhythm on the spot, in a way that looks fluid and feels right. It's a way of expressing yourself and putting your own spin on familiar moves.

For upbeat hip-hop dance classes in a welcoming environment, enroll your child at Elite Dance and Performing Arts. Located in Woodland Hills, CA, and serving families across San Fernando Valley, this dance studio provides an exciting way for kids to stay active, explore their passions, and build unique physical skills. They offer many classes to suit your child’s interests, including ballet, acrobatics, improvisation, jazz, and contemporary. Contact the studio at (818) 704-1490 to discuss sign-ups. For more information about their hip-hop classes, visit them online.