Chicago Street Style Comes to Life in Global Dance Competition

The streets of Chicago, Detroit and New York came alive during Chicago’s Global Street Dance competition Sept. 24 at Thalia Hall. In this bracket-style dance competition, artists went head-to-head to show off their skills in hip-hop, popping, waacking, vogue-ing and breakdancing before an audience, who ultimately decided each winner. 

The event celebrates the growing street dance community in an area that has bolstered a distinctive footwork style.

“Chicago-style dance is so different,” said Lām Sedechu, a 27-year-old hip-hop freelancer who placed second overall. “The people are so creative and if you go to Boston or New York, it’s not the same.”

With local Chicago DJ King Marie playing remixes of hit songs such as “Kill this Love” by Blackpink, “Don’t Start Now” by Dua Lipa and “He’s the Greatest Dancer” by Sister Sledge, the competition catered to a plethora of music genres and dance techniques.

The diverse music selection allowed dancers to express their movements in many forms while challenging them with the varying genres. The top three winners of the Red Bull competition — Diamond with her Chicago Dance style in third, Lām Sedechu with a style of hip-hop freestyle in second and Kid Nimbus placing first dancing in popping and hip-hop freestyle — were particularly skilled at improvising their movements while capturing the audience’s attention. 

Lām — who moved to Chicago from Vietnam in 2015 — said he’s working to strengthen the hip-hop presence in Chinatown by hosting workshops catered toward the local community.

“People go to Chinatown to eat, and then they leave,” Sedechu said. “We are working to change that.”

Chicago-based performers such as Diamond expressed how the inner city culture is critical in the development of dance but this involvement often goes unacknowledged. Having grown up on the West Side of Chicago, she takes pride in her ever-developing Chicago style of dance.

Written on her hand was a long list of names. When asked, she said these were all the people whom she had come to learn street dance from. She stated she had no single trainer, but rather, picked up movements sporadically from anyone who was willing to teach her. 

 “Everybody in Chicago was my teacher,” she said. “If anyone was willing to teach me I trained in basements, living rooms, outside the alleys and on front porches.” 

Despite the competitive nature of battle-style dance, the performers seemed rejuvenated by each other’s artistry. There was constant dancing, yelling and awing from the crowd toward the dancer’s talent and passion. Fans in the crowd would hold up signs or yell out the names of their favorite performers.

“I really like the audience because they’re honest and don’t just focus on the technique,” Diamond said.

Even with support from viewers, self-doubt and nervousness were present amongst all of the finalists. 

“Admittedly I have a lot of confidence issues,” Kid Nimbus said. “I get nervous against everyone.”

Even with this, Kid Nimbus not only won the Red Bull Global Dance Competition, but is also a researcher at the University of Chicago. Kid Nimbus equated this side of himself to something of a secret identity, even drawing inspiration from the Spiderman comics in his dancing. 

“Dancing is fun. It can be anything,” Kid Nimbus said. “It can even be pretending to pick your nose and flicking it.” 

The playful nature of his movements — coupled with his animated facial expressions — captured the audience’s attention, ultimately cementing his first place win. He demonstrated this charisma throughout the competition — even implementing a dance in which he sniffed his shoe and fainted from the stench. 

“Dancing is all about music,” Sedechu said. “You have to feel the vibe of the music first.”

The end of the competition featured performances from local Chicago groups The Pack Drumline and The Era Dance Crew. Both groups invigorated the crowd and added to the liveliness of the competition by meshing Chicago style dance with marching band drumming styles to the stage. 

The Pack Drumline and Dance Crew have competed in various shows, including the Suburban Chicago’s Got Talent contest in which they finished as finalists.

All the dancers had their own developed style of dance. Combating the fear of being unoriginal is a common obstacle Diamond elaborates on.

“Staying true to yourself while still wanting to learn is key,” Diamond said.

The Red Bull Dance Your Style competition brought creatives from across the country together to celebrate the artistry of street dance. Despite the intensity of battle-style competition, Thalia Hall was enveloped in a deep appreciation for urban influence. 

As finalist Sedechu noted, “dancing is not just about how you practice movement — it’s about culture.”

Featured image courtesy of Red Bull Content Pool.