Recently we heard how much it means when dancers go off beat or dance within beats. We also saw even with the best of steps it can easily ruin a dance performance if the dancers are not dancing on its beats. I think a very important lesson was learnt in last Boogie Woogie’s episode.
Since the last episode was on Hip Hop special, let us discuss the beats that are related to that genre of music. Within Hip Hop beats, rap beats, there are several genres of beats that are multiple categories. For example, there are commercial and underground beats, but then it gets even more in depth. There are categories such as east-coast beats, west coast beats, dirty south beats, Midwest beats, club beats, chopped and screwed beats and many other styles. The importance of beats in Hip Hop dance is very important and adds as a major ingredient to the performance.
The beat of a song determines how fast or how slow you should move your body while dancing. If your selected song has faster beats then you must move quickly.
To find the beat in a song you can:
- Listen closely to the strong, heavy beats.
- Clap your hands along with the beats to get a feel for the music.
- Try tapping your right foot to the strong beats and your left foot to the weaker beats.
When you think you can feel the beat, relax your arms and try moving them around in time to the music.
- Swing your arms naturally with your feet, bending slightly at the elbows.
- Raise your arms up above your head, then down by your sides.
This practice should help you dance on beats.
Have a wonderful day practicing! 
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