Freestyling Tips

Captain Canada · Trick Member Joined: 24 Jan 2002 Location: yes

Upstaged by someone with experience - I'm actually kinda glad this happened. Lot of topics I want to cover now.

You did a nice job on taking my entire post and turning it into the concluding few sentences - "JUS STEAL FROM SOULSEEK LURRRZZZ". The advice I was trying to give everywhere else in the post is that to be a better dancer, you need to get ready for a lot of practice in your room to see what feels right. I explained what a beginner should do to improve his arm and footwork - use a mirror, learn rhythm, distinguish between "awkward" and "watchable". I suggested that someone should check out videos if they want to see what certain styles are when done well - because most DDR players probably don't have a lot (if ANY) friends into funk styles and hip hop, this is my advice to those who want to be exposed to actual dance, it wasn't meant for them to steal from it. Why do you think the videos exist at all? Exposure.

The LTR "scarecrow" thing? The entire point of that routine was to "rip off" another freestyler, so that was a move I emulated from Hypnotikz in his routine, and quite frankly, I don't care where he got it. The Fresno? Got it from effing Darren's Dance Grooves a looong time ago - yes, how sad is that - because it matched up with left/right patterns. I could tell you where every one of my moves came from in those vids, and none of them involved Soulseek vids, as I didn't even know back then that you could download anything but music with that.

In the DDR freestyle scene, the bar is NOT THAT HIGH among other freestylers - thus, it's a slow learning process. Few are going to tell you that you're not hitting hard enough (something I've worked on since that video, btw, I realize it's a warm up exercise), or that you're doing the Old Man completely wrong. Many don't know it themselves, and couldn't care less. Freestyling is about having fun. Thus, when someone with experience walks in, they're most likely going to be turned off by the n00bish quality of the dancing. That's nice. Teach em yourself, then.

Even regarding those who do know what they're doing off the pad: Their style does NOT typically translate well onto the pad, thanks to the goddamn arrows we all love. The best example here would be Doc Lock himself (aka Danielle's Dad) doing LTR - in that vid, he looks nothing like he does off the pad. Also see TaQo, that amazing Mexican guy - his freestyle doesn't at all match the popping/locking/botting videos he takes of himself at home. To be good, it takes practice on and off the pad, and hardly anybody has an equal balance of both. I know I don't.

The first, literally, first time I actually found someone else with hip-hop dance experience, it was only 2 months ago when I met up with Fuzzy Hat/Lawrence. He shares a lot of the same views as you probably do on the freestyle scene, yet he was actually willing to work with me, educate me on styles, tell me where to get videos. You probably pass me off as someone who thinks he's the shit, who thinks he can get away with minimal effort to be respected - that couldn't be less true. Am I happy with my attempt at popping? Not at all. Am I willing to learn from someone with experience? Easily.

But do I have the RESOURCES to learn? I have nada, much like many who attempt DDRFS. I'm stuck in Tacoma, WA, in a liberal arts college whose dance group is made up of nearly all sorority girls, buttocks-shaking to Missy Elliot and choreographing modern/jazz themed pieces to Sarah McLaughlan. I know nobody here with experience in hip hop; there are about 5 guys total in the dance group, and they're all beginners.

So what do you suggest to learn? How did you learn yourself? Who do you go to to learn? Why don't you tell us all this rather than blasting me? If it insults you that my freestyle has come to look like this, then it's good to know that this is still something for me to work on. Be constructive - part of the reason A-Jay, Bruce Leroy, etc are at the top is because they're not only experienced dancers, but because of their attitude. They're willing to guide beginners. If you expect freestylers who play DDR to meet the standards you set after going "BE ORIGINAL LKTTHXH", then that's a whole lotta wishful thinking.
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record breakin' temperature in here. LIGHTWEIGHT BABY.

*witty name* · Trick Member Joined: 28 Jul 2002 Location: Joliet, IL

please accept my apology, i'll move to PM.
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Jing · Posted: Tue Sep 21, 2004 3:16 pm Post subject:

*witty name* · Trick Member Joined: 28 Jul 2002 Location: Joliet, IL

yah, im still wondering if you guys are reffering to the old school funk stylist DOC LOCK from bay area california, and if so, where can i see this footage?
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Captain Canada · Trick Member Joined: 24 Jan 2002 Location: yes

Dollar Bill (OG) · Trick Member Joined: 24 Jan 2002 Location: BDC

Ok, let's get this started..

first, I do have the video of Danielle's dad on LTR. Anyone want it, just IM me, and I'll send it.

No need to get hostile in this forum either. The idea of freestyle is to have more fun than to care about scoring (unless it's with someone off the pads you're trying to get their attention.

)

And some of us are taking dance lessons, or doing whatever they can to learn from other experienced legends. Whether it's taking their classes, or watching them in action, we're trying.

Now please calm down about biting though. Some of us learn by watching, and then trying to put our own style to it. Those that are taking whole routines and "trying" to make their own, they should be taken aside and told honestly.

As for DDR + real dancing, it will never be fully accomplished for the following:

1) the bars. They do cause a problem for some moves you want to implement, not just bboying types.

2) the arrows. Even if you edit them, it's a pain trying to get them right with some moves.

3) the music. some of the stuff doesn't jive well.

*shrugs* I think you have to just stand back and just realize that it's first off just a game. If we judged everyone's abilities on the pads, it's not entirely fair/possible to them. Second off, yep, some of us can't dance. But we f*cking try anyway. hell, I walk into a lot of clubs to see people who make bad dancers look good, and they're having a lot of fun.

But the best advice is true. How about just taking us aside, and teaching us some stuff? It's not that hard to say "hey, you're doing it wrong, try doing it this way." That's how I learned the Campbellock and Uncle Sam point.

Dollar Bill
"Back to not giving a damn."
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Permanently retired.

Turdburglar · Basic Member Joined: 10 Aug 2004 Location: Illinois

I haven't really started legit freestyling on a DDR pad but back in the day....I used to be one with the many Breakers for about 4 years or so, and people noticed that when I'm playing the game normal (for fun) it reminds them of those days. The way I play isn't the hunched over constapated look, but I add the jumps n swings into my game. This does include the fancy footwork and rotation while playin Rhythm N' Police (with all that constant steppin)on heavy. I was kinda wonderin if that's put under a half-***ed Freestyle play or not. Knowin this will tell me whether or not to go watch Breakin' a couple times again. Turbo n Ozone really are some of the best 80s dancers too.

Dollar Bill (OG) · Trick Member Joined: 24 Jan 2002 Location: BDC

Damn, RNP's a b*tch to make a decent improv/routine. nice work.

well, why not make a video and have others asked? Just for kicks and giggles.

And man, like said before, go seek more videos.

Dollar Bill
"Knowledge is out there."
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Permanently retired.

Captain Canada · Trick Member Joined: 24 Jan 2002 Location: yes

Dollar Bill (OG) · Trick Member Joined: 24 Jan 2002 Location: BDC

that reminds me, what WERE the results of each round!?

And where's the vids?!

Dollar Bill
"I'm curious now too. Heavy FS isn't easy."
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Permanently retired.

djmon · Posted: Wed Sep 22, 2004 7:28 am Post subject:

Mr. Wendell · Posted: Wed Sep 22, 2004 8:38 am Post subject:

Phrekwenci · Administrator Joined: 27 Feb 2002 Location: New York, NY

Damn, I missed some really good stupid stuff in here.

Anyway, is there a reason we need to name names of dance moves? Can't we all just dance?
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*witty name* · Trick Member Joined: 28 Jul 2002 Location: Joliet, IL

HATE to be offtopic again, but...

naming dance moves is necessary to an extent. let me give a few examples:

music.

i like music.

you like music.

i like EDM, you like country. theyre not the same. but we both like music. what if you said "i like music" and i said "i do too, can i borrow a cd" or "i do too, lets go to a concert". there's going to be quite the confusion when im listening to acoustics and a guy singing about his pickup truck.

to break that down even more, if we both like EDM and you take me to a house event, im gonna pissed that i just wasted 10 bucks on music i hate.

hence, we have classifications. these are especially useful over the internet where people look for resources.

if someone wants to learn the dance style known as "liquid" because they saw some guy do it on tv or at a club or for whatever reason, how would they go about that?

if we called every type of dance, "dance", that would mean ballet could be mistaken for salsa could be mistaken for popping could be mistaken for liquid.

we classify things so people can communicate more easily and understand each other better.

just like naming moves or substyles within a certain dance. this also goes hand in hand with respect and knowlege about WHO created WHAT and WHEN it all happened. don campbell created LOCKING, boogaloo sam created POPPING/BOOGALOO (debatable, but this is just an example), Mr. Wiggles created THE WIGGLES WALK. these are styles and moves that need be appreciated and therefore, their creators need to be appreciated also.

on topic:

...be original.
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NAOKi SYNDROME · Posted: Sat Sep 25, 2004 1:10 pm Post subject:

*witty name* · Trick Member Joined: 28 Jul 2002 Location: Joliet, IL

so uh...yah, to kinda get this thread goin again, here's some of the stuff that i believe captain canada was trying to do (while freestyling) off the pad. *gasp*

https://cat2.ath.cx/kai/kai-popping-sep-04.wmv

just some popping and boogaloo earlier in the month. maybe it'll spark some ideas for a ddr freestyle, who knows?

enjoy.
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taQo · Trick Member Joined: 12 Nov 2002 Location: Fort Worth

yo captain you said that I don't dance the same off the pad as I do on it, that's cuz the music in ddr is pretty wack....if they had some damn funk or something with a break I'd filmore/pop/wave whatever to it but it's all trance, house and eurobeat and it wouldn't fit the music. I made a poppin routine a loonnngggg time ago and there's no footage of the routine anywhere unfortunately but you can basically do anything short of bboying on a ddr pad it's just that the music doesn't fit any funk styles (for me anyways).

edit: holy crap it's been a long time since I've posted on ddrfreak :O

Captain Canada · Trick Member Joined: 24 Jan 2002 Location: yes

Jing · Posted: Fri Oct 01, 2004 9:03 pm Post subject:

I wish a had a camcorder now.
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Barely visits.

*witty name* · Trick Member Joined: 28 Jul 2002 Location: Joliet, IL