B-Girl Like a B-Boy Marginalization of Women in Hip-Hop Dance a Thesis Submitted to the Graduate Division of the University of H
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B-GIRL LIKE A B-BOY MARGINALIZATION OF WOMEN IN HIP-HOP DANCE A THESIS SUBMITTED TO THE GRADUATE DIVISION OF THE UNIVERSITY OF HAWAII AT MANOA IN PARTIAL FULFILLMENT OF THE REQUIREMENTS FOR THE DEGREE OF MASTER OF ARTS IN DANCE DECEMBER 2014 By Jenny Sky Fung Thesis Committee: Kara Miller, Chairperson Gregg Lizenbery Judy Van Zile ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS I would like to give a big thanks to Jacquelyn Chappel, Desiree Seguritan, and Jill Dahlman for contributing their time and energy in helping me to edit my thesis. I’d also like to give a big mahalo to my thesis committee: Gregg Lizenbery, Judy Van Zile, and Kara Miller for all their help, support, and patience in pushing me to complete this thesis. TABLE OF CONTENTS Abstract…………………………………………………………………………… 1. Introduction………………………………………………………………………. 1 2. Literature Review………………………………………………………………… 6 3. Methodology……………………………………………………………………… 20 4. 4.1. Background History…………………………………………………………. 24 4.2. Tracing Female Dancers in Literature and Film……………………………... 37 4.3. Some History and Her-story About Hip-Hop Dance “Back in the Day”......... 42 4.4. Tracing Females Dancers in New York City………………………………... 49 4.5. B-Girl Like a B-Boy: What Makes Breaking Masculine and Male Dominant?....................................................................................................... 53 4.6. Generation 2000: The B-Boys, B-Girls, and Urban Street Dancers of Today………………...……………………………………………………… 59 5. Issues Women Experience…………………………………………………….… 66 5.1 The Physical Aspect of Breaking………………………………………….… 66 5.2. Women and the Cipher……………………………………………………… 73 5.3. The Token B-Girl…………………………………………………………… 80 6.1. Tackling Marginalization………………………………………………………… 86 6.2. Acknowledging Discrimination…………………………………………….. 86 6.3. Speaking Out and Establishing Presence…………………………………… 90 6.4. Working Around a Man’s World…………………………………………… 93 6.5. Understanding the Impact of the Man………………………………………. 94 6.6. Coming to Terms With Oneself…………………………………………….. 96 6.7. The Safe Space…………………………………………………………….... 102 6.8. House: An Urban Street Dance Scene That Embraces Women and Femininity……………………………………………………………………. 104 7. Discussion……………………………………………………………………….. 109 8. Conclusion………………………………………………………………………. 114 Appendix A: A Note on Terminology and Classifications Used in This Thesis... 121 Appendix B: Timeline/Diagram ………………………………………………... 128 Bibliography……………………………………………………………….…….. 129 ABSTRACT Many female hip-hop dancers (such as b-girls, poppers, lockers, choreography dancers) have embraced and struggled with hip-hop dance, a dance where many of its sub-styles honor the male body and masculinity. In a male dominated dance culture, how do women negotiate with issues of gender in the dance movement and social practices? This thesis responds to these concerns by documenting the experiences of hip-hop dancers and urban street dancers in New York City. By examining the woman’s experience in hip-hop dance, this thesis looks into how the marginalization of female dancers within breaking is connected to how the dance was molded around the male adolescent lifestyle, social practices, and cultural values within Black urban ghetto communities of New York City during the 1970s and 1980s. In addressing how the conditions and issues associated with the dance’s reverence for masculine expression affects the lives and careers of women, this research aims to find and reclaim the woman’s voice and body in hip-hop dance culture. 1. INTRODUCTION It never occurred to me that women did breaking, and upon my first few lessons I understood why. During my sophomore year in college, a few of my friends who were b- boys told me to drop by an open session at the university’s campus center. Breaking is a very physically demanding dance form and despite my martial arts and athletic background, breaking was still difficult for me to pick up. I stayed involved with the college breaking crew for a couple of years but eventually stopped. I was not aware my departure from the dance was a common experience that many women encountered with breaking as well. Within hip-hop dance, breaking is one dance style that demonstrates an extreme favoring of masculine expression and honoring the capabilities of the male body. Many female breakers, or b-girls, have embraced and struggled with breaking because male dancers have been and continue to be the main participants, historians, and teachers. Female dancers deal with discrimination, lack of support, limited access to resources, and partial membership. Given these circumstances, how do b-girls negotiate with the dance movement and social practices of breaking? The intent of this thesis is to demonstrate the significance of how the reverence for masculinity found in hip-hop dance affects the lives and careers of female hip-hop dancers. By taking on an ethnographic approach, this research aims to focus on the female dancer’s experience. This thesis is meant to show that an alternative shared experience exists in hip-hop dance culture and is intended to help other hip-hop dancers, particularly women, gain a better sense of what came before them, how things have 1 changed, how things are affecting them now, and what should be done to produce changes that will provide greater support for women within the hip-hop and urban street dance scene. What I found troubling within hip-hop culture is the discrepancy of how women are represented in reality, in historical documentation, and how they are imagined. As far as hip-hop dance goes, the inclusion of women as performers, in writing, film, and within ciphers is rare, and at times, ornamental. Some past accounts have generalized men and women as equally present, but had the tendency to primarily feature men when it came to highlighted moments or giving special recognition. Some journalists and hip-hop writers claim that hip-hop dance is strictly masculine and male-oriented. In my literature research, I did come across a few comments or narratives stating that women were indeed avid participants, with some women described as out-dancing men. With such mixed statements and recollections, the role and involvement of women dancers in hip-hop culture was unclear. Filmed documentaries such as The Freshest Kids, a fairly recent and popular hip- hop dance history documentary, barely had a single clip of a b-girl dancing. There were no indications of female poppers, lockers, nor any female emcee (MC), disc jockey (DJ), or event promoter.1 Jeff Chang’s Don’t Stop Can’t Stop, a hip-hop history book published in 2005, does not include any biographical documentation or commentary from any b- girls or female hip-hop artists. Jorge “Popmaster Fabel” Pabon, a well-known popper and 1 As will be discussed in “Background History,” the documentary plays a three-second clip of a b-girl dancing upon the narrator’s explanation of a b-girl. There is a clip of b-girl Baby Love in the Rock Steady Crew’s music video (though she’s not even acknowledged as a b-girl). Although b-girl Asia One is interviewed and filmed dancing, cliops of her aren’t shown until after the documentary ends in the rolling credits. Only one woman’s interview appeared within the documentary where she briefly talked about the parties of the Bronx during the 1980s. 2 hip-hop historian, makes a point to mention both “b-boys and b-girls” in his writing, but he barely gives recognition or writes about female dancers in any of his more popular written works. This is not to put these hip-hop dance historians “on blast,” for they have made major contributions to the documentation of hip-hop dance culture and are highly respected within the hip-hop community. However, with men being the primary historians of hip-hop culture, the over-looking of women in their writing results in a history that is centered on men and virtually void of women. Even more troubling is that these authors play a significant role in shaping an audience’s perception of hip-hop’s past. How does their documentation project a skewed understanding of hip-hop culture’s main participants, producers and artists? In my research I looked into physical, mental, and social issues teenage girls and young women encountered that not only affected their experience as performers, but also how being female impacted their progress as dancers, affected their respectability, and their relationships within the hip-hop dance community. Why these issues were happening was a key to understanding whether women just don’t fit into the culture or if the culture purposely omits them. When analyzing hip-hop dance culture, there are a number of concerns that need to be considered, particularly in looking at how female dancers are marginalized. Issues I address in this thesis seek to answer the following questions: 1) Is there documentation of female hip-hop dancers from the past? 2) How does the valuing of masculinity in hip-hop dance impact the way men and women dance? In particular how does it affect the physical behaviors, mental states and social realities of female dancers? 3 3) What changes can be implemented to help provide greater support, advancement, and acknowledgement of women in hip-hop and urban street dance? As this thesis explores gender expression within a dance culture, the use of the terms male/female dancers was chosen over the use of men/women due to the socially constructed implications that come attached to the use of men/women within an American patriarchal society. The usage of men and women also denotes age. Rather than consistently having to write teenage girls and women, the term female dancers encompassed a wider range. This thesis documents, through ethnographic fieldwork and interviews, the experiences of b-girls and other types of hip-hop and urban street dancers from New York City. Following the introduction, Chapter Two provides a general literature review and commentary on the historical documentation of Black American dance, hip-hop dance, hip-hop culture, and dance research.