Saturday, September 12, 2009

Lil Mama flashes her Sasha Fierce!

At the VMA Challenge taping, Lil Mama (doing her best Beyonce impersonation stopped by to pay respects to our interviewer Glenda Morales (Fanny Pak). Work it!

Dance Craze Survey results: We are Heroes on top!

Final results are in from our surveys on the best and worst performances in America's Best Dance Crew's Dance Craze challenge. Click to see details on best performance and worst performance. Summary:
  • We are Heroes won the most votes for best performance (40%), followed by Massive Monkees (29%)
  • Our readers voted Afroborike as the worst performance (49%) followed by Vogue Evolution (22%)

VMA Preview teasers from MTV Remote Control

MTV Remote Control posted its teasers, for those of you on the fence about watching the America's Best Dance Crew VMA Challenge:
  • They call the group dance of 'Smooth Criminal' possibly the best group dance in ABDC history. FYI -- I've heard the same thing from fans in at the tapings and from one of the performing crews!
  • Another evening where the judges take center stage: Shane Sparks raves about one crew. Shane and JC Chasez argue over the merits of entertaining the audience vs. dancing as art
  • "A wild animal slithers onto the stage"
  • Performance previews: a tribute to Vogue Evolution from one crew, a double female backflip from another.
photocredit: MTV

Kids Best Dance Crew does Vogue Evolution, Massive Monkees

Several readers have become fans of a kid who creates his own routines using the sound from America's Best Dance Crew 4 challenges. From KidsBestDanceCrew Youtube Channel (which also has a Massive Monkees and several Vogue Evolution based videos, here's his dance using Vogue Evolution's Week 5 soundtrack:

Mailbox: Beat Freak's Rino , ASIID's Meme, Mixed Elements

  • Daily K Pop News profiles Beat Freak Rino Nakasone
  • ASIID member Himerria "“MeMe"” Wortham is now in the girl group Boom Kitty. Their recording "Playground" will be available on iTunes Oct. 6
  • Mix'd Elements Dance Crew from California won 1st place at a Dance Crew competition judged by ABDC judge Shane Sparks where they get the opportunity to perform at the ABDC season 4 set. The crew also won 2nd place and best theme at World of Dance San Diego with the same routine. Their routine:

Friday, September 11, 2009

Pacific Rim videos - Massive Monkees on the wedding and its impact on VMA Challenge

Pacific Rim has some early videos from the backstage tapings:
  • Sneaking up on Rhythm City's makeup session
  • Playing This or That with Afroborike
  • Getting We Are Heroes opinions on music videos
  • Massive Monkees talking about Lil Lazy's wedding and its impact on this week 6 preparation:

25% off SoReal Cru Merchandise today only!


SoReal Cru is holding a fan appreciation day today (September 11) only with 25% off all the shirts, hoodies, and other merchandise on their site. Click here to shop and use the discount code: thankyoufans

Massive Monkees Wedding Photo

Massive Monkee member Lil Lazy got married 9/9/09 at 9:09 pm this week in Los Angeles. The complete Massive Monkees crew and other top 4 ABDC Season 4 crews were in attendance! Thanks for the tip, ABDC!
Photocredit: MassiveMonkees.com

WHAT HAPPENED at The VMA Challenge Tapings?

Here are non-spoiler reports from America's Best Dance Crew's VMA Challenge dress rehearsal and tapings. Sounds like an intense show:

Drewski (attended the dress rehearsal, not the taping with the elimination): just got back from their rehearsal and all the crews are gonna do a pretty sick opening number =D smooth criminal is sooo sick xb. IMO all the crews are doing great but this is the order for me.
1. we are heroes are gonna kill it as long as they don't drop the fans lol they do some really clean back flips at the end =]]
2. rhythm city does really good a little sloppy and kinda slow at REHEARSAL
3.MM start off on some desks and rip a paper in half that has a pic of a member from a past eliminated crew."apparently someone who just got married" idk if it's true though
4.Afroborike did use a snake :b they do alright. if they're in the bottom they'll most likely get out.

Time to Fly to the Cheese: Well tonight's episode was definitely an exciting one. The crews delivered with their performances although this season is turning more into a trick and flip season than anything else in my opinion, and the group number was HOT. This season has definitely been the most unpredictable season ever, mostly because the crews in my opinion haven't been that consistent in their performances. The battle between the two bottom crews was intense. Half of the audience was cheering for one crew, the other for the other crew. Even the judges had the HUGEST argument over the crews. It was pretty intense.Even after the doors were closed and the crew "walked it out" the audience cheered their crew name. DEFINITELY not an episode to miss. ICONic, Beat Ya Feet Kings, and Aiiyah from the Real World in the house.

Mee: SO INTENSE. The delay in announcing who gets to stay was unbearable (my friends and I wanted to leave so badly. They said this would be a short taping, but it ended up being too long because apparently the judges couldn't decide between the bottom two.) But wow, I had a hard time choosing between the bottom two myself.

Also, there was A LOT of bickering between Shane and JC. I hope everything they said gets into the episode, but damn. They must have felt strongly about their opinions because they kept trying to constantly prove their points. It was actually pretty funny, but awkward. This guy in front of me said that Lil Mama was tearing up before we started recording again. By the way, Porché was there... even though the taping was way too long, it was very fun!

Samsonite:
My predictions for the crews that would be saved tonight were so off. However, after reviewing last week's and this week's performances, I was not surprised about the crew they chose to send home. I personally thought this was the best episode by far this season. All the crews gave wonderful performances. Also, I had NO idea the tapings took long. I'm pretty exhausted from it....but it was worth it.

Afroborike Interview: How they formed, how they choreograph

Afroborike came into America's Best Dance Crew Season 4 as almost complete unknowns. This Las Vegas Sun interview with member Veronica Collazo fills in many of the details. Highlights:
  • The crew formed just for ABDC. "Our choreographer and manager heard that “ABDC” was looking for a Latin crew. So, he just talked to us and told us, “You should make a crew and make a video and send it to the production.”
  • Veronica was not originally in the group. "There was another girl, but she had medical problems, so she couldn’t make it on the show. They called me on Sunday and said, “We need you.” So I said, “I’ll book a flight for next week.” And they said, “No. We need you tomorrow.”
  • Though the group is new, the members knew each other "forever" from dance school
  • How Afroborike prepares each week: "We don’t have a choreographer; we don’t have a leader, so everybody is giving ideas. And it’s good - it’s how we do it – but at the same time, it’s hard...We’re not sleeping, well, not enough, because we want to have it done perfect"

Upcoming events - Week of September 11

Thursday, September 10, 2009

ABDC Week 6 promo

Let us know if you attend tonight's taping!

The VMA Challenge on America's Best Dance Crew tapes tonight -- September 10. If you are lucky enough to attend the dress rehearsal or the taping, please leave a comment or email us at BloggingBestDanceCrew@gmail.com about your experiences! We'd love to hear what it was like on the stage and in the audience! BUT PLEASE NO SPOILERS ABOUT WHO WAS IN THE BOTTOM AND WHO WENT HOME! Last week, I permanently banned one commenter who repeatedly posted spoilers, and I'll ban others if needed.
Photocredit: AngryAsianMan.com

Video: Vogue Evolution on Alexa Chung


As reported earlier, Vogue Evolution appeared on 'It's On with Alexa Chung'. Click here to watch the segment. Thanks for the link, England!
Photocredit: MTV

'Art reel' with Super Cr3w at Summer Rush

While fan videos with odd angles, blocked views, and screaming give a good sense of what it's like at a concert, it's great to see an art quality video too. Here's the maXspeed produXtions film of the Halifax Summer Rush concert this past summer that featured Super Cr3w, Akon, Girlicious, and Justin Bieber. This was made as a promo reel for Z103.5 in Halifax.

Koifysh Challenge: Crews imitate other crews

Koifysh.com's challenge to the crews at last week's taping was asking them to imitate the personalities or styles of other crews. Here's We Are Heroes imitating Afroborike, Vogue Evolution imitating Rhythm City, Afroborike imitating Massive Monkees, Massive Monkees imitating Vogue Evolution, and my favorite week -- Rhythm City mimicking We Are Heroes:

Join the We Are Heroes Street Team!

Season 4 has seen less internet action by crews and their fans than prior seasons. So, some fans are trying to fix that lapse. Here's the link for the official We Are Heroes Street team. Join them if you want to support the girls. Thanks for the tip Eddie!

If you know of other OFFICIAL fan groups, let me know and I'll publicize them.

Photocredit: MTV

JC Chasez on Judging: "I don't ever look at what I say as negative"

The Boston Herald interviews JC Chasez about America's Best Dance Crew, his other artistic activities and 'N Sync (no plans for a reunion!). Highlights:
  • On how his performing career impacted his judging: "We worked with choreographers, and they watched us while we were doing our performances and basically told us what needed to be done better until we got it right so we could bring it to an audience. So when I’m judging, I put myself in the shoes of how would I make this better."
  • On the entertainment industry during his NSYNC days vs now: "It’s night and day. One of the biggest changes is the whole business structure. Before, the artists had control of how they were publicly perceived. Now we’re in the information age. There’s really no information that’s protected. There’s no privacy... I don’t think it’s harder at all. I just think it’s different.”

Wednesday, September 9, 2009

Fanny Pak Milkshake NYC Promotion extended through Sept. 11

The Fanny Pak promotion for Milkshake NYC has been extended through September 11. Go to Milkshake NYC and buy a pair of shoes for a chance to win an extra pair of shoes, an autographed shirt, AND a fanny pack.

MTV bits: Freestyle after Episode 5; Smooth Criminal is Week 6 group dance

MTV Remote Control has two goodies today:
  • Video of the crews' cypher after the America's Best Dance Crew Dance Craze Challenge
  • News that the remaining 4 crews will be dancing together to a master mix of Michael Jackson's Smooth Criminal. Thanks for the tip, Bigboy!

Master mixes available for Dance Craze Challenge

District 78 has posted their master mixes of all the songs used in the Dance Craze challenge on ABDC Week 5, including links for Itune purchases.

Vogue Evolution with Alexa Chung and Amber Tamblyn

Vogue Evolution appeared on 'It's On with Alexa Chung' on September 9. The show also featured Jason Bateman, Amber Tamblyn, and some girls undressing a mannequin of Robert Pattinson. Vogue Evolution highlights :
  • Amber Tamblyn acted starstruck around the crew, had to touch their costumes and text everyone that she was on the show with them.
  • They explained the ballroom scene to Alexa
  • They taught Alexa and Amber the catwalk step (Alexa was much better than Amber)
  • VE then did a full dance demonstration with duckwalks, lifts, solos of some of their signature vogue-ing, and dips
If and when photos or videos become available, I'll post them!

Vogue Evolution on Alexa Chung today!

Sorry for the last minute notice on this. According to a Twitter from Vogue Evolution, the crew will appear live on Alexa Chung today (September 9) at Noon ET/PT. Hopefully, it will appear on-line soon for those who can't set up their DVRs remotely. Thanks for the tip, JonnyJ!

Supreme Soul spotting on 90210?

The end of the 90210 has some dancing that looks a lot like Supreme Soul's Pharside. The full authorized episode is not yet up, but click here and check out 6:13.

Reminder: Week 6 Elimination Challenge contest ends tonight

Since America's Best Dance Crew will tape their VMA Challenge episode Thursday September 10, you have until midnight tonight to get in your entries on the Elimination Challenge Contest. Post your votes/guesses here. Click here for the rules.

Video: Vogue Evolution teach the Dip!

Talk of Fame's Albert Lawrence is back on the interview and dance lesson beat. This time, he talked to Vogue Evolution after they were eliminated. The interview talks about how they merged the challenges with their personal style and how they feel about leaving the show. And, you've got to watch the dance lesson where Leiomy teaches him to dip!

Video: Fr3sh members teaching Funkanometry Workshop

In this entertaining video (taped in July 2009, but just released), Fr3sh members Adrian Causing and Leslie Hubilla teach a Funkanometry SF Master Class. Adrian will be back in San Francisco September 15-20 teaching more classes; you can go to to the Funkanometry website to contact them for more details. And, watch for Fr3sh on the America's Best Dance Crew finale!

Dance Craze Recaps -- more, more more!

  • The NY Daily News tries to describe each of the dance crazes. Example: The stanky leg "consists of just basically sticking out your leg and moving it"
  • AC Slater liked the built-in minitrampoline and Massive Monkees
  • AfterElton describes 'the Halle Berry' as "pantomiming the application of rouge" and hated Massive Monkees, saying they "once again prove that dancing and spinning on one's head are mutually-exclusive skill sets
  • We'll Fix It In has me laughing out loud with their Sass X2 , and suggests that We Are Heroes was in the bottom 2 because Americans don't like reading subtitles. And, they don't think it's cool to have a Chris Brown-inspired dance for the VMA Challenge
  • Too Interesting for Twitter talks about how obscure the song choices were, how Afroborike keeps pushing the basic cable envelope, and more:

Tuesday, September 8, 2009

Week 6: Enter our Top 4 Contest now!

If you want to change your vote on which crews will be in the top 4 at the end of this season, here's your weekly chance. Over 95% of all the entries to date are now WRONG and there are still many combinations available. So get your new vote in now!

At the end of the season, I'll post who won, and who else got the right combination (and in which week). So, even if your choice has already been taken, you can enter a new one now and get some bragging rights. And, there are still some combinations that haven't been picked. Click here for contest rules and prize. Good luck!

VMA Challenge Song Assignments (and watch the original dance videos!)

MTV Remote Control has announced the crew assignments for the VMA Challenge. This week, the crews have to update the most memorable VMA performances of the past. And as reported earlier by Zatzz, there will be a Michael Jackson tribute dance choreographed by Napoleon D'umo.

Here are the assignments, along with videos of the original performances:

AFROBORIKE "Slave 4 U" Britney Spears
MASSIVE MONKEES "Tearin' Up My Heart" *NSYNC
RHYTHM CITY "Wall To Wall" Chris Brown
WE ARE HEROES "Vogue" Madonna

If Vogue Evolution had stayed one more week, what do you think they would have been assigned?

Video: Afroborike - " What do we have to do, fall from the sky?"

Chris Trondsen and Fanny Pak's Glenda Morales spoke to Afroborike after the taping of America's Best Dance Crew's Dance Craze challenge. They answer reader questions, talk about their position as Latin dancers, tell their dating status, and talk about their Week 5 performance.

Jai's Take on ABDC's Dance Craze Challenge

Jai is back with a recap full of details and juicy opinion on America's Best Dance Crew's Week 5 Dance Craze Challenge.

"Overall, Sunday’s episode was reminiscent of Martial Arts week with the safe crews having mediocre performances (except Massive Monkees) and the bottom two crews having the better performances. I’m saddened that VE was eliminated from the show, but I know this is not the last that we’ll see of them. They represented during their time on the show, and I am sure we will be seeing more of VE in the future. As far as next week is concerned, I think the bottom two crews will be Rhythm City and AfroBorike with AfroBorike being eliminated."

Click here to read the rest of her analysis, LOVES and HATES! Thanks Jai!

Videos: Quest at International Secret Agents LA

The International Secret Agents LA show was totally sold out this weekend. For everyone who didn't make it there, there are 2 good videos of Quest from Pacific Rim:

Dance Craze Recaps!

  • You Love to Watch discusses the whole trampoline thing as a "poor man's Cirque du Soleil with unknown hip hop songs as the soundtrack" and is upset that Vogue Evolution went home
  • Spoil the Ending loved the challenge and calls We Are Heroes the episode winners
  • LA Times has video with We Are Heroes and talks about some of the off-camera action: Beat Freak Lindsay led the some of the audience into a 4-way danceoff and Napoleon D'umo gave the dance lesson that had the whole audience doing the Ricky Bobby

2 Videos: JabbaWockeez on Philippine TV

When JabbaWockeeZ brought their act to the Philippines this past week, they hit the TV studios as well as the stage. Thanks for the tip, Rheinell!

Monday, September 7, 2009

Vogue Evolution Podcast: Birthday present requests,what ABDC wouldn't let them do!

I spoke to Vogue Evolution by phone on the Friday after the Dance Craze Challenge and their unfortunate elimination. It was a blast! They answered many reader questions including who they want to perform with, what they'd do if they weren't dancing, their purpose for going on America's Best Dance Crew, what they want for Christmas or birthdays, the one thing they wanted to do but weren't allowed by ABDC, and more! So listen in!





New BABDC banner -- thanks Zatzz!

Site improvement: Zatzz just redesigned the banner for this BloggingBestDanceCrew site, in order to better show the season's top 4 crews. Thanks Zatzz -- if I had any money, the check would be in the mail!

Enter Week 6 Elimination Challenge now! Anyone can STILL win!

Time to enter your votes for The Elimination Challenge for next week: Which crews will be in the bottom 2? Who will be eliminated? Enter each week and the person with the highest cumulative score for Season 4 will win an ABDC crew shirt of their choice and size (up to $35 retail). In case of a tie, we will have a tie-breaker question, to be posted the last week of the contest.

Only Fired Up got all 3 points last week and now has the lead with 8 points. But there are 3 more weeks and 9 more possible points, so everybody still has a chance to win. So, post your votes now, and remember to include your email address in the appropriate field. Here's the rules. Voting closes midnight Wednesday September 2.

Video: Quest Flav battling!

Quest was back on the battle scene on September 6, collaborating with Flex Flav. From MLOuknoo's Youtube Channel, click here for their battle against Illest Villains. Here's the final battle: Quest Flav vs. Deuces Wild. Thanks for the tip, Adobostreak!

Exclusive: We are Heroes Answer Fan Questions

After the taping of America's Best Dance Crew's Dance Craze challenge,We are Heroes answered some of the questions submitted by our readers. Check to see if they answered one of yours!

Exclusive: Rhythm City Answers fan questions

For the Week 5 backstage interviews at the ABDC taping, our interviewers Chris Trondsen and Fanny Pak's Glenda Morales asked questions submitted by our fans and readers. Click here if you want to submit questions for the crews.

UPDATED SURVEY: Worst performance for Week 5 - please vote again!

Due to an error on my part, I am reposting the surveys for best and worst performance in the Dance Craze Challenge. If you voted Monday between 1AM ET and 10 ET, please vote again!

UPDATED SURVEY: Best performance for Week 5 - please vote again!

Due to an error on my part, I am reposting the surveys for best and worst performance in the Dance Craze Challenge. If you voted Monday between 1AM ET and 10 ET, please vote again!

Zatzz's recap: ABDC Dance Craze Challenge and some exclusive info!

Zatzz is back with her recap of America's Best Dance Crew's Week 5 challenge. She also has some exclusive information about next week, so make sure you read the whole review! Thanks Zatzz!

"This week is Dance Craze week, or as I like to call it, 21st century whack tracks! After an outstanding episode last week with the Bollywood challenge, the crews had to prove they could stay consistent and blow us away every week.

Unfortunately, none of the crews were OUTSTANDING, but it was still a somewhat entertaining episode. In the end, We Are Heroes and Vogue Evolution faced off, and unfortunately, it was the crew with the largest fan base of all--VE--who got the boot.
This episode was filled with tears, sweat, blood, laughter, cheese, vulgar movements, trampolines, colorful skinny jeans, cracked heads and sob stories. We also got the first Goodbye video/Journey Package of the season, and it was very touching. The eliminated crew took it very well, and Leiomy’s speech was so fun and probably one of the best we’ve heard on ABDC."

Click here to read the rest, including MTV's photos of the crews and Zatzz' scoop on the VMA Challenge!
Photocredit: MTV

Send some love to Vogue Evolution!

From the moment we saw Vogue Evolution in the NY auditions for America's Best Dance Crew, we knew they would be a sensation on the show. They brought something original each week and were delightfully funny and candid both on and off the stage. And, who besides Leiomy could out-Beyonce Beyonce? The crew members were already well established in the NY dance scene; now we expect them to become equally prominent internationally!

Please leave your positive comments about Vogue Evolution here. If you have negative comments about Vogue Evolution or anything else about America's Best Dance Crew, please post them in the Party Room/Critics Corner.

Sunday, September 6, 2009

Vote now!

The online voting is now open for Week 5, from now until 5:30am Eastern time. If you want to protect your favorite crew, act now! You can click here to vote. Performance videos will probably be online by 11pm West Coast time, to aid in your choices.

Then, please come back to our Critic's Corner/Party Room! We want you!

Party Room/Critics Corner now open - Join in!

The Party Room/Critics Corner for America's Best Dance Crew Week 5 (the Dance Craze Challenge) is now open! Share your impressions, frustrations, hates and loves. What crews really stood out? Do you think we'll end up with an amazing winner at the end of Season 4? What do you want to see for Season 5?

After the show is over: Stay and give us your reactions and ideas. It's Labor Day weekend so
stay up late and vent with us!

Live Play-by-Play Blogging for ABDC's Dance Craze Challenge open now!

This is live play-by-play for tonight's America's Best Dance Crew Season 4's Dance Craze Challenge, moderated this week by NancyT. Follow along or keep up with the show if you can't watch it immediately. It's not easy to simultaneously watch the show, write about it, AND monitor the comments, so please leave most of your comments at the Party Room/Critics Corner post above this post!

Preview from the Pressbox: Chris Trondsen on the Dance Craze Challenge

Chris Trondsen watched ABDC 4's Dance Craze Challenge and files this non-spoiler preview. Thanks Chris!

"This was one of the hardest episodes to walk away from. It did not end well. One of the top contenders to become Season 4's America's Best Dance Crew was sent home. It was hard for everyone in the press. You really become friends with these crews. A lot of us really liked this crew and looked forward to interviewing them each week. When it was announced that they were in the bottom 2, everyone area fell silent. The other half of the bottom two was also a surprise to me.

Once again, the battle between the bottom 2 the show stealer. What was absolutely crazy to me is that BEFORE the battle, the audience had already decided which crew they wanted to stay. They were chanting that crews' name when both crews went on stage together. It seemed like -- backstage and in the audience -- everyone had already thrown support behind one crew. Well, all that changed after the two crews performed."

Click here to read the rest of Chris' preview.

Join us tonight for Live Blogging, the Critics Corner/party room, and more!

Ready for the dance craze challenge? Join us tonight! The Party Room (aka Critics Corner) opens at 8:30pm (East Coast time) and stays open until whenever for everyone who wants to comment about ABDC4 Episode 5 (or any other related topic). After the show, let us know what you thought --Did the right crew go home? Are you depressed that both ABDC and summertime are almost over? Sarcasm and emotional outbursts are always welcome!

At 9pm, I'll be doing live play-by-play for those of you on the West Coast or have other reasons you can't or won't watch at that time.
And, early tomorrow morning, please vote in our surveys on the best and worst performances of the evening. And, we'll have recaps, week 6 of our challenges, some backstage videos, etc. Join us!

Exclusive video: Vogue Evolution answers reader questions!

Our interviewers Chris Trondsen and Fanny Pak's Glenda Morales visited with Vogue Evolution before the taping of America's Best Dance Crew week 5. Glenda brings the crew their own fanny paks, but with an assignment. And, the crew answers questions submitted by the site's readers, including information on dealing with the haters, feeling love from fans and ABDC alums, how they got involved in the vogue-ing scene, and much more.

Video: Send us more Reader Questions!

Our interviewers Chris Trondsen and Fanny Pak's Glenda Morales were busy backstage at the Dance Craze challenge taping. They explain this week's highlights: giving Vogue Evolution their Fanny Paks (but with an assignment) and their use of our reader questions.

Thanks to all of you who submitted questions so far. WE WANT EVEN MORE! Leave them in our comments, below. And check out the questions we've used so far in our videos (starting today and being posted over the next few days) and in the podcast with the crew that goes home tonight!

MTV Remote Control: Teasers and love

MTV Remote Control put some weekend material out there to keep your interest up for the Dance Craze Challenge show. My favorites:
Photocredit: MTV

Shane Sparks Interview: who'd win battle -- JabbaWockeez or You Got Served Boys?

Gendance interviewed Shane Sparks on America's Best Dance Crew, why he moved to Los Angeles, advice to aspiring dancers and more. My favorite questions:
  • Who would win a battle -- JabbaWockeez or the boys in You Got Served?
  • Which ABDC crews made a lasting impression on Shane
Photocredit: TV Guide