Drawing Inspiration from Unexpected Places
As a dancer, it's easy to forget that things exist outside of dancing. But every once in a while, someone or something pops up on my radar and changes my entire philosophy of dance and life in an instant.
Here are some prime examples of just such cases. (in no particular order)
Victor Wooten
One of the greatest Electric Bass Players to ever live, not only is his music mind blowing, his philosophy of art is life changing. Check out a little bit of Victor here:
Here are some prime examples of just such cases. (in no particular order)
Victor Wooten
One of the greatest Electric Bass Players to ever live, not only is his music mind blowing, his philosophy of art is life changing. Check out a little bit of Victor here:
How does it Relate to Dance: Simply Put: Dance, like Music, Is a Language. Make mistakes, Jam with Professionals, and speak it every day.
George Watsky
As a young, independent artist, George Watsky certainly has made a name for himself with his low budget, unassuming realistic rapping and poetry. He knows where he comes from (Middle Class America), He accepts who he is (A Nerdy Jewish White kid) and he relishes every moment of it. Originally, I liked this kid because he was clever, funny, and has a profound grasp of words and the way they work. Then I heard him tell the story of how he got into spoken word and it truly resonated with me.
Don't worry, the Video starts at 7:40
As a young, independent artist, George Watsky certainly has made a name for himself with his low budget, unassuming realistic rapping and poetry. He knows where he comes from (Middle Class America), He accepts who he is (A Nerdy Jewish White kid) and he relishes every moment of it. Originally, I liked this kid because he was clever, funny, and has a profound grasp of words and the way they work. Then I heard him tell the story of how he got into spoken word and it truly resonated with me.
Don't worry, the Video starts at 7:40
How Does it Relate to Dance: For me specifically, Lindy Hop is my outlet for my creative energy. As some of you may remember, I used to be a lot more obnoxious than I am now. Part of that was still being 18-22, and part of that is that I didn't understand how to release my energy. Now, I pick my moments more wisely.
"the more I found the spotlight at appropriate times, the less I felt the need to seek the spotlight at innappropriate times"
Secondly: The importance of a good teacher. A great dance teacher won't just teach you how to dance, but will teach you how to be a better person in the dance community. I can't think of a single teacher I know who will purposely steer you wrong, whether it be in life, or in dance.
"the more I found the spotlight at appropriate times, the less I felt the need to seek the spotlight at innappropriate times"
Secondly: The importance of a good teacher. A great dance teacher won't just teach you how to dance, but will teach you how to be a better person in the dance community. I can't think of a single teacher I know who will purposely steer you wrong, whether it be in life, or in dance.
The Vlogbrothers
This is my first outing of such an admission, but I am a nerdfighter. If you don't know what that is, you will soon.
The Vlogbrothers consist of John and Hank Green: two brothers who started a youtube channel together with the idea of communicating for an entire year through making videos to each other. Thus every video begins with "Good Morning, Hank," or "Good Morning, John." But this project grew into so much more. Through their now massive following they organize events like Vidcon (a conference featuring a huge lineup of "famous" youtubers similar to ComicCon), The Project for Awesome (An annual Fundraiser for awesome things like building wells in Africa, Haiti relief funds, etc) and various meetups and conferences throughout the year. Generally, they promote such things as curiosity, being nerdy, having fun, liking tings, and being proud of it.
Oh yeah, DFTBA! (Don't forget to be awesome)
This is my first outing of such an admission, but I am a nerdfighter. If you don't know what that is, you will soon.
The Vlogbrothers consist of John and Hank Green: two brothers who started a youtube channel together with the idea of communicating for an entire year through making videos to each other. Thus every video begins with "Good Morning, Hank," or "Good Morning, John." But this project grew into so much more. Through their now massive following they organize events like Vidcon (a conference featuring a huge lineup of "famous" youtubers similar to ComicCon), The Project for Awesome (An annual Fundraiser for awesome things like building wells in Africa, Haiti relief funds, etc) and various meetups and conferences throughout the year. Generally, they promote such things as curiosity, being nerdy, having fun, liking tings, and being proud of it.
Oh yeah, DFTBA! (Don't forget to be awesome)
How Does this Relate to Dance: Let's be honest here. One of the reasons Lindy Hoppers stay Lindy Hoppers is because you get drawn into the nerdiness. We watch old black and white clips, have in depth discussions about the difference between "ba-doop ba-doop" and "Shoo-ba, Shoobaaah", hunt for "new" songs from 1938, and generally enjoy being around nice people who are proud to like what you like. We really are no different than Comic Book fans, Gamers, Sports Nuts, Civil War Re-enacters, Fantasy Novel readers, or Doctor Who Cosplayers. In fact, many of us cross over into at least one or more of these catagories. *Points to self*
ZeFrank
This is what the internet is for. This is how it should be used. Ze Frank was one of the pioneers of making the internet a real community. The internet gets a lot of crap from people saying "it's not real life." Ze Frank sets out to change that, and its frankly (hehe) really inspiring. Just watch this video, and look at the projects he does. Its really quite wonderful.
If you don't have the time for all 17 minutes, start at 14:25, and just watch from there till he finishes. I swear. Its truly heartwarming.
This is what the internet is for. This is how it should be used. Ze Frank was one of the pioneers of making the internet a real community. The internet gets a lot of crap from people saying "it's not real life." Ze Frank sets out to change that, and its frankly (hehe) really inspiring. Just watch this video, and look at the projects he does. Its really quite wonderful.
If you don't have the time for all 17 minutes, start at 14:25, and just watch from there till he finishes. I swear. Its truly heartwarming.
How Does This Relate to Dance: With the growing online presence of Lindy Hop Blogs, Vlogs, Tumblrs, and more, lindy is as much a social network as a dance nowadays. Things likeand #LindyHopProblems are letting a global communities lament that they won't be at ILHC (sorry guys) or that floors never seem to really agree with what shoes you are wearing. Jerry Almonte's FB page (Wandering and Pondering) is the youtube pulse of Lindy Hop. You want to see what people are talking about, or the newest hottest routine or competition? Go to his page.
But it's starting to go even further. With the recent surge of "trash talk" videos from cities around the world prepping for ILHC, and the ongoing (and ever growing) iCharleston project the Lindy Hop Community is growing more and more global every day. Who ever thought that I would have friends I have never met in Lithuania, Korea, France, Argentina, Canada and the US, just because I dance and have FB. I love our online Lindy Hop Community, and I hope it continues to grow and maybe one day we can have HopCon: An event for bloggers, Vloggers, and more in the Lindy Hop Community.
But it's starting to go even further. With the recent surge of "trash talk" videos from cities around the world prepping for ILHC, and the ongoing (and ever growing) iCharleston project the Lindy Hop Community is growing more and more global every day. Who ever thought that I would have friends I have never met in Lithuania, Korea, France, Argentina, Canada and the US, just because I dance and have FB. I love our online Lindy Hop Community, and I hope it continues to grow and maybe one day we can have HopCon: An event for bloggers, Vloggers, and more in the Lindy Hop Community.
So there you have it, 4 ways that Lindy Hop can learn from other Media. THanks to TED talks for providing 3/4 videos for this post (John Green has a wicked good TED talk too, but it wasn't right for this post. I'll provide links to each of the individual artists in the dooblydoo (down below)
What inspires you? What makes you want to do more for your community? I would love to hear!
Jon
PS Who wants to Lindy Bomb VidCon Next year (Ze Frank, Vlogbrothers, and Watsky were all there this year)
George Watsky
http://www.youtube.com/user/gwatsky
Victor Wooten
http://www.victorwooten.com/
The VlogBrothers
http://www.youtube.com/user/vlogbrothers
Ze Frank
http://www.zefrank.com/
What inspires you? What makes you want to do more for your community? I would love to hear!
Jon
PS Who wants to Lindy Bomb VidCon Next year (Ze Frank, Vlogbrothers, and Watsky were all there this year)
George Watsky
http://www.youtube.com/user/gwatsky
Victor Wooten
http://www.victorwooten.com/
The VlogBrothers
http://www.youtube.com/user/vlogbrothers
Ze Frank
http://www.zefrank.com/
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