But what about the regular Joes -- the fans like you and us -- who have also been extremely affected by his passing? How will we celebrate his life and remember his legacy? We couldn't think of anyone better to answer that question than some of the members of America's Best Dance Crews from seasons past. First up: Supreme Soul's Bionic.
"Michael's effect [on the music industry] has been historical. He is a pop icon and paved the way for many pop artists. If it wasn't for Michael, dance, pop music and performance would be so much less extraordinary.
Michael gave a new feeling to performance and dance. He chose the best dancers to represent alongside him. I remember as a kid wanting to be one of those dancers. My teachers (The ELECTRIC BOOGALOOS) were his teachers, and it's an honor to say I got the same popping training that he did. All I ever wanted to do is be a great performer like him.
Michael made his performances EPIC. He would outdo anyone on the performance tip. His music was high energy and expressed pure emotion. When you danced, you felt what he was singing about.
I remember hearing "Beat It" for the first time ... That was the song. Watching all the poppers in it was crazy.
The reason why Michael was a POP ICON is because he hit the masses. He was on a GLOBAL SCALE. That's pure artistry... He transcended barriers."
Jonathan "BIONIC" Bayani
SUPREME SOUL ABDC Season 2
With only three crews left in the game, ABDC's challenges are about to get a lot harder -- if you can believe it! In fact, next week each crew will have to perform in two different challenges. One of them, the Hip-Hop "Decathlon", will test the remaining crews' raw skill level, as they'll have to incorporate five different dance styles into one routine. And who better to demonstrate these fives styles than ABDC's own graduates? Behold, the professors of dance:
HOUSING - Taeko (Fysh n Chicks)
TUTTING - Mike (Kaba Modern)
THREADING - Ronnie B. (Super Cr3w)
WAVING -KB aka Kevin (JabbaWockeeZ)
KRUMPING - Frost (Supreme Soul)
This week Bboy Kool Raul came back down to LA from the Bay Area to bring us all the backstage action before tonight's episode of ABDC! Watch the video to find out which crew rubbed him the wrong way during interview time...
When we caught up with Lil Mama at last night's Dance Crew taping, she had more than a mouthful to say about her new music video for "Truly in Love" -- especially because it features Season 2's Fanny Pak!
Lil Mama had promised the group a featured spot way back when. "I wanted to keep my word to them," she told us. "When I say I'm gonna do something, I do it."
In the vid, you can also spot Frost and George of Supreme Soul making a cameo behind the Matt Cady-choreographed routine. Something tells me it's only a matter of time before Ringmasters appear in one of Mama's music videos...
We're pulling in all kinds of talent from Season 2 to help us out with the blog! B-boy Kool Raul (Supreme Soul) flew down from the Bay Area this week to help us capture an inside look at what the crews are up to mere hours before the show tapes:
They say great minds think alike, and this morning the likes of Matt Cady from Fanny Pak and Christopher "Pharside" Jennings of Supreme Soul bumped noggins while coming up with choreography for their West Coast dance routine. I don't want to give too much away, but I'll say this: in the opening, more than one dancer has their feet off the ground!
RJ Navalta aka Kool Raul of Supreme Soul talked my ear off about how stoked he is to dance with Super Cr3w and Fanny Pak during Thursday night's finale. He also knelt down before me to say a quick prayer that his crew will be chosen as part of ABDC's summer tour. And then I reminded him that a) I'm not God, and b) praying didn't save his crew the last time. Kidding!
Good thing the boys from Supreme Soul are done "taking a break from each other." Because last week, they were all flown into the Big Apple for an appearance on the ABDC countdown show. Mitch and Frost had never been to NYC before, so they did what any other tourist would do: they grabbed their cameras and headed straight for the neon lights of Times Square.
Of course, they also found time to hang with the locals.
"While we were in New York," says RJ, "We also went to the Teen Choice Awards and got to perform on stage behind Lil Mama, which was a trip!" Turns out Lil Mama asked the guys if they'd accompany her on stage and (naturally) they jumped at the chance.
Yeah, something tells me that's one invitation the Boogie Bots won't be getting anytime soon...
Calm down, people. This isn't a leak of an early departure by the Pak, but rather the Pak 'waving' goodbye to CJ, aka Pharside, of Supreme Soul. Meg told us that they incorporated a funny-looking gesture into this week's act in honor of Pharside, who took heat for waving to Tiffani from the stage in a less-than-manly manner during their Janet Jackson opening number rehearsal.
It's been a week since Supreme Soul left Stage 23 for good -- or until the show finale, at least -- and the guys are all back in San Francisco doing their thing... alone. RJ told me last night over the phone, "We're all just taking a break from each other right now," but he wants to make it clear that they aren't breaking up as a group.
When asked about his ABDC experience in its entirety RJ said, "At one point it wasn't even about winning the competition because we walked in with a handicap after already battling Jabba... the highlight of our time on the show was that we did everything from the heart." RJ warns that when they're back for the show finale, they plan on "making a lot of noise!" If you want to hear more from RJ and the other SS boys, tune into MTV this Thursday at 8:30pm to catch them on the ABDC pre-show.
ABDC fans aren't the only ones who were perplexed by Thursday night's bottom two. The remaining crews have been sporting Supreme Soul gear in reaction ever since -- well, up until this afternoon, when one of the ABDC producers came into the rehearsal holding room and announced they needed to take all the SS stuff off. It just wouldn't look right in next week's packages!
So don't expect to see everyone in these shirts next week -- but you will spot a bunch of 'em turned inside out!
