Popping

Popping is a dance form derived from a grouping of dance forms known as funk styles. It is based on the technique of quickly contracting and relaxing muscles to cause a jerk in the dancer's body known as a pop or a hit. The dance is executed on the beat of the music laying emphasis on the force of music's beat. Popping is commonly performed to funk music as the majority of funk style foundations originally came out of the funk movement of the 1970s.

The Electric Boogaloos, a California based dance crew are commonly credited for contributing to the spread of funk styles including popping into the mainstream. Their appearances on the television series, Soul Train was a driving force for its exposure domestically and eventually worldwide thus leading to its acceptance into many dance scenes including hip hop and electronica.

Popping contains a series of movements and techniques that serve as the foundation for the dance form. Most of these movements and techniques reside within the "kick" or bass drum, and the "clap" or snare drum, encompassing the back beat of the music. Some of these techniques are:

Popping – quickly contracting and relaxing muscles to cause a jerk using mostly the upper body.

Hitting – quickly contracting and relaxing muscles to cause a jerk using both the upper and lower body.

Banging – a more intense version of hitting.

Vibrating Hits/Trembling – a vigorous sequence of quivering hits.

Dimestopping – stopping movement of the body without creating a jerk .

Strobing – a rapid sequence of dimestopping

Ticking – a rapid sequence of hitting or popping.

Airposing – a relaxed movement involving bouncing or sinking into the beat of the music and posing. 

Angles – an awareness of the entire body's ability to create linear forms and patterns in many sequences.

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Also known as

Poppin, Pop, Hitting

Originator:

Boogaloo Sam

Region of origin:

California

Popularized by:

Electric Boogaloos