Just recently, someone contacted me, asking me if I had this old 2013 blog from on file since the R16 website has been down and this blog has now been erased. So i went through my old hard drive to see if I could find it and viola!  So here I am reposting this blog since re-reading it and realizing that it still relevant today. So without further ado, here it is!

Why B-Boying was better back in the days

By Dyzee – Supernaturalz / R16 / O.U.R. B-Boys

Now I know that the title of this blog may offend some people. Many times we hear of OG B-Boys ranting that “Breakin” was better back in the days. Now of course there are plenty of things that are better now than before, such as:

1. The ability to make money from Breakin through Judging and Workshops
2. Big events that unite Bboys from different places around the world
3. More events worldwide to compete at and provide competitive inspiration
4. More access to B-Boying through the internet which helps to grow the international community
5. A bigger fan based audience for B-Boying

Now just to make things clear, I am in no way saying that B-Boying should go backwards to the way it was back then. Large events and competitions are vital to the community’s sustainability. What I, and many other older generation B-Boys are saying is… that there are many things from the past, which are missing from B-Boying today, and those very things are greatly missed by us, and may one day be regretfully lost, which will change the essence of B-Boying forever.

Here is a general list of reasons why B-boying was better back then in the 90’s and early 2000’s.

1. There was less politics
2. There was more of a Freedom to Break the way you wanted to.
3. Real Cyphers existed
4. Competitions were a lot more like Cyphers
5. Battles were more like a raw street fight, less like an art show
6. There was more loyalty, friendships and relationships.
7. Being a Bad Boy was just simply more fun

#1 Less Politics:

Back in those days, it was generally accepted that there’s no money in Breakin. People did it just for the love. So the average career span of a B-Boy was about 2 years, basically until they went to college, found a girlfriend, a job, another hobby, or hit life responsibilities. It wasn’t until the mid 2000’s that more competitions began popping up all over the place, and through these competitions, there was a need for Judges. People soon realized that one could make money from being a judge. Finally there was a way for B-Boys to make money from Breakin… and thus began an era where all B-Boys began to fight and push their own perspectives as the correct way to Break, in order to secure work through Judging gigs. The politics and quest for power created all the divisions within the scene, and no longer were beefs being settled by the awesome tradition of battling, but were done by slander and sabotage. Today the politics in B-Boying has risen to whole new levels, but is now being done in secret. Unless you were Breakin back in those days before the politics, you wouldn’t be able to understand how the politics of today, made breakin back in the day that much better. These politics greatly affected the outcome of the scene and the way people break, which brings us to the next point….

#2 There was more of a freedom to Break the way you wanted to:

Back in the days, there was no right or wrong way to break. You would know if your style is legit or not when you put it to the ultimate test… in the circle! There was nobody to tell you what to do, or how to express yourself. You would know if you are wack or legit after any battle in the circle. You felt it when you lost and knew if you won. Sometimes both sides thought they won, but the long grueling battle would create respect for one another. Nowadays, many B-Boys are looking to the judges for validation, instead of looking into their own hearts and being true to themselves.  I can’t really blame them, because for the past 6-7 years, there were no benefits for being different, especially in competitions.

Back in those days, EVERYONE DID WHAT THEY WANTED TO, and at the same time, they were open to trying everything. If someone who did only power battled someone who did only footwork, they both would walk away confident in what they won in, and they knew what they needed to work on for the future.  Nowadays, we have judges who are telling the new generation how to break, each of these judges saying different things, no wonder B-Boys are so confused how to break. The legends of the 90’s, 80’s and 70’s never needed workshops; all they needed was the circle, because the circle was the ultimate teacher. No wonder there are so many B-Boys today who claim that cyphers are better. People today though get it twisted, they look at cyphers like it’s a requirement for  validation by the community, where it is actually supposed to be a validation tool for one’s own personal use, which leads me to the next reason why B-Boying was better back then.

#3 Real Cyphers Existed:

Nowadays, many B-Boys are dancing in circles and cyphers as if they are in a competition being judged to see if they can be validated as a “real B-Boy”.  No longer are people vibing in the circle by sharing all types of ideas and concepts.  Back in the days, a circle was like an intense conversation or debate, each person is sharing their approach, style and moves. When someone sees a similar approach, style or move, they add into the conversation with their upgraded versions. This exchange was continued until the circle has “deciphered” who is the “one”.  Now through these cyphers, everyone in the circle would begin to know exactly who is:

1. The best two in the circle
2. Which B-Boys should be paired up to battle against each other based on similar styles or moves
3. If people had beef

Naturally, the best two in the circle, and/or any specific or similar approaches or styles would end up battling, “naturally” and unforced.

Today, B-Boys are just “dancing” in the circles as if they are alone in a studio, or being judged on a showcase run. What’s the point of dancing with other people if you’re not “communicating”? Now I’m not saying that real cyphers don’t exist anymore what so ever, but it’s a lot rarer these days. Even many so called “cypher B-Boys” aren’t really “de-cyphering” anything in the circles. This is a lot different to how things were back in the days, when all B-Boys who cyphered, just naturally knew what to do. This brings me to the next topic…

#4 Competitions were a lot more like cyphers

Back in the late 90’s and early 2000’s, competitions were a lot more like cypher battles. The B-Boys didn’t care about judges, cash prizes, fame, politics or anything except… 1-upping their opponents. Judges weren’t there because of personal opinion or subjective tastes; they weren’t there to be kings sitting on a chair, deciding the gladiator’s fates. They were there to be honest and truthful servants to the competitors. After a battle, the B-Boys would be like, “Dayum we smoked them fools, right?!”  as they would look at the judges to agree.  To plainly put it, the judges were there for the B-Boys, not the other way around.

Today, judges are the kings of the competition. They decide the B-Boys fates. A B-Boy can technically do everything right and still lose, likewise a B-Boy can do everything wrong and still win. Judges base their decision based on politics and personal bias.

Competitions are a lot different today in the sense how people battle. Back in the days, people battled like how they did in the cyphers, it was all about the conversation, how someone could 1-Up the opponent.  This is where the term “getting served” came from. It meant, to do something that the other person can’t comeback to. Since the unofficial implementation of the whole “Round for Round” judging, it completely changed the way the entire scene approaches battles. From being short, 1-upping straight to the point sets, to now, long ass rounds filled with generic fluff to “try and win rounds”, this brings me to the next point…

#5 Battles were more like raw street fights and less like an art show:

Back in the days, the energy of the crowd was way better, not just because breakin was relatively fresh, but because they already knew how to properly approach and enjoy a battle. They approached it as one enjoys a boxing match or a street fight, not like a competitive art show.  This is probably due to the way that the B-Boys “used to” battle. Back in the days, if the other crew sent in a person who had dope toprocks, you would send in your member with the best toprocks. If the other crew sent in a person who did flares, you would send someone who does better flares. They would respond with someone who 1-ups it, and you would respond doing the same. The conversation and build-up of the battle would cause the energy of the crowd to explode.

Nowadays, there practically is no more conversation in a competition. Round for Round judging killed the true essence of a battle. B-Boys in their very nature, adapted to this mentality of judging by no longer focusing on the opponent, but focusing on ticking boxes, trying to cover everything so that the judges can give them a “point” for winning a “round”.  No wonder B-Boys don’t want to go first in a battle anymore! Back in the days, B-Boys couldn’t wait to get in there to “serve” their enemies.  But nowadays, if you want to win the competition, you need to follow the unwritten rules and adhere to the politics. No wonder B-Boys today are all making “associations” and “clubs” based on politics and personal tastes instead of real homegrown crews, which brings me to my second last point…

1st – 3rd generation Supernaturalz

#6 There was more loyalty, friendships and real relationships:

Back in the days, you got down with a crew based on:

1. Your geographical location (where you ‘re from)
2. Friendships outside of breakin
3. Your first crew of friends quit breakin so you joined a more serious crew.

Crews were created a lot more through actual friendships. Each crew had different minded people in the crew, usually from different backgrounds. The skill level in the crews often varied, some were a lot better or serious than the others. But in the end, it didn’t matter; they all had each other’s backs.

1st – 5th Generation

Nowadays, B-Boys come together and make clubs or associations based on:

1. Politics
2. Same political tastes or preferences (Foundation B-Boys, Originality B-Boys, Powermove B-Boys)
3. Money (winning battles, sponsors, etc)

Today, B-Boys approach being in a crew like Sports teams, people joining and leaving, coming and going like revolving doors in a cheap hotel. Back in the days, when you got down with a crew, it usually wasn’t because of your skills, it’s because you had the passion to break, you were cool, showed potential and your crew became your family. You never got kicked out of your crew, even if you were wack. This brotherhood and loyalty caused members to have this pride to back up their crew, or train to get better in order to represent the crew properly.  These were the days, when there was true unity in Breakin. Crews consisted of all skill levels, and all styles, (Footworkers, Powermovers, Abstract style, Freezes…. Even Poppers!) Everybody in the crew had a job or role. These relationships and mechanics of what it meant to be in a crew, and what was experienced together, leads me to my last and final point…

#7 Being a Bad Boy was simply more fun:

I purposely wrote Bad Boy (“Bad” was the original word that represented the letter “B “) because that was what we were, Bad Boys. What bad boys used to do, was cause trouble, hang out with the boys, go to parties, and sometimes get in brawls, rumbles and street fights. Even after getting beaten up, the boys stuck together and either won together or lost together. Either way, it was all for fun! This was the result of complete boredom and the lack of alternative things to do. Similarly, this is how the B-boys used to role, except rumbles, brawls and street fights were “sometimes” replaced with battles. Reputations were earned and legends were made, but the bonds and memories would last a lifetime.

Nowadays, due to the list above of politics, lack of freedom, real cyphers and crew loyalty, B-Boying has become something a lot different than what it was before.  Of course there are benefits in this generation such as the opportunity to making a living from B-Boying, huge competitions and the growth of B-Boying all over the world, it balances out the latter. However my point is that there is still something missing. I do not wish that B-Boying will go back to how it was, but I do wish that we can take what we had back then and incorporate it in the future.

This is the reason why I’ve been painstakingly pushing so hard with the O.U.R. System, because I am trying to fix all the problems I listed above in this blog, such as politics, lack of freedom to dance how wants to, 1 upping each other in battles. I’m not trying to change B-Boying into something different, but ironically, I’m trying to get it back to the way it used to be, when it was better, like back in the days.

END

Dyzee (Supernaturalz, R16, O.U.R. B-Boys)

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