the difference in battles now compared to bak in da 90s and early 2000s

[MarkusMeatvest]

For those saying that there is less creativity, less motivation, less rawness...
Your looking in the wrong places, get off youtube and go to a cypher, go travel, see first-hand the bboys who aren't exposing themselves for the sake of becoming famous, those who are refining their craft in the lab. Alot of people don't want to expose themselves to the world and prefer to show themselves strategically (this is more important these days than ever, since over-exposure can damage your image and make you look played out unless you are constantly refining yourself which not everyone can do, ever notice how some people escape the lime-light and come back fresher than ever, it's so easy to be seen EVERYWHERE these days). I can tell you honestly theres as much creativity out there right now as there ever has been you just have to look for it, or become a part of it.

[nyc gravity 5cd]

yo man that is the dopest thing ive read on this thread and i went to a jam last night and was shocked when i stood in da cyfer the hole night i used to do that but when i started entering i started to realize ppl werent suprised at wat i did cause they saw it in the cyfer but since ive been in the lab alot i have a lot of new things and i can have the best of both worlds (the cyfer and the fame ) in my opinion but when i say fame i mean being able to b recorded and seen .............which really helps on exposure i dont wanna b so underground that i dont get to travel and stay in one part of the country nd just b the infamous gravity feel me but i have alot to learn ive only been dancing for 5 years and been battleing for 3

[mikeyice]

Originally Posted by MarkusMeatvest

For those saying that there is less creativity, less motivation, less rawness...
Your looking in the wrong places, get off youtube and go to a cypher, go travel, see first-hand the bboys who aren't exposing themselves for the sake of becoming famous, those who are refining their craft in the lab. Alot of people don't want to expose themselves to the world and prefer to show themselves strategically (this is more important these days than ever, since over-exposure can damage your image and make you look played out unless you are constantly refining yourself which not everyone can do, ever notice how some people escape the lime-light and come back fresher than ever, it's so easy to be seen EVERYWHERE these days). I can tell you honestly theres as much creativity out there right now as there ever has been you just have to look for it, or become a part of it.

i am gonna have to agree with you on this too i think to much over exposer will kill your image
and i belive in these's days and times there alot creativity out there. i seen the cyphers kids are
crazy trying all kinds of crazy footworks it's out there for sure good post.

[braingredientz]

Originally Posted by Dean

and at the same time... not every 90's hip hop song is good to battle to. some of them are the slowest, no energy songs.

You gotta find balance, but honestly most of the time, the original beat that (insert random 90's hip hop song) uses is usually better or there's more possibility for a DJ to get creative with it, it's just on that DJ to be creative, and on the bboys to take a stance against wack DJs playing slow, boring, repetitive, no energy songs.

Get quality, educated DJs in the scene and the scene gets better.

Nowadays DJs need to realize some songs you play for battles and some songs you save for cyphers! Some songs you might just throw on a mixtape and be done with it... a lot of people are gettin it twisted nowadays that just because a song has a break its golden to play in a battle! Definitely not the case! What you play has to carry as much feeling as the bboys/bgirls gettin down to it!!!

B Ryan
Little Green Apples

[erwin123]

Originally Posted by braingredientz

Nowadays DJs need to realize some songs you play for battles and some songs you save for cyphers! Some songs you might just throw on a mixtape and be done with it... a lot of people are gettin it twisted nowadays that just because a song has a break its golden to play in a battle! Definitely not the case! What you play has to carry as much feeling as the bboys/bgirls gettin down to it!!!

B Ryan
Little Green Apples

well said

[BboyRebornMA]

Originally Posted by erwin123

well said

yeah DJ Lacy ( RIP) said one time he play for the BBOY to bring the bboy out of you, not just him self as a DJ..watch i am going to find that clip.. so cats can see what i am talking about...it better that way.. but for real i dont like some of these new beats that cat are playing at jam or hear...it dope that they are DJ and love doing what dj do but the breaks don't sound right....and cats forget about all the old shit to..MIX THAT ISH WITH THE NEW DJs... Stop play one love

[B-BOY SKILLZ]

i jusz hit da bboying scene about two yearsz ago soo i wuldnt really noe how raw it really used to be but the last time ive seen some true rawness wasz kingsz of New York 4 if i am wrong plsz correct me ... but since den i havent seen shit worth watching except for outta state battlesz if we get dat crazy rawness again we culd blow up with da quickness i want pplsz worldwide to say they cnt fuck with NYC the rawness is too much to handle ... idk if im off topic or not but i jusz thought i shuld let pplsz noe my p.o.v peace NYC

[Ritsoku Fushi]

Just on the point of rawness, the rawest jam I've ever been to was Bboy massacre 2. They threw that $#!+ at the sugar factory. It was bananas. Crowded as f'ck cyphers everywhere. people were more concerned about the cyphers than the official battle.

On the topic of underground vs "overground" as my boy puts it. I think it's a decision. Sometimes I want to be on the big stage in those battles etc...but it's where you want to be and what you want to do. I see where you're coming from gravity about wanting to be able to travel and whatnot and that's dope. For me I've been giving the gift to travel anyways and see different people and different things, but what impressed me the most was always to go in a random jam or nightclub and see some older dude standing up then all of a sudden jump in and rip it. And I've never see this guy before anywhere and may never see him again. I want to be that for somebody else to inspire them maybe to become famous and travel.

But you gotta respect that low key nature and keep it in your mentality all the time, that way when you attack you will in fact have a rawness to you. Rawness I believe is also a don't give a f'ck attitude. Not the don't give a f'ck that you see some newbies throwing out now expecting to get props cause they can do a 6 step and a chair freeze and toprock semi on beat now. But the rawness that comes from the fact that regardless of your opponent, you know yourself and where you stand. You have confidence in yourself and faith so it doesn't matter who or what they throw at you.

The way how most jams are set up today it's not easy to pull out that feeling out of the bboy.

[steven5creww]

i say then start calling people out...the more people u call out the more other people would want to do the same...theres one way to bring the rawness back...that one thing i fell in love with to...cyphering and cypher battles...nothing can compare to it...there does tend to be a lack of cyphers in most bboy jams...thats cuz every1 is too worried about the competition

[Ritsoku Fushi]

Well just some more food for thought. Remember when Ken Swift had the Brooklyn sole lounge practice sessions back around 2005 ish? He used to get down at the beginning of practice then teach some of the students when the other bboys would come around to session. He'd also just chill on a couch and drop knowledge sometimes. A lotta things bboys say stick with me and this was one of them.

He was like there are still cats up there in the bronx that are ill as f'ck you gotta go find them. They're so ill that they don't give a $#!+ about what's going on around them in the bboying world (bboying matrix I'd like to call it) cause they know they're ill.

Myth or reality, I'd like to believe that goes for almost everywhere. There are cats out there who don't care about and choose not to care about what's going on now cause they know in themselves that they're holding it down.

[Copper]

Originally Posted by xeverex18

If you have the mind set to have stlye like born n casper, you will end up with originality in the end.
If you have the mind set to be power heavy like Kaku and KYS, you will end up with originality in the end also.

no u wont, then ull just have ur mind set to have style or power that someone else alrdy has
to b original u havta look at every other bboy, and do wat theyre not doin

[yoman]

Originally Posted by Copper

no u wont, then ull just have ur mind set to have style or power that someone else alrdy has
to b original u havta look at every other bboy, and do wat theyre not doin

FAIL.

Originality doesn't have to be what others are not doing, but how different you could make the same shyt look. For instance, you and I can do a six step and flare, but for some reason because of the way I position myself, control of temp, and approach.... it could make mines look so much more original than yours. Originality is just that... you KNOW its KYS when he does his power and you KNOW who MEGUS is when you see his footwork even when most kids try to copy there shyt.