machine. He encouraged young dancers to believe
in themselves and to persevere in their endeavors.
Following the push that Bambaataa gave to the
street dance form, the mass media introduced break
dancing to the general public in April, 1981. This in-
troduction proved to be a double-edged sword. It
made the movement known nationwide, but it also
marked the decline of its more ritualized, competi-
tive aspects. With the rising demand for break-danc-
ers from MTV and the movie industry, potential fi-
nancial success replaced the original street rivalries
as break-dancers’ primary motivation. They began
to rehearse and hone their skills to be discovered,
rather than to defeat rivals.
Break dancing in the 1980’s was also advanced by
such films asWild Style(1981), which inaugurated a
new style of break dancing that included acrobatics
in the form of head spins, “handglides,” and “wind-
mills.” In addition, the invention of the beat box in
1981 allowed for the sophisticated programming of
beats and rhythms, greatly expanding deejays’ cre-
ative powers. Finally, in 1982 the New York roller-
skating rink the Roxy became a hip-hop center spon-
soring break-dance concerts. This high-profile venue
helped disseminate the dance form throughout and
far beyond New York. By 1983 and 1984, break danc-
ing became a dance craze, spreading to major cities,
dance contests, and music videos. It began to influ-
ence other dance forms. In 1983, many of New
York’s top break-dancers performed for President
Ronald Reagan and many other cultural leaders
during a tribute to anthropological choreographer
Katharine Dunham as part of the annual Kennedy
Center Honors. The event was broadcast nation-
wide. In 1984, break dancing was included as part of
the opening ceremony for the Olympic Games in
Los Angeles.
Gender Issues Break dancing began as a male-
dominated form of expression, and it remained as-
sociated with masculinity for the length of the de-
cade. Masculine solidarity and competition provided
the context of the dance, which often expressed
such stereotypically male traits as aggression. The
nearly exclusive association of the dance form with
young African American male subcultures entailed
the alienation of break-dancers not only from women
but also from mainstream American culture and
from the members of previous generations.
Women break-dancers did exist, but they were rel-
egated to the background of the movement, leaving
the foreground to the male dancers. The dance
form’s origins in mock combat made men reluctant
to engage in dance “battles” with women, while the
need for significant upper-body strength to perform
break-dancing moves favored typical male physiques
over typical female physiques. Despite the masculine
culture of break dancing, however, some women
managed to step to the foreground. For example,
Puerto Rican Daisy Castro, also known as Baby Love,
achieved significant recognition for her dancing—
more than many male break-dancers were comfort-
able with.
Impact Break dancing’s popularity lasted through-
out the decade, thanks to its exposure in commer-The Eighties in America Break dancing 143
A Manhattan break-dancer performs during an October street fair
in 1989.(AP/Wide World Photos)