Fresno, California, 1970s
POPPING
The muscle that snaps in Fresno
Popping was born in Fresno, California, at the very start of the 1970s, driven by Sam "Boogaloo Sam" Solomon and his crew, the Electric Boogaloos. It developed within California's Funk scene, at a distance from the Bronx, which was inventing Breaking at the same time. Its signature: the "hit" — a brutal, brief muscular contraction, timed to a musical accent.
Around this contraction grew cousin, complementary styles: Boogaloo (fluidity, body rolls), Robot dance, Tutting (geometric angles inspired by Egyptian art), Waving (waves running through the body), Slow motion, and Strobing (an illusion of stutter). It is an art of illusion and control.
How it's danced
Technique & figures
Popping is danced standing, to Funk music at around 100-115 BPM. The whole difficulty lies in contracting and releasing instantly, without ever losing the underlying groove. The body works through isolations: a single arm, a pectoral, a knee, a neck.
Styles and fundamentals
The style isn't limited to the "hit": the fundamentals of Popping also include Boogaloo (circular movements of the hips), Waving (waves), Tutting (angles), Robot, Strobing, and Slow motion. Each is a school in its own right, often taught separately before being fused into freestyle.
Main figures
- 01
Hit (pop)
A brutal contraction of a muscle on a musical accent, followed by an immediate release. The founding brick of the style.
- 02
Boogaloo
Circular isolations of the hips, knees, and chest. It's the fluidity that answers the brutality of the hit.
- 03
Waving
A wave that travels through the body from one hand to the other, or from head to feet. A classic illusion of the repertoire.
- 04
Tutting
Sequences of angles with the arms and fingers, inspired by hieroglyphic Egyptian poses.
- 05
Robot
Jerky, mechanical movement, with sharp stops between each position. The aesthetic ancestor of the whole style.
- 06
Strobing
The illusion of movement filmed in stop-motion: the dancer advances through very rapid micro-stops.
Reading the music
Popping is danced to Funk (Zapp & Roger, Dazz Band, Cameo), G-funk, and today to hybrid electronic productions. The moderate tempo allows hits to be placed precisely, between the kick and the snare.
Did you know?
Explore the rhythms
Same family
Clubbing