Outside the Lyrics

Krump is healing.

Krump is nurturing to the soul.

It is a culture and a dance that allows you to be artistically expressive with no boundaries, and I love it.

Hip-hop is more than lyrics and dope beats.

It's the expression of the dreams and aspirations of p We've often heard from the musicians and producers who have helped sh we're talking to some of the artists who have turned into the global culture we know today.

I#m hanging out with hip-hop a.k.a.

Miss Prissy, the Queen of Krump.

Krump is one of the most influential hip- from South Central Los Angeles.

It started out with a f including Miss Prissy, dancing and expe in the streets, who've come to change how we m [music] Krump is a West Coast dance style that emerged in the late 1990 It was originally performed in dance battles and parking lots, and then grew to the stage with major musical acts.

Today, you can find Krump everywhere.

Walk into a dance studio at Loyola Marymount University and you'll discover that your professor is one of the founders of Krump.

Marquisa, I know who you are.

To me, you're Prissy, Miss Prissy, the queen -[chuckles] -Can you tell us who you are?

My real name, Marquisa Gardner, and I am also one out of five creators of the style and culture called Krump.

Krump was built off of aggression and trauma, just being underprivileged, not having access to certain things, and you're tired of fighting with your fist, so you transition that energy into dance.

With fast, rapid motions, and convulsive movement, Krump is raw, expressive, and thrives on improvisation.

Krump's roots are in "Clowning," a street dance style developed by Tommy the Clown.

Tommy made himself a local legend and original hip-hop dance moves into his clown performances at birthday parties.

By adding more performer Tommy discovered clowning as a positive creati for young people.

By sheer luck, an audition I remember 1999, right after I graduated high school, I land on Manchester and Western at a motorcycle club and I'm like, "Holy crap, what am I doing?"

I hear loud music.

The BPM was so fast and we walk in, and it's super hot, super sweaty.

The walls were wet because of the amount of This lady just blows a whistle and goes, "Are you here to audition?"

I'm just like, "Oh, no."

Now I'm introduced to clown dancing.

Clown dancing is huge in LA street dance culture.

I didn't know what the heck I was doing.

Ballet didn't work out.

Dance is dances is dance i Voila, here I am auditioning, and guess who I'm battling?

Tight Eyez.

What are the chances?

Miss Prissy and four other dancers from Tommy's crew laid the This included Ceasare "Tight Eyez" Willis, Christopher "Lil' C" Toller, Jason "Dragon" Green, and Jo'Artis "Big Mijo" Ratti.

What are some of Krump's foundational moves?

What distinguishes it in comparison to other styles that are associated with hip-hop dance?

Just like ballet has The biggest fundamental in Krump is your chest pop.

The way I like to teach this to my class is to treat it like when you go to a restaurant, what is the first thing that you order?

An appetizer.

Boom.

Your appetizer in Krump is the way you get yourself ready to approach the round.

That's maybe grabbing your jacket, brushing your hair, touching yourself, looking at the crowd.

That's your appe Then you move into ordering your main course.

What's always on a main course?

The protein.

The prot The chest pop.

If there is no You can throw your arms, you can stomp, but if that heart is not pumping, if that's not moving, it Then you have your sides, right?

Rice.

Everyone loves rice.

Rice is equivalent to arm swings.

Boom, bow, which is a jab or arms being thrown up, or grabbing over to the side.

Those are your communication tools.

Usually people that have done Krump for this is almost like sign language.

You start to realize like, on the way that they use their hands while they're dancing."

Then you have your vegetable on the plate, which is your st This keeps you syncopated to the music.

As long as you have those things, everything else is No, a hat trick is not a part of Krump, but it can be if you include it into your free Me dropping into the splits, no, that is not a part of Krump, but it is now my signature.

I fine-tuned it into the movement.

Krump is part of hip-hop's long tradition of dance.

In the 1970s, young Black and Brown DJs and MCs organized parties that brought neighborhoods together Everyone gathered to show off their moves at community centers, park jams, and school gymnasiums.

Influenced by a wide array of dance styles, breaking helped young people gain recognition within and gave them a safe space for creative expression.

Breakers formed dance crews that performed and battled against one another for street cred and neighborhood bragging righ More importantly, dance provided Alongside breaking, other hip-hop dance styles like popping and locking became popular.

Movies like Breakin' and Krush Groove introduced wider audiences to hip-hop d Similarly, many people were i via David LaChapelle's documentary Rize.

The film followed Krump's early days, and it helped launch Miss Prissy as a recognized dancer and choreographer, touring with Snoop Dogg and Madonna.

Can you talk about that period of transition when Krump went from being something that you all in South Central LA to it then being circulated throughout the world on screens and music videos?

It was very rough.

A lot of our bonds were broken Fo r many of us that blossomed from that film, it's like the gunshot when Rize came out and a lot of us took off and some stayed in the blocks.

That caused a divide, a serious one, to where you had pop culture Krump and then underground culture The motivation behind it was the lack of being able to cross over to pop culture.

Dancers bring their everyday struggles and the inequalities and injustic and they funnel that energy into their dance.

I remember there was a time in my life where I was going through some serious trauma, and I would dive deep into the session.

I would hit 12 rounds back to back.

"Prissy, are you all right?"

"Yes, I'm all right."

When I leave, I'm all right.

When I got there, I was troubled, but I danced until the pain went away.

I danced until I could get those thoughts out of my mind.

I think it's great for mental health.

I want to clean up starting with doing bills paid.

-Trumpet is going off.

-When did you decide to really prioritize not only performing Krum With that being said, let's get back at it.

Here at LMU, I have implemented Krump to where it is a prerequisite to get your degree in dance.

Every one of my students, I want them to leave with the sense o If you don't walk out of this class being an amazing dancer, okay, so what?

What about your mindset?

Do you now believe in yourself?

Do you now feel like you have the will Because if you don't, then that's where I fail That's just like my main push in my class with my Give it your all, all the time.

[music] It's a sanctuary for us.

I feel like dancing da ncing with Miss Prissy, it really feels and it's a space to mess up, it's a space to look crazy but at the end of the day, we're all supporting each other.

It's really an outlet for my emotions.

I think I was really hesitant at first because it looks like it takes so much energy and you can see the passion that people ca and how it's really linked off of people's experiences.

I was worried that if I didn't have those same experiences, I wouldn't be able I feel like there's no better person to learn how to execute it from.

I know when I'm not looking right, someone who actually is a founder who knows what they're talking about is going to check me.

Krump's impact can be felt everywhere, from the club to the stage, and its succ speaks to its power as a medium for healing and self-expression.

Hope you like this episode of Outside the Lyrics, where we're looking at hip-hop's i Make sure to check out our next episode where most iconic photographers right here on PBS Voices.