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‘Hip Hop Is American Culture To Me’: Micheal "Crank" Curry Brings Urban Dance To Southeast Missouri

For parents, helping kids to be as well-rounded as possible is a big priority. One of the more popular avenues to do so is through dance lessons. Ballet, tap dance, and maybe even some jazz. But one teacher in downtown Cape Girardeau is showing kids the ropes to urban dance. I first met Micheal 'Crank' Curry at a farmers’ market while his students were dance battling on a platform. They all had black shirts with golden fingerprint decals on the front, and they are now part of Micheal's newly opened Fingerprint Urban Dance Studio. I sat in on one of their sessions to check it out, and to meet with Micheal and his students on their new turf.

Micheal stood at the front of the room in sweatpants and a t-shirt. Six students, not just yet in their teens, surrounded him. They were all facing a mirror - typical of a dance studio. He was showing them some of the different moves in house-dance.

“So today, we’re going to talk about locking, okay? Yesterday we talked about popping, today we’re going to talk about locking,” said Micheal. “Anybody know what locking is, and how it was created? Tell me Yan - what is ‘locking’?”

“Locking is when you turn your wrists,” said Yan.

Micheal asked Yan where locking came from.

“It came from hip hop, it was just kind of passed down,” Yan replied.

Micheal continued telling his students where ‘locking’ came from. He gave them an in-depth description on the move’s roots in California, when it was created, and why it came about. When he introduced any new move throughout the day, this process would follow.

 

Lindsey: “So what do you consider urban dance?”

Micheal: “Urban dance is any type of dance that is not traditional. So: ballroom, ballet, modern dance. These are all very traditional. But as far as hip hop, it was created from the streets to settle disputes, to celebrate different holidays. I mean, hip hop came from nothing to something really quick. And, like, without the hip hop culture, we wouldn't be where we are in pop or rap. Everything has some aspect of hip hop culture: our clothing, the way we live. I mean, hip hop is American culture to me.”

 

Micheal wasn’t always known as a dancer. He said he’s only been dancing since high school.

“I was a football player, and I used to do it just for fun in my room,” said Michael.

His football career was cut short, though, when he was transitioning to college at Southeast. He was diagnosed with Multiple Sclerosis, which prevented him from playing. Dance then became his outlet to overcome depression.

“It really helped me get through college. And so, that next year, I met a dance teacher from the River Campus who introduced me to classical dance, which is like ballet and modern dance, and jazz, and I really enjoyed it,” explained Michael. “So I switched my major to that.”

During his sophomore year, he met another hip hop dancer, and together they created a dance community called “Fingerprint” for students on campus. The name comes from the idea of individuality in a person’s fingerprint: an idea at the core of Micheal’s teaching. Here, he discovered his love for educating others about urban dance.

“So my main goal was to graduate and open up my own studio to help spread more positivity about the hip hop culture,” said Micheal.

Four years of saving money and many late nights later, he has done just that.

At Micheal’s studio, I met Viper, who also goes by Chris. He’s been taking urban dance for five years, and he’s only eight years old. He divulged a bit of his dance resume: animation, popping, Bboy... the list went on.Chris has his heart set on being a dancer when he grows up, and loves the art due to its ability to impress.

“You know, like, a random move like a six-step, if you do that really nice and clean, everybody would be surprised in a battle,” said Chris.

And, he explained to me one of the general rules of urban dance, complete with tutorial. He first stomped his feet, then slid them across the floor effortlessly.

“You’re not supposed to make sound with your feet because you don't want sound coming out of your feet like this, you want your feet to be quiet like this,” said Chris.

He was right - you couldn’t hear them.

When I asked Micheal if he tries to be a role model for his students, he said he doesn’t. He allows the relationship to happen on its own.

“I don’t try to force relationships with my kids. I treat my kids like I would treat my own kids. I know, growing up my mom and dad, especially my mom, taught me how to be responsible and disciplined. And that’s just very important to me to have that relationship and not force it, because I understand that kids are very, very delicate,” said Micheal. “And it’s the same thing for my parents too, I take pride in having that relationship between the families that come through my studio.”

One saying was repeated throughout his lesson that day. It was “practice makes perfect.” He says he wants his kids to understand more than anything that you don’t get anywhere without hard work.

“Failure is a must to know how to do something perfect, and I’m still not perfect at anything. So we’re all striving to be perfect, but we have to practice at what we are to stay ahead of the game, per se,” said Micheal.

Micheal looks forward to growing their local dance battle event: Battles of Originality. Not only does this event bring in judges from out-of state, but he thinks it’s already expanded the community’s knowledge on different forms of dance, and ways to show individuality.