Street dancers turn on the style

Fan base gained

Xia Rui, 37, who was introduced to hip-hop culture as a freshman at Communication University of China in Beijing in 2002, said, "Street dance is blooming in China because the younger generation is eager to express itself." Xia fell for street dance after watching music videos of Michael Jackson and Madonna.

He said that in 2002 few people knew what street dancing was. Xia founded a hip-hop dance community at the university the following year and soon gained a fan base at the school, with nearly 1,000 students joining the group.

"Our teachers and parents considered it a bad influence then. But street dance, which is about skill, creativity and displaying individuality, quickly gained popularity on campus," he said.

"Now, there is a vibrant and fast-developing street dancing scene in China. Like any contemporary art form, street dancing is about using art as a platform for our voices to be heard."

In 2013, the China Hip-Hop Union Committee was founded by the Chinese Dancers Association, and Xia was named its deputy director.

To celebrate Youth Day in China, which falls on May 4, Xia is working on a one-day street dance event by organizing flash mobs in 100 cities.

He said hip-hop dance teaching materials were published by the China Federation of Literary and Art Circles Publishing House in 2015.

Xia, who was born in Xi'an, Shaanxi province, and graduated from CUC with a major in TV and movie directing in 2006, studied for his master's at the university in 2011 and worked at China Central Television before devoting himself to promoting street dance in 2013.

Feng Shuangbai, president of the Chinese Dancers Association, said street dance is no longer just for the few, as witnessed over the past decade.

"It's a culture embraced by young people. Street dance performances on television shows and in movies have helped the form to spread quickly in China," Feng said.