PARIS — From the Australian b-girl with the meme-worthy “kangaroo” dance move to the silver medal-winning Lithuanian in a durag, Breaking’s Olympic debut had a few moments that raised questions among viewers about whether it captured the essence of the hip-hop art form during the Paris Games.
Rachael Gunn, or “b-girl Raygun,” a 36-year-old professor from Sydney, Australia, quickly rose to internet fame, but not necessarily for her Olympic-level skills. While competing against a number of b-girls half her age, she was wiped out of the round-robin stage without earning a single point, and her unconventional moves fell flat while she couldn’t match her enemies’ skill level could match.
At one point, Gunn raised one leg while standing and leaned back with her arms bent toward her ears. On another occasion, while lying on her side, she reached for her toes, turned over and did it again in a move called “the kangaroo.”
Gunn has a Ph.D. in cultural studies, and her LinkedIn page states that she is “interested in the cultural politics of breaking.”
“I was never going to beat these girls on what they do best: their power moves,” Gunn said. “What I bring is creativity.”
Clips of her routine have gone viral on TikTok and elsewhere, with many cringing at her moves on the Olympic stage as a representation of hip-hop and breaking culture.
“It’s almost like they’re mocking the genre,” one user wrote on X.
Many black viewers in particular called out Lithuanian silver medalist b-girl Nicka (legally named Dominika Banevič) for wearing a durag during each of her fights. Once worn by enslaved Africans to tie up their hair for work, durags are still worn by black people to protect and style their hair. They became a fashionable symbol of black pride in the 1960s and 1970s and also became a popular part of hip hop style in the 1990s and early 2000s. But when durags are worn by people who are not black, they can be seen as cultural appropriation. Banevič is white.
Actor Kevin Fredericks responded on Instagram when Banevič wore the headpiece by saying it seemed “weird to see someone who doesn’t need it for protective style or waves to rock the durag.”
The 17-year-old breaker ultimately won the silver medal after losing to Japanese b-girl Ami (Ami Yuasa) in the final.
For her part, Banevič has credited the breakers of the 1970s in the Bronx – the OGs – or “original gangsters” in hip-hop who created the dance – for her own success and breaking style.
“It’s a huge responsibility to raise the bar for breaking every time because they’ve done a great job. Big respect for the OGs and the pioneers who invented all those moves. Without them it wouldn’t be possible,” she said. “Without them, breaking wouldn’t be where it is today. So I am grateful to them.”
The challenge for Olympic organizers was to bring breaking and hip-hop culture to a mass audience, including many viewers who were skeptical about the dance form’s addition to the Olympic roster. Others feared that the subculture would be co-opted by officials, commodified and subjected to a rigid rating structure, while the spirit of breaking was rooted in local communities, centered around street fights, cyphers and block parties. Hip-hop was born as a youth culture within black and brown communities in the Bronx as a way to escape conflict and socio-economic strife and make a statement of empowerment at a time when they were viewed as lost, lawless children by New York politicians labeled. .
Refugee fighter Manizha Talash, or “b-girl Talash,” channeled that rebellious vibe by donning a “Free Afghan Women” cape during her pre-qualification battle — a defiant and personal statement for a 21-year-old who fled her native Afghanistan to to escape Taliban rule. Talash was quickly disqualified for violating the Olympic ban on political speech on the playing field.
Both American b-girls were eliminated in Friday’s round-robin stage, a blow to the country that represents the birthplace of hip-hop in what could be the discipline’s only appearance at the Games. B-girl Logistx (official name Logan Edra) and b-girl Sunny (Sunny Choi) were both in the top 12 internationally, but did not reach the quarter-finals.
“Breaking for the Olympics has changed the way some people dance,” Choi said, referring to some of the flashy moves and busy routines. “Changes break over time. And maybe I’m just old-fashioned and don’t want to change. … I think a lot of people in our community were a little bit afraid that that would happen.”
Before Friday’s fighting started, American rapper Snoop Dogg made a grand entrance to the stadium to the soundtrack of ‘Drop it Like it’s Hot’, prompting cheers and dancing in the stands.
“I’m hip-hop and I know what hip-hop and breakdance should look like,” he told Vogue Magazine before the Paris Games started.
Rapper ICE T also expressed his excitement about the exciting competition ahead of yesterday’s fights.
“This will blow the minds of people who haven’t seen a burglary in a while,” he posted on X. “All respect to HIPHOP.”
The b-boys will take the stage Saturday to give the Olympics another chance to represent culture.
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Olympic Games AP: https://apnews.com/hub/2024-paris-olympic-games
