His story is great. Francis Muturi Ng'ang'a aka Bboy shadow as he is
popularly known in the dance realm is calm, composed and usually a man of
little words. His movement is strong and courageously executed probably because
he grew up in East lands. Evidently, he works hard and smart and though so
modest in his outlook he is fierce in battle.
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| FRANCIS MUTURI NG'ANG'A |
Hey man, where have you been?
BBOY SHADOW: around kuhepa nayo! hope you good lakini?
Am cool man baridi na mvua tu.
BBOY SHADOW: ha ha cool man, me naelekea zoezi.
Hakuna kupumzika?
BBOY SHADOW: Yeah
hakuna iyo time jo.
Hee whats the plan man?
BBOY SHADOW: Got to work hard man to sustain this great
gift. Big things coming though.
How long have you been bboying?
BBOY SHADOW: 7 years man.
Wow that’s from 2007
BBOY SHADOW: just
breaking started with power moves though then later on got the basics.
Where was this?
BBOY SHADOW: Around my hood. Kangemi is my hood.
Kangemi has produced some of the top Dancers in the country
BBOY SHADOW: yeah it
has and we pushing the upcoming ones to achieve even greater.
Did you have a teacher to school you in dance?
BBOY SHADOW: Nope never had one
How did the dancing start?
"It was this one time I was watching dance movies and started gaining
interest in it and one thing lead to the other. I was watching YOU GOT SERVED
and from there, I knew what I wanted to do."
~Bboy SHADOW
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| BBOY SHADOW:..I KNEW WHAT I WANTED TO DO. |
What attracted you really?
BBOY SHADOW: seeing all those dance choreographers both new
and old creating crazy moves and transitions made me come up with my new style.
New style?
BBOY SHADOW: yeah of
creating choreographies and free styling.
How different is it?
BBOY SHADOW: more of
techniques;
took a lot of effort
So , 7yrs ago, what were the challenges back then?
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| ON THAT DOPE... |
BBOY SHADOW: my
biggest challenge was that I did not have to teach me the basics and space for
practice was an issue.
But Kagemi is the home of street dance in Kenya or so I
thought
BBOY SHADOW: yeah it
is and still is but when you starting something not all people are satisfied
with your effort you know.
Yeah I know…so, are you a YouTube bboy?
BBOY SHADOW: I don’t
do YouTube that much.
How can you describe your training?
BBOY SHADOW: Its way intense…
Ehe
BBOY SHADOW: …and fun too.
How did you get material for training?
BBOY SHADOW: I had to look everywhere; I had to do a lot of
research on my own.
Did you get enough?
BBOY SHADOW: Not all but still can’t complain you have to
work with what you have.
Are you a self made bboy?
BBOY SHADOW: yeah because
I try everyday to come up with my own flow, technique and style.
Your flavor is contained
and fierce on the down rock. What is the
inspiration behind your movement?
BBOY SHADOW: it’s from within. Seeing myself from nothing to
something really motivates me in a huge way bro and looking back its progress
that keeps me wanting to do more.
That’s so powerful. Did you always figure you were a
straight out bboy?
BBOY SHADOW: I never
thought of myself as real bboy at the start.
What changed?
BBOY SHADOW: Guess
it’s the hard work I was putting in and
didn’t want it to go to waste.
Where does your brother Dave pokaz come in all this?
BBOY SHADOW: we all
started working together up to now but for him he was a bit afraid with
exposure but now he is crazy.
No Dave is just bonkaz man what! Is he your twin brother?
BBOY SHADOW: Yeah he
is.
I knew it, so now since you guys are twins. I must ask…do
you feel pain when he is hurt?
BBOY SHADOW: ha ha ha
sometimes
Ha ha ha what crew(s) do you rep?
BBOY SHADOW: Street
pokaz, sisko, creative cooks and Team Kenya.
Absolutely dope. Tell me about street Pokaz.
BBOY SHADOW: Actually
we started the group just me and my brother Dave.
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| STREET POKAZ |
How many are you?
BBOY SHADOW: Still
two because the other members went back to school, studying, so time brought
more issues.
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| STREET POKAZ DOING WHAT THEY DO BEST |
What have you achieved with Pokaz Crew?
BBOY SHADOW: Had a
great experience and still doing great things because I don’t regret for a
single moment having the crew. This is the best family a dancer would die to
have.
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| STREET POKAZ SWAG TURNT UP |
*shaking my head in agreement* Great crews make great
families. How did you join Sisko?
BBOY SHADOW: I guess
they saw the hard work we were putting in Dance; saw us appreciating and taking
dance as a career.
True you do! Are you in Sisko With Daves?
BBOY SHADOW: Yeah we
in together. The inseparable twins (laughs Loudly)
How has it helped you working with Sisko?
BBOY SHADOW: It’s
been overwhelmingly educative. They respond whenever you need advice. It’s been
great.
Creative Cooks?
BBOY SHADOW: it’s a
crew made up of members from different places formed to create dances. They are
a team of creatives in dance.
Aaah so you gather dancers from crews in different places to
form a crew?
BBOY SHADOW: Yeah we
work together and I teach them.
Cool.Are You in the Kenya Team?
BBOY SHADOW:
*obviously excited* That’s like the best place to be. Bboy full time man.
It’s crazy.
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| BBOY SHADOW AT THE BREAKFAST JAM IN UGANDA(PIC COURTESY OF KIBUUKA PHOTOGRAPHY) |
When did you join?
BBOY SHADOW: I was
there when they created and came up with the name Team Kenya.
For the two times you have gone to Uganda, how has been the
experience?
BBOY SHADOW: Way
beyond my imagination. Getting to exchange ideas, knowledge and seeing how Uganda appreciates their hip-hop
culture made me feel like shifting from Kenya to Uganda.
What Is the one big difference between the Kenyan and
Ugandan Dance scene?
BBOY SHADOW: I terms
of bboy, they are way advanced. They have a good working foundation that we are
lacking.
The first time I saw you were in breaksession battling and I
thought you had a great future. How was that?
BBOY SHADOW: still
working day and night bro.
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| BBOY SHADOW: ON THAT FLARE |
Yeah, you have been absent for a very long time .What was
up?
BBOY SHADOW: Working
on my graduation. I’m in a dance company and am set to graduate in May. That’s
what has kept me in the shadows.
Good news. Tell me more about the dance company?
BBOY SHADOW: They
work on different styles or elements like jazz, contemporary dancing, ballet,
African modern and all that.
Where are they based?
BBOY SHADOW: Pangani
but they are shifting. The next intake is next year.
How did you get in?
BBOY SHADOW: A friend
introduced me to it and had to audition for the same.
Has it changed anything?
BBOY SHADOW: I am now
one dancer who can fit in any element of dance. I can settle in any style of
dance easier than before because I have a lot of dance foundation in me.
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| BBOY SHADOW:ON THAT FREEZE |
I respect that. So what else do you do besides dance?
BBOY SHADOW: dance,
dance and dance is a career for me and am earning good. Can’t complain.
That’s more than many dancers can say about dance. What are
we doing wrong?
BBOY SHADOW: A lot of
dancers don’t know what path to follow. Some quit but as long as you have the
right direction based on what you want, you can never go wrong. Trust me.
Simple and precise. This is inevitable…Are you dating?
BBOY SHADOW: yes. She
really supports me a lot in what I do.
That’s awesome man. Everybody needs a proper support system.
So what’s your plan for 2014?
BBOY SHADOW: Teach
dance to as many people and crews as possible. Do a lot of choreographies,
videos and in the long run try to effect change you know….
Spoken like the real hero you are. We wish you all the best.
Any last words?
BBOY SHADOW: Yeah
thanks bro for the interview and remember that the only person you battle in
life is yourself.
That I will never forget . This is was great and I really
learnt a lot. Thank you.
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| BBOY SHADOW: AIMING HIGHER |
