boogaloo Tag

“The Black Resurgents” is a historic dance group from Oakland California. There were many dance groups back then but these gents became the official dancers for the Black Panther Party! They also stood out performing at talent shows, concerts, and events all across Oakland and the Bay. For those that don’t know Boogaloo, Strutting, and Robotting come from the Bay. Oakland, Frisco, and Richmond to be exact. And this group was one of the pioneers of this dance. Rick the Robot, Mr Penguin, LA, and The Crowd Pleaser along with others formed the group in 1971. They danced to funk! They moved their bodies with the music and the moves groups like theirs The Black Messengers, Close Encounters of the Funkiest Kind, Media Cirkus, Demons of The Mind, Granny and The Robotroid, P-T 3000, influenced dancers all across the world and can be seen in the moves of Bay turf dancers, hip hop choreography, and in dance competitions. 

A crew of them got together and created their own alliances and a yearly event called the Boogalaoo Reunion to reclaim that name from white supremacists and to celebrate the culture in dancers both young and old. Their continued performing educates the next generation and gives context to where all these people got their moves from. Shout out to Traci Bartlow who is a part of this lineage, The Malonga Casquelord Center, Destiny Arts, The Hyphy movement, and East Side Arts Alliance for keeping dance alive!