Vancouver's Own Dance Superstar Jojo Zolina Gets Recognized at Schema : more than ethnic

Vancouver's Own Dance Superstar Jojo Zolina Gets Recognized

Sweet Creations

Little by little, Vancouver's dance scene has been making its way into international headlines and heck, it's about time because we have some seriously talented dancers in the 604. What an opportunity it is for these dancers to make a gigantic splash in 2010 Olympic Winter Games!

Since day one of the Olympics, dancers have been out on the streets sharing their love of music, rhythm and movement with audiences from home and abroad. The "flash mobs," in particular, have been getting a lot of attention on US networks, because let's be honest, doesn't everyone want to re-live the Ferris Bueller days of spontaneous choregraphed street dancing? The video below is shot from Robson Street and the dance was choreographed by none other than, Jojo Zolina!

Jojo Zolina, whom you may recognize from 604 Delite (a hip hop crew showdown that happened this past December 2009), has been getting quite a bit of attention and for good reason.

The self-proclaimed "Kinetic Philosopher" has been dancing for years and has gradually expanded his dance repertoire to voguing, locking, bboying, waacking and more.

"Zolina, who lived in the Philippines until he was 12, has a big personality on-stage but is quietly effusive on the phone. He sees connections and possibilities everywhere, which may be why his dancing incorporates so many styles: the Filipino folk dancing he was trained in as a child, acrobatics, voguing, locking, bhangra, and more. He explains that an early influence was watching his uncles break-dance in the streets of Manila after seeing such moves performed on television." - From Straight.com

The first time I saw Jojo was at a hip hop convention at Drive Dance Centre. Jojo with other members of "La Douche," one of the many dance groups he is in, and started voguing and waacking. Honestly, I was WOW'd. Girls, we wish I could move like him.

Jojo was recently scheduled to appear in a mini segment on the Oprah Winfrey Show, but that didn't pan out. Nevertheless, I am confident that he will soon make his mark beyond Canadian borders. For now, you can soak it all in and keep up to date by visiting his myspace page.