Choreographer Kenrick “H2O” Sandy and composer producer Michael “Mikey J” Asante met at school in East London at the age of 12 and beyond hip hop. After performing at local street dance battles, they founded Boy Blue, a hip-hop dance theater company, in 2001, and surprised audiences with their precise choreography and explosive energy. Their show Pied Piper He won the Olivier Award in 2007, followed by acclaimed works. Blak Whyte Grey and I’ll release your heartand the choreography for the opening ceremony of the 2012 London Olympics. Boy Blue’s latest show, cycleI will be at Lincoln Center in New York City from March 27th to 29th.
You have been working with us for over 25 years. Why does this partnership work?
Sandy: The main thing feels is the level of respect we have for each other. Fellowship at that level. We are both libraries, we are both from the same area and we are both brothers. We both have tenacity and passion. And we promote each other and push each other. There is a lot of brotherhood.
Asante: It’s rare to find this. They’re two friends who have changed something into business and then into exercise, but still have the same core values. I want to see others succeed. and cycle, I brought the concept and put it in the ring for others to bouncing off.
Sandy: We inspire each other. When we come together we are jamming. This is not work, this is a joy for us.
Please tell me about it cycle.
Asante: I wanted to create something constantly moving, but I constantly moved forward. At the same time, I was inspired by hip-hop mixtapes, J-Dilla or Madlib mixtapes, how they appeared in this constant loop. Then there are various cycles that exist in life: life, death, seasons, moon, tide. I also wanted to focus on hip-hop and return to the roots of the movement.
Sandy: It went back to the groove, the social groove of hip hop, flipped it over and looked at all different choreography frameworks. It was about a never-ending process.
Asante: Create a show that doesn’t look the same every time you see it. The concept of freestyle was a big part of choosing a dancer. It is growing and changing forever.
What has changed in the hip-hop dance scene since you started?
Sandy: My beard is now grey!
Asante: When we started, it was a style that no one could think was worth it. We were the loud, rough kids that people wanted from their space. Now I can look at other dance forms and see the impact of hip hop on all of them. When we started, we saw the boys dancing and they called us “funny” not to mention the black boys we came from. And now, every child I know is dancing.
Sandy: There was a student we taught when we were in our early 20s. They are sending their kids to class now.
How about playing in New York, a hip-hop home?
Sandy: It’s really great to show what we’re doing. I’m grateful for hip hop, but there’s definitely British slang in hip hop. It has influences from the UK grime and the UK garage, only energy is very London.
What is the energy in London?
Sandy It’s fearless and unlimited.
Asante: There’s a BOP, there’s a bounce, right? It’s self-confidence. But we want to commune and connect forever. We travel. There will always be people in another land where you share a portion of your language. Maybe they have another accent, but for us, the gift that hip hop gave us is that it has become many different friends on the whole planet where we are all connected through the groove.
