BE THE JUDGE AT THE MALTA GUINESS STREET DANCE

Six weeks of Top of the World street dance moves at the season IV of Malta Guinness Street Dance have just ended. If you remember, a total of eight (8) street dance crews were selected by the judges from the nationwide auditions held in various regions across the country. They were Fly High, Sum’ry Crew (Abuja)Supreme Task, Shadows (Enugu) Genesis Plus, Soulja Guyz (Benin)Hephzibah (Lagos), and Dynasty (Lagos). Each crew partook in series of recreational activities and choreography sessions that aided in the delivery of their dance routines.

The first week had all eight crews displaying what they had in their kitty while the second week featured the first elimination stage of the competition, tagged “blast from the past” which made Dynasty crew the first crew to be evicted. Sum’ry crew lost out in the challenge which required crews to celebrate living “Legends” in the third week. Hephizibah crew and Fly High crew also bowed out in week four and five respectively when the challenges assigned were “Dance into the Future” and “Make or Break (Kitchen Dance)”

The sixth week which was dubbed the final showdown featured two rounds of dance so as to select the two crews that will go to the Pan African championship. To clear the air around what was to be expected at the final, the judges took turns to air their opinions on what the expectations should be. First to react amongst the judges was renowned African contemporary dance instructor Frank Konwea,said “They’ve built themselves already, it’s time to get the crew that will represent Nigeria at Pan African” followed by UK based singer and dancer May7ven who said “expect to see dynamic performances and astronomical display” while the chief judge Wale Rubber stated that “am expecting the very best, they (last four crews) should bring all their creativity and technicality to the stage. Hopefully we will have the best final ever in the annals of Malta Guinness Street Dance”.

The journey to the Pan African championship began as the four finalists keenly contested for the two slots to the African championship with the first round challenge tagged “Afro-vibe”. “Afro-vibe” challenged the last four crews to infuse African contemporary songs and steps into their dance routines for the round. The first round performances saw Supreme Task evicted as the other crews proved that they’ve got what it takes to move to the next round. The second round was the “freestyle” challenge which allowed competing crews to be more innovative with their dance routines. The last three crews Soulja Guyz, Shadows and Genesis Plus did put up a good show which further demonstrated to the judges and audience that they all had what it takes to be at the Pan African Championship.

The onus was on the trio of Wale Rubber, May7ven and Frank to be convinced of the crew that will better represents Nigeria at the African championship. Announcing the winner of the two spots with an emotional laden mood (name of judge) called out on Genesis Plus and Shadows as the African Championship spot winners while Souja Guyz emerged runners up. However, this where you and I can actually play the role of judges by voting for our favourite crew and that we think so far has fully shown that they are the crew that will best represent Nigeria at the Pan African Championship.

To vote for your favourite crew Genesis Plus or Shadows, simply SMS G (Genesis Plus) or S (Shadows) to 20120 from 2^nd of 15^th of July SMS cost only N10.00 or visit www.facebook.com/maltaguinness for voting details.

Let’s take a moment to recall the theme for this season “Back with Style, Back with Swagger” and your guess is as good as mine if you have experienced the new style used and the swag exhibited by all because its Malta Guinness Street Dance!