I was always outdoors as a child, and all over London. I grew up in Kensal Rise and Central London but went to school in North London’s Islington Green School (now called City of London Academy Islington) and spent the rest of of my time in South London. I belonged to a Latin American football team called Universal F.C in Burgess Park and most members lived South also. So I spent most of my youth enjoying events like Carnaval del Pueblo and the infamous Baby Chaney in Elephant and Castle back in the day.
Growing up as a Latino in London made me feel different. Just things like family parties and how often they would seem to happen (haha). There was always a reason to celebrate…someone’s cousin’s holy comunion, or 15th birthday or whatever. There was always a party. Later, being invited to reunions outside my ethnic group, I could see the contrast.
A defining moment in my life was choosing to attend the after-school breakin club as part of a project to give more extra curricular activities in performing arts. I was always the last one to leave the club, until my teacher decided to take me to St Marys Youth Club on Upper Street to train there too. I met more dancers, joined my first crew (La Familia Crew) and the rest is history.
I was always surrounded by dance and music as a kid. I loved to dance salsa from early on, and would also try moves off music videos I would see. I continued to do dance in school which led me to the after-school breakin club. From there, I met DJ Renegade who has mentored me since, and continues to do so on many other levels beyond the dance itself.
From my mother I inherited her organisation, and from my father I’d say my sociable nature. But I’ve received some of the best advice from books. 'The 21 Irrefutable Laws of Leadership' by John C. Maxwell I got plenty of good advice from. A book called 'The Devil and Ms Prym' by Paulo Coelho really changed my perspective on the relationship between ‘good’ and ‘bad’. I was around 18 when I read it. It helped me accept the bad things that happened to me, so that I could move on from them rather than get stuck.
When I was 18 I was diagnosed with Tuberculosis and Osteomilitis which took me out of action for over a year after a number of surgeries. I lost 20kg in weight and had a fair bit of rehabilitation to do from the surgeries to my foot, ankle and knee. I ended up reading a lot. In these books I found some answers, and even some more questions, but above all the inspiration to persevere. As soon as I could walk again I started to work out in park gyms. Once I started to get my strength back and put some weight on, I was finally ready to start breakin again. It was scary at first, but once I started, the progress grew with my enthusiasm. When I moved back to London, I managed to win my first National Solo Championship, which to date is still my biggest personal win.
My biggest breakthrough came in the year 2014. I dedicated myself that year more than any other year and started to see the results at the international competitions I would compete at. The highlight of that year was getting to the final of the Bboy Championship World Finals. That was the year everything went up a notch.
My Latin heritage influences everything I do…I can't help but include my Latin flavour in my breakin, especially if the music is right for it. Also, having connected to the Latin scene in my country, and knowing the struggles Latinos face to keep up this lifestyle, it humbled me and made take full advantage of what was available to me here in London without taking it for granted.
What I love about my job…how much I have been able to travel, places I never thought I’d get to see, the people I have met and connected with along the way. The solidarity between people who live a certain lifestyle, transcends even language at times, its amazing. This dance can be so humbling! You never know what skills someone else has til you challenege them, and you may often be surprised! Never judge a book by its cover. Lastly I love how much it has taught me about myself. Going through the process of overcoming certain challenges in breakin have so many parallels with life in general.
The most influential person in my life right now is my son. His arrival gave me so much perspective on what I was doing, and what I wanted to do from that point on. Having him was an extra push and motivation for my career as a dancer. The picture was all of a sudden a lot bigger.
This pandemic gave me the time to really reflect on everything I needed to for my own personal well being, caught up on like 5 years of sleep. I also realised just how important family is when stripped down to the bare minimum. I think many people re prioritised their lives to some degree over this pandemic.
If I met my younger self I would tell him to care less about what people think of me.
My perfect day in London…Wake up late, like mid-day, maybe a lil hungover from the night before. Go out to get food at my local café, and then head to the park and chill with friends, hopefully its sunny. I love Old-skool Elephant and Castle, Soho and Hyde Park. I love to eat at Bone Daddys in Soho, to walk on the river bank, to think on the top deck of a night bus and to party late. The last fun thing I did was taking the whole cast of our show at the BBC Proms to the barbershop I work in Soho for an afterparty til 7am.
When I feel homesick I go to a Latin restaurant, or go to a Latin nightclub. Or just book a ticket to Colombia altogether haha.
My favroute English word is Onomatopoeia
The word I most dislike…Never
