San Francisco w/ Killa4nia, Renegades 26th Anniversary

Have not been to Norcal in like 8 years (have no clue why) and figured it was about time to visit especially since it was the Renegades 26th year anniversary! It was already crazy figuring out transportation...whether I should drive, fly, take the amtrak, chinatown bus, or carpool LOL. Anyways, I got a ride with Steelo, Lil Roc, Lil John, and MYY FRIEND Nabikyyy hahah (inside joke). Headed out from Santa Monica pier in the afternoon and arrived in San Francisco around 1am. The ride did not seem to long especially with people like Steelo keeping us awake with singing "Apologize." The car ride itself was real dope just vibing out with them.

We drove on the Oakland Bay Bridge and passed by downtown San Francisco to drop off Lil Roc and Nabiky. The streets were packed with cars and people from the bars and the club. I was ready to jump out of the car and just start bar hopping or something. Now it was my turn to be dropped off in Daly City or pretty much the Phillippines lol. WE GOT SO LOST getting to my place. Steelo and I were insanely confused because his blackberry and my iphone gps were acting retarded. After all the frusturation of being lost, we found my uncle's place and he looked pissed. Went inside the house and they had a feast of food waiting for me. I ate it and immediately fell asleep.

Woke up early the next day and spent time with the family which was refreshing. They took me out to a Japanese buffet called "Moonstar" before going to the Renegades jam and I pretty much devoured everything... Crab legs, sushi, tempura, and mussels to name a few. Felt amazing to eat at a good restaurant, felt like its been awhile. Afterwards, the fam dropped me off in downtown SF for the Renegades jam and I met up with my fellow partner and crew mate Sam Marks (Marks the Spot). I knew I was definitely in SF as soon as I saw Hella Hung in the building getting interviewed haha!

Got into the venue and saw one of my favorite Dj's BLESONE. Honestly I have not stopped listening to his newest mixtape since I got it from World of Dance Pomona. It was great seeing him and I bought a Mashhall sweater from him too. He's got one of the nastiest brands, check his gear at thebboyspot.com/forum and cop it! Even got to see the famous bboy Wicket again. I think the last time I saw him was when he judged our event, Claws Out 3 back in L.A. Wish I got to talk to him but he was real busy running the event. Explored around a little bit because it took awhile for the jam to get started but at least it opened with a bang, BEAT FREAKS RIPPED IT!


Surprisingly there were only 8 crews entering the 4 on 4 bboy competition, definitely expected to see more crews representing but the cyphers were real dope. Got to dance alongside Flo Master, Ynot, BeatFreaks, Kid David, and many others. I entered the comp with Marks The Spot, Dre Hood (Head Hunters) and this guy Aaron...entered under the name CLAWS OUT. Went up against Beatz and Pieces and it was a cool battle even though we lost to them. The guy from China was REAL NASTY if anyone knows his name. Ended up cyphering hard the rest of the night and it felt good.



Highlight of the jam for me was Vietnam just BLOWING IT UP. In his first battle he did his double forearm slide all the way to the other crew and popped on his head. When he landed his head freeze he must have stuck it for like 5 seconds literally. The best part was he started shaking his head and sticking his tongue out while nailing the freeze. I looked at the other crew and they just stared at each other like WTF??!! I mean what do you do after that? Steelo, Lil Roc, and Nabil all did really well, staying consistent like they always do. They ended up winning the jam in a hype final battle against RockForce Crew/Unique Styles (Profo, Ajax, Squid, and Mark?). After the jam I thought we were heading straight back to L.A. which I was dreading but Steelo said that we needed to stay an extra night in a hotel. I was super down and actually excited to stay one more night. I was starving as most bboys feel after a jam and we all rolled out to this hidden Italian Restaurant to eat with the Beat Freaks. Dinner was great and it was mad fun hanging out with the Beat Freak, watching all their slapping fights LOL. Lady Jules and Shorty must have been hitting each other for like 30 minutes . Lil Rock even got into the action hahah. Also it was mad entertaining watching Nabil and Vietnam flirting with our waitresses. After dinner, we walked around the city and went to the Embassy Suites where we got hooked up with a niiice room! Stayed in and kicked it with Killafornia for the rest of the night.



We left in the morning and I saw the funniest thing, the official Claws Out twitter road exit so we took a picture. Overall, a real crazy and memorable trip. Thanks Wicket for organizing the event, 26th year anniversary! Now that is longevity. Much love to Lil Roc, Nabil, Steelo, Lil Joh, and Vietnam for being the crazy mofos they are and making the trip memorable for me. Until next time...

Weekend Adventure: Tribal Warehouse, Armory, Exhibition Battle, Wedding

Been lagging on the blogging so here comes a weekend special. About more than a week ago, I had my first exhibition battle! This was extremely important to me because I want people to know that I am a bboy FIRST, always competing, cyphering, and staying active in the scene...and not just a promoter even though I love throwing events. The adventure first started off with the infamous bboy Lil Roc bringing me to the tribal warehouse in San Diego with the other Rock City 3 exhibition battlers. I have always wanted to head down to this legendary hip hop clothing store that has sponsored some of the best dancers in the world, such as Killafornia. It was the best feeling knowing that I was going to be geared up for my exhibition battle against Geo (Instant Noodles/Kabba Modern). It was such a crazy day...I woke up early Thursday morning to drive over to Lil Roc's house and we headed out from there in a van that was insanely packed. There were about 9-10 bboys cramped in the van, and I just started laughing. Some of the dancers in the van were Steve (knucklehead zoo), soviet (concrete all stars), yuri (L.A. breakers), Geo (Instant Noodles), and a few others. Thought it was funny to see Geo the day before the expo, but I had a hunch I would see him there lol. Drove down to San Diego which took about 2 hours, and finally arrived at Tribal. I got so much fresh stuff! Jerseys, tshirts, and hats. It was Christmas all over again thanks to Lil Roc! Next, we did a little photoshoot with all our new gear and peaced out to another famous bboy landmark, The Armory in downtown San Diego.

This was a pleasant surprise since I have always meant to visit Cros1's clothing store...this man has done so much for bboying and more impressively stays in close touch with the community always helping others. We met some of the owners and ended up going to the Armory warehouse too. I was bummed Cros1 was not in town but he's a very busy dude traveling everywhere. I got to meet D though who was mad cool. Lil Roc picked up some packages for his jam and I even got the Outbreak 3 dvd which has some of my favorite bboys before they actually blew up. We finally stopped at a mexican restaurant to eat and I had my favorite, CARNE ASADA TORTA...better recognize haha. After the heavenly lunch, we headed back to LA. Getting to kick it with all these dancers was way too much fun, heard way too many funny stories and got to know some of the bboys better. MAD RESPECTS TO LIL ROCK FOR THE DOPE OPPORTUNITIES!





Gametime! Finally it was Friday, the day of my first exhibition battle. Stretched and drank water all day. Headed over to the jam with an armada of friends hehe. The jam started very late at 9pm and around 10:30pm Koolski the host (Rocksteady Crew) called for me and Geo to get ready! We met in the middle of the dance floor eye to eye in fighting stance and retreated back to our respective corners with our crew members. Then the battle went off, 4 rounds each side with Frankie Flav on the turntables! I felt it was a very dope battle, definitely good exchanges on both sides. After going to war with each other, we shook hands. I felt very happy to have accomplished doing an expo and especially in the presence of the hundreds of people at Rock city, there were definitely alot of well known dancers in the building. I would like to give a special shoutout to DIAMONDS IN THE ROUGH, MILITIA CREW, BATTLE SNAKES, SAM MARKS, LIL BOB, and others for always mentoring and training me to become the dancer I am now. It's been a real blessing and I promise that I will only become a much stronger bboy for the upcoming years.



After the jam, I still had to drive down to San Diego the same night to make my cousin's wedding on Saturday! Talk about no rest what so ever, but it was so worth it. I spent alot of time with the family, ate and drank to my hearts glory! Congrats cousin Kathlyn!!!

THE END

JUSTROC VS GEO @ ROCK CITY 3!!!

Click to Enlarge


So I am finally able to do an exhibition battle! I was supposed to do a few before but it never fell through for whatever reasons, but this time its for real hehe. I'm really hyped that it will be at Lil Rock's jam called "Rock City 3." Definitely an honor and its only right to include another Roc in the exhibition lineups ;) The event itself looks like its going to be fire especially with the crew battles going on and other crazy expos like Steve (knucklehead zoo) vs Milky (mind 180) going down.

Got mad respects for Geo repping Kabba Modern/Instant Noodles. We've battled quite alot before in the past so it should be an interesting matchup, especially since we both love to rock the music. Definitely a good start off to my 2009 summer

Heading to Vegas! Pacquiao vs Hatton

So I can't believe its actually happening. I am going to watch one of the most epic boxing matches in history LIVE at the MGM Grand hotel, shouting and screaming for Manny "Pacman" Pacquiao. This guy is a friggin' mega superstar now and Filipino national icon haha. My best friend from Baltimore was able to help me out and now I'm 24 hours away from going on that plane to Vegas. I feel like this trip is going to be ridiculous especially since I'm over 21 now, oh dear. It is officially time for me to JUST ROC and go all out. I'll keep everyone posted with my weekend adventure especially since I got that twitter on lock haha. The link is on the upper left hand side, cant miss it.

PEAAAACE

JUST ROC THAT TWITTER

Its official, just recently got twitter. Stay in the loop with me about upcoming events, competitions, parties, and anything dance entertainment related. Got 70 people now, so let's go and get this movement going!

http://twitter.com/justroc

SEMI-FINALISTS @ World Of Dance!

The Militia Crew represented to the fullest this past weekend at the highly anticipated World of Dance competition in Pomona California. We battled our way all the way to the semifinals, going up against Underground Flow, King of all Kings (Seattle), and lastly Battle Born(Las Vegas) in the top 4.

As I reflected on the event, it made me realize that sometimes you have to grind out those wins and that sometimes it does not look pretty. We had a real tough first battle against Underground Flow, a crew that I have the utmost respect for. We went all out and threw alot of routines knowing they would bring the fire. The second battle was fun too because I became friends with alot of these Seattle dancers, so it was interesting going up against them.

Anyways it was a long exhausting day and I was so hype to have made it this far, especially at this comp with all the major heads in the game watching.

Much love to my crew Humbboy, King Richard, Mike Burns, Terry, Lance, and Menace for making this happen. Only good things to come from here on out! The Militia is back and ready for WAR.

THE MILITIA @ World of Dance

http://worldofdancetour.com/


The Militia Crew (members battling)
King Richard, Humbboy, Terryiaki, Justroc, Mike Menace, Mike Burns, Mando, Kid Lance

World of Dance is back in L.A. for the second year and I will be battling alongside Militia Crew! We have a really well rounded squad with all different types of styles which makes us very dangerous. For the most part we are all very excited to be entering this jam since its definitely one of the biggest events especially production wise. We even finally got around to making crew shirts for the competition which I am ready to rock. Much love to Renzo from LISTENCLOTHING for making this happen. Anyways, I just turned 23, and I strongly believe that this will be the Michael Jordan year of my life especially in dancing, its time to shine.

Schools For Fools 3, Claws Out DVD Release!!!

Click to Enlarge


Its that time of the year again, and my partners and I are throwing our third annual "Schools For Fools: Battle of the Colleges" Competition. This is a very important day because we are also releasing our long anticipated Claws Out DVD (including Claws Out 2 & 3) on a special triple disc set at the jam! I am shocked that this event is in its third year just like Claws Out, I don't think Sam and I realized we would be throwing this many annual events haha. Can't stop and wont' stop!

I am way too hyped for this jam and will be entering with my LMU College Crew. There will be 7 other college crews competing (8 total) and I can ensure everyone that this year's competition is going to be the best yet! Alot of the bboyworld do not know about this intercollegiate scene and will be stunned to see all the dope dancers. More importantly, we decided to make it an all out warfare between the invited colleges by allowing up to 10 people per crew. If you are reading this, you better come out if you know what's good for you because after the jam (ending at 8pm), we are throwing a big afterparty for the event @ Custom Hotel right next to LMU! (http://customhotel.com/) Hope to see everyone at both!

Lastly much love to Cypher Styles, and Listen Clothing who are sponsoring the event.

SHIEKH TEAM!

Been a couple weeks since I've last posted, but I've been busy trying to stay alive in this damn economy haha. Anyways, I have been working alot more events since I am now on the Shiekh Team, the marketing promotions team for Shiekh. It is such a dope job and it continues to be a fun experience for me especially since we are mainly promoting Supercrew and Jabbawockeez at the moment. I swear it is sooo crazy seeing some of my friends who are on these crews just killing it everywhere from commercials to performances and now I'm wearing their shirts LOL! I know everyone is super paranoid about the dance scene being exploited again, but I must say it makes me smile to see REAL BBOYS who have paid their dues making that money right now and are no longer in the background as much. Here are a bunch of pictures of me and the Shiekh experience so far....

1st Place Champions @ H4 Competition!!!

(Gyroe, Tco, Duo, Me)


So after New Kids On The Block, I was hungry to win a jam and this past Saturday thats exactly what I did! The Battle Snakes Squadron was in FULL EFFECT at the Culture Shock LA H4 (Hip Hop has History) dance competition. I had so much fun at this jam especially with the 2 on 2 locking battle that I got to watch. Anyways, the three other people in my squad were Gyroe, Tco, and Duo! It was a very well rounded team and we came out hard each battle. Went through some really interesting battles, and got to go up against the young generation BOOGIE BRATS. I saw what they did against Break Disciples @ Claws Out 3 and I had to bring my A game or else these kids were going to roast. Also went up against Bang Uh Rang and Suicide Kings in the semis and finals. Mad respects to these dope crews! 4th jam I have won for the books and I will keep it coming because I more motivated than ever to keep pushing myself.

Overall, 2009 is off to a great start and I'm enjoying life. Next stop is MAGIC MOUNTAIN and you know you want to come with ;)

New Kids On The Block 4

(Luis, Miracles, Justroc)

This was the first big jam of the new year, New Kids On The Block 4 (January 10th). A jam that focused on all the new and upcoming talent in the dance scene. It was pretty dope but extremely long. My college crew, Diamonds in The Rough were invited back for the second year in a row and definitely represented.

Highlight of the jam was getting to see the Miracles vs Smurf exhibition battle. Miracles is TOO DOPE. He has definitely been one of my favorite bboys for a long time and is for sure an inspiration to how i dance. He has CHARACTER AND PRESENCE...something that alot of today's bboys do not have. Anyways I got to kick it with him and clown around at the jam! Dude is mad funny.

My 2008, quick reflection

I do not even know where to begin! It has been awhile since I've actually written about my life and all the randomness. Anyways, so much has happened this past year. Let's see, I had the craziest time of my life because it was my last semester at Loyola Marymount University and you all know how that goes. Graduating college was definitely a huge accomplishment and I am so grateful to have it under wraps.

2008 was also a big year for me as a dancer. I won my first jam in Long Beach (2v2) with Mach3 and continued to win more competitions at Bedlam (5 vs 5, Militia Crew) and even a cypher king competition in Seattle which allowed me to travel to Vancouver. I was progressing faster than I thought and all my ideas were flowing well.

Upon graduating college, my parents moved to Seattle which was really weird for me because I used to live in the east coast my whole life. So the weekend after graduation, I went directly to Seattle for the whole summer not knowing anyone and wondering if I would ever be back in L.A. While I was in the Northwest, I managed to be productive and pulled off another Claws Out event with all of Mikeskee's help.





The jam was a great success and It was a big deal for me that the event happened out of state. In the midst of everything, I managed to get back to Los Angeles. I found a job and got my own place! Now after Claws Out Seattle, me and my partner Sam Marks were a month away from the biggest event we have ever thrown...CLAWS OUT 3 back at LMU. I thought I was insane for throwing 2 big events with a month break in between but thats how I like life...CRAZY. People really do not understand how much work goes into throwing a jam, let alone a QUALITY, WELL ORGANIZED ONE. We have always had a mission with Claws Out and its a dream come true to see what it has become.



Now this event I can proudly say was for sure THE BEST. I could not have asked for anything better :) People flying in from everywhere, it was like one huge party. Barely slept that weekend. After all this, things settled down a bit and I relaxed...but guess what ITS 2009 AND I'm GOING ALL OUT!

THE END