“Soul Train” exploded onto television in the early 1970s, electrifying living rooms across the country. Every Saturday morning, the popping, wacking, and rock pioneers show off their flexible moves, hairstyles, and looks so fresh that legions of fans show up on the dance floor to show their swag and homage. and is still hyped.
poppin pete
© Jesus Presinal
Red Bull reached out to Marie Poppins, the show’s creative director and Femme Fatale’s multi-hyphenated dancer, and Cody, owner and designer of Like Sushi, to find out how they reconstructed the runway. A fusion of street dance and fashion.
What was the most important message you wanted to convey with your show?
Mary Poppins: Street dance has hit the runway before. I didn’t create anything new. Go to New York Fashion Week, Paris, London or Milan Fashion Week and you’ll find plenty of designers creating amazing next-level catwalks featuring poppers, breakers, voguers and more. But I’ve never seen a street dancer fashion show made by culture, for culture. I had never seen a place that could showcase the culture behind street dancing and be able to distinguish and identify with, “This is what Poppin’ looks like. Now this look is ‘House.'” “Oh, that’s what Crump and Memphis Jukin look like.” Do you understand what I’m saying? The best part of this project for me was bringing together almost all styles of street dance at once to create a dance festival.
how did you put it all together?
Mary Poppins: At the end of the day, we’re all artists and I was directing the show, but I really wanted to collaborate. We researched what they like to wear. How can you summarize their style in three words? All these street styles come with specific fashions and rich stories behind them. I’m here.
What was your biggest challenge?
Mary Poppins: It blew my mind that I was leading this group of dancers who were pioneers and legends of their own style. So I was hoping that everyone would get down and trust me. I only met the dancer the night before or the day of the event and put all the pieces of the show together like a puzzle, secondly the show was a live event so she only has one chance to make it was.
mary poppins
© Jesus Presinal
How did the music come together?
Mary Poppins: Dancers can’t move or dance if they don’t like the music. The most meticulous work on this project was the music. As a popper, I know I go for snare-strong music, but each of these street-her dance genres is completely different in its desire for sound, counts, and accents. Before, I didn’t know what they were. I really wanted the dancers to be happy, so I asked everyone to use it as a reference. It was great to learn so much about other genres.
When you watch a fashion show, it tells the whole story. The intro, story, climax, and finale are a masterpiece. So the challenge was to come up with the order and keep the flow. Since I came first, I wanted to open it with a lock, so it’s almost like an old man. Then I alternated between tempos and styles to ensure clean transitions.
What element surprised you the most?
Cody: I have worked with athletes, mixed martial artists, models and musicians, but this was my first time working with dancers. When the project was proposed to me, I had no idea how it would turn out, so this was my biggest revelation. . We’ve already seen plenty of content from the New Orleans Red Bull Dance Your Style winner, and he’s set to shoot something in the studio. We want to be more involved in the dance subculture.
Mary Poppins: What was cool about this project from a fashion standpoint was that it showcased local New Orleans brands so people could see the amazing talent there. It was performed by a dancer who said the same.
How is New Orleans style different from other places?
Cody: New Orleans has a truly unique style. I have traveled all over America and he has worked in the fashion industry for 15 years and no other place can match New Orleans. People here march to the beat of their own drums. You look so smooth and clean. I’m talking about matching tops, matching bottoms. Maybe each piece has the same hit of green, or maybe it’s a different shade of green in the overall look. They often used the word “soldier”. With iconic rappers like Soulja Slim coming out, camouflage is key here. You won’t feel out of place or out of style. Very eccentric here. As designers, and even fashion lovers, we know that we are not the capital of fashion. So a lot of our styles come from each other and are things that people have seen growing up in our neighborhoods or seeing on TV. .
What else is Like Sushi doing in the community?
what’s your favorite look?
Cody: I hadn’t met these people before the show, so I had seen their IG and based their style on that. I was wearing it. He said, “I don’t know what you think of clamping, but I’m not your typical clamper.” I love collaborating with the people I style. Because people show off their clothes best when they’re in the mood to jump on something. I pulled out a few other options and we went in a completely different direction, a silk bowling shirt, olive trousers, black derby shoes and a trucker hat.It was definitely my favorite look of his at the show. was one of
Mary Poppins: i loved all the looks. Appearance is a big part of dancing. You want to feel comfortable in what you’re wearing and feel good within yourself. You want to wear something that can inspire you, move at your best and lead to something that stands out from the crowd. It works well as a collaboration between dancer and stylist, allowing dancers to play to their strengths while staying true to the. And Cody was incredibly good at doing it.
What are you most proud of from the show?
Mary Poppins: What got me excited and proud was that everyone wanted to walk straight after the show. All the dancers in the crowd rushed to the runway and started taking videos. The runway is the perfect place to celebrate your personality and shine your best.
Where will street dancers fit in the fashion industry of the future?
Mary Poppins: She has worked as a model for many brands. Femme fatale he worked with YSL. Thousands of dancers work with major fashion brands, partnerships, campaigns and shows. This is the trend of the moment. Designers have documented how our dancers walk, pose, carry themselves, and our uniqueness/attractiveness. is. The show was a strong first example, but it was literally a snippet of what was possible in the future.
Poppin’ Pete could hit a crazy solo for Louis Vuitton on any runway walk. it has to happen! On the flip side, I wish I could inspire models like Bella Hadid to start popping after this.
