How do you do these physics-defying moves? 
Like anything, you have to learn the foundations first, but hip-hop choreography and breaking are actually completely different. Breaking attracts a certain [kind of] individual—it takes someone who really loves it, because it’s very challenging in the beginning. Once you start developing the basic techniques, you learn as you go, and figure it out.

Breaking encompasses your entire body, and different people use different strengths. The beautiful thing about breaking is you learn more about your body. As you dance more, it teaches you about your awareness of your body. A lot of dancers move on to do other kinds of movement practices. For example, I know a lot of breakers who are MMA fighters. 

On average I train 20 to 25 hours a week—usually five to six hours a day, five to six times a week. It encompasses most of my life, and I’ve been consistently doing that for a while now. 

Don't miss: How This Korean Fashion Designer Takes Inspiration From His ‘Obsessions’

How important is the choice of music in breaking?
It’s extremely important—breaking is first and foremost a dance. With breaking being rooted in hip-hop culture, there’s a lot of influence from there. Unfortunately nowadays, there may be some copyright issues [regarding video sharing] for hip-hop music played in high-level competitions, so we can’t perform to some of the music that we would normally choose.

My [dance] style is influenced by the music I listen to, such as hip-hop, R&B and jazz. I like to mix it up. 

If you could compare your dance style to a song or an artist, who would it be?
That is a very difficult question. I’m just going to say one of my favourite artists, [American rapper] D Smoke—I love his vibe.

Fashion is a big aspect of the breaking scene—but how do you merge aesthetics with practicality?
I try to find a balance in the middle. I think fashion is very important—it’s super integral to breaking. In a lot of other sports or cultures, people have “something”, like skateboarders and snowboarders have a board, in basketball, there is a basketball. The only thing we have is our clothing. 

Growing up, I was influenced by the fashion of the people I looked up to, such as b-boy [dancer] Luigi. We would start copying what they wore, because we would see them dancing in a video and think “he looks so cool in that”. 

I describe my fashion style as classic and minimal with a pop of colour, so you often see me wearing neutral colours with a pink beanie. I try to be as fashionable as possible, but comfort is really important for me because we’re doing things with our body. Our arms and legs need to have as much freedom as possible, and I never want to be restricted in my movements.

Everyone has their own silhouette too; the thing about fashion and breaking is that it accentuates the individual’s movement. Some people like tight-fitted clothing, personally I prefer baggy as you can see the details of my movements accentuated by the clothes. 

Outside of breaking, there’s a lot of hip-hop figures that I think are super stylish. One that stands out for me is ASAP Rocky—he’s fashionable and fresh. If I feel fresh and comfortable with what I’m wearing, then I go into a competition with a lot more confidence.

What are your top picks from Lululemon?
Right now I’m wearing the Metal Vent Tech Half Zip top, which is really comfortable. I wear this when I work out and dance. I also like the ABC Pants—it’s one of my favourite things to dance in. 

I like their Lab line as well, as it’s quite experimental. I actually wear a lot of their women’s pieces—I’ll dabble in the women’s section and play around with different silhouettes. That’s the cool thing about Lululemon. 

How do you feel about coming to Hong Kong to perform in ‘Under the Lion’s Rock’ breaking competition?
I’ve only been to Hong Kong once before. but this event that should be super fun, and it’s run by one of my former students. I used to run an online course, kind of through Patreon [a membership platform for content creators], and she was a student of mine for a long time. I’ve made it a priority to go as a form of “thank you” for her support. 

How much Asian representation is present in the breaking scene?
There’s a lot. Honestly, Asia has been on the map in terms of breaking for a very long time. Breaking started around the 1970s, but when it started to get competitive in the early 2000s, South Korea blew up as one of the powerhouses within the scene. Since then, it hasn’t stopped, and [it’s still popular across] Japan, China, South Korea and Hong Kong. 

Did you ever expect breaking to make it to an Olympic level?
Honestly, no. The whole aspect of breaking being a sport is new for us too, as we always saw it as an art form. It’s a dance, a culture. We never saw ourselves as athletes, [even though] we’re athletic and everyone trains really hard. 

What else do you have planned for 2023?
This year, I’m focusing on getting into the Olympics, but at the same time, I want to make sure I’m not forgetting the community events around the world. I’ll be travelling a lot, but I also want to spend time at home, so it’s about finding that balance. Although this year is competition-focused, I want to continue to enjoy life and have fun. 

When the conversation [about breaking being a category in the 2024 Olympics] came about and it did happen, I thought, “yeah, that makes sense”. What we do is very athletic and artistic. I’m finally starting to feel it. There has been a lot of build-up in the last few years and I initially thought I was just going along for the ride, but this year I’m realising that it’s actually happening. It’s kind of crazy and it's still slowly dawning on me, to be honest.

NOW READ

The power and potential of sport and how it contributes to Lululemon chief brand officer Nikki Neuburger’s success as a female leader

Pharrell Williams on coming to Art Basel Hong Kong, his new project and how objects hold energy

Meet Zain, the Pakistani-Arab Canto Rapper from Hong Kong