The first time I saw Krump, something about it spoke deeply to me. It’s explosiveness and rawness called to the restlessness I often experienced but couldn’t quite name. There was a sense of real freedom, of no fucks given. A communal space for cathartic experience, where expression and release were celebrated.
Krump is a dance that evolved out of the ‘Clowning’ style in South-Central Los Angeles in the early 2000s. Known for its raw, hard-hitting and often erratic qualities, the dance offers an emotional release and vessel for storytelling. African Americans Ceasare Iaron ‘Tight Eyez’ Willis and Jo’Artis ‘Big Mijo’ Ratti are credited as being two of the main creators of this style and have continued to steer and influence its evolution.
Krump emerged in Australia and Aotearoa (New Zealand) around 2005, becoming popular through screenings of David LaChapelle’s Rize (2005), the circulation of Krump DVDs including Breakin’ vs Krumpin’ (2005) and the launch of YouTube and social media platforms such as Myspace and Bebo. The newness of the dance and its sheer energy and liveness caught the attention of many young people, with a high percentage being of Polynesian heritage. Krump had strong ties to Christianity, with the American founders linking the dance to their faith and using it as form of praise and worship. Consequently, K.R.U.M.P. developed into the acronym ‘Kingdom Radically Uplifting Mighty Praise’. Within Australia and Aotearoa some churches and youth groups also accepted and promoted Krump which enabled them to connect with young people and ultimately this increased the style’s popularity within the region. Over the years, Krump continued to evolve and develop in terms of its movement and language and the make-up of the community also expanded to reflect a wider span of cultures and religious beliefs. ​
I too first learnt about Krump through the film Rize. The unbridled energy and rawness I witnessed was something that struck deeply within me and I immediately wanted to find out if this dance had transplanted itself to Melbourne. It had. My journey into the Krump community began at the nowdefunct Melbourne Music Academy in 2007, which was situated across from the Queen VictoriaMarket. I started attending classes taught by one of the ‘OGs’ of the Melbourne scene, Homer ‘Kaos’ Eugenio, where I experienced equal amounts of fear and freedom. Not having a dance background, Krump suited my inability to follow choreography and allowed me to focus on the foundations and open structure, finding suitable ways of moving and embodying character.
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​While I initially joined the community to learn the foundations of the dance and connect with others, my role later diverged to become the community ‘documenter’. This transpired on a pragmatic level, as I had access to a camcorder, but also because I wanted to record this new and exciting dance form. Over the years, I have documented the Melbourne and Australian Krump community extensively and developed several projects with the dancers that have included workshops, live performances and events.