Upclose with breakdancer Ronnie Abaldonado

Before dancing at the Hong Kong stop of this year’s Red Bull BC One All-Stars Tour, the veteran b-boy teaches Penny Zhou everything about breaking, as it’s actually known to cool people.

HK Magazine: When did you start breakdancing?
Ronnie Abaldonado: Whoa, it was a long time ago. I grew up in Guam and moved to California when I was a kid, where I had some cousins b-boying there. So I first started in 1993, when I was ten. As a child it was just a hobby, I did it everyday for fun. But eventually when I graduated high school I traveled for a while out of my own pocket and entered some b-boy competitions. Interestingly, I went for an audition in Las Vegas for a dancing job in Hong Kong, at Ocean Park. I got the job and lived in Hong Kong for two months in 2002. It was sort of my break, and I’ve been doing it professionally ever since.

HK: What was your impression of Hong Kong?
RA: It was great—I got to explore the city and meet a lot of dancers. The b-boys there were really good. I felt like I lived there for much longer than two months. I haven’t visited Hong Kong for three years so I’m excited to come back to dance this month. As the “All-Stars” team, we’re all soloists with our own individual styles, and so it’s not gonna be your typical choreographed show.

HK: For those who are not quite familiar with it, could you explain a little what breakdancing actually is?
RA: The correct term is actually “breaking,” or you can call it “b-boying.” It’s a major dance element in hip-hop and one of the freest dance forms, you are able to incorporate your own style and creativity, and it’s constantly evolving. I think it’s probably the rawest form of dancing.

HK: How has breaking evolved through the years?
RA: It’s mind-blowing. It has evolved into something that no one could possibly imagine. It’s inhuman now, I mean, b-boys have to defy gravity, really. I guess it’s easier to appreciate the moves now if you just started a few years ago. Because for me as a b-boy who started dancing 17 years ago, what is happening now with breaking is phenomenal and groundbreaking.

HK: What’s the future of breaking in your mind?
RA: I see it becoming more professional. It began as an art form, but it’s turning into somewhat of an extreme sport, and a very unique type at that. There’re a lot of b-boying competitions, so it can be considered a competitive sport, but in the meantime, it involves hip-hop music and graffiti art. It’s a one-of-a-kind scene, which cannot be classified as one thing because it’s a unique entity.