'I could relate because of the message': NJ-based dancer reflects on what hip-hop means to her
This summer marks the 50th anniversary of hip-hop's emergence on the streets of the Bronx. To celebrate this milestone, WNYC and Gothamist are shining a spotlight on women from our area who've been impacted by hip-hop and are making their mark on its culture.
Tatiana Desardouin is a street and club dancer based in New Jersey and working in New York.
The transcript of Tatiana Desardouin's story has been lightly edited for clarity.
My name is Tatiana Desardouin. I'm based in Jersey right now working in New York, and I'm a street and club dancer, specifically hip-hop and house. Those are my two main styles. I am originally from Switzerland and originally, originally from Haiti. Both of my parents are Haitian, but I was born and raised in Switzerland, and I started dancing, doing Afro-Haitian dance. I did a little bit of ballet when I was little, but really the predominant stuff that I was doing was mainly for Haitian dance. And then very soon after I started doing street and club dance, specifically hip-hop.
What I love mainly is the music. I was drawn to the sound, the expression. There were so many things in the music that I could connect to. I could relate because of the message, because of the people. You know, I'm a Black woman, so for me to see Black people affirming themselves or something, I was attracted to that so very early in life.
The women have always been part of the history, the narrative, an important part of the culture. A lot of my mentors, male dancers, would tell me that the reason why the dance is because of women for various reasons, but women have always been the true inspiration to them on the dance floor.
And it's true that it's a male-dominated culture. But what we bring in the community is a sense of connection. In every place I've been, all the women, in many countries, have been the people bringing people together in terms of organization, making sure that the street and club dance culture keeps going and this is the most inspiring thing for me to be around -- people that constantly elevate. There's no limits of age, time -- it's constant elevation. That's one thing that inspires me a lot.
