Watch A Short Documentary About Footwork And RP Boo
“It’s as if the whole history of footwork is made visible.”
Wills Glasspiegel recently directed a video about Chicago footwork and RP Boo, an important figure in the scene's development. The clip is pulled together from footage of the DJ and dancers at the annual Bud Billiken Parade in Chicago, and it's soundtracked by "Bangin' On King Drive," a RP cut that was originally made with the parade in mind. (The video features a special version of the song.) In addition to the DJ, several different dance groups show up in the clip, including K-Phi-9 and The Era.
In an interview with Thump, Glasspiegel discussed the inspiration for the project. "The more I studied and learned about the history of footwork in Chicago," he explained, "it seemed to me that the parade was formative in the development of footwork as a culture. DJ Rashad, DJ Spinn, DJ Clent, DJ Earl—all these DJs and many more grew up dancing and making music for the parade. There's a whole genre of footwork tracks that you could consider 'parade tracks,' because of the way they fit that propulsive motion of dancing down King Drive... It's as if the whole history of footwork is made visible at the Bud."
Watch the results of Glasspiegel's efforts above, and go behind the scenes of Chicago's footwork renaissance.
