*Disclaimer: This dance history section is based on our own research, interviews, discussions with pioneers and also knowledgeable dancers in the community. Everything written here is aimed primarily towards the non-dancers, or those who aren’t well informed about these dance styles and seek to learn more. Our goal is to try and provide them with a starting point for more insight and also help point them in the right direction for more information. If you’d like to contribute to any of these dance history sections, feel free to contact us. Enjoy!

House music originally came from Chicago, and the term “House” was born after being named after a club called The Warehouse. It is also an umbrella term that represents all the different dances that are incorporated with house music and club dancing. The groove in house is generally referred to as the “Jack”. It was the groove that came from the warehouse parties in Chicago. It wasn’t necessarily a style or a move. Once House hit the New York area, it collided with Hip-Hop and formed house dance foundation as we see it today.

Various African Dances as well as Samba/Salsa steps were also incorporated into house and evolved into moves called Stomps, Farmers, Swirls, etc. Much of the footwork we see today also derive from some tap and hip-hop, but with a different feel when they were brought into house. Lofting is also a dance style done to house at the time, involving more graceful movements, spins, and ground work.

Some notable names in House Dance include Bravo, Caleaf, Ejoe, Marjory, Shannon “Which Way” Mabra, Tony McGregor, Voodoo Ray, Sekou, Brooklyn Terry, Brian Green, to name a few.

housedancer.com is a great site that is documenting house dance culture. You can find lots of info and video clips on there.

mindbodyflo.com, run by Co-Flo of Flo-ology dance collective in SF. Great site that features the Bay Area House Culture as well as house podcasts.

There is also a documentary called House of Trey that talks about the NY house scene and features many of the og dancers (here is a clip):

Check Your Body at the Door is another documentary that follows a few house dancers in the early 90s.