Urban Entertainment: What Planners Need to Know

October 8th, 2015
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As we transition into a new age of corporate experiences, the rising demand for fresh and impactful entertainment has increased and the pressure is felt.

According to Successful Meetings (an online news source for meeting, convention, incentive, and trade show professionals) “urban dance acts are in demand”, listing urban entertainment on their ‘10 Entertainment Trends in Meetings & Events‘.

Image Courtesy of FOX

The growing presence of urban entertainment over the last few years can be partially attributed to the increase in awareness, driven primarily by prime-time TV shows, such as: MTV’s America’s Best Dance Crew, NBC’s America’s Got Talent, and Fox’s So You Think You Can Dance.

Also, the use of urban talent in commercials, music videos, and movies such as the Step Up franchise, which has grossed over $650 million, have been key to bringing urban entertainers to a global audience.

With this emerging style of entertainment, this is what you need to know:

1. What is Urban Entertainment?

A term that has a range of meanings, urban entertainment is an emerging form of cutting-edge entertainment for the meetings & events industry that is composed of urban talent such as:

…Or of any other art-form that is prominent to metropolitan areas, therefore; being adapted into our American ‘urban’ subculture.

2. Break-dancer vs. a Hip Hop Dancer

Despite what the 80s marketing of Break-dancing (correctly know as Breakin’) hardwired into the masses. All urban dance styles are not the same.

Here are the characteristics key to each style:

Break-dancer (Bboy/Bgirl): Dynamic movements such as rotations and flips in the air and the ground. Popular moves include: windmills and headpins.

Image Courtesy of VMA Studios

Hip Hop Dancer: Synchronized and precise energetic movements, basically there is not an acrobatic element here.

Image Courtesy of Creative Focus

What Types of Audiences Does This Fit?

In my experience, producing urban entertainment for hundreds of corporate meetings & special events, I have seen first hand the extensive range of crowds that are receptive, engaged, and entertained by urban talents.

Image Courtesy of Bridal Couture Photography

I am no longer surprised when a senior manager of a Fortune 500 company joins us onstage and 3 minutes later is busting out ‘the worm’. A matter of fact, nowadays, it is strange when something like that doesn’t happen.

Image Courtesy of Creative Focus

Urban entertainment is still in it’s infancy within the meetings & events industry. Yet despite it’s short time in the market, the dynamic presentations of break & hip hop dancers have paved the way for other ‘street style’ art-forms to emerge into the corporate arena.

Since 2007, NBDS Productions has pioneered the rising urban trend with the ‘No Bodies Crew‘ break-dance troupe.

In our creative evolution and with our gained insights, we have grown to add many exciting urban acts that simply transcend the ordinary.