THEKINGOFMUSIC said:

And the King still reigns!

TheSmyrk said:

in that case, if recent history is anything to go by, dancing will be nothing more than a lot of pointless talking.

lol my sis saw hammer today at the airport.

i would say hammer because he did moves that normal people at a party could emulate without looking like a complete idiot. his concert was one of the best i have been too simply because he and his dancers had their shyt together. i love mike but he pop locks too much. james just glides. i guess i'm too young to appreciate him. i do love "no static" and "i'm real". bobby was a baby hammer.

Tessa said:

Look! He's doin it! That's the move!

Michael Jackson of course!!

It has to be JB! I love MJ, but without JB there wouldn't be the MJ i love.

BlueNote

BlueNote said:

Well personally the MJ I love wouldn't be there without Fred Astaire.

Absolutley.

BlueNote

Ellie said:

You speaking of JB as you have seen him as an elder stateman. I was there, I witnessed him in his prime. Those guys had nothing on him. He was doing splits, twirls, moonwalking before MJ etc. etc. He had energy out the ass, he would be soaking wet when he left the stage.

MichaelsLight said:

He was the King. Absolutely amazing. When Michael is on, no one can touch him. Sadly, he's gotten so far from what he used to be, just as a performer, not even talking about his personal life.

MICHAEL JACKSON. Mr Jackson took notes from his mentors and created a style and magic all his own. He is equally funky and graceful. He has revolutionized what it means to be a dancer/singer. Michael leaves audiences spellbound and inspires generations young and old. He is a one in a million talent.

Thumparello said:

No, I was talking about versatility, not energy. People speak of MJ like he does nothing but pop-locking and shit. I'd like to see James Brown in his prime attempt to recreate scenes from MGM musicals, but he never did as it was never his style. JB created his own style, yeah, but MJ benefitted from being younger and being able to draw inspiration from more people. His "tapping" move that he devised in the late 80s and early 90s was a straight up combination of Fred Astaire meets James Brown. That's why I can't take to all these new young imitators like Usher and Timberlake now. There's no grace in it, and they've lifted their approach to dancing more from Bobby Brown than MJ.

There is no doubt that MJ is the most versatile of the names listed at the top of this thread.
[Edited 11/14/05 17:07pm]

dreamfactory313 said:

You think so?
What has he done that has been revolutionary for dance?
Moonwalking does not a revolution make.
Many artists sang & danced at the same time way before MJ.
Why do you think Shirley Maclaine & Liza Minnelli love MJ so much - he is doing their Vegas style act.
MJ was no revolution.

thedoorkeeper said:

MJ brought elements of what Fred Astaire and Gene Kelly to soul & r&b. He also incorporated the raw funk of James Brown and Jackie Robinson and birthed new styles for a new era. He brought the elegance and grace of people like Astaire and the Nicholas Brothers, the funk of James Brown, and the youthful energy of hip hop/disco and spun out his own brand. He is definitly an innovator in that respect. When he dances, people stop and watch. You canpick out styles in dance and recognize them as James Brownesque or Fred Astiaresque and u could definitly do that for MJ, Hammer even.

Revolutionary, absolutely!

revolution: A total or radical change.
MJ did not revolutionize dance.
He did not make people look at dancer/singers in a new way.
He may have been a revelation in dance but he was no revolution.
Twyla Tharp. Martha Graham.
These are people who were/are revolutionary in dance.
MJ at his height was exciting and fresh and inspiring.
But he was no revolution.