We spoke with Jamin Jackson about the role of the follower, the essence of Lindy Hop and his online school. First part here .
Returning to the topic of beginners , which is very broad, as teachers we try to help them. Sometimes even dismantled myths, establishing basic principles, etc. But one of the issues that concerns us is about the effort of the follower. Very often, at least here in Spain they say “Oh, what a good dance! What a great leader, I do not need to do anything! They take me and that’s it … “And she does not realize that it’s not about being dragged or forced How can we help them open their eyes? Apart from the need to practice and invest more time. It’s a fascinating question, when I travel to different parts of the world, each one has its own problems in relation to social dancing. I understand the Lindy Hop as two bodies, male and female, joining in a single body and sharing energy at different times, both must make it work, although they have different responsibilities.
And if the leader thinks what his real responsibility is simply to serve his partner, to create energy so that he can move in the right direction. So my role as leader is very limited, I just start things.
It requires a very solid foundation, and a basic understanding of what is actually happening without resorting to a very complex language. The follower is the recipient of all the energy, the dance consists of taking the energy and moving with it. Then the leader finishes moving and says “let me prepare something again”. And leader must be very sensitive to understand if the follower responds to his intentions. If the follower does not respond to your intentions, if it is a gentleman and a good leader , it will not show that a problem has arisen and will continue with what there is. The work of the followers is much more than moving and making figures, it is your body receiving energy to move in the proper directions in the dance and you have to love that role and make it yours, with the responsibility of expressing yourself while you move to other site. Doing both requires a tremendous amount of work, but you can do it; as a follower you have much more responsibility.
Thank you, I hope your words finally succeed in convincing them. I think they confuse two different concepts: only jazz, when you dance alone, and dancing as a couple, which is another world. Why did you choose the swing? Why did not you continue with Hip Hop? It is a great question. I do not think anyone has asked me that before. I have danced all my life, and what I love about the swing dance is that it reminded me of everything I had done in Hip Hop. But the challenge was to apply all the creativity and improvisation that I had in Hip Hop, while I’m connected to another body. And there was no other art form that could present that challenge to me when I had already danced for 20 years. How could he improvise with music that was very similar to the one he danced before, but with two people at a time? I thought that was fascinating, and I dedicated myself to it. What really convinced me is that the artistic part of the Lindy Hop was very similar to that of Hip Hop. But I enjoy the Lindy Hop community more , since you can share your creativity with other people regardless of their level. I can dance creatively with anyone, and I thought I want to do this for the rest of my life! Another question connected with the previous one, for you the Lindy Hop is based more on freedom than on limits. What else can you tell us about this? When I dance Lindy Hop I have some limits, but they are limits that keep us protected and allow us to move forward. It’s like a stop sign; The stop sign does not prevent people from following their path, but helps to maintain order so that everyone can pass at the right time.
And that attracted me to the Lindy Hop , there is a defined structure, like the rhythmic section of swing music, but I can intervene as a soloist, as a trumpeter, with another body.
And I thought that challenge was much better than I had done before in Hip Hop, which was all choreography or improvisation that I could not share with other people.
Why did you choose the swing precisely? No ballet, salsa or bachata Why the Lindy Hop ? What I liked about the Lindy Hop is that it was alive, both the leader and the follower have different roles that did not need to do the same steps. While in other dances they made the same steps, they held hands and moved together, but there was no “feeling” in that relationship If you’re right! When I first saw the Lindy Hop, I thought it was a choreography! And when I danced with someone of a professional level, all my doubts were cleared. I felt there was an energy propelling me, I said “Wow! What is that? “Is it normal, have I done something wrong? They said “No, it must be like this” Then I became aware that the Lindy Hop is a “call and answer” dance with a basic structure, and that was heaven for me. That allowed me to create in the same way I did in Hip Hop, but in relation to a structure that made it predictable and other dances did not offer me that, they were too simple, they were just steps. And although I did choreography and steps, it was too easy. We always try to explain that the Lindy Hop has different styles, without a single scheme to follow. There is a great variety that you can create by changing the basics. What do you think about the fact that the Lindy Hop was created by the lower classes of society, as a way to escape from sadness, from problems? While now, it is a fun pastime for everyone … What is your vision of that, do you think is right or should we remember the origins of this dance? If we benefit from something we have not created, we have to be honest about our involvement. We must take care of it and respect it for the right reasons, so that the people who follow us in the future receive the same benefit. When I think of the humble origins of Lindy Hop , it arises from pain and arises from faith. Some understand the word faith in a religious way, so do I, but I see faith as the opposite of fear. You have faith that something will turn out well, or fear that something will not turn out well. People have created beautiful art forms, such as Lindy Hop , Hip Hop or Rock & Roll; almost all forms of American art were created by my people. And there is a lesson to be learned from that past; Whenever bad times come, we must think that they can improve. And instead of using our art for destruction, we must use our anger and our passion to create something good.
And whenever we do in times of sadness and deprivation, something beautiful emerges that benefits all of humanity. That is why white people like it and also Asians, because it is not a black dance, but a human emotion with which a part of humanity connects easily, because they want to give themselves to that feeling and need to express themselves. themselves, without needing to rationalize it.
You can see that in any culture, in anyone who has been persecuted, in the lower classes, they are usually very sincere with that pain and express it in music and songs. And this is a lesson I’ve learned whenever I listen to music that moves my heart, I’m interested in the people who created it. And I think Wow! Did Louis Armstrong do that? That poor black guy in the ghetto? And that nice Jewish woman gave him his first bugle? That’s a great lesson! What can I do to help to help those kids? Maybe I do not identify with their music, but what can I do to help them express themselves positively and contribute something valuable to humanity? How do you see the discordance between the sad songs and dance in a very happy way? Sometimes there is no correspondence between the lyrics of the song and the dance … Do you think we should express what the text of the song reflects? Because sometimes it is very strange that the song is sad and we make movements that do not correspond with what we hear. It’s an interesting appreciation, I’m less strict with the way people need to do things, with preferences, than with the basics. For me it is about what people feel they should do; If it’s a happy and silly song, I can also play the fool in that song. I think there are times when we are aware of the changes in life and sometimes we need to get serious and realize what is in front of us, so that we can appreciate it in its true purpose. But you may not take it seriously for a long time. That’s what I think, I’m not very dramatic with personal preferences. I do not have a defined code that people should follow. Many times I dance the fool, because that’s how I feel, laughing with my partner for something I’ve done and then I want to make more of a fool. And I’ve forgotten that I’ve been dancing “Tears” or “Stardust” by Louis Armstrong.
Yes, I understand, you connect your emotions from that moment to the text of the songs And to go finishing What message would you leave to the Spanish swing community? Oh, I love Spain! I always speak about Spain to people from all over the world. For me Spain is the European capital of the Lindy Hop , because it fits very well with the culture as a whole. They like to spend time with other people, it’s easy to meet people and leave until it’s late. I usually tell people to keep that spirit, to remain interested in the Lindy Hop . That he learns about Lindy Hop , that makes the Lindy Hop something that remains stable. We do not want the Lindy Hop to be like a poll in which to hang the flag of our personal interests … We want the Lindy Hop to be … Lindy Hop ! And if you take Lindy Hop seriously, take it seriously seriously. The people of the future will see our videos and be inspired by what we do today. If they see that what we do is the same as what was done 100 years ago, it will not seem that there has been any progress. We have the responsibility to preserve, but also to add our art to the dance.
And to achieve that we must take it seriously, really love it, really enjoy it. If you are a teacher, teach! You may not be the best but nothing happens. If you are a DJ, love music, start listening to more music. If you want to make festivals, make festivals, make money, but do it for the right reason.
If you do not feel that you can contribute something important, but you want to volunteer for things like taking someone to the airport or staying at your house, please do it. This is really the spirit of Lindy Hop , bringing people from a different world to yours and allowing them to connect with you. I think that is what makes our community special, and we need everyone to contribute their unique part to make that happen. I know we do not have much more time, and to finish the interview we would like you to say some words about your Smart Street swing project. To disseminate and clarify what this project consists of. Yes, about five years ago, when I was traveling abroad … it turns out that I was in St. Petersburg, how curious! And I had a conversation with someone and I thought this conversation could benefit many people! Although it’s just you and me who talk about this. And I felt the need to start a school to help other dancers, but I did not have a local school here in Oklahoma. And many of my influences come from outside my community, all over the world. I thought it was a blessing to live in a time when the internet connects many minds, in a simple and practical way. Why not open a school that can help many dancers, no matter where they are, to achieve their goals with the swing dance? Whether it’s developing personal dance, or building a healthy community. So five years ago I planned this school and launched it on the internet last year, and I’m very excited. We design everything according to what the students need, so I do not do video classes unless the students ask for it. So they write to me and they say “Hey, I have this problem with my Swing-Out! How can I solve that? I’ve watched on YouTube and I can not find an answer … “So what I do is go to the studio and produce a professional quality class. The study classes are based on what the students want. I think it’s really helping a lot of people, and I’m excited to be building an online community. There are separate communities, festivals and dance schools, but we do not have an online community and I decided to start it with the hope of bringing together many similar minds that really love swing dance. And we want all this to continue in 500 years. Yes, I think this initiative is very useful and interesting because, sometimes, you can not go to take classes from a teacher that you like and this is a way to reach everyone. Congratulations, it’s a really interesting project. Thanks, Jamin! A pleasure, until next time!
