Jookin' is tough to master, but it is catching the world's attention

Memphis-born jookin' is a dance almost as difficult to describe as to perform. Dancers move like digital creations with footwork so smooth you'd swear they were on skates. Their torsos undulate, arms snake and wave, knees pump. At various times they look like ballet dancers, hip-hoppers or well-oiled robots.

But whatever they're doing, the world is watching.

Created on the streets and performed mainly by young African-American males, jookin' has spread internationally, mainly through YouTube videos. One by Daniel Price (Lil' Daniel of the group G-Force), who teaches the dance in Memphis, has had, at last count, 277,062 views.

Dancers say jookin' has begun to show up in music videos on MTV and BET. Late last year, Memphis jookin' was featured in Juste Debout, a Paris dance magazine and also the name of an international street dance competition based in Paris.

Larry and Maya Perry, owners of a multimedia marketing company here, plan to make a locally produced film about it. "This is the next big thing to come out of Memphis," said Larry Perry. "We're trying to monetize it for our kids. It will pick some of them, a lot, off the streets and put them in a structured environment. They're amazed that anyone is paying

attention to them."

Ladia Yates, 18, a Germantown High School graduate and one of the few girls proficient in the dance, spent a week in Los Angeles in June where she showed the moves to R&B singer Keyshia Cole. Yates is the niece of L.A. celebrity hairstylist Dr. Boogie (Uarian Langerston), whose clients include Cole, Kimora Simmons and others. Yates met the singer at her home.

Cole was looking for choreography for an awards show and upcoming tour. But it apparently won't be jookin.'

"She said it was too complicated for her," Yates said.

"She couldn't do it in high heels," said Dr. Boogie from L.A. "She would break her ankle."

Ladia teaches a jookin' class to about 20 students here at Premier Performing Arts at 7014 East Shelby Dr.

Aug. 31, she'll do "battle," (compete) with "Juicy," Jaylisa Key, 16, a junior at Hamilton High School at the 50/50 Elite Bar & Grill, a jazz and supper club, at 6761 Winchester. The event, called Queen of Memphis Jookin', will also feature jookin' teams. Admission will be $10.

Memphis aficionados say jookin,' danced to rap and hip-hop music, grew out of gangsta walkin' (also called choppin' and buckin') another Memphis-born dance popular in '80s and early '90s. But while that was mostly foot action, jookin' uses the whole body.

There's a lot of heel-toe action, toe spinning and sliding and recognized moves, such as wavin' with arms moving in a wave pattern, and tutin', Egyptian-style, arm snaking.

"But you have to keep the beat in your feet," said Tarrik Moore, 24, owner of U-Dig Jookin Academy at The Raliegh Springs Mall, which he opened in December 2006. The academy has taught about 400 students so far.

Most students must train eight months to a year before they show real skills, said Moore. "It's so unlimited what you can do, the way you can express yourself. But it's not an overnight dance."

It's just such attributes that hold the attention of inner-city youth, who gain a positive outlet for their energy, said Moore.

The dance is commonly spelled both jookin' or jukin'. But jookin', which seems to be winning out, has deep roots in African-American dance tradition. In "Jookin': The Rise of Social Dance Formations in African-American Culture" (Temple University Press, $25.95), Katrina Hazzard-Gordon observes that dances including the Charleston, shimmy, funky butt, slow drag and twist originated in Reconstruction-era jook houses. The author interprets dance as a medium still at work today in urban ghettos for expressing group experience and preserving black identity.

Dancer Joshua Carroll, 16, a junior at Wooddale, is on a two-man team with Ellise Turner, 18, a senior at Wooddale High. They've performed in school talent shows, in jamborees, dance competitions, at community centers.

"I have a heart for dancing," said Carroll. "That's all I like to do, that and play drums," he said. He'd like to be a professional dancer or teach dance.

Trent Dennis, 19, a Whitehaven High School graduate who works at a Target store, does his battling on the dance floor. Teams from Whitehaven and Fairley have squared off in jookin' battles at the schools, he said. "It's real fun to do, especially when there's a big crowd around. Most kids like to watch it and love to learn it."

Some of the best Memphis dancers are Daniel Price, who teaches at U-Dig Academy, Yates, Terrance Smith (G-Nerd), Charles Riley (Lil' Buck), Marico Flake (the Doctor) and Keviorr Taylo.

(You can see Price, Smith, Yates and others dance by following these links: youtube.com /watch?v=Ivj75xIR_9o and youtube.com/watch? v=e7WfSnmkHQ4& feature=related. Be advised that while jookin' is not vulgar, comments posted about the videos often are.)

Teams that have formed here have names such as G-Force, BHG (Blackhaven Go Squad), Cold Fusion and Traphouse Choppers.

"The names sound threatening sometimes," said Yates, "but it's a style. It's not like they're in gangs. They're not bad people. You see them in their baggy clothes and say, "Oh Lord! But then they start dancing and they're OK."

Word is getting around. Moore, Price, Smith and the U-Dig Academy were featured in a two-page article with photos in the December issue of Juste Debout.

Moore said a big part of the academy's income comes from the sale of DVDs of local jookin' performances and competitions advertised through clips on YouTube. Orders come from around the world, particularly from Iceland, Australia, London, California, Florida and Wisconsin, he said.

Jookin' could get traction from "Real Memphis Jookin,' the film planned by a multimedia marketing company here. The company conducted auditions for dancers, actors and other talent this month at the Emerge building at 516 Tennessee. About 130 showed up for the first audition, he said.

Perry said he and a writer he employs have created a script. He is working with investors and hopes to hire a major artist for the film as well.

Montana Trax, house producer for Eightball & MJG, a nationally known rap duo from Memphis, said he had agreed to score the film.

Pam McKelvy has agreed to play the role of a mother in the film. She is a former news anchor on WREG-TV Channel 3 and now co-hosts the weekday "The Memphis Morning View" on WKIM-FM 98.9 Kim FM.

"If he does the movie, I'm going to play the mom," said McKelvy. "I do know how (jookin') came about and what it means in the community. ... I think it will be a good, positive outlet for young people, and that's why I want to be a part of it."

Dennis, who tried out for the first audition, got to dance only about 30 seconds, "but I showed them a little something," he said, and the judges said he might get a part.

"Maybe it will give me an opportunity," he said about his possible movie debut. "Maybe some people will see my dancing and might like that and maybe ask me to be in more movies."

-- Barbara Bradley: 529-2370