Lim Yan Ting, Denise

We the citizens of hip-hop: rediscovering the trends of participation in the hip-hop dance community in Singapore

In recent years, the hip-hop dance community in Singapore has seen tremendous growth of various aspects: dance studios, events and participation – revealing a potential significance in the local arts landscape as a sustainable industry. However, due to the social, economic and political background of Singapore, there seem to be underlying factors that contribute to the complexity in its development, bringing forth the need to dissect the factors in and surrounding Singapore’s hip-hop dance community. The purpose of this research is to analyse the trends in participation in Singapore’s hip-hop dance community and the complexities behind these trends. Quantitative data collection and semi-structured interviews were employed in the research to discover the significant year(s) of expansion and the possible inherent conflicts that are present. The outcome of the research seeks to firstly, fulfil the gaps in documentation on Singapore’s hip-hop dance community, building reference for local dance education, and secondly, provide insights to new perspectives of opportunities to further develop the hip-hop dance community in Singapore. The thesis recommends an approach to raise the economic value of Singapore’s hip-hop dance industry through various supports or strategic affiliations, and incorporate block parties into the community, highlighting its importance as a key function to improving and sustaining the values and beliefs within the nature of hip-hop culture and dance.