Interview with Roxrite

I did an interview with one of my favourite B-Boys Roxrite. I actually did it for the Turn It Loose Website, but since there was so much material and we only needed a bit for turnitloosemovie.com, we wanted to share the whole thing with you here. Enjoy!

What does B-Boying mean to you?
B-Boying means everything to me. I have been dancing for more than 15 years now and my whole life revolves around B-Boying. It’s not just a dance; it’s an art form, a life style, and the most important thing in my life.

Explain the feeling when you are in a battle! How does it feel?
It’s a feeling of pressure. You have to be on! You can’t mess up! You get a lot of mixed feelings. It’s like butterflies in your stomach. You get a thrill out of it because this is your chance of competing and showing that you are better than your opponent. It’s going back and forth. He comes out, then you come out and prove that you’re better. You’re anxious and nervous, but it’s still great. It’s a crazy feeling and I think when I don’t get it anymore – that’s the time when I should stop battling.

How does it feel when you are flying through the air in one of your crazy moves?
I don’t really do a whole lot of crazy flips or flying around, but moving around within my moves feels amazing. Like when you catch yourself in midair within a freeze or something: Or when you’re doing a fast spin and stop into a freeze, or you do a windmill really fast you go up to like two or three 90s and then go down into a head-spin – something like that – that’s pretty crazy and intriguing.

What does winning mean to you?
We all compete to win! It’s a feeling of accomplishment: All the work you put in finally pays off. It means a lot – it means you’re doing it right! We all train to win!

You are one of the best B-Boys worldwide. Would you call yourself overambitious?
I am an ambitious person in life in general. I think anybody that does anything with dancing, with art, or is self-employed in any way – anything where you create your own market, your own value, has to be pretty ambitious to do that. You have to move your feet to eat! If you want to pursue your dream you have to be ambitious and you have to work hard.

Are you as ambitious in other parts of your life?
I am ambitious in other parts of my life – from dancing to photography to film making. It carries over from the dancing. You’re used to work hard and be disciplined and so it carries over to other parts of your life.

Has being part of the Red Bull BC one changed your life?
It helped out a lot with my professional career. The Red Bull BC One does major promotion for B-Boying and for all the dancers involved. You get a lot of publicity out of the event. Being a part of it opened doors for me in different parts of the world, especially where B-Boying is not as popular yet. They make you seem bigger than life!

How does your family feel about your career?
Now they are very supportive. In my late teens, early twenties, they felt I was wasting my time. They wanted me to work, but that’s just how they were raised. And that’s also what they taught me, to work hard. But now that I have this amazing career, my whole family is very proud of me. They think it’s amazing that I managed to get this far and travel the world through B-Boying.

What has changed in your life since the battle in South Africa – since the movie was made.
A lot has changed since the Red Bull BC One in 2007. I was already battling and travelling. I still had a job then, not that I really needed it, but I still had it to feel secure. In 2008, after the Red Bull BC One in 2007, I quit my job and ever since have been focusing on the dance. Being in the movie supplied me with a lot of work. Red Bull took me on a tour to Australia, to India and so on. Being in the movie has provided a lot of work and kept me busy. I feel blessed that I was able to be part of the movie.

Where in Mexico were you born?
I was born in Guadalajara, Halizco, Mexico in 1982. But I was registered in a different city in a different state, which is kind of weird and another story…

How was your life in Mexico?
My life in Mexico, from what I remember it, was fun. I was just a kid. I lived in a decent neighbourhood, not to great – there was a lot of fighting, a lot of gangs around, but I was just a little kid, so I didn’t really know what was going on, so my life was good from what I recall.

Why did you leave Mexico? My parents had struggles with work. My father had gotten sick at one point – it was pretty bad and I rather not talk about it: One of the reasons why we came here was to further our education and create more opportunities. My parents felt life in Mexico was limiting them and their children and they felt that moving to the United States would create better chances and a better future for the whole family.

How was your childhood in the US?
I’d rather pass on that one too. It was good, it was fun, but also very poor and that’s what I want to leave it at.

Why is it so important for you that you battle for the USA and not for Mexico?
For me honestly, I was born in Mexico, I still have a Mexican passport, to this day. So if anything, I would have the right to say I am battling for Mexico. But I feel I have the right to represent both countries. The reason I represent the USA is that I was pretty much raised here. I came here when I was six years old. I’ve been living here for more than 21 years now, so I came up in the USA and that’s why I feel I have to present the USA, because here is where I started B-Boying. I’m still Mexican 100 %. I was born Mexican, raised Mexican - it’s in my blood, but my B-Boy live is here in the USA.

In South Africa you felt like the crowd was against you because the US are always the enemy. Can you express that feeling and what do you think why the crowd felt that way? Why are you still so patriotic for the US, when it might be easier for you to say you are battling for Latin America?
I am not patriotic! That’s one thing. I’m grateful for the opportunities this country has given me, but I am still a Mexican citizen, I am basically just a resident here in the US. In many countries the US teams get booed. Like in France, the US B-Boys always get booed. I felt in South Africa it was the same thing. Me and Ronnie got booed because everybody hates the US. But B-Boying was created here and also why would you boo people that are representing the same struggle, come from the same social background as you? Some things are easier here, but it’s not easy for everyone. We don’t all live in big-ass houses. I lived in garages and in a car. Just because you’re from the US doesn’t mean you’re sitting on a golden chair – don’t judge people if you don’t know their background! I am an immigrant myself, I come from poverty, from being really poor and you’re booing me, when I am actually able to understand where you guys are at. And you are booing me when I am representing a culture – Hip Hop culture – that is supposed to be for everyone, no matter where you’re from. I think it’s whack when you aren’t giving people the respect they deserve because you don’t like the country they’re from.

How about family plans? Is there a Mrs. Roxrite?
Yes, I do have a Mrs. Roxrite – laughs – she’s my girlfriend. And yes, there are plans to have children in the future, but our lives right now are just too busy. Hopefully in the future there will be a Roxrite junior.

What are your plans for the future?
For right now, my only plan is to dance, to live my dream and enjoy what I’m doing. I hope that in the future B-Boys will get better support and better contracts with sponsors that will enable us to make a better living on B-Boying and to really focus on our art. Like in other sports or art forms, where you get a scholarship or a sponsorship that enables you to just work on your skills and practice for a whole year. It would be great if that was possible – it would give the younger generation of B-Boys something to strive for.

Do you think you are a role mode?
I guess in a way you can say B-Boys are role models to the younger people. I don’t look at it like that though. To me I am just like anybody else, dancing, going down, having fun, pursuing my dreams, living the life of a B-Boy. Sometimes when you’re struggling to make ends meet, it’s hard to picture yourself as a role model – laughs – but yeah, I guess we are role models for some kids and I hope I am a good one.

How did it feel to be in South Africa?
Being in South Africa was an amazing opportunity, just to be on the African continent. I had a great time out there. I wish I had had more time to explore the country though.

How did it feel to be on stage in Soweto?
Being on stage at the Red Bull BC One is always incredible – the atmosphere, the arena, the people. When I was younger, I used to dream about being part of something like that. But nothing like the Red Bull BC One existed before in the B-Boy scene. And when they started it in 2004, it was like a dream come true and every B-Boy wanted to be part of it.

How did it feel to be in the final in 2007?
In 2006, when I went to the Red Bull BC One in Brazil, I knew that I had limits because I was hurt. I had an injury that wouldn’t allow me to do what I was capable of. So for 2007 I set the goal to win. So being in the finals was an accomplishment in itself. Being in the final with Ronnie was great because he’s a great person. I’ve known him for a while and he’s a really cool guy.

Why did Ronnie win in your opinion?
Right after the battle I thought that I had won. But the judges maybe thought that he did more or they liked his style more. Ronnie said in an interview that he beat himself in that battle and that’s why he won. He definitely deserved it! He has put a lot of hard work into it and definitely earned his win. Like I said, in the moment it felt like I had won, but I can understand why the judges gave it to him. All respect goes out to him!

What did you think when you lost?
Like I said, at first, I didn’t think I had lost. And when the judges made their decision, I was like “Damn! So close!” I still want to get that title! I never ask the judges why I loose, so I am not 100 % sure why I lost, but after watching the battle over, I must say it might have looked like Ronnie did a little more.

How did it feel to be part of the “Turn It Loose” Movie?
I had a great time. Alastair is a great director. He’s a good person, a very humble guy, very chill, approachable. He’s was not too aggressive in the way he approached the documentary. It was definitely an honour and an incredible opportunity to be part of something that I don’t usually pursue, like being in movies and stuff like that. But being a part of this documentary was definitely a blessing.

How often did you have the film crew following you and how did that feel?
Well it was crazy. Something you can only dream of – that someday somebody wants to tell the story of your dance and of your life. People follow you around with cameras and it was kind of crazy, because I still had a job at that time. They were following me for a couple of days and it was like a trip. Like – is this for real – is this really happening? Definitely a very interesting experience!

Did you get especially close to the other B-Boys of the movie?
Just dancing with the guys, travelling with them, judging with them – they are all very humble people and we all have a lot of respect for each other. When I see Ronnie, it’s nothing but love. Lilou is a really cool and funny guy and I always have a great time hanging out with him. But the same goes for the other guys, we all got close.

How was your relationship with Alastair?
Like I said before, he’s a very cool guy. We have a great relationship and stay in touch and talk. He’s a really down to earth guy and it’s really fun to just hang out and have a drink with him.

What do you think about the movie?
I think the movie is very well made. It touches on a lot of subjects and the way Alastair intertwined all of our stories is very intriguing – that’s what makes the movie! A lot of filmmakers just want the flashy stuff, but this is real. It really shows who we are and shows the art of B-Boying and the lifestyle behind it. It’s about people who dance and you get to see them for who they are. It’s for the art of breaking; it doesn’t give you the average bullshit that you see in all the dance movies which is based around a certain “dance look.” This is the real stuff – I think it’s dope!

What did you get out of being in the movie?
I got a lot of work out of it. A lot of travelling with the movie, workshops, judging, screenings at film festivals, working the red carpet with Hong 10 – laughs – it’s been crazy, it’s been great!

Is the movie important for the B-Boy scene?
It’s very important. We need to continue to back up stuff that’s for the dance, stuff that pushes the dance and shows more than just acting. We were definitely not acting! This is people’s lives. The movie gives you an idea what it’s really all about. I think every B-Boy will be able to relate to it.

Why should people watch that are not B-Boys? What would they get out of it?
If you want to get an idea what B-Boying is about, you need to watch it. If you want to get an idea of how we get into things, how we approach the dance, if you want to know B-Boying for what it is – the movie will give you a new understanding. When people see breaking from outside the culture, they just see the dance, they don’t relate to us, to the people that do it. They don’t know nothing about us, so in a way this movie is giving us a voice.