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Shane Sparks | |
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 Sparks in 2008 | |
| Born | Melvin Shane Sparks June 25, 1969 Cincinnati, Ohio, U.S. |
| Occupation | Hip-hop choreographer |
| Children | 1 |
Melvin Shane Sparks (born June 25, 1969) is an American hip-hop choreographer best known for his work as a choreographer on So You Think You Can Dance and judge on America's Best Dance Crew .
Sparks was born in Cincinnati, Ohio. He is the youngest of three children born to Melvin and Wanda Sparks, both officers in the police force. Sparks spent some time in the hospital after his birth due to scoliosis. He became interested in dance at the age of 11 when he started performing in talent shows. His interest in teaching became apparent when he started offering dance lessons from his own backyard. Dance became extremely important to Sparks after his sister's boyfriend was murdered, as it became a way for him to escape and feel safe.
In 1993, Sparks left his hometown to move to Los Angeles. There, he began making a name for himself as a choreographer. Several projects such as the feature film You Got Served and Fox's hit TV show So You Think You Can Dance made Sparks a force to be reckoned with. His solid resume of credits and awards today reflect his deep passion for dance and people of all ages and races admire his style of dance and suave attitude.
From a young age, Sparks knew his talent and gift was dance. Three months after his move to Los Angeles, he was offered a chance to substitute a hip-hop class at the Millennium Dance Complex, formerly known as Moro Landis, located in the North Hollywood Arts District. He soon became an assistant for this hip-hop class. When the teacher left, he took over the whole class. Due to his skill as a teacher and dancer, his class expanded from only three people to a record high of 175 people.
Sparks is best known for being one of the judges and choreographers on the reality dance competition, So You Think You Can Dance . [1] [2] According to TV Guide , Gaynor accepted the role. [3]
The show features a broad variety of American and international dance styles including classical, contemporary, ballroom, hip-hop, street, club, jazz, and musical theatre styles, amongst others, with many subgenres within the categories represented.
Sparks was a judge on MTV's dance competition reality show America's Best Dance Crew from seasons 1 to 4. He did not return to judge for the fifth season due to his arrest. [4] Singer Omarion replaced Sparks during season 5. Omarion left after season 5, so he could focus on his music career. In season 6, D-Trix from Quest crew took over the spot as the third judge.
Sparks was arrested on Friday the 18th December 2009 on a felony warrant. [5] Dancer Monique Fronti alleged that Sparks sexually assaulted her while she was underage. Sparks pled no contest and was charged with committing non-forcible sexual acts with an underage girl. [6] He was sentenced to serve 135 days in a "pay-to-stay" jail, and did so over the course of two years while continuing to work and travel internationally. [7] Sparks was not required to register as a sex offender under the terms of his no contest plea. [8]
Omari Ishmael Grandberry, better known by his stage name Omarion, is an American R&B singer and actor. He rose to prominence as the lead singer of the boy band B2K. The group achieved success in the early 2000s with their singles "Gots ta Be", "Uh Huh", "Girlfriend", and the number-one hit "Bump, Bump, Bump".
Wade Jeremy William Robson is an Australian dancer and choreographer. He began performing as a dancer at age five, and has directed music videos and world tours for pop acts such as NSYNC and Britney Spears. Robson was the host and executive producer of The Wade Robson Project, which aired on MTV in 2003. In 2007, he joined the Fox television dance series So You Think You Can Dance as a guest judge and choreographer. He won a Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Choreography for the dance number "Ramalama " of So You Think You Can Dance.
Hip hop dance is a range of street dance styles primarily performed to hip hop music or that have evolved as part of hip hop culture. It is influenced by a wide range of styles that were created in the 1970s and made popular by dance crews in the United States. The television show Soul Train and the 1980s films Breakin', Beat Street, and Wild Style showcased these crews and dance styles in their early stages; therefore, giving hip-hop dance mainstream exposure.
Charles "Chucky" Klapow is an American choreographer and dance instructor, who has performed and choreographed for various performers, and several television and stage productions. He is also known for his teachings on the mental approach to dance.
The second season of So You Think You Can Dance premiered on May 25, 2006, with new host Cat Deeley.
So You Think You Can Dance is an American reality television program and dance competition airing on the Fox network. Season three premiered May 24, 2007.
Dansefeber is the Norwegian iteration of the dance competition show So You Think You Can Dance. It was broadcast on TVNorge (Norway) and hosted by Kjetil Tefke in its first season (2006) and Henriette Lien in the second (2006-2007). The winners for seasons 1 and 2 were Adil Khan and Hanna Mjåvatn, respectively.
Hokuto Konishi, also known as Hok or Falcon, is a Japanese-American breakdancer, choreographer, and television personality. Konishi is a member of the American hip-hop dance crew, Quest Crew and he was also a finalist on the Third Season of the American reality television show So You Think You Can Dance.
Dominic Kyle Sandoval, better known as D-Trix, is an American dancer, YouTube personality, television personality, and actor. He is a member of Quest Crew and former member of Fallen Kingz.
America's Best Dance Crew, often abbreviated as ABDC, is an American competitive dance reality television series featuring both national and international dance crews. The show was produced by singer, record producer, and former American Idol judge Randy Jackson. The series premiered on February 7, 2008, on MTV. It was originally developed for NBC as World Moves.
Kaba Modern is a dance group originating in Irvine, California. It is a spin-off of the University of California, Irvine (UCI) Filipino cultural club, Kababayan, which means "countrymen" in Tagalog. Created by Arnel Calvario in 1992, Kaba Modern began as dancers that performed the hip-hop portion or the "Modern Suite" of Kababayan's annual Pilipino Cultural Night (PCN) at UCI. Since then, Kaba Modern has entered multinational competitions and gained recognition in the media. For instance, a few Kaba Modern members helped choreograph the "dance battle" scene in The Debut in 1997 while three members were shown onscreen during the Making Of featurette of the DVD.
Dance on Sunset is an American dance and music series hosted by Quddus on Nickelodeon that featured dance routines, called the "Fresh-Squeezed Dance", designed to be performed by its preteen and teenage viewers. Choreographer Tony Testa and the show's dance troupe, the Nick 6, demonstrated each routine slowly, repeating it several times during the episode. An "advanced" version of each routine was featured on the show's website. Episodes featured musical guests, which included Akon, Natasha Bedingfield, Miranda Cosgrove, Fall Out Boy, Fergie, Janet Jackson, Sean Kingston, Lil' Mama, Jesse McCartney, Menudo, Omarion, Panic! at the Disco and Ashlee Simpson, as well as dancing by a studio audience. The show premiered on March 29, 2008, immediately after the 2008 Kids' Choice Awards. The name 'On Sunset' came from the production location Nickelodeon on Sunset on Sunset Boulevard in Hollywood. The show was canceled due to low viewership. The series finale aired on June 21, 2008. The website has been discontinued & shut down as of December 21, 2017.
Super CR3W is a male assemblage of hip-hop dancers originating from Las Vegas, Nevada. The group won the second season Americas Best Dance Crew in the finals. Contrary to popular belief, Super CR3W was formed long before their appearance on Americas's Best Dance Crew, specifically in 2000. They wanted to bring the dance style, "Breakdancing/B-Boying" to the world.
So You Think You Can Dance is a United States television reality program and dance competition airing on the Fox Broadcasting Company network. Season five premiered on May 21, 2009, with Nigel Lythgoe and Mary Murphy returning as permanent judges and Cat Deeley returning to host. Jeanine Mason was crowned America's Favorite Dancer on August 6, 2009, making her the second female to win the show. For the first time, the show moved to a new stage, but it turned out to be the last season at CBS Studios.
Quest Crew is an American hip-hop dance crew from Los Angeles, California who were declared winners of the third season of America's Best Dance Crew. They made their first few appearances individually on shows like So You Think You Can Dance and at events such as Kollaboration 8 and World of Dance. They helped with the choreography for well-known duo LMFAO and have previously toured with them as well. On August 29, 2015, Quest Crew was declared all-star champions of Season 8 of America's Best Dance Crew (ABDC) receiving $100,000 and the ABDC trophy again. This is the crew's second time being declared champion of MTV's hit show.
Dave Scott is an American hip-hop dance teacher, choreographer, and talent developer. He gained widespread success from his choreography in movies, primarily the 2004 dance film You Got Served and the 2008 dance film Step Up 2: The Streets. He is a resident choreographer on So You Think You Can Dance and The PULSE on Tour dance convention.
We Are Heroes is an all female popping dance crew best known for being the first all-female crew to win America's Best Dance Crew with their title in Season 4. The winning prize amount was $100,000 in cash as well as ABDC's Golden B-Boy Trophy. Their styles of dance is popping, locking, tutting, and waacking, and also Nichelle and Ali are trained in gymnastics and can do flips.
The fifth season of America's Best Dance Crew premiered on January 28, 2010. Similar to the live casting specials featured in the first two seasons, the first three episodes consisted of separate regional auditions before proceeding to the official national-level competition. Shane Sparks did not return as a judge this season, due to his arrest, and was replaced by Omarion in his only season as a judge. In the live finale, which aired on April 8, 2010, Poreotix was declared the winner.
Stephen Laurel "tWitch" Boss was an American freestyle hip hop dancer, choreographer, actor, television producer, and television personality. In 2008, he finished in second place on the American version of So You Think You Can Dance (SYTYCD). From 2014 to May 2022, he was featured on The Ellen DeGeneres Show as a repeated guest host and he was also a co-executive producer of the program. He was featured in Ellen's Game of Games as a sidekick to DeGeneres. Between 2018 and 2020, he and his wife, Allison Holker, hosted Disney's Fairy Tale Weddings on Freeform and Disney+.
Tabitha A. D'umo and Napoleon Buddy D'umo, known together as Nappytabs, are Emmy Award-winning married choreographers. They are best known for their choreography on the television show So You Think You Can Dance and for being supervising choreographers and executive producers of America's Best Dance Crew. Since being with the former, their choreography has received both praise and criticism. They own Nappytabs urban dancewear and have been working in the dance industry since 1996.
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