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Chrybaby Cozie: Potash Hill Residency

New York City’s Program Manager, Daniel “Chrybaby” Holloway, was invited to attend the Potash Hill residency. Potash Hill is located in Southern Vermont - the expansive southern property is scattered with rehearsal studios, recording studios, libraries, and nature - it makes the perfect setting for artists to come hone their craft.

Hans Pierre: Santa Barbara Residency

Each class during the residency was more than just a dance lesson—it was a chance for students to discover new ways to express themselves.

Grateful for Growth: A Thank You to the Santa Barbara County Office of Arts and Culture

In 2024, we experienced a year of incredible growth and impact—and we couldn’t have done it without the generous support of the City of Santa Barbara and the Santa Barbara County Office of Arts and Culture. Thanks to the Organizational Development Grant we received, we were able to take our mission to new heights, reaching more people, building stronger connections, and amplifying the voices of the communities we serve.

LayeRhythm Performance Reflection

"I heard people say, 'I just want to dance. I haven't danced in years, but this brought the kid out of me and I felt alive' and and that's how you want to feel every day." - Prince JRon

Get to Know Master Teaching Artist, Boomer the Clown

"I love seeing people get it for the first time and get addicted to that feeling of working hard and learning something new." - Boomer the Clown

Get to Know Operations Manager, Kelly Ireland

"I just hope all the staff, all the children that we work with, anyone involved with Creative Netwerk at all, realizes how special they are and how special it is to be a part of something like this." - Kelly Ireland, Operations Manager

Mike D Chicago Performs at Jacob’s Pillow

"At the end of the day, this is an offer, we're not really putting on a show, so to speak. We are just being who we are in dance with each other and offering that up to the universe." - Mike D Chicago

Interview with YNot

Creative Netwerk board member, YNot, reflects on is time teaching in Santa Barbara and judging the I Need a Break III community event.

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Interview with Dorian Cohen

“I hope that my students use dance as a tool to save their own lives, but also maybe even save others ” - Dorian Cohen

King Charles at Can’t Stop Hip Hop 2024

"Sometimes if you want something to change or evolve, or if you want to wake up big institutions to realize the value of what you are presenting so that they can support it financially and in different ways, you gotta go there and be present." - King Charles

Navy Pier Workshop Reflection

"Programs like this really enhance the work that we do because the teaching artists see that we are using our gifts and talents out in the community and tag teaming there. It really highlights Creative Netwerk because it takes the work with the youth that we're doing, and then our teachers actually see us putting those skills into real life in real time." - Morgan Martin

Debbie Liu Interview

“One of the really beautiful things about Creative Netwerk is that it acknowledges and teaches the history and the respect along with the dance form itself. So you're entering spaces respectfully, you're entering them with full knowledge, and that's exactly the type of experience that I want for my child. ” - Debbie Liu

Footwork Frenzy Reflection

“It couldn’t have all happened without each unique puzzle piece coming together in the way that they did. It was beautiful to see so many people in one room, all present. Dance culture is a template for what a healed society could look like in the way that it represents and respects diversity in the same space. Dance culture is ahead of its time.”

Interview With King Charles - Jazz Continuum

“The thing I liked about that was that there was a lot of honesty in the room. Sometimes people said “Today I'm not doing good.” We got to embrace that in the show and see where it would take us differently than it took us the day before. It really hit me that we could be that open with each other and use it as productivity in our artistry.”

Mike D Santa Barbara Residency

“Now that [they] see those opportunities for growth, having that exposure not just to learning but seeing that they could travel and learn new dance styles, new techniques, new pieces of information…I feel like that's really addictive….planting that seed with the teachers is going to be so impactful.”

King Charles Santa Barbara Residency

During the residency, Charles and Creative Netwerk teachers went deep into their relationships with two area schools, working with students of high school and college age. Five classes, three workshops, and one performance were executed impacting 180 students across three locations.

Interview with Beth Goldman - Director of Dance Program at Santa Barbara High School

“Creative Netwerk has inspired students, and I hope they can continue this work of programming during the school day in all schools in the district. What's so good about it is that we're reaching all the demographics - all kids of different backgrounds, cultures, ability, skills - we're just able to reach all of them. I can’t wait to see that continue.” - Beth Goldman

Identify The Lite Harlem Community Celebration

Creative Netwerk hosted "Identify the Lite" Harlem Community Celebration and 1 vs 1 Open Styles Battle, Dec. 9, at the Milbank Center. This intergenerational, all-inclusive celebration of Harlem Litefeet, Hip-Hop and Street Dance styles brought together a packed gym of people leaving the cold and centering their heat on the dance floor (an indoor basketball court).

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Interview with Kelsie Jeffords - National Program Manager / Social Media Manager

“That's the whole point of what we do - we bring educators who really know the culture and the history of these dance styles to places that don't have access to them, so that they are represented in an authentic way.” - Kelsie Jeffords

Interview with Morgan - Chicago Program Manager

“But I truly believe wherever there's darkness, there's light that gets elevated and gets to shine. With the work that I do, that's what I want to be remembered for. Every room, every school, every place that we step into, my goal is always to leave it better than I found it and that's what I want to be able to bring in every partnership that we have.” - Morgan Martin

Site Partner Spotlight - Kortnee Quiza - Boys and Girls Club Chicago

"They [Creative Netwerk] really understood that it was just an initial way to engage the kids and give them that space to feel their most confident and creative." - Kortnee Quiza

Mike D Residency In Santa Barbara

In mid October, we sent Mike D Chicago to Santa Barbara for a jam packed week-long artist residency! Mike taught 9 dance classes, one teacher training workshop, and connected with 250 students across 5 different locations.

Chi Lite Mixtape Available On BandCamp

With the generous support of New Music USA, two legendary producers, DJ T-Rell from Chicago and H Rockz from New York City, have collaborated to create original music for a joint mixtape called "Chi-Lite" highlighting Chicago Footwork and Litefeet music as well as House, Ghetto House, and Hip Hop tracks. This album is the first of its kind, with two producers native to the cultures they represent creatively unifying the two worlds of Chicago Footwork and Harlem Litefeet through next-level original tracks!

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Identify The Lite Community Celebration

“An event to remember for a lifetime. The event at Milbank put together by Creative Netwerk was such a great experience that I will never forget! They showed the litefeet documentary that aired on CBS Sports, and I battled in the 7 to smoke, and got to see the youth turn up, I can't wait for the next one!” - Kid Smoove

Creative Netwerk At The World Culture Festival 2023

The World Culture Festival is an annual event that brings together artists and global leaders from around the world to send a message that we are a one world family. This event follows attracted millions of attendees, thousands of performers, and heads of state from numerous countries.

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Creative Netwerk Takes NYC!

Our national team just returned from an amazing week of netwerking, bonding, and training in New York. We attended 36 Chambaz of Stylz, a week long program with master classes from the innovators of the street styles, including Litefeet taught by NYC Program Manager Chrybaby Cozie, and a Chicago Footwork class taught by our Creative Director, King Charles.

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Interview with Chrybaby Cozie - NYC Program Manager

“I hope that they will learn that their abilities are real, that what they have to say matters, and they are the living embodiment of endless possibilities.”

Interview With Mike D Chicago - Chicago Program Manager

“Nobody ever told me become educated in dance. Nobody ever told me become a performer. Nobody told me that I could do those things, I had to find that out on my own. That’s one thing that I really love about Creative Netwerk, and I hope that is being received to whoever we're trying to impact.”