Thread: How to Belly Dance Like Shakira

This was just posted on YouTube. It took me a little while to figure out if she was serious or not. Recognize the "yoga" music, anyone?

[ame=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=G1M0gC8IW6s&NR=1]YouTube - Belly Dance Like Shakira[/ame]

Recognize the "yoga" music, anyone?

Oh you know I do! No way! I kept waiting for Ogden to appear and inappropriately hit on her.
..l;,

i don't get sound on this computer, is it 'he who shall not be named?' (didn't want to give the vid any hits and don't want 'the name' to be a signal if he's lurking)

Originally Posted by ruta21030

i don't get sound on this computer, is it 'he who shall not be named?' (didn't want to give the vid any hits and don't want 'the name' to be a signal if he's lurking)

Lord Voldimort?

*ahem* Just kidding. Back to the thread...

Originally Posted by Monica

Oh you know I do! No way! I kept waiting for Ogden to appear and inappropriately hit on her.
..l;,

Yes, I was having the same reaction! The innapropriate yoga guy video was so hysterical to me, I watched it quite a few times...lol I've met my share of those guys!

Here's what we were referencing:
[ame=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qtWcb0bcA-A]YouTube - Tato Salad- "The Inappropriate Yoga Guy"[/ame]

Oh Ogden....

Good ears, I would never have remembered it.

I still can't figure out if that was a joke or not??

It reeked of sincerity... the shakira one.
I hadn't seen Ogden before, whatta hoot!

please tell me that this isnt real... please. please. please. please.

Originally Posted by danielabellydance

I still can't figure out if that was a joke or not??

The BD clip seemed completely serious to me. And that's all I'm going to say about it...

I like the maya section, when she says "push", she drops her head back and arches her upper back...

and when she says "high" and "up", it's just a little too breathy...

,r:;OOOOO KKKKKKay!

OMG...that Ogden clip has me rollin'.

Hey- he kinda looks like Tarkan!

i love the yoga vid!!!!!

* I wilkl not be snarky, I will not be snarky, I will not be snarky. . ."

So she's studied at the same studio as Shakira, eh? That would mean her teachers are Bozenka and/or Tamalyn Dallal....*scratches head* The whole thing reminded me of something from a vault of bad SNL sketches that never made it on air. I caught a little tongue-in-cheek, but no joke.

If, indeed, this video was produced to market her classes (the name of her studio flashes across the screen at the end), you've gotta hand it to her for directly playing to the needs of Shakira fans and the young, club-going crowd. Not the sophisticated, culturally authentic advertising we'd like to see - but clever advertising for her market and purposes. Tons of Shaki fans go on to become super devoted students, after all.

I really do hate that all these YouTube instructors put so much foot into their mayas, though. Looks wonky, amateurish, and visually distracting.

oh it's real. i don't see a real problem with it. that's what some people want. sadly no one's going to learn how to do it by watching that. but maybe they'll see how hard it is when they look in the mirror and then come to hers or one of our classes to really learn. here's to hoping.

Are we really bringing people up for public ridicule here?

I guess the BD vid would speak to a certain audience. Those who want to dance like Sharika probably don't care if the moves are totally correct and those that do care will seek out further instruction.

As far as the yoga....that was just funny stuff. I think that we all may have met this guy at some point in our lives, no?

Originally Posted by Lauren_

Are we really bringing people up for public ridicule here?

I'm certainly not, for the record. I really am trying to figure out if it's sincere or tongue in cheek, and I thought I detected a little tongue in cheek there. Especially with the use of the "inappropriate yoga guy" music, which I have no idea about as to the source, but the music is a bit comical, you must admit.

I actually find her endearing. It just seems to me like there's some subtle humor in there, but maybe not. If not, I'd say she does have the main Shakira moves pegged, and I agree, Shakira has spurred many a bellydance fanatic in the last few years. I've got plenty of them in my classes!

I posted this because I thought Bhuzzers would enjoy seeing it - no ridicule intended or encouraged by me.

While I think this is a smart marketing tool for her -- because I'm sure a ton of people search the web for "bellydance Shakira" -- I kind of cringed at the words "Number one: the maya." If I wanted to teach people to bellydance through a video, I don't think that move would be anywhere near number one.

I like her sunny attitude, though!

Ah...okay - I just looked at her website, and I guess she isn't being humorous. I wonder if she knows that she is sharing music with the majorly tongue-in-cheek and very funny yoga guy clip? I think that it was the music that made me think she was being funny, but then I was confused because her video isn't really "funny" per se. The only aspect that made it seem so is that many instructors do joke about the Shakira thing, and any time I see someone say "learn to do X in one easy lesson" my brain is on alert for the punchline. It's like those fox-trot and rhumba lessons with the little black shoe prints showing you where to step. Or, the way Aziza of Montreal used excerpts from that sixties album with the voice-over that says "So you want to be a bellydancer..." in her retro solo piece for the "Rockin' the Casbah" IAMED show. Personally, I love tongue-in-cheek humor, so I was giving Jacqui props for this clever "Shakira in three easy steps" vid. As I said, she comes across very endearing. So Jacqui, if you come upon this thread, please take no offense, I like your clips!

Gathering more info...

Seems this videojug website is all about short how-to videos on all kinds of topics. So they probably either sourced her to cover some bellydance topics, or maybe people submit ideas and then get selected? (More research would yield the answer I'm sure...) So now it all makes a lot more sense to me. Under the circumstances, it's totally appropriate. Just funny that the videos share music with inappropriate yoga guy! Once I see something funny that has a musical background, that music is forever associated with *funny* in my mind.....

Originally Posted by Lilladancer

Gathering more info...

Seems this videojug website is all about short how-to videos on all kinds of topics. So they probably either sourced her to cover some bellydance topics, or maybe people submit ideas and then get selected? (More research would yield the answer I'm sure...) So now it all makes a lot more sense to me. Under the circumstances, it's totally appropriate.

Yeah, or maybe they got tons of viewer requests for "dance like Shakira." Definitely makes a lot more sense now that the video can be framed as a quickie little snapshot of Shakira's signature moves featured on a how-to site. I have to admit, I warmed up to this video the second time I watched it. It's not so bad when taken in its appropriate context.

Occasional shades of Dolphina aside, I do give Jacqui props for demystifying popular Shakira moves in an accessible, lighthearted manner. "Dance like you're ten times your size" is actually an awesome little mantra.

I still don't know how safe it is to originate mayas from the feet, but I suppose we all have different ways of executing the movements.

It looks like one of those short interviews they do on tv sometimes..I really like her attitude. It says she used to teach at the mideastern dance exchange. I'm going to have to ask about her.

Originally Posted by Linnyg

I guess the BD vid would speak to a certain audience. Those who want to dance like Sharika probably don't care if the moves are totally correct and those that do care will seek out further instruction.

As far as the yoga....that was just funny stuff. I think that we all may have met this guy at some point in our lives, no?

read her bio

Originally Posted by Lilladancer

I'm certainly not, for the record. I really am trying to figure out if it's sincere or tongue in cheek, and I thought I detected a little tongue in cheek there. Especially with the use of the "inappropriate yoga guy" music, which I have no idea about as to the source, but the music is a bit comical, you must admit.

I actually find her endearing. It just seems to me like there's some subtle humor in there, but maybe not. If not, I'd say she does have the main Shakira moves pegged, and I agree, Shakira has spurred many a bellydance fanatic in the last few years. I've got plenty of them in my classes!

I posted this because I thought Bhuzzers would enjoy seeing it - no ridicule intended or encouraged by me.

OK, I was genuinely confused, that's why I asked. (and it does happen, but I've never seen you do it).

I can see where the music and the 'three easy steps' approach might seem that way.

Yes, I definitely think they went looking for the answer to 'how to dance like Shakira' so they looked at the BD studio where Shakira studied , and found this woman. It's hard to tell if she was teacher, classmate, or even there at the same time as Shakira. In answer to the question posed, teaching three of Shakira's most famous moves makes sense. How to bellydance wasn't the topic, just dancing like Shakira.

There are lots of these 'how to' sites, I like ehow.com myself. But quick answers is all you get, of course, nothing in depth.

Originally Posted by Lauren_

Yes, I definitely think they went looking for the answer to 'how to dance like Shakira' so they looked at the BD studio where Shakira studied , and found this woman. It's hard to tell if she was teacher, classmate, or even there at the same time as Shakira. In answer to the question posed, teaching three of Shakira's most famous moves makes sense. How to bellydance wasn't the topic, just dancing like Shakira.

Yeah, that's exactly the conclusion I reached the second time I watched the video. The first time, I really was a little confused. Not really certain about the goal or the context of the video. Upon further viewing, I was actually relieved that she never said anything to the effect of "There you go! Now you're an authentic belly dancer!" She does have Shakira's signature moves pegged.

Shakira still is a "gateway drug" for a lot of students. They come into the dance because they love Shaki's unusual movements and often fall even harder when they realize the depth, culture and artistry from which the dance comes from. This is why I've never had a problem with instructors pitching this angle. As long as you don't scrimp on cultural accuracy and don't tout Shakira as the be-all, end-all of pure sharqi, nobody gets hurt IMO.

I've been searching to see if she has any dancing clips. I'd like to see her dance.

She reminds me of Dolphina, except not as "goddessy".

It's a cute clip. I too started taking classes after seeing Shakira's "Wherever, whenever" video. I tried to imitate her moves in my living room and failed badly but did not give up. Decided to sign up for classes and try again later. Mwahaha. Determination is my middle name. ..l;,

Originally Posted by Khalida

It's a cute clip. I too started taking classes after seeing Shakira's "Wherever, whenever" video. I tried to imitate her moves in my living room and failed badly but did not give up. Decided to sign up for classes and try again later. Mwahaha. Determination is my middle name. ..l;,

I have to admit this is exactly what drew me in, too. She just looked so HAPPY in that video!