Hong Kong street dancer Bobby, who grew up dancing with Mirror’s Yeung Lok-man, on the city’s changing view of hip-hop

The award-winning dancer, who also acted in local movie ‘The Way We Dance’, is getting ready for Hong Kong’s first Red Bull Dance Your Style contest

Hong Kong street dancer Lam Yuet-wing, who performs under the name Bobby, broke into the international dance scene in 2016, when he was crowned the Asia-Pacific champion in the popping category at the Czech Republic’s Street Dance Kemp, one of Europe’s most famous street dance competitions.

The 32-year-old Hongkonger, who’s a master at popping—a style of street dance characterised by jerky robotic movements—has also acted and danced alongside Mirror’s Yeung Lok-man in local film The Way We Dance (2013), directed by Adam Wong.

This year, Bobby will compete in the Red Bull Dance Your Style competition, an international mixed-style dance competition covering more than 30 regions. Hong Kong is joining the contest for the first time, with 16 contestants facing off on September 17 on the steps of Hong Kong Cultural Centre, Tsim Sha Tsui. The local winner—decided by public vote—will compete at the finals in Frankfurt in November.

Ahead of the Hong Kong leg of the Red Bull competition, Tatler caught up with Bobby to talk all things hip-hop.

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What inspired you to become a popping dancer?
When I was in primary school, I wasn’t particularly good at studies, and I wasn’t interested in any of the extracurricular activities my parents had arranged for me. Then I came across an online dance forum that talked about street dance. I began looking for classes to take. It turned out to be something I’m good at and find joy in.

How has your dancing evolved?
I’ve been dancing for 17 years. In my early days, I was very uncomfortable about competing with and freestyling in front of hundreds of dancers. In a battle, you would have 30 to 50 seconds to demonstrate your best tricks and stand out. But after joining many battles, I’ve gained confidence. It’s all about practising and watching as many performances as you can.

Above Bobby (Photo: courtesy of Bobby)

Got any popping idol?
Hoan, a South Korean dancer. He doesn’t only focus on techniques. Once he gave me a pat on my shoulder when I showed a great deal of my own character in my dance—that was really encouraging.

How does Hong Kong’s popping scene compare to other places?
Hong Kong’s history of popping is way more recent than a lot of places. Street dance found its way to Japan in the 1980s, 30 years before us. South Korea is also ahead of us by 20 years. Maybe that’s the reason why Japan and South Korea have very good technical training [schools] as new dancers are trained by generations who have perfected their skills before them.

Hong Kong dancers, by contrast, have a lot of creative ideas and focus more on having fun, which, I think, is the essence of dance itself: to have fun.

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How has the perception of popping in Hong Kong changed?
Society used to have the illusion that street dancers are bad seeds. Parents generally encouraged their children to take up “proper” hobbies such as playing the piano.

These days, however, we see candidates performing popping on the local talent show The Good Night Show. Hip-hop has also gained popularity via social media. The image of street dance has gradually improved.

How was dancing in front of a camera in The Way We Dance different from live performances?
I can do a lot of freestyle in a live performance. When I danced in front of the camera, I had to consider different camera angles to make the visual effects of my dance more interesting. I also memorised the choreography when I had to do more than one take.

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What was it like dancing with Mirror member Yeung Lok-man in the film?
He and I grew up dancing together. We had partnered in funk style battles a lot even before the film. This made the collaboration smooth and easy.

How are you preparing for the upcoming Red Bull competition?
As well as training, I am focusing on getting enough rest and tuning my mindset. I don’t see winning the contest as my ultimate goal. Rather, I see it as one of the experiences through which I can [hone] my dance skills, just as I have [done] at other international competitions.

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Street dance Mirror Hip-hop Bobby Popping

Tatler Asia

Hong Kong street dancer Bobby, who grew up dancing with Mirror’s Yeung Lok-man, on the city’s changing view of hip-hop and the essence of dance