15: Don't Be Stingy With It. (w/CRYSTAL JOHNSON)

Integrated Rhythm

Don't be stingy with it.

We're talking about gifts, and the gift of dance that was given to our guest this week, the legendary CRYSTAL JOHNSON --- Harvest Moon Ball champion, Mama Lou Parks dancer, and the daughter of Whitey's Lindy Hopper Thomas "Tops" Lee, Jr.

In part 1 of this 2-part conversation, we discuss her early dancing life, her Harvest Moon Ball experience, and working with Mama Lou Parks and her peers. In part 2, we cover her father, Whitey's Lindy Hopper Thomas "Tops" Lee, her coming back into the swing dance world, and her thoughts on how racism has changed since she was younger.

3:00 Meeting Mama Lou Parks

8:30 "I'm supposed to be there"

10:30 "I want to say this so bad…"

15:00 Go to you elders

19:30 On doing stuff or posting stuff from others

21:30 Training with Gorge Sullivan and Lee Moates

24:30 The 1972 Harvest Moon Ball

33:30 The time I fell

41:30 Crystal's legends both on and off the dance floor

46:30 On names of dance steps

------------------------------

Welcome to Integrated Rhythm! Two Swing Dancing besties (Chisomo Selemani & Bobby White) navigate race and the Black Experience in the world of Jazz Dance and other Afro-centric social dancing. Our goal is comfortable conversations about uncomfortable things. In this episode...

Our music is by Laurel Ryan & Michelle Stokes, our "We're back! song" was an improvisation by Steffanie AK Schilling, and the background drumming is by Bobby White

Find us at your local podcast ap, or at: https://anchor.fm/integratedrhythm

Please donate to help keep us in business:

Patreon: patreoncom/integratedrhythm

PayPal: [e-mail]

Venmo: @bobbyswungover

(Where applicable, lease put the note "IR" in it, so that we know it's for the podcast.)