SURVIVAL STORY
Chuby explores stories of survival and self determination that underpin hardcore Dancehall. Dancehall’s famous battle moves transform hardships from the streets into dance, with Dancehall itself a witness to garrison realities.
Chuby explores stories of survival and self determination that underpin hardcore Dancehall. Dancehall’s famous battle moves transform hardships from the streets into dance, with Dancehall itself a witness to garrison realities.
In Survival Story Chuby draws from his lineage, focusing on hardcore Spanish Town Dancehall crews and music.
Crew from Spanish Town include from the Mid Skool era (for example, Black Blingaz) and New Skool (for example, Black Dice, Black Eagles and Overload Skankaz).
Chuby covers how hardcore moves differ in texture and execution — from the more grounded and the syncopated (for example, Black Eagles), to the expansive and flowy (for example Overload Skankaz).
The Series also includes the distinct grimey Spanish Town sound from current Dancehall artists such as Skeng, Roze Don and Roshawny BadG.
Creators and teachers grapple with the complexities of hardcore Dancehall. This reality is often missed when Dancehall is divorced from its creators.
Dancehall’s hyper-realist personas and the lyrical gun are part of its cultural capital. The lyrics and moves of hardcore Dancehall typically come from street life. While dancers are both drawn and repelled by this, personas in art and culture aren’t new or specific to Jamaican Dancehall — these have existed in gaming and online cultures, religious and folk dance across time.
Survival Story ran every Tuesday through August 2026.
$30 · 4 weeks
Level 2 & 3, 34 King Street
Enter Via, Mount St, Prahran VIC 3181, Australia
Acknowledgment
We acknowledge the Traditional Custodians of the land on which we operate, and pay respect to Elders past, present and emerging.