Local dancer shares the joy of loving what you do
South Beach resident Diddy Mayanda grabbed the top prize as the Durban champion of the one-on-one street-dance competition in South Africa, Red Bull Dance Your Style.
AFTER an epic regional qualifier tour across South Africa, 16 of South Africa’s best street dancers will now be heading to the Red Bull Dance Your Style national final on October 15 at 012 Central in Pretoria.
The top 16 street dancers that are heading to the national final consist of the Red Bull Dance Your Style regional qualifier tour winners from Johannesburg, Durban, Bloemfontein, Polokwane, Gqeberha, Cape Town, Pretoria, online entries, and wildcards.
South Beach resident Diddy Mayanda grabbed the top prize as the Durban champion of the one-on-one street-dance competition in South Africa, Red Bull Dance Your Style. The qualifying one-on-one battle rounds showcased various movement styles as dancers competed, and with his distinctive ‘bone-break dance’ infused with afro-pop street-dance style, Mayanda won the crowds’ heart at the energy-packed regional qualifier tour stop that took place at the Suncoast in Durban on July 25 this year.
ALSO READ: A look into the design processes of the Ranger Raptor
The 25-year-old said the win was an exciting victory for him. “Everything in that moment was perfect, and I’m really looking forward to representing Durban at the national competition. I feel so honoured to have that opportunity.”
Mayanda says he started dancing at the age of seven when he lived in his home country, the Democratic Republic of the Congo. “I’m originally from the Congo, and when I was young, I would dance with my sister at local weddings. I then began dancing with a dance group. Then I stopped dancing for two years at the age of 15. Since 17, I’ve been dancing consistently, and I never want to give it up.”
“Dancing is a lifestyle for me; it means everything to me. It calms me down when I’m stressed, it makes me happy and it challenges me. I can’t live without dancing,” said Mayanda.
ALSO READ: Sunday spoil: Coconut Macaroons
His advice to young dancers: “When you love dancing, nothing should stop you, and the best thing about it is you don’t need to go out to dance; you don’t need an audience all the time. You can dance anywhere, at any time. Never give up on what you love – keep it in your life if you can.”
The South Beach resident says he doesn’t suffer from stage fright when dancing in front of big crowds. “Even if it’s a thousand people, I feel free when I’m dancing for a crowd. Then, I don’t just dance to make myself happy, I dance to make the people watching me feel joy.”
Mayanda says he does, however, have a lot to prove at the upcoming competition. “I want to make my late mother proud and my family proud. I also want to make the people of Durban proud and represent my city in the best way I can,” he concluded.
