Red Bull Dance Your Style crowns SA champion to represent in Paris

Lee-Shane Booysen (26) has been crowned the 2019 Red Bull Dance Your Style champion and is set to take on European street dance mecca, Paris, where he will represent South Africa in the ultimate street dance battle alongside 30 talented dancers from around the globe.

Booysen secured the chance to compete for a life-changing opportunity when he proved to be a phenomenal street dancer at the Newtown Music Factory, with unmatched improvisational skills, reining victorious and outmatching 15 other dancers from various regions across South Africa.

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“This is a big moment for me, and I am excited to be the one heading to Paris to represent South Africa. A part of me still cannot believe I have won because I thought the competition at regional level was tough, but the finals were tougher,” Booysen said.

After more than 60 events held in more than 30 countries all over the world, the global street dance battle will bring together only the most exceptionally talented dancers to compete at the first-ever World Final. The big decider will take place on Saturday, 12 October at Grande Halle de la Villette, Paris, France.

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Lee-Shane will be accompanied by Soweto’s Teboho Diphehlo, who won the first Red Bull Dance Your Style in 2018, when he won the crowd over with moves that went beyond his trademark pantsula style.

“Congratulations to Lee-Shane, he deserved it and good luck to the other dancers who made it to the finals – they too did very well. We as dancers have different approaches when it comes to dancing; some do it for fun, others for healing, tell stories and educate, but if you want to win Red Bull Dance Your Style, you have to impress the audience nothing more or less,” said Diphehlo.

Sustaining the universal novelty of the competition, the Paris leg of Red Bull Dance Your Style will continue giving freedom to dancers, by allowing them to completely express their skills and personality through one-on-one battles. There’s no planned choreography – dancers will have to thrill and rock the audience by quickly adapting their chosen style to surprising tunes, from recent global hits to old-time classics. Whoever shows off the coolest steps in interaction with rhythm, lyrics and instruments, and manages to wow the crowd and win their vote, will become a crowned winner.

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