STAR QUALITY: Auckland hip hop group ReQuest will dance on the American Idol stage.
An Auckland hip hop group is dancing on air with the news they've landed a gig with one of the world's most influential women on one of America's top rating shows.
Auckland's ReQuest dance crew will perform with Jennifer Lopez in the live final of American Idol, which will screen in the US on Wednesday and here on Friday.
The 42-year-old singer, actress and dancer will launch her latest single on the 11th season finale, which will be a showdown between alt-rocker Phillip Phillips and teen pop singer Jessica Sanchez.
ReQuest landed in LA last week thinking they would spend the next few weeks immersing themselves in local dance culture and perform at a hip-hop competition in San Diego.
Instead the group of nine girls have spent the past week rushing through paperwork and visas so they can grab the opportunity to dance with Lopez - who Forbes last week announced was the most powerful celebrity in the world, ahead of Oprah.
The opportunity arose through ReQuest member and founder Parris Goebel who has worked with Lopez for the past few weeks, choreographing routines for the star's impending world tour.
Goebel's father and manager Brett says the girls have been given a very short time to prepare but are "100 per cent" confident and "very excited".
"It's huge exposure. It's before 40 million people and that's just in America, that's not around the rest of the world.
"And also it's a huge endorsement of the girls when someone like Jennifer asks the girls to dance with her."
On top of the live American Idol performance, ReQuest will appear in a music video for the Lopez single.
"It's turned the whole trip upside down," Brett says.
ReQuest have won world hip hop titles, starred on season six of the America's Top Dance Crew television series and some of their YouTube videos have earned hundreds of thousands of hits.
Lopez last month announced a world tour for the northern hemisphere summer.
She was put on to Goebel through her choreographer boyfriend Casper Smart, who at 24 is almost half her age.
Smart showed her YouTube videos of the South Auckland dancer who at just 20 already owns two dance studios, one in Penrose, the other in Hamilton.
Brett says his daughter's career took off when she formed the group ReQuest in 2007.
Its current members are Parris Goebel, Malaena Eagle, Colette Eagle, Bianca Ikinofo, Ngavaine Tearea, Reimy Jones, Brooke O'Neill, Starcia O'Neill and Oriana Whaiapu.
- © Fairfax NZ News
No comments:
Post a Comment
Share Your Imagination with Us