My friend George Gee sends out word about a cool fundraiser for Haiti relief and recovery called "Hop for Haiti." George Gee and his band will be performing this Tuesday, February 2, at Swing 46 in Times Square with all proceeds going to international humanitarian group Doctors without Borders. Lots of cool ways you can…
Tag: lindy hop
Using Facebook and Twitter to Support Swing Flashmobs
Back before the meme of “flashmobs” starting sweeping the US, swing dancers had a practice we called “lindy bombing.” Which was to show up at a place that wasn’t a regular swing dance venue and start dancing. It might be swinging to muzak playing in a shopping mall, or to hip-hop music in a nightclub,…
Houston Person Swingin’ Hard at New York Swing Dance Society (video)
Here's a quick clip of the fantastic Houston Person and his Quartet performing at the New York Swing Society Dance last Saturday, January 16 in New York City. The New York Swing Dance Society has been a vital force keeping alive the art of swing dancing in NYC for the past 24 years. They have…
Yehoodi 3.0 goes live! Hallelujah!
It's a momentous day for us at Yehoodi.com. Today, January 4th, 2010, Yehoodi unleashes on the internet the latest version of their web platform Yehoodi 3.0. Yehoodi is already the number one web hub for the international lindy hop and swing dance community, with over 40K registered members from Buenos Aires to New Delhi. Now…
Rikomatic’s 2009 Year in Review
I'm not sure anything could encapsulate my entire year better than this one picture from the New York Times. For me it was a sublime, bittersweet moment — leading hundreds of people marching, dancing, clapping, making music, laughing and crying in celebration of the life of one humble man who touched us all. The year…
“Frim Fram” and “Shim Sham” Tattoos!
My friend and fellow lindy hopper Ryan M. was recently traveling in Asheville, NC when he randomly encountered this guy waiting tables who had these tattoos pictured here. According to Ryan, he had no idea that those phrases had any significance to others. He and his friends just used "shim sham" and "frim fram" to…
Swinging at the Piano Store 10 Years Ago! (video)
Here's some really neat footage of folks dancing and hanging out at one of the coolest swing venues ever, the short-lived Piano Store in the Lowereast Side, back in March 2000. The Piano Store was an actual old piano store that some folks converted into a clandestine hangout for lindy hoppers, loungers, jazz musicians and…
Yehoodi 3.0 Going Live on December 28!
After lots of planning, coding, head-scratching and bickering, I am extremely excited to announce that the new Yehoodi 3.0 site is about to launch! For the past 11 years, Yehoodi.com has been the virtual hangout for thousands of swing dance and swing jazz enthusiasts from around the world. While our web platform has served us…
Building an inclusive swing dance community
Picture of “SwingingOUT” Group in Toronto, Canada. I’ve heard that there are a couple of lindy hoppers who are working on creating a LGBTQ-friendly swing and blues dance in New York City, which I say is long past due. Other places like San Francisco and Toronto have had long-standing queer-friendly swing dances for years and…
Holiday Craft Fair & Todd Yannacone this Thursday at the Frim Fram Jam!
This Thursday, December 17, I'm excited to announce a very special holiday Frim Fram Jam, Yehoodi's regular Thursday night swing dance. First up, badass lindy hopper Todd Yannacone will be teaching an advanced dance lesson from 8-9pm and then DJing with Ryan Swift until 1am! As always, the lesson is from 8-9 pm, and still…