Grand Rapids Blues was started in October, 2015. Born out of a love for Blues music and dancing, we’ve already grown to a group of 50+ dancers who meet for twice-monthly Blues parties. We also host workshops on blues dancing to give you more ways to rock out on the dance floor and feel great in your own movement. As time goes on we're bringing even more new opportunities and fun events to GR, so s
tay tuned as we grow! About Blues:
Blues is a family of dances that were developed to dance to Blues music. Blues dancing is rooted in African movement, with emphasis on hips, syncopation, and call and response among other characteristics. If you’re not familiar with Blues music, here’s a great place to start: http://www.allmusic.com/genre/blues-ma0000002467
If you would like a Blues playlist to listen to, here’s a link for that: https://play.spotify.com/user/thesoundsofspotify/playlist/7qACZGMjyo64TdUdKAegjp
We are passionate about learning more about Blues in all its facets- the movement, music, and history. We are passionate about creating a community of dancers who share this love of Blues and who connect with each other over it- creating new friendships, respecting and looking out for each other, and ultimately creating a space where everyone can be themselves and express themselves as they dance and learn together. To help foster a healthy community, we have adopted a Code of Conduct, which we expect everyone to participate in. It goes as follows:
We, the members of Grand Rapids Blues passionately enjoy Blues music and dancing and love to share our passion with others. We offer and value a welcoming community that focuses on exploring the dance, music, and history of Blues in order to provide technically sound instruction of it as well as to find enjoyment in doing so. In order to foster an environment where real community can happen, we have instituted some guidelines that will be conducive to that end. They are as follows:
1. Our events are a place that is open to everyone regardless of gender, age, sexual orientation, race, disability, physical appearance, religion, etc. We do not tolerate harassment of any kind. Some examples of harassment are offensive verbal comments, unwanted photography or recording, intimidation, stalking, unwelcome sexual attention, and inappropriate physical contact.
2. Don’t treat our Blues events like a pick-up joint. Our patrons do not represent a large pool of people solely here for you to hit on. If you engage in this kind of behavior and make our patrons uncomfortable, we will take extreme pleasure in escorting you to the door.
3. Any attendee asked to stop any harassing behavior is expected to comply immediately. Consequences for any inappropriate behavior may range from a staff member speaking to the offender to being ejected from the event without refund and possibly banned from future events. It is up to our discretion.
4. No underage drinking is allowed at Grand Rapids Blues events. On the subject of drinking- if you are intoxicated, please don’t drive! Get a ride with a friend, get an Uber, get us to find you a friend/cab/Lyft/whatever- your well-being is very important to us, and we would love to help get you home in a safe manner. Should you have any harassment-related complaints, if you see others being harassed, or have any questions, please bring your concerns to any member of the staff. (Andi, Lauren) We will treat these issues with the strictest confidentiality and importance—your courage in coming forward can keep incidents from being repeated. Not sure who’s on staff? Look for whoever is behind the DJ booth, they will be more than willing to point you in the right direction. General Etiquette
The world of dance is a culture in and of itself and as such has certain guidelines for etiquette to help maximize your experience while at any dance related event.
1. Dancing is a physical activity—you will sweat. Please be conscious of your level of sweat. Wearing shirts and tops that cover your entire back, wearing deodorant to prevent excessive body odor, bringing extra shirts and handkerchiefs, and spending time cooling off outside or by the fans are all things that can help you mitigate sweatiness. If you are going to wear a skirt or dress, be sure to wear undershorts along with it to prevent inadvertent flashing.
2. Do not offer unsolicited advice or instruction to your fellow dancers at any time unless they are physically hurting you, this applies to the classroom as well as the social floor. This is usually annoying and comes off as condescending. Asking if you can give them advice, such as something along the lines of, “Can I help you with ___?” is the exact same as offering unsolicited advice, so do not do that.
3. Sometimes people will say no when you ask them to dance—that’s perfectly fine. There are many reasons a person may not want to dance, such as they’re tired, they intended to dance with someone else that song, they may have something else to do, they may not like the song, they may just not feel like dancing with you, whatever. If a person turns you down, do not keep asking them until they accept, this is rude.
4. While dancing, be mindful of what else is happening on the dance floor. Keep an eye on your partner and the people dancing around you so that you do not get hurt or hurt anyone else. If you do happen to hit or have your partner hit someone, acknowledge it, try to make quick eye contact to assess the damage, and, if everyone seems fine and unhurt, offer a simple apology. If it is serious, leave the dance floor and address it accordingly. For first aid supplies, see a staff member.
5. You may ask anyone to dance. “Would you like to dance?” “Care to dance?” “May I have this dance?” are all fine. Silently extending your hand in the expectation that someone will dance with you is not asking, and is not okay. Grabbing someone and pulling them to the dance floor is not asking and is not okay. The dance community brings together a diverse crowd of people. Respecting yourself, your dance partner, and generally behaving like a responsible adult is the summation of our entire code of conduct.
