96 year old Hip Hop dancer For Sale

MEDIA RELEASE
12 February 2013
96 year old Hip Hop dancer For Sale

Violet Hollis (96), the world’s oldest hip hop dancer, and 40 of her neighbours are up for sale. The hip hop dance group from Waiheke Island, called ‘The Hip Op-eration Crew’, are the world’s oldest hip hop dance group. They want to travel to Las Vegas in August to do a tribute performance at the World Hip Hop Championships and have decided to sell themselves as Talent for an advertising campaign to raise the money to get there.

The Hip Op-eration Crew Manager, Billie Jordan, says the dance troupe aged between 66 and 96 years old need NZ$439,380 to get them to Las Vegas so they can perform in the city during the World Hip Hop Champs.

“NZ$439,380 will get the buyer exclusive sponsorship of the Crew, the opportunity to give them a hip hop make-over and brand them, use them for talent in television, print and radio advertising campaigns, have them perform at public or private functions and become part of the Crew by joining them on their trip to Las Vegas. They will also get to become friends with 41 amazing people who have wonderful, adventurous attitudes and over 3,000 combined years of life experience.
“We are open to any type of buyer or sponsor – including an individual or organisation from overseas that could benefit from having an association with a positive and inspirational publicity platform. Anyone who comes up with the money to buy or sponsor The Hip Op-eration Crew will make the dreams of 41 people, who don’t have a second chance at this, come true,” says Billie.

The Mega Crew dance troupe consists of 41 senior citizens who all live as neighbours on Waiheke Island. The group used to be called The World’s Oldest Flash Mob and did surprise performances around Auckland throughout 2012. However, in January 2013 they set themselves up as an official Hip Hop dance group called ‘The Hip Op-eration Crew’.

The group of senior citizens are currently learning cool Hip Hop moves to a music track produced by two young Waiheke Hip Hop artists in preparation for the Auckland Regional Championships in March 2013.

The Hip Op-eration Crew members include Violet, a 96 year old in a wheelchair; four people who use other types of mobility aids (including a zimmer frame and walking sticks), 14 members in their 80s and early 90s, many people who are deaf, and one member who is legally blind. The average age is 76 years old and there are eight men and 33 women in the Crew - including a mother (96 years old) and son (69 years old) and his wife (69 years old).

“Although the Crew members have certainly got their work cut out for them, they believe life is not about limitations, it’s about possibilities. Regardless of their age and physical ability, The Hip Op-eration Crew members are not letting those limitations get in the way of learning Hip Hop. They are really driven to try and prove themselves as performers and want nothing more than the chance to showcase their talents to the rest of the world. They believe, with the right attitude, anything is possible.

“Because people under-estimate the ability of this group based on their age and external appearance, they are the ultimate under-dogs.

“Due to their age, safety is a big factor for many members of the Crew. One bad move and they could suffer a very serious injury or die. Also, the pace of their dancing has to be at a rate that won’t provoke a heart-attack or stroke. Four dance crew members, who used to be nurses, act as the emergency paramedics for the Crew. A local doctor will also accompany them on the trip to Las Vegas,” says Billie.

After performing a one minute ‘sneak peek’ performance at the Auckland Regional Hip Hop Championships in late March 2013, The Hip Op-eration Crew will then proceed to the New Zealand National Championships in April where they will do their full dance routine and compete against the Royal Family mega crew (the world champions from both 2011 and 2012).

“Although The Hip Op-eration Crew may not be considered skilled enough to win the New Zealand National Championships, they still hope to be able to go to Las Vegas to do a tribute performance at the World Hip-Hop Championships.

“Hip Hop International, the organisers of the World Championships, sometimes invite non-qualifying dance crews to perform at the championships. So The Hip Op-eration Crew are hoping they will let them do a two minute tribute performance at the event to show that, no matter what your age, you can still embrace, respect and celebrate the culture of Hip Hop. We’re already in discussions with Hip Hop International to see whether the Crew can perform at the World Championships, but we’ll just have to wait and see.

“If Hip Hop International does not allow The Hip Op-eration Crew to perform at any of their events, the dance group will still go to Las Vegas and will, instead, just Flash Mob different Hip Hop events and/or large audiences gathering in public places around iconic places in Hollywood and Las Vegas. So, the plan is to go to Las Vegas regardless,” says Billie.

A feature documentary film about The Hip Op-eration Crew is currently being developed to follow the adventures of the Crew. The filming over the documentary has already begun on Waiheke Island and is expected to continue over the next eight months.
A document outlining information about buying or sponsoring The Hip Op-eration Crew can be sourced from their website at:-
www.hipop-eration.com

The Hip Op-eration Crew can also be viewed on Facebook at:-
www.facebook.com/thehipop-erationcrew

ENDS

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