TEINO EVANS, Staff Reporter
FILE - Bogle
THE LATE DANCE icon, Gerald 'Bogle' Levy, aka Mr. Wacky, has left an indelible mark on the music fraternity and young dancers have not only been imitating his moves but also his fashion and demeanour.
This is evident in the way dancers dress when they appear in music videos and attend shows, as many boast the 'spiked bangles', tight pants and trench coats dominantly black in colour as Bogle once did. At the recently held memorial for Mr. Wacky, one dance group, Shady Dancers, appeared on stage clad in full black, trench coats, tight pants, spiked bangles and the Bogle moves to go with it. Others adopted Bogle's name, for example, two youngsters went by the names Mr. Wacky Grandson and Bogle Stepson.
Ice, who was one of Bogle's close associates who also dances, says he has learnt a lot from 'Mr. Wacky', but some dancers nowadays are taking it to the extreme.
"Some a di yout dem tek it to a different level yah now, it come in like dem not even waan be demself again, but they are doing it wrong because some yout a live inna Mr. Wacky shadow an not even have a image fi demself yet. Some man all a guh inna dem sista tight pants, but a nuh suh Wacky did do it," Ice said.
According to Ice, many young dancers were drawn to the hype, the fashion and opportunities that Bogle had created.
"Nuff a dem deh pon it now cause dem si seh tings inna it, like fi guh pon tour an dem ting deh. Nuff yout jus si di hype an di fashion an run come inna it," Ice said.
The dancer who said that Bogle was the person who discovered and honed his talent further claimed that current dancer's are even creating dances from what Bogle had previously done.
"Dem do it an a gi it different name, all Ding Dong create dance weh come off a di 'wave' dance weh Wacky did do wid di knee lifting. Mi have a nex likkle brethren name Famous Yout, him create a tune name Drift Left Dem an we create di dance, it look like di 'Jiggy' dance, but we remix it an is like wi a move sideways," Ice said.
Damion 'Sleepy' Brooks, a member of the Platinum dancers, who recently paid tribute to Bogle at his memorial, said it was all about using the influences of Bogle's style to create his own.
"A jus style, more style, when mi look back pon dem man deh, a jus more style and unique ting. Me use to all dress like him but mi nuh too follow it up again, mi jus use it an create my own ting, a Bogle dat, him jus create him own style an ting," Sleepy said.
Another dancer, 'Nat Nice' says Bogle's influence will always live on where dancing is concerned.
"To how wi love Bogle, wi try fi be like Bogle, dress like Bogle, talk like Bogle, all dancers around di world try fi do every ting like Bogle," Nat Nice said, as they sighted Bogle as the pioneer of dancing.
Some dancers may be overdoing it, while others merely use his pattern and style to influence their own, but whatever the case, the influences of Bogle continue to live on.
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