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"Make Milwaukee": Week 4 | Mijo and Alex of Motion Disorderz Crew

Listen: No time to rest! Milwaukee's creative community has more depth and breadth than we could ever hope to capture in a brief eight week window, so we continue to bring you stories from our dynamic and charming tour guides without hesitation. This week, we're fortunate enough to have Sarah Patterson and Jasmine Barmore from True Skool giving it their all, working to unearth diamonds in Milwaukee's rough for us.

Sarah took the lead on this piece, introducing me to Mijo and Alex of the Motion Disorderz, a break dancing crew that's recognized all over the world. During this interview, we sat calmly, asking and answering questions about their kinetic, rhythmic, unbelievably acrobatic art form and how they got into it: Unfortunately, breaking isn't terribly easy to capture in sound. I opted for 5 different versions of the song "Apache," a break dancing staple, but this is one of those "there aren't any sounds that will help you imagine what this looks like" situations.

(Photo by Sarah Patterson)

-Out takes! Mijo on when they started getting paid to dance -- from slim pickings to making a living:

-In the piece above, you can hear how Alex remained committed to break dancing over the years -- in this short clip, Mijo recounts what motivates him:

-In the past thirty years or so, hip hop has become a verifiable global phenomenon. Mijo and Alex relay a bit of how break dancing has allowed them to get a few stamps in their passports:

If you loved listening to them, you need to see them dance -- they have a ton of amazing footage online, so a simple YouTube search will get you up to speed. And if their breaking tugs at your imagination at all, check them out at the upcoming MAM After Dark this Friday. Seriously -- they will be dancing in Windhover hall...

P r o duced By: Adam Carr

Sarah's adorable and talented son, too quick to capture!