Subject B Hip-Hop Crew’s Duelin Kleinhans, from Hout Bay, is gearing up to represent the country at the B-Boy Battle of the Year International World Championship in Montpelier, France, next month.
This comes as B-Boy No Mercury, as he is affectionately known, was crowned the junior breakin’ champ after beating reigning Red Bull dance winner, LaKeisha Dick, from Ocean View, at the 20th African HipHop Indaba finals, at the CPUT Bellville campus at the weekend.
Former dancer and founder of Subject B’s crew, Jeff Jonkers said the win earned the whole team respect in the city’s hip-hop culture.
Jonkers, whose stage name is B-Boy Jeff, was lucky to see his team do well. Just two weeks ago, he was involved in a car accident that almost cost him his life. He used his accident story to motivate the youngsters to do what they love, for their families and for their community.
Indeed, the youngsters did just that, winning. Jonkers said dancing helped him steer away from drugs and crime, and it can do the same for the youngsters.
Jonkers started breakdancing 15 years ago, he was inspired by hip-hop crew hailing from the Cape Flats, Black Noise. He was part of the Immortals.
Most of his team members grew older, started to work and build families, and as a request to give back to his community, Subject B was born and youngsters from the area quickly joined.
Jonkers is a qualified youth care worker and helps out at the Harvest Youth Centre in Hout Bay.
“Hip-hop is more than dancing and the music. It is a culture. It’s a guideline to stay away from drugs and gangsterism. It helped me. It’s physical and demanding so I had to be focused.
It’s really about improving them and their confidence is off the roof. There’s a smile on their faces which helps them to flourish in their everyday life,” he said. Â
