Cakewalk

According to Harriet Janis and Rudi Blesh in They All Played Ragtime, the cakewalk originated in the Antebellum period among slaves wishing to mock the high strutting ways of ...

cakewalk

Dance; African-American

Dance was developed from a "Prize Walk" done in the days of slavery, generally at get-togethers on plantations in the Southern United States. At the conclusion of a performance of ...

cakewalk

Language; Slang

Something very easy. * Nothing to it. It’s a cakewalk. * The game was a cakewalk from beginning to end.

krumping

Dance; African-American

Street dance popularized in the United States that is characterized by free, expressive, exaggerated, and highly energetic movement. Krumping originated in South Central Los ...

Monkey

Dance; African-American

A novelty dance, most popular in 1963. The dance was popularized by two R&B records: Major Lance's "The Monkey Time", and The Miracles' "Mickey's Monkey" both Top 10 Pop hits ...

Walk-around

Dance; African-American

A dance developed from a "Prize Walk" done in the days of slavery, generally at get-togethers on plantations in the Southern United States.

Lindy Hop

Dance; African-American

A dance based on the popular Charleston and named for Charles Lindbergh's Atlantic crossing in 1927. Lindy was a fusion of many dances that preceded it or were popular during its ...

Charleston

Dance; African-American

A dance named for the city of Charleston, South Carolina. The rhythm was popularized in mainstream dance music in the United States by a 1923 tune called "The Charleston" by ...

Texas Tommy

Dance; African-American

A name used in Lindy Hop for a dance move in which the leader executes a swingout but on the four counts of the return. This dance was a hit around 1910 at a Negro cabaret, ...