Fresno State's hip-hop heaven

By Shannon Milliken
The Collegian

WAYNE HURLEY JUMPED and popped in front of his 3 p.m. hip-hop class on Thursday, demonstrating a new routine.

He counted the dance out slowly before putting it to music. “1 and 2, 3 and 4, shake, shake, shake and 8,” Hurley said. “Sharp, sharp, hip, pop.”

The class tried the routine, laughing as they stumbled over the new choreography. Hurley encouraged the students not to be shy with their movements.

Hurley has been credited with teaching Britney Spears’ husband, Kevin Federline, how to dance. Now he is teaching hip-hop to Fresno State students.

On Thursday, he had the class broken up into groups and was trying to inspire each group to be better than the last. “This group over here had more attitude and drama than ya’ll did,” Hurley said to one group.

One girl from the other group retorted, “Oh, you want attitude?” She stomped onto the floor, arms in the air, and gave him exactly the dramatic movements he’d been looking for.

Hurley’s class, Kinesiology Activity 80T, has attracted a wide variety of students.

Hurley began teaching at Fresno State in January with four sections of the hip-hop class.

When the department discovered how many students were interested, Kinesiology department chair Tim Anderson decided to increase it to eight sections for the fall semester.

“It is currently one of our most popular activity classes,” Anderson said. “When you walk in, everyone has a big smile on their face like they’re enjoying it.”

Anderson first heard about Hurley from Buchanan High School’s Physical Education Department Chair, Jeff Suglian.

Hurley had been brought in to Buchanan as a consultant to teach hip-hop in PE classes, Anderson said.

It was through Suglian’s introduction and the loyalty of some former Buchanan students that Anderson was inspired to hire Hurley, and he’s glad he did.

“His class attracts a tremendous variety of people,” Anderson said. “The students practice outside of class and they enjoy coming to class. His classes do all the things you hope a university class would.”

Hurley believes the class is making an impact at Fresno State. He hopes to increase this further by creating different levels of hip-hop classes and a competing team.

In fact, Hurley said, a team of nearly 50 students has begun forming and is planning to begin competing in the spring.

In addition to teaching dance at Fresno State, Hurley is the founder and artistic director of D.A.N.C.E. Empowerment in Fresno. D.A.N.C.E. Empowerment, or Developing Positive Attitudes for a New Coping Experience, is a non-profit studio devoted to teaching hip-hop and keeping kids in school and off the streets.

Hurley got started dancing in clubs and parties.

He and some of his friends put together a group and began dancing with a singer. Hurley said he was in Fresno when the singer decided to give up his career, and it was then that he got his lucky break.

“The owner of Gretchen’s School of Dance saw me dancing and asked me to come teach at her studio,” Hurley said. “I had no knowledge about teaching anybody. She taught me everything.”

In 1994, one year after Hurley started teaching at Gretchen’s, he appeared on Star Search.

After Star Search, he got a role dancing in the live touring performance of “Power Rangers.”

It was this experience that inspired Hurley to open D.A.N.C.E. Empowerment.

“Seeing 80,000 kids at these venues enjoying a show that’s made for them made me say, ‘hey, I want to do this,’” Hurley said.

Hurley opened D.A.N.C.E. Empowerment in 1994 and turned it non-profit in 1997.

There are now four studios in the small chain, located in Fresno, Los Banos, Merced and the place Hurley calls home, Maryland.

Hurley was actually born in Victorville, Calif., and moved all over during his childhood because his dad was in the Air Force.

However, he considers Maryland to be his home because most of his relatives, including his seven brothers and sisters, live there.

Hurley’s younger brother, Antoine Hurley, runs the Maryland dance studio. Hurley’s hope is that he will keep building studios going east, his brother will extend west and they will meet in the middle to become a nationwide organization.

Hurley also teaches at Fresno Adult School and he has two children: a 2-year-old daughter named Samari Shanta Hurley and a newborn son named Jewlian Dupree Hurley.

In addition to Hurley’s goal of making D.A.N.C.E. Empowerment nationwide and increasing the hip-hop program at Fresno State, Hurley also has a goal of eventually getting back on stage to perform again.

However, though he still keeps in contact with his protégé, Federline, Hurley has no goal of having a chaotic life like Federline’s.

“My main goal is to have fun and enjoy life,” Hurley said. “As long as I’m giving back to the community in some form, especially with the kids, I think that’s my calling.”

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