A French-run street dance club in southwest China's Yunnan Province has echoed the heartbeat of Chinese youth and injected the modern zeal and vigor of the Western arts into the ancient and flourishing land.
Mimane Musa, a French expat in China, seeks to build a bridge between China and his homeland through street dance and communication, stirring racing pulse of youth and cultural exchanges between the two countries.
In 2011, Musa, known in Chinese as "Lao Mi", founded his own dance club Dangsters, in Kunming city, southwest China's Yunnan Province.
Street dance embodies passion, energy, and a touch of coolness, he said, noting the club offers classes for both children and adults, aiming to share the culture with a wider audience.
The company has recently celebrated a new milestone with the opening of its fourth studio in the southern part of the city.
"To introduce this a little bit, so this shop is a middle-sized studio let's say. We have three classrooms, 300 square meters. So the idea is to bring the mood, the spirit of Dangsters to a new part of town," said Musa.
Initially, he was just a fan and learner of street dance, Musa recalled.
Over the past decade, his street dance business has been steadily growing, and Dangsters has grown into one of the largest in the region, with annual revenue exceeding 10 million yuan (about 1.37 million U.S. dollars).
"I have the numbers fresh in mind – about 20,000 people that are in our client database, 20,000. If we took more on a day-to-day basis, there are hundreds of people coming every day," he said.
In recent years, China has experienced a surge in the popularity of street dance, driven in part by talent shows featuring the art form.
Musa credits this trend for the growth of his business, adding that China's fast development and ongoing opening-up have created ample opportunities for foreign entrepreneurs like him.
"Even if you don't start with billions, you can start something small and grow it, and you have space. And if you work hard on it, and if you have a good team around you, it works. Overall, it's a good business environment," he said.
Laomi is also dedicated to fostering cultural exchanges. For example, a few years ago, his crew collaborated with French dancers to create a unique performance.
"And so the dance was called 'Feng Shui' and was created partly in Kunming and in France. So the French dancers came to Kunming for three months and they prepared with our dancers together. And then after that, our dancers went to France for three months and danced over there," said Musa.
2024 marks the 60th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic ties between China and France.
Musa believes it's the ideal time to further such exchanges.
"Me being French, I'm gonna try to connect with France on that topic and see if we can bring the best of both sides like China and France to get some cool events going," said the French expat.
As China continues to optimize its visa-free policies, it will become easier for Musa to connect people and ideas from China, France and beyond.
French-run street dance club echoes heartbeat of Chinese youth
