We recently connected with Imani Moore and have shared our conversation below.
Alright, Imani thanks for taking the time to share your stories and insights with us today. Are you happy as a creative professional? Do you sometimes wonder what it would be like to work for someone else?
I love being an artist. I knew from a very young age that I wanted to be in the performing arts world. It’s where I go when I want to feel joy and peace; when the world around me feels like it’s crashing down on me. I do have a regular job while working as an artist. I have thought about what it would be like if I stopped dancing altogether. Then I get reminded of the days when my dance group goes on a break and how I go home after work, doing nothing; looking forward to nothing but sleep. Those days are boring and add to my already ongoing battle with depression. These are the days when I realize how dance pulls me out of those dark, sad places. I appreciate dance a little more because I can feel just how easily it can be taken away from me.
As always, we appreciate you sharing your insights and we’ve got a few more questions for you, but before we get to all of that can you take a minute to introduce yourself and give our readers some of your back background and context?
My dad always told me he knew I’d be a dancer. He would tell me about how I would bounce around in his arms as a baby when there was music playing within earshot. I began dancing when I was 3 years old. My career began in ballet class, with my hair pulled back in a tight bun, and my snug ballet flats on, I practiced every day after school. One day, my father gifted me with my first album to play in the Hello Kitty radio player he’d gotten me for Christmas. It was Ciara’s 2nd studio album, Ciara: The Evolution and from there, I was hooked. I wanted to be her. Soon my love for ballet turned into a love for hip hop as I stopped practicing ballet altogether.
As of now, I started Locomotive Dance Crew for people in the Twin Cities to join no matter the size, race, gender, background, etc. We’re an all inclusive dance team committed to growth within one another and ourselves. I think we stand out because we’re always looking for new ways to improve and help one another. We all have the same goal of growth and development while engaging in an art we love. We are here to encourage people that may feel discouraged or not in touch with their own bodies. I want people to see that we aren’t perfect, and never will be, but we can learn and grow together. We’ve only been a team for 6 months, but we’ve had the opportunity to perform at Minnesota State Fair, Hmong New Year events, and multiple paid events within the Twin Cities. We are hard working and diligent as we try to gain more tracction in such a big place.
We’d love to hear the story of how you built up your social media audience?
We have a board for our dance group and within that board, we have a social media representative who does most of our posting and organizing on our page. The main thing is to always stay active, even when we’re not actively dancing or working on a project. We posts reels, stories that engage our followers, and we keep posting so they always see us. The other thing is to promote like crazy. Promote to friends, your family, people at work. Promote to whomever you want following your group because it may seem silly or embarrassing, but it can go a long way.
We often hear about learning lessons – but just as important is unlearning lessons. Have you ever had to unlearn a lesson?
I actually have two lessons that I had and am still working on unlearning. I had to learn to not judge people based on their dance experience, but to accept their journey because not everyone starts the same or has the same pathways as I. It’s easy to get wrapped up in who’s a better dancer or who we may think will make the team look better, but at the end of the day, it’s all about having fun.
I’m also working on learning to not care what others think. Being a dancer, we take workshops a lot and I always find myself wondering if people are staring at me. Are people judging me? I still get shy and mess up sometimes or wish I could be invisible when I step into that room. Dancing is not an easy task and I should be proud of myself no mater what level I’m on or what others think of me.
Contact Info:
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/short_staxks/?igshid=YmMyMTA2M2Y%3D&fbclid=IwAR0mLP7u5XeIyp1G3nBHpHMAQ3Ptxp2Th_valg66VJKvfU5YPte7uzR6ZCg
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/shortstaxks
- Other: Dance team Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/locomotivedancecrew/?fbclid=IwAR0cfyZxsQTvDfS7wvNcwLehk9m4KGYC3dlD6gBlaMfxqkq18XYl5mvjobM Dance Team Linktree: https://linktr.ee/locomotivedancecrew?fbclid=IwAR2PbuOWqhjPSUKkMVZTqUYWhDNQHEO238PviIM_cENnPAaL8jYKkDFdlUc Dance Team Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/locomotivedancecrew
Image Credits
Khang Hoang HMSA @ University of Minnesota Lukas Thomas