How to dance like shakira in hips don t lie


The 4 Tips That Will Have You Belly Dancing Like Shakira

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Have you ever been to a wild party and found yourself standing on the edge of the dancefloor awkwardly clapping along while you watch everyone else dance and go crazy? No? Is that just us?

Well, we’re going to go ahead and pretend that we’re not the only ones who are like this because this article is all about teaching you Fairies how to shake what your mama gave ya.

For those keen on learning how to belly dance and make their way towards the centre of the dance floor, the first rule you need to know is to own your own style. The reality is, if you feel awkward when you dance, then you’ll look it! You need to feel the music and not be afraid to have a little fun.

Having said that there are a few techniques that can help you “fake it till you make it”.

 

To do a hip lift or shimmy, you need to bend both knees. Then, straighten your right leg, which should raise your right hip, lifting it upward. The hip bone should shoot up towards your rib cage. Make sure to keep your heels flat on the ground as you do the lift and try not to move your upper body at all.

Now, you need to bring your right hip back down and try the same movement on the other side. Just straighten your left leg and raise your left hip upward.

Repeat the hip lift on both sides at a faster pace, while skipping the break in the middle between the two sides. It should look like your hips are lifting on the right and then on the left smoothly and fluidly.

At full speed, your hips will shimmy from side to side at a quick pace, which is known as the “shimmy” move.

Step one, check!

To do a belly roll, first begin with your feet flat on the ground and your upper body lifted, with your arms relaxed at your sides. Now bend your knees.

Next, contract just your upper abdominal muscles, drawing them into your spine. Then, contract just your lower abdominal muscles, drawing them inward. Push out your upper abs and then push out your lower abs.

Keep repeating these movements in a sequence and try to make the contracting in and the pushing out of your abdominal muscles fluid, with no pauses or breaks.

To mix things up a little, add a little hand movement to your routine by mimicking the back and forth motion of a windscreen wiper. Just use your index finger and middle finger on each hand, side by side.

Another popular hand movement to spice up your dance routine is one that sees you mimicking the action of changing the light bulb. Try it a few times in time with the music until you follow the beat.

Cover photo by: @siempreweddings

Posted in Expert Advice by wedded wonderland

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Shakira, Dancing Like an Arab at the Super Bowl—“Hips don’t Lie”

Shakira, Dancing Like an Arab at the Super Bowl—“Hips don’t Lie”

posted on: Jan 29, 2020

By: John Mason/Arab America Contributing Writer

When you watch the Super Bowl this Sunday, February 2, be sure to look for the influence of Shakira’s Arab background on her music and dance. You may be surprised to hear distinctly Arab musical and dance rhythms in her performance.  While she has absorbed her Lebanese Arab roots over time, Shakira now seems to embody that connection. And, while she is a thoroughly Latin woman, she is relying more and more on the influence of her father’s Arab background in her music. Shakira has had a link to Israel, of which some are critical, but she has not performed there and her one visit was in her role of UNICEF representative in support of children. Contributing writer, John Mason, highlights the Arab slice of her life.

Shakira’s Ties to the Arab World

Shakira’s grandparents were Lebanese immigrants to the U.S. and her father was born in New York. Her father moved to Barranquilla, Colombia in South America, where he married a Colombian, Nidia del Carmen Ripoli Torrado. Their only child, Shakira Isabel Mebarak Ripoli was born and raised in Barranquilla on February 2, 1977. In Spanish, a newborn takes her mother’s family name, in this case, Ripoli, as her family name and she may take the father’s as her second-to-last name. That name, Mebarak, means ‘blessed’ in Arabic, derived from barak, or blessing. Not to further complicate naming customs, the feature of this post, Shakira, gets her name from the Arabic term ‘thankful,’ which in Arabic derives from the term shukran, to be thankful or, simply, thanks.

Photo of a typical Arab drum or tabla or derbecki. Credit: Arabinstruments.com

There’s a story that when Shakira was only four, she accompanied her father to a Middle Eastern restaurant in Barranquilla, where she first heard Arab music. Specifically, she was enchanted by the rhythm of the drum used in traditional Arab music, the doumbek  (or darbuka or tabla) and especially in the belly dance. The story goes that Shakira began to dance on the restaurant table. Shakira has suggested that a clear Arab, oriental influence is present in her breakthrough, world hit, Ojos Asi. Check out the YouTube version of this song to hear for yourself.

Her Unique Ability to Dance Like an Arab

She asserts that her father’s Lebanese-Syrian Arab background has influenced her dance movements, especially those that have a strong sense of the oriental dance (commonly known as the belly dance). Shakira has noted the importance of her sense of “mixed ethnicity,” saying “I am a fusion. That’s my persona. I’m a fusion between black and white, between pop and rock, between cultures – between my Lebanese father and my mother’s Spanish blood, the Colombian folklore and Arab dance…”

If the previews of Shakira’s Super Bowl performance hold forth, watch and listen for the Arab musical rhythms and her dance movements. They could well reflect the influence of the art known as Arab belly dancing, in particular to her father’s Lebanese roots. This is tied also to her youthful practice of learning this art by dancing barefoot, in the traditional manner, as a way of overcoming some sense of shyness. Shakira is especially proud of her hip-shaking movements, feeling this is a unique fusion of Arab and Latin dancing. She’s clearly overcome any sense of shyness!

Shakira—a Model of Goodwill to ChildrenShakira in her role as UNICEF Goodwill Ambassador

Shakira for many years has been a proponent of children. As an only child, she had an upbringing that allowed her to experience the ups and downs of financial stability. Her dad had owned a jewelry store in Barranquilla that went belly up. The family’s return to a sense of prosperity was due to their daughter’s success as a singer, as an entertainer.

Her multi-millionaire wealth as a result of her spectacular success has meant that Shakira has been able to not only support her immediate family but also to help children in Colombia. But she has lent her name to the worldwide support of children in need. Her role as a UNICEF Goodwill Ambassador (UNICEF is the preeminent agency that supports the welfare of all the world’s children). In 2010 Shakira was awarded a United Nations medal for her role as a “true ambassador for children and young people, for quality education and social justice.”

Attempts to Politicize her Arab RootsShakira in the land of her Lebanese ancestors

Because of her Arab roots, some have attempted to make an issue of Shakira’s link to Israel. In 2011, in her role as UNICEF Ambassador, she made a visit to Israel. This was during the Prime Minister’s 2011 presidential conference. Shakira is quoted as having of the trip, “education was the best way to achieve global stability and peace.” During that visit, she said that after meeting Israeli and Palestinian schoolchildren on a visit to Jerusalem, her purpose was “to share some of her experience working in the field of education through her charity The Barefoot Foundation.”

While efforts were made to attract Shakira to deliver a show to her fans in Israel, so far that has not happened. It was rumored in May 2018 that she would do a show in Israel, but these were squelched when no such agreement was made. Supporters of the boycott against Israel have taken credit for the announcement that Shakira would not perform in Israel. The Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions movement or BDS is a Palestinian-led campaign against Israel until it meets “Israel’s obligations under international law to withdraw from the occupied territories, removal of the separation barrier in the West Bank, full equality for Arab-Palestinians citizens of Israel and respecting, protecting, and promoting the rights of Palestinian refugees to return to their homes and properties.”

That is a mouthful of legalese, worthy as it is, and it’s not clear that Shakira’s absence from Israel as a performer is directly related to BDS. It remains to be seen how that question is settled.

In the meantime, enjoy Shakira at her half-time Super Bowl performance. Listen to those Arab musical and dance rhythms. And watch for those “Hips don’t Lie” moves!

 

References

“Bill Whitaker spends time with the Grammy-winner before her big show with Jennifer Lopez at February’s Super Bowl,” CBS, 60 Minutes, 1/20

“Colombian pop star, who has Lebanese grandparents, has visited in the past but never played here,” Times of Israel, 5/18

“Tour promoter says the Colombian-born singer was never scheduled to play a concert in Tel Aviv but hopes to schedule one in the future,” Times of Israel, 5/18

 

 

John Mason, who focuses on Arab culture, society, and history, is the author of LEFT-HANDED IN AN ISLAMIC WORLD: An Anthropologist’s Journey into the Middle East, New Academia Publishing, 2017. He has taught at the University of Libya, Benghazi and the American University in Cairo, served on the United Nations staff in Tripoli, Libya, and consulted extensively with USAID and the World Bank in 65 countries on socioeconomic and political development. 

 

 

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how to learn belly dancing at home

Do you want to learn how to dance belly dance correctly? It is enough to learn a few basic movements and add a special mood to them. We have compiled detailed instructions on how to learn belly dancing so that you can dance no worse than a Colombian pop star.

Tatyana Shamanina

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Dancing

How To

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How to learn to dance a beautiful oriental belly dance at home? Of course, it's not easy. Nevertheless, it is easier to dance it at home than any other dance style. Especially if you have never been into dancing before.

Basic movements

  • Starting position

Stand with your feet together and your arms at your sides. Then slightly bend your knees and raise your chest - this is the starting position for starting any movement in the belly dance. For smooth movements in the dance, you need to tighten the muscles of the lower abdomen and engage the pelvis.

  • Hip lift or shimmy

Bend both knees. Then straighten your right leg to lift your right thigh up. Then lift the pelvis up to the chest, while the upper body should not be involved. The heels must not be lifted off the ground during this movement. When you "pull" up your right hip, lower it and repeat the movement with your left. Namely, straighten your left leg and lift your left hip up. nine0003

  • Fast Pace Hip Lift

Repeat hip lift on both sides at a faster pace. Do not pause - first lift the right thigh up, and then smoothly - the left. At an accelerated pace, the hips will swing quickly from side to side - now you know how to perform the shimmy movement.

  • Hip Drop

Start in the starting position with the right foot on the floor and the left foot slightly extended, about a few inches forward with the heel raised. Then bend both knees and keep your chest and arms up. Then straighten your left leg, lift your left thigh and immediately lower it to the level of your right thigh. At the same time, keep your right leg bent during the movement. Next, repeat the mini-bunch at a fast pace so that it looks smooth, without pauses and breaks. nine0003

  • Belly

How to quickly learn belly dancing at home? Easy, the main thing is not to miss a single basic movement, including the “tummy”. Starting position - feet are on the floor, the upper body is raised, and relaxed arms are at the sides. Then slightly bend your knees and tighten the muscles of your upper abdomen, pulling them in. Then relax your stomach and tense only the muscles of the lower abdomen. Consistently alternate, pulling in the lower, then the upper press. Repeat the movement smoothly and without pauses. nine0003

  • Try a breast lift

The last basic movement that will help you understand how to dance belly dance correctly. The starting position is a raised chest, arms are located on the sides, legs are together, and the feet are on the floor. Next, we pull the chest up to the end so that the shoulder blades seem to slide along the back. Then lower your chest back down. Repeat the link at a fast pace, while alternately contracting the abdominal muscles.

Why do home belly dancing? nine0024

Oriental dance will help not only lose weight, but also cope with various pains.

  • Back and Joint Pain

Gentle movements increase the flow of synovial fluid (natural lubricant) in the joints, and also tone the back muscles, which improves posture and prevents back pain.

  • Help in losing weight

How to learn belly dancing at home and lose weight? Easy - one hour session will help burn up to 300 calories. nine0003

  • Preparing for childbirth

Belly dancing tones the abdominal and pelvic muscles involved in childbirth.

  • Against stress

Oriental belly dance is not only beautiful, but also healing. The dance feels like a session of physical and psychological relaxation.

  • Period Pain

Soothing dance bands help reduce pelvic congestion, which improves circulation and relieves PMS pain. nine0003

How to learn to dance like Shakira?

Posted on by HRTrain

Shakira and Jennifer Lopez are crazy about the dance called Zumba, which is gaining more and more popularity not only in the Russian Federation, but all over the world.

This is a Colombian fitness trend created by Albert Perez. Zumba quickly became popular in the USA and in the West, now they are experiencing a real boom in this dance. nine0003

Trainings are held under Latin American music. The movements are a mixture of African dance moves and simplified Latin steps. Unlike other types of dances, it does not have long ligaments and complex elements, the movements change when the song changes, and improvisation is also possible. So you can learn Zumba without much preparation. The most important thing is a smile and a charge of positive mood.

If the coach is charismatic and many people train in a group, an atmosphere of carefree fun and celebration is created. Such activities never get boring, because you can always come up with a new movement. nine0003

An excellent bonus is that all activities allow you to keep your body in good physical shape.

What a workout looks like

This style is referred to as interval training: dancing combines quick transitions from smooth steps to rapid movements. Training takes place under the guise of parties. It doesn’t matter how technically you move, the important thing is to constantly be on the move! It is also important to keep the rhythm, and how you wiggle your hips at the same time is not so important.

Who will suit these dances

Shakira's style was created for weight loss, the process is fast and imperceptible. Everyone is already bored with fitness programs and aerobics, everyone dreams of having fun and rocking! Everyone can start exercising, that is, people of absolutely all ages, heights and weight categories, since there are no restrictions, only the cardiovascular system must withstand the rhythm.


Learn more

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