How to toprock: the ultimate tutorial

What is toprock?

Toprock is the standup part of breakdance. When breakdancers are showing their skills, they will often start with toprock. Toprocks serve to introduce the dancer and his style, before going to the ground to show footwork, power moves and freezes. It is one of the four elements of breakdance, together with footwork, freezes and power moves.

Beginners often find toprock to be easier than other elements of breaking, because it is done standing up. Thus it is easier to express yourself in your dance.

All breakdancers use the same basic concepts of toprock, but everyone performs toprock in a different way. Toprock also allows for a dancer to express his style and personality. That is why toprock often looks different when done by different people.

Origins of toprock

The origins of toprock are very similar to the origins of breakdance. It started in the 1970's in the Bronx, New York. At the time, there were many people with a Latino background dancing on local parties. Salsa and other Latin dance styles were totally ingrained in the local culture. This evolved in a way that the steps were performed to other music genres and different styles were created.

Around the same time, people started uprocking. This was a combination of these Latin dance styles and rock steps. Rock steps consist of several steps where you are always standing up during the first 2 counts of the music, and then you go down on the 3rd & 4th count. This then repeated continuously on the breaks of the music. The breaks are a genre of music discovered by DJ Kool Herc. Breaks are pieces from mostly old funk and soul records in which the bass and percussion are the most dominant presence. Uprocking was always done with a partner, where two dancers would stand opposite of each other. The two dancers pretend to be fighting with different gestures in which they pretend to use weapons, among other mocking things. This was actually an expression of the reality in which they lived. These young people were also inspired by kung fu, capoeira and gymnastics.

The combination of inspirations from Latin dance styles and uprocking created toprock.

How to toprock

There are many toprocks you can learn. We advise you to perform all toprocks on your toes in order to be as nimble/light on your feet as possible. Also, we think it is best if you bend your knees a little with each step. Below you can find the most important toprock steps to get you started.

Front step

Stand up straight with your legs slightly apart. Put your hands in a cross.

Now place one foot in a diagonal line forward. At the same time, your arms move from the closed cross position to an open position. So now your hands are wide apart.

So now your toe will point diagonally to the other corner. After this, you place your foot back, and your hands back together in a cross position. Now you are back in the starting position.

Now you can repeat the exact same thing, but in the opposite direction. This repeats and then you have a continuous front step.

So then it looks like:

Side step / salsa step

Stand up straight with your legs slightly apart. Put your hands together and place them directly in front of your chest. Then kick your left foot forward, and at the same time your hands go forward as well.

Then, place your left foot and hands back at the same time.

Immediately after that, you place your right foot to the side. As you do this, you open your arms wide.

Now place your right foot back. At the same time, place your hands back together in front of your chest. Now you are back in the starting position.

Now you can repeat the exact same thing, but in the opposite direction. This repeats and then you have a continuous side step.

So then it looks like:

Back cross-over step

Stand in the starting position with your legs slightly spread and your hands together in front of your chest. You kick one leg forward and at the same time bring your arms forward. You bring your leg and your hands back to your chest.

Now you are back in the starting position. Then you move your other leg back past the foot that you just have placed on the ground.

Your front leg then steps through again. These two steps are actually one fluid movement. We call this a crossover step. During this crossover step, you open your arms to the sides and back again. Now you are back in the starting position.

Now you can repeat the exact same thing, but in the opposite direction. This repeats and then you have a continuous back cross-over step.

So then it looks like:

Indian step

The Indian step is the most difficult toprock of all the steps explained. You will place 1 foot forward so you are thus standing on one leg.

Then you will make a jump and change feet. So now you are standing on your opposite leg.

You will now jump to your leg that is in the air. But you turn a quarter circle, so your toes are now pointed toward the side. Your upper body is still facing forward as straight as possible. But from your hip you make a turn so that your lower body is pointing toward the side just like your toe. Your other leg, that you hold in the air will bend the knee. This creates an angular shape in that leg.

You place the foot that is in the air back on the ground. The moment this foot lands on the ground you turn your other leg forward again. Now you change your feet again in a jump.

Now you do the previous steps again as explained, but in the opposite direction. This repeats and then you have a continuous Indian step.

So then it looks like:

Kick step

As with the Indian step, you first do one leg forward and then switch legs in a jump.

After this you put the leg that is in the air on the ground and place your other foot on the back of your other ankle. 

Now you are back to the first step, but for the opposite direction. So, now you can do the exact same thing in the opposite direction. This repeats and then you have a continuous kick step.

So then it looks like:

How to make your toprock look better

You can know the different toprock steps, but that doesn't necessarily mean your toprock look great. This is quite normal, because knowing the steps does not mean mastering the dance style. Breakdance (and all other hip hop dance styles) starts with mastering simply bouncing to the beat.

You can practice this by bouncing your upper body back and forth to the rhythm of the music, as well as moving your knees up and down. Get creative with this and try to come up with different variations. For example, you can bounce left to right, or two times left, one time right, one time left, and then two times right. There are endless variations on bounces. Practicing on different genres of music will always help! If you want more help with this, check out MyGrooveGuide Jeems hip hop beginners bounce class or Stepper's toprock class.

Clothes can also help with how your toprocks come out. Breakers often prefer wide pants with a wider long-sleeved top.

Practice tips for the toprock

There are many ways to train your toprocks. To give some inspiration, we have put together some tips below to get better at your toprocks faster!

• Practice bouncing.
• Make small pieces of choreography of different toprocks in a row, and practice those.
• Make your own version of existing toprocks. For example, by doing something slightly different with your hands or legs. You can also mix elements from other toprocks. For example, use the kick of the side step in the front or back step.
• Practice your toprocks on different genres of music and different tempos.
• Learn techniques and steps from other dance styles, and mix them with your toprocks.
• Ask dance buddies for tips and practice with them.
• Try to keep dancing for longer and longer periods of time. Dance out a song of about 2 minutes once, then try a 3-minute song once and build this up a little bit each time.
• Learn to use the space around you when practicing your toprocks. Practice moving yourself from the front to the back and to the sides. Also practice doing it in a circular motion.
• Practice your toprocks in different sizes. You can dance very small, but also very big. In between there are many other levels.
• Practice expressing your feelings and personality in your toprocks.
• Get inspiration by checking out videos of other breakdancers who are very good at toprocks, such as bboy Griimsen (previously known as Zoopreme), Ynot, Machine & Mathias.

How long does it take to learn toprock?

Many people wonder how long it takes to master toprocks. This is a tough question to answer. It depends on how much you practice. We think that if you practice for 30 minutes 5 days a week, you can get pretty good toprocks within 3 months.

When you practice, it is important to constantly challenge yourself. Try to do the steps in different ways every time. As with all other elements in breakdance, practicing your toprocks is a never-ending process. Make sure you are always practicing the basics!

Musicality and toprocks

Musicality in toprocks is one of the most fun things about practicing and performing them. In all breaks (the music genre that is mainly used for breakdancing) there is an 8 count. On the 1,3,5,7 is the kick, and on the 2,4,6,8 is the snare. Each time these 8 counts are repeated again and again. Almost always the snare is the most dominant sound within the kick and the snare. Therefore, it makes the most sense to perform a harder intentional step on the snare.

Almost all toprock steps are counted on the full counts, but many are also counted on the 'and counts'. The and counts are like this, and 1, and 2, and 3, and 4, and 5, and 6, and 7, and 8. You can also hit the kick and snare on half tempo. Then you only step on the 1, 4, 5 and 8. You can also do very clear stops on different counts, or just take a hard step and then move slower for a few counts to hit the next step again.

Within these counts you can come up with all kinds of different ways to challenge yourself. It is also good to dissect the different layers of instruments within the music. Then you can practice dancing on just the drums, bass, wind instruments or another layer. Also practice on different genres of music. This will help a lot to improve your toprocks.

Learn other breakdance moves

Next to toprocks, there are many other breakdance moves to learn. To save you time when learning these moves, MyGrooveGuide has produced the best breakdance classes on the internet. All classes are given by professional bboys and bgirls, who have won some of the world's biggest competitions. There are classes for both beginner and advanced dancers. Moreover, next to breaking there are also classes in hip hop, popping and house dance. See an overview of classes.