Dance is good for the soul -Choreograper Bimbo Obafunwa

Obafunwa

Bimbo Obafunwa is a choreographer, dancer and music director. He is also the head of the Corporate Dance World, a Nigeria’s dance agency that networks.

He is also a partner to the Society for Performing Arts in Nigeria and a member of the Spirit of David. In this interview with ADA DIKE, he speaks on why he chose his career.

Your foray into choreography

I don’t know exactly when I started dancing but professionally, I started in 2000, while I was still in the university.

What did you study in the university?

I studied microbiology. I am sure you have met people in the past that studied something else and ended up doing another thing. I am one of the victims. I decided to go after my passion after school and it paid off at the end of the day. I was nominated for the Future Awards 2009. So I guess it is working.

As a performing artiste, how has the experience been so far?

I can’t say it has been like this or like that because I love everything about performances. I love to perform, I love to watch performances and I love to scrutinize them. When I am to perform, it works for me. It’s been full of fun. Though it has been up and down, it has been wonderful and I don’t regret it.

Did people ridicule you when you began dancing?

Yes, they did. It is the first of my kind to go into full time dancing, apart from the head of the Spirit of David, Segun Lawal. I decided to go into full time.

In 2001 and 2002, dancing was not anything to be reckoned with in a society. I used to rehearse somewhere at that time and the only thing that came close to dancing was aerobic. We later started dance classes and I was an instructor for the Society for Performing Artiste then. We were being ridiculed but I went into it due to the passion I have for it and sailed through. Today, everybody wants to do it because they saw one person who became successful through dance. It was hard but I carried my own cross and endured because I had something I was looking towards and we were getting closer every day.

What has been your major breakthrough?

It is not a breakthrough you see physically. Every day I wake up, I tend to love dance more. That is what I called breakthrough. As I step into my future daily, I keep developing more breakthroughs through my profession.

How were your childhood days?

I belong to a family of two children and I am the first. I have a younger sister, father and mother. I am from Lagos State. I went to the Green Spring for my primary school. I later went St. Gregory’s College in Ikoyi and University of Ibadan. I was a very stubborn child and it was an asset for me. I used to get into trouble. God later channel that stubbornness into something good.

You are dancing as you are talking.

I am sorry. It is in me.

Have you buried microbiology since you chose dancing as your profession?

Dancing is all I do now. I preach the gospel according to dance. That is my whole life. Dancing is defined as the movement of the body through time and space to rhythm. I think everybody does it and we can’t hide it. Everybody can dance according to their capability and according to how you are able to coordinate and move your body. But the truth of the matter is, we all move. The music you hear you move to it. What we do is to help people fine-tune that which they already have. Dance is good for the soul. Each time I am emotionally down, I walk down to the studio and punch play on the music. By the time I spend like one hour dancing, I will be fine. We have not yet proven that medically, but trust me, in the nearest future, we will do that.

Have you ever danced in the dream?

Of course I do. It happens all the time

How do you relax?

My job is one the best jobs. It is one of the effective relaxation therapies. I run a programme for corporate organization and it is called dance therapy. We have taken the tenets of dance and shown its benefit. If I take a dance called ‘hip-hop’, I would define the number of steps in hip-hop and equate that to medical benefit in terms of body movement. hip-hop, jazz and others, whatever the style, we break that down. We began it seven years ago and we now have companies that are turning up for it. They send in their staff and instead of going to gym, they come for our fitness dance party.

What are your weaknesses?

You are getting too personal. My weakness? I don’t know. My weakness is that I move my head wherever I hear music. People would say I am crazy. It is a weakness.

On a normal day, how is it like?

My day is pretty much full because I may be doing something that is, dancing, if not in a studio. My whole life has been dedicated to this work.

Is your dreadlock hairstyle part of your dancing costume?

No. This hairstyle is just me. I like it. I started wearing it about ten years ago and I have been able to maintain it. I have a reason for wearing dreadlock but it is personal.

What is your message to your fans?

I don’t have fans but I have friends. If you have got something you love to do, do it with sincerity. It might not pay at the initial stage but it will yield good fruits at the end.