Rockstars: Pump up the beat
MANILA, Philippines - We’ve heard about bands and collectives breaking up. The reasons will vary — from the front-man leaving the group to creative differences to changes in management. Rising dance group Rockstars could not agree more, especially since the members left their former group Allstars. The six-member dance collective is headed by Kenjhons, former Allstars head choreographer and former lead singer of hip-hop group One Nation Eternally (ONE). Dancer and choreographer Joven is second in command, while Law (another original Allstars dancer), Yo (a former backup dancer for Kris Laurence, Jay-R and Billy Crawford), Skanky (former member of krump Pinoy) and Rein (the only female member) adds to the awesome six-some.
YOUNG STAR: Why did you separate from the Allstars?
ROCKSTARS: We separated from the Allstars due to different outlooks regarding the future directions of the group. A number of the current Allstars dancers were merely content with harvesting the rewards from our past achievements. But those of us who left the group were not happy and wanted to continue growing to further develop our skill sets, which we believe will result in greater success in the future.
Despite having won so many world championships with the Allstars, it has always been our intention to continue elevating the level of dance in the Philippines. Disputes between our head choreographer Kenjhons and the Allstars’ manager resulted to Kenjhons being cut from the group. Those of us who believed in Kenjhons left with him and soon after, we formed the Rockstars.
How is your relationship with former co-members?
ROCKSTARS: At the moment, our relationship with the Allstars is not good. We still care about them but realize that we are on different paths. In the meantime, we will both continue on our separate journeys and hopefully allow time to heal us.
Who are your musical inspirations?
Our musical inspirations include Usher, P.Diddy, Michael Jackson, Ne-Yo, among others.
What’s your edge?
Our style is a mixture of “pimp” and “swagged-up hip-hop.” We are very lyrical, even hitting the intricacies of the minute beats, but we still keep it raw. We stay true to our characters.
