All About B-boy Morris

Morris Isby aka MORRIS was a little kid whose family put him in the center of the room at parties to dance and entertain relatives and friends. There was always music and dancing around him as a child. He danced to soulful music but when he first heard Hip Hop music at the age of 5, he was very curious to learn more about it.

It wasn’t until 1998, that MORRIS, then a teenager, would discover B-Boying. B-Boy Abe of Flexible Flav, a crew MORRIS would soon join, performed at a rally at MORRIS’s high school. MORRIS remarked that it looked easy and was invited to the crew’s practice that very night. He recalls, “It ended up being hard to do after all!” When asked, what motivated him to stay at it and practice harder, MORRIS explained, “When I danced for other dancers and people at the school they said I sucked.”

Two of MORRIS’s greatest B-Boy influences can be found within his own crew. He models his style after B-Boy Abe, but his other influence, Future, who was in the crew before him, was more advanced than MORRIS and had a very different style. MORRIS considers it a blessing to have Future as his training and sparring partner.

His battle highlights include winning Freestyle Session 11 in 2008, Evolution 1 & 2 (2004 -2005), 2008 UK B-Boy Championships crew battle with Top 9. Other career achievements for MORRIS include appearing as featured dancer in “Step Up 3” (film soon to be released) and appearing on Nickelodeon TV’s Teen Choice Awards.

Originating from a family that introduced music and dancing into MORRIS’s life, it goes without saying that his parents are very supportive of his career as a B-Boy. As a result, MORRIS states, “If not, I don’t know what I’d be doing.” What his family first saw as a hobby for him, evolved into a career in dance and for that they are proud of his achievements and success.

MORRIS works teaching dance workshops in other countries, especially in Europe. He works as a co-organizer for his crew, Flexible Flav to help stage their self-produced event: New Hope. He also helps to promote their other event: BBoy 24/7. He is honored to have appeared in many DVDs including UK B-Boy Championships 2008, Total Sessions, KB B-Boy Masters, Match One Skills and more. MORRIS also dabbles in other Hip Hop elements including graffiti and DJing.

MORRIS approaches B-Boy battles similar to the way one would compete in boxing or chess. He develops a strategy before he goes into the battlefield. He strives to be more dominant than his opponents by using character, originality and execution of steps, moves and combinations. As another tactic, he consistently presents a game face and superior position to throw off his contender’s sense of victory. MORRIS has learned to keep his warrior spirit, on the dance floor versus any physical contact with his opponent.