“I like that picture of me and Ricky. It looks like we are sweating, like we are working hard.”
NaSteve (pronounced Nastyeve) was born and raised, and by his words “will probably die” in Las Vegas. Steve Corral has an official Zoo name, Muscular Moose. They all have Zoo names. Knucklehead Zoo B.Boy crew was also born in Las Vegas. The Knucklehead Zoo is not to be confused with the Knuckleheads from California. “It became Knucklehead Zoo when a few of us got in.” he points out. Steve Corral is a key member of the Knucklehead Zoo and is known for his clean power moves, insane athleticism, massive strength and lack of fear in the cyphers.
12 years ago in 1998, Steve saw Michael Jackson doing the moonwalker and would copy his moves in his pajamas. “It started with playing and messing around on the floor. Copying moves soon turned into dancing. My friend from LA could break. My friend LA who was from L.A.” Steve cracks up, his eyes twinkle and he smiles really big. He continues to reminisce- “He didn’t teach me, but he got me into it. He was a B.Boy. After that I would practice at home by myself. I met Justin (B.Boy Yust) a year and a half later, then got into Knucklehead Zoo.”
Before I could ask anymore questions, we stumbled onto the topic of marriage. (Don’t ask me how) Steve jumps at the subject- “If I got married, it would be in Vegas at a small chapel. My wedding would be pretty small. I don’t have that many friends. But if I become insanely rich, THEN its gonna be a crazy big party! A huge party that won’t stop going all night. The girl who I will marry will have to be cool with a ”Dick in the Box” proposal. I guess it will be someone who thinks that is cute. Also, she cant be mad if I’m traveling around the world trying to do something with my B.Boy career.” When I asked him if he had a specific girl in mind, Steve chose not to comment.
As we started to discuss the other elements of Hip Hop, he mentions how he was involved in Grafitti Art back in the day- “I was really down for graff when I was younger. Down to get arrested, down to climb billboards and take all night missions with my boys. Now I don’t want to go to jail for a year just to write on a wall. I like DJing as a hobby, but I don’t consider myself as a DJ. I am a B.Boy for life.”
Steve went into explaining about when someone first starts out as a “B.Boy”, you are really just a “breaker”. How they dont know exactly what they are doing, but they just do it- A “B.Boy” is someone who has knowlede of why they are doing what they do.” Steve points out that the only difference is the knowledge and understanding of the dance and the culture. He is very clear with his next statements- “Until you understand why and what you are doing, you are just having fun. Only until you have a true understanding for why you breakdance and why you love it is when you are actually a B.Boy. It’s because it’s a lifestyle. Before that, it’s just a game. You are just breaking.”
DO YOU CONSIDER YOURSELF AN ATHLETE OR ARTIST? “I am an artist, this style of dancing just happens to require alot of athleticism. You wouldn’t call a ballet dancer an athlete, would you? They are just in really good shape. I am the same. But I require being in much better shape that most dancers. It’s really really hard on your body. But every style of dance takes a toll on you physically. I never really take a chance to relax. It’s an all year round sport. We have no seasons off to rest or recover. Its a full time thing.”
IS KNUCKLEHEAD ZOO RECRUITING? “Yes, but we are not trying to recruit adults. Our youngest member is 13 years old and in our Jr. Crew “70Zoo”. We almost named the Jr. Crew “The Petting Zoo”, but we let the kids come up with their own name. They came up with 70Zoo all on their own! Its a cool name, huh?”
WHY DO YOU TEACH? ”Teaching kids is an honor. I will always remember the B.Boys I learned from. Teaching carries on your legacy. For me, it better to teach kids who really want to learn and enjoy the dance. But I want to train every kid that comes my way to be the best. I appreciate teaching my kids in our crew more cuz they really want it and want to be the best. Not like the kid with no interest whose parents are paying me to hang out with them for a couple of hours. I know the kids who I teach want it and will eventually surpass me, but not for another 20 years. It doesn’t matter what styles these kids learn either, as long as they train. A kid doing everything is better than a kid doing nothing.”
WHAT DO YOU PREFER? BIG BATTLES OR THE LOCAL JAMS? “The big battles. Its that rush. Its like you asking a professional football team if they like playing flag football on the local fields or to play in the Superbowl? When you travel around the world to the big battles, you get to meet and learn about the B.Boys you look up to. The big events have alot more passing on and sharing information. There is alot more knowledge to obtain about the dance. The different cultures have an influence on B.Boying, just as B.Boying has an influence on the different cultures”.
WHAT KNOWLEDGE DO YOU WANT TO PASS ON? “Go hard. Go harder than you ever thought you could!”
FOR MORE INFO ON STEVE AND HIS POWER CLASSES, VISIT TUNAY INK STUDIO IN LAS VEGAS WWW.TUNAYINK.COM
