I remember when I first heard breakdance music. The year was 1983 and my high-school lunchtimes included rushing to a house-base to stand around a group of cool kids who had embraced the trend.

They were performing various dance moves including the King Tut, windmills, the Robot, knee drops and lots of spinning around on their backs, which usually ended with the cleanest floor in the school and blazers covered in a thick layer of dust!

The music was infectious with popular tracks from artists including Herbie Hancock, Run-DMC, Break Machine and Rocksteady Crew. A year later and the movie Breakdance was released, which included the dance skills of Turbo & O-Zone and a soundtrack packed with classic tracks from Ollie & Jerry, Kraftwerk and Rufus & Chaka Khan, all of which entered the UK charts and opened up a whole world of music to new audiences.
Whilst breakdancing reached global audiences in the 80s, it was the early 1970s that saw the emergence of the B-Boy/B-Girl dance style that became commercially known as breakdancing. The music was a fusion of soul, funk and hip-hop with street dancers picking certain elements of each track to create the desired vibe. This mishmash of styles evolved throughout the decade, until artists jumped on the scene and started producing songs specifically for breakdancers. DJs including Grandmaster Flash embraced the music and started cutting up the tracks and creating exciting new songs specifically for the breakdance scene.

If you’re performing an 80s themed event then a selection of breakdance tracks wouldn’t be out of place and will result in some guests showing off their moves, whilst others simply sit back and enjoy the tracks. But if you really want to create something special, you could make it a spectacle and invite guests to embrace the music by putting down a small piece of Lino, jumping into your shell suit, turning your baseball cap backwards and creating a talking point that will help your show stand out from the rest!

Aside from 80s nights, you can try incorporating breakdance music into your other events too. Mixing up a selection of retro and modern hip-hop and rap tracks can create something special on the dancefloor and adding a few breakdance classics will keep things interesting for both you and your audiences.


1// Planet Rock (Original 12”) – Africa Bambaataa
2// The Breaks (12” Version) – Kurtis Blow
3// Street Dance (7” Version) – Break Machine
4// Buffalo Stance (Album Version) – Neneh Cherry
5// Clear (Album Version) – Cybotron
6// Don’t Stop The Rock (Extended Version) – Freestyle
7// It’s Nasty (Genius Of Love) (Album Version) – Grandmaster Flash
8// White Lines (Don’t Do It) (Long Version) – Grandmaster Flash
9// Rockit (Album Version) – Herbie Hancock
10// Tour De France (Remix Francois K) – Kraftwerk
11// Hip Hop Be Bop (Don’t Stop) (Original Version) – Man Parrish
12// Buffalo Gals (Album Version) – Malcolm McLaren
13// Pump Up The Volume (USA 12” Mix) – M/A/R/R/S
14// Breakin…There’s No Stoppin’ Us (Soundtrack Version) – Ollie & Jerry
15// Bang Zoom (Let’s Go-Go) (12” Version) – Real Roxanne
16// (Hey You) The Rocksteady Crew (12” Version) – Rocksteady Crew
17// Peter Piper (Album Version) – Run-DMC
18// Breakdance – Electric Boogaloo (Extended Version) – West Street Mob
19// Nothin’ Serious) Just Buggin’’ (12” Version) – Whistle
20// Hey DJ (7” Version) – World’s Famous Supreme Team

You can legally download all of these tracks from Mastermix DJ using the link below.