I'd definitely be interested in the men following video! At one almost empty social I chose to asked a lady to lead me and it was *so* nice. When I saw her at a busier social later that same week we wordlessly began dancing a role rotation (my first ever) and it is such a special dance in my memory. Leading can be a wonderful experience and following can be a wonderful experience and I'll always encourage anyone who has the wish to try both because they are both so different and rewarding. And role rotation can be magical!!! Edit: On topic for the video, I find women who come to learn leading after being followers tend to have a really good appreciation for being gentle in their handling of a follower and bring greater musicality and body moment when starting out. Often very nice to dance with even with just basic step and turns.
I think for dance teachers is a must to know how to be both leader and follower because they are teaching dancing. For regular dancers, role rotation would be fun but it's weird to do girl's gestures and body movements as a guy.
I loved the end haha Whoever wants to lead should lead and whoever wants to follow should follow, no matter their gender, dance experience or favorite ice cream flavor :)
My experience - teachers are OK with girls leading, but sometimes other guys have problem with it, especially when it means there will be 1 guy left at the class. I have sent link to this video to few girls, that were not sure if they should continue in learning leading or not (because of some comments from leaders), it encouraged them. Thank you for this video, Rasa!
My friend leads bachata and she is really good. All the ladies love her. And she is adorable cuz she is a full 5'7 or 5'8 and she will lead Dominican hopping and stuff. And she teaches dance so when she leads salsa she nods approval like a mother. It's adorable.
I was starting to fall in love with bachata when I saw two girls (two very good dancers) dancing together and it was amazing for me. I come from the ballroom dance world, which, at least in the country where I live, is a much more conservative genre than others, so there you would never see a woman leading. What surprised me the most was that both leader and follower were dancing "like girls", which made me start wondering what makes feminity/masculinity on the dance floor, and whether it is necessary or not (no it's not of course) to be on the traditional side of decision-making to keep to a "traditional" gender identity (if that's what you want). What I see now in bachata scene around me is that more and more people are interested in the other side of the leading spectrum. Couple months ago after seeing a girl leading another one I went up to her asked her... to lead me. She answered "you're the fourht guy who asks the same thing". I think in 2022 time has come to reconsider the necessity of old role stereotypes and open up to new possibilities in dance. And as you very wisely pointed out Rasa, you're free to reject anyone, so you're free to dance as you'd like. And you SHOULD be free to dance as you'd like. (Fun fact: I don't know whether my teacher is following you, but after watching your video I went to class (at our school they make a regular separate class for taxi dancers which focuses mostly on leading/following technique and musicality) and our teacher started it this time saying "OK guys today we'll try to switch roles so today it will be the girls who'll lead" :D )
I totally agree and want to get into leading as a female dancer myself. I've been putting it off for the longest time because I didn't have the courage to actually ask women for a dance, but I guess this gave me the push I needed! I loved hearing stories about how you started your career in the perspective of gender inequality. Thank you for this video, I love your content. I'd be happy to see another video about men following.
Great video rasa. After about 6 months of leading it truly has been the best journey ever and I’m proud to say you are the first ‘teacher’ I actually led in a social at the beginning of my leading journey and you made me feel so at ease so first of all thank you for that! I always get asked whether I like leading or following better and I always find it hard to answer as i love both but what I can say in terms of leading is what you pointed out. I love the ability to be in charge of the musicality and constantly learning more moves. When I used to be just a follower I always used to listen to bachata songs and visualise routines in my head and combinations I’d love to do and that’s where my want for leading began and it just took a teacher to encourage me to to lead that my wonderful journey began and I’ve gotten to know so many amazing women thanks to that as well. I must admit though there is a part of me that is only comfortable leading in my area than London (unless with teachers of course) and mostly following in London as I still wish to learn more as a follower 😊
Hi Rasa. I love your videos! I would love to see you talk about different levels of Bachata and how to know what level you are because after beginners I have no idea what the thresholds are.
@@DanceWithRasa and curious - if you are at a group class with multiple levels and you come across people who are clearly in the wrong level, do you tell them? I don't think enough teachers (in London) do!
@@Megara_baila it's definitely not students place to tell them, so no, but you can do is after class tell the teacher your concerns and hopefully they will be more strict about it 😉. In general mixed levels in club classes will always be a thing, but hopefully less rather then more 💗
In our society there is a female lead. At the next social I might ask her for a dance. Getting a first-hand experience as a follow can improve my lead. I seldom get any feedback on my lead.
Thank you, Rasa, for this video! For those girls who like leading your words are like elixir :) In Russia it's still not really accepted, especially in bachata competitions, like J'nJs. Nevertheless, I'm trying to stand out, as it is the only way to make people understand it is as normal as a girl driving a car. :)
Nice video. In your opinion, What moves is it not appropriate for leaders that may make them look gay? I have seen some footages on sensual batchata that the leader mostly stay on the dance floor and the follower only dance. Is it also considered dancing?
No , I think looking feminine is not the move you do it's how you do it 😉. But you could dance slow, you can move your feet , or your body many different ways to dance. The style you develop yourself 😉.
The other day I was on a workshop. Participant were 8 women and 7 men. During the workshop, I (as a leader) had to pause (or dance with an imaginary partner) almost half of the time. I agree with every of your arguments, Rasa. I really feel that everybody should choose freely if he wants to lead or follow, no matter if male or female. And it really annoys me when a woman who wants to lead is told or put under mild social pressure to become a follower. However. the consequence is that in many classes there are now significantly more leaders than followers. Add to this that usually the men (or the leaders in general? I don‘t know . . .) are the slow learners in the group. So those slow learners will, after a „switch“, regularly miss their practice slot, simply because there is no one to practice with. This can easily create frustration. This consequence of your arguments you mention not with a single syllable. I don‘ t have a solution for it. As said, pressurizing the ladies to be followers is not a solution for me. You will probably answer that men can be followers, too. But for me, personally, this is not an option. There are a few men I feel comfortable to dance with. But in the context of a drop in class, going into close embrace with foreign men - sorry, call me a dinosaur, but I do not feel comfortable about it.
I'm actually with you, its hard to find a solution , sometimes there's more men standing out in general even if ladies not leading...I need to really think of ways to bring more ladies to classes 😉
@Dance With Rasa thank you Rasa . I go to social dancing with my husband but rarely other guys dance with me and it annoys me as its a 3 hr social and I'm bored sitting alone waiting fir someone to ask me out . I'm not picky who to dance with , I just want to have fun and at the same time dance more. But it never happens and I'm all stressed out thinking about it. My husband is telling me not to come anymore to social as it spoils our happiness . But I like dancing a lot and I felt social dancing is more fun . What I have to do for me to dance more ?
Firstly be brave and ask more people to dance, make sure you are standing closer to the dance floor to be picked to dance, the further you are from the dance floor the less likely you'll get asked 😊. Try to enjoy the music and maybe make some friends who enjoy chatting on those times when you not dancing 😇.
I think in England men were not used to take dance classes as often as women, it took a moment for them to get comfortable with the idea that dancing can also be masculine and is so much fun 😁
What an interesting topic! I'm going to push back on the whole experience of being asked to dance by a woman (who wants to lead) - I am female. I DO think it's uncomfortable - yes, I agree they're not asking me out on a date but I've been hit on by women before and it's creepy. Salsa and Bachata are sensual touchy dances and it's a totally different than say country line dancing or dancing with your girlfriends at a disco. I agree it's a more rounded learning experience to learn the lead but I am new to dancing (1 year) and I am still resisting leading in general (haha!). I also get that you're coming from a business/teacher view of the topic. I'm looking for a traditional setting where men are leading and women are following - it's enough for me to keep up with all the footwork and styling and staying on count, etc, etc. So my vote is no - I avoid dancing with women in partner dances.
It's fair enough, nothing can make you. But for those who want to should be able to. I like leading, it's a different experience, and if a women doesn't want to dance with me I have no problem with it, but a lot of women do , so to each their own 😇.
I appreciate your take on this. There are so many more follows than leads in my area, so I've been trying to learn how to lead so more people have the opportunity to dance (including myself). I'm definitely not trying to hit on anyone or make them uncomfortable, but I don't think I've ever been turned down.
I'd definitely be interested in the men following video!
At one almost empty social I chose to asked a lady to lead me and it was *so* nice. When I saw her at a busier social later that same week we wordlessly began dancing a role rotation (my first ever) and it is such a special dance in my memory.
Leading can be a wonderful experience and following can be a wonderful experience and I'll always encourage anyone who has the wish to try both because they are both so different and rewarding. And role rotation can be magical!!!
Edit: On topic for the video, I find women who come to learn leading after being followers tend to have a really good appreciation for being gentle in their handling of a follower and bring greater musicality and body moment when starting out. Often very nice to dance with even with just basic step and turns.
Oh I am exactly on the same page with you 😇
I think for dance teachers is a must to know how to be both leader and follower because they are teaching dancing.
For regular dancers, role rotation would be fun but it's weird to do girl's gestures and body movements as a guy.
I loved the end haha
Whoever wants to lead should lead and whoever wants to follow should follow, no matter their gender, dance experience or favorite ice cream flavor :)
Exactly right 😅😅
My experience - teachers are OK with girls leading, but sometimes other guys have problem with it, especially when it means there will be 1 guy left at the class. I have sent link to this video to few girls, that were not sure if they should continue in learning leading or not (because of some comments from leaders), it encouraged them. Thank you for this video, Rasa!
I'm so glad that my content is helpful 😌 and thank you for sharing 💓
Sure. And rolerotation is the next step! 😃
That is fun 😄
@@DanceWithRasa Yeah, I love it! Especially in Bachata and Kizomba. In Salsa I haven't tried rolerotation yet.
Thanks for your the nice videos! 😁
My friend leads bachata and she is really good. All the ladies love her. And she is adorable cuz she is a full 5'7 or 5'8 and she will lead Dominican hopping and stuff.
And she teaches dance so when she leads salsa she nods approval like a mother. It's adorable.
Oh thats very sweet, so many women are great leads 😇
@@DanceWithRasa I agree. She does ballroom, salsa and bachata. She is cuban but does no traditional cuban dances 😂
@@shaolin1derpalm 🤣🤣🤣happens
I was starting to fall in love with bachata when I saw two girls (two very good dancers) dancing together and it was amazing for me. I come from the ballroom dance world, which, at least in the country where I live, is a much more conservative genre than others, so there you would never see a woman leading. What surprised me the most was that both leader and follower were dancing "like girls", which made me start wondering what makes feminity/masculinity on the dance floor, and whether it is necessary or not (no it's not of course) to be on the traditional side of decision-making to keep to a "traditional" gender identity (if that's what you want). What I see now in bachata scene around me is that more and more people are interested in the other side of the leading spectrum. Couple months ago after seeing a girl leading another one I went up to her asked her... to lead me. She answered "you're the fourht guy who asks the same thing". I think in 2022 time has come to reconsider the necessity of old role stereotypes and open up to new possibilities in dance. And as you very wisely pointed out Rasa, you're free to reject anyone, so you're free to dance as you'd like. And you SHOULD be free to dance as you'd like.
(Fun fact: I don't know whether my teacher is following you, but after watching your video I went to class (at our school they make a regular separate class for taxi dancers which focuses mostly on leading/following technique and musicality) and our teacher started it this time saying "OK guys today we'll try to switch roles so today it will be the girls who'll lead" :D )
🤣🤣🤣 I would love to think your teachers watch my videos, but I think its serendipity, lucky coincidence 🥰🤩
I totally agree and want to get into leading as a female dancer myself. I've been putting it off for the longest time because I didn't have the courage to actually ask women for a dance, but I guess this gave me the push I needed!
I loved hearing stories about how you started your career in the perspective of gender inequality. Thank you for this video, I love your content. I'd be happy to see another video about men following.
Thank you so much I try to share content that might be useful 🥰
I agree with all your arguments too!
😏🤩🤩
Great video rasa. After about 6 months of leading it truly has been the best journey ever and I’m proud to say you are the first ‘teacher’ I actually led in a social at the beginning of my leading journey and you made me feel so at ease so first of all thank you for that! I always get asked whether I like leading or following better and I always find it hard to answer as i love both but what I can say in terms of leading is what you pointed out. I love the ability to be in charge of the musicality and constantly learning more moves. When I used to be just a follower I always used to listen to bachata songs and visualise routines in my head and combinations I’d love to do and that’s where my want for leading began and it just took a teacher to encourage me to to lead that my wonderful journey began and I’ve gotten to know so many amazing women thanks to that as well. I must admit though there is a part of me that is only comfortable leading in my area than London (unless with teachers of course) and mostly following in London as I still wish to learn more as a follower 😊
Thank you for sharing 😇 the cool thing is that you don't have to lead just because you can , you do it when you want to or you feel comfortable to 🤗🤗🤗
Very great video🥰
Thank you 😊
Hi Rasa. I love your videos! I would love to see you talk about different levels of Bachata and how to know what level you are because after beginners I have no idea what the thresholds are.
Perfect idea for a video, I'm on it 💓
@@DanceWithRasa and curious - if you are at a group class with multiple levels and you come across people who are clearly in the wrong level, do you tell them? I don't think enough teachers (in London) do!
@@Megara_baila it's definitely not students place to tell them, so no, but you can do is after class tell the teacher your concerns and hopefully they will be more strict about it 😉. In general mixed levels in club classes will always be a thing, but hopefully less rather then more 💗
@@DanceWithRasa I meant teachers them, not students :)
In our society there is a female lead. At the next social I might ask her for a dance. Getting a first-hand experience as a follow can improve my lead. I seldom get any feedback on my lead.
Absolutely 💯
Thank you, Rasa, for this video! For those girls who like leading your words are like elixir :)
In Russia it's still not really accepted, especially in bachata competitions, like J'nJs. Nevertheless, I'm trying to stand out, as it is the only way to make people understand it is as normal as a girl driving a car. :)
Well done Anastasia 👏 I think important thing is , if you doing something you love in time it will all fall in place 😉.
@@DanceWithRasa exactamente!
@@anastasiataganova3977 🤩
Nice video.
In your opinion, What moves is it not appropriate for leaders that may make them look gay?
I have seen some footages on sensual batchata that the leader mostly stay on the dance floor and the follower only dance. Is it also considered dancing?
No , I think looking feminine is not the move you do it's how you do it 😉. But you could dance slow, you can move your feet , or your body many different ways to dance. The style you develop yourself 😉.
The other day I was on a workshop. Participant were 8 women and 7 men. During the workshop, I (as a leader) had to pause (or dance with an imaginary partner) almost half of the time.
I agree with every of your arguments, Rasa. I really feel that everybody should choose freely if he wants to lead or follow, no matter if male or female. And it really annoys me when a woman who wants to lead is told or put under mild social pressure to become a follower. However. the consequence is that in many classes there are now significantly more leaders than followers. Add to this that usually the men (or the leaders in general? I don‘t know . . .) are the slow learners in the group. So those slow learners will, after a „switch“, regularly miss their practice slot, simply because there is no one to practice with. This can easily create frustration.
This consequence of your arguments you mention not with a single syllable.
I don‘ t have a solution for it. As said, pressurizing the ladies to be followers is not a solution for me. You will probably answer that men can be followers, too. But for me, personally, this is not an option. There are a few men I feel comfortable to dance with. But in the context of a drop in class, going into close embrace with foreign men - sorry, call me a dinosaur, but I do not feel comfortable about it.
I'm actually with you, its hard to find a solution , sometimes there's more men standing out in general even if ladies not leading...I need to really think of ways to bring more ladies to classes 😉
@Dance With Rasa thank you Rasa . I go to social dancing with my husband but rarely other guys dance with me and it annoys me as its a 3 hr social and I'm bored sitting alone waiting fir someone to ask me out . I'm not picky who to dance with , I just want to have fun and at the same time dance more. But it never happens and I'm all stressed out thinking about it. My husband is telling me not to come anymore to social as it spoils our happiness . But I like dancing a lot and I felt social dancing is more fun . What I have to do for me to dance more ?
Rasa made a video on this topic: czcams.com/video/Autfds99wtM/video.html
Firstly be brave and ask more people to dance, make sure you are standing closer to the dance floor to be picked to dance, the further you are from the dance floor the less likely you'll get asked 😊. Try to enjoy the music and maybe make some friends who enjoy chatting on those times when you not dancing 😇.
@@DanceWithRasa thank you Rasa 😊
@@saranyamahendran7935 🤩🤩
If you and your partner ok with that, you can switch the dance partners. In some social dancing, people do it.
Why were there more followers than leaders back in the day?
I think in England men were not used to take dance classes as often as women, it took a moment for them to get comfortable with the idea that dancing can also be masculine and is so much fun 😁
What an interesting topic! I'm going to push back on the whole experience of being asked to dance by a woman (who wants to lead) - I am female. I DO think it's uncomfortable - yes, I agree they're not asking me out on a date but I've been hit on by women before and it's creepy. Salsa and Bachata are sensual touchy dances and it's a totally different than say country line dancing or dancing with your girlfriends at a disco.
I agree it's a more rounded learning experience to learn the lead but I am new to dancing (1 year) and I am still resisting leading in general (haha!). I also get that you're coming from a business/teacher view of the topic.
I'm looking for a traditional setting where men are leading and women are following - it's enough for me to keep up with all the footwork and styling and staying on count, etc, etc. So my vote is no - I avoid dancing with women in partner dances.
It's fair enough, nothing can make you. But for those who want to should be able to. I like leading, it's a different experience, and if a women doesn't want to dance with me I have no problem with it, but a lot of women do , so to each their own 😇.
I appreciate your take on this. There are so many more follows than leads in my area, so I've been trying to learn how to lead so more people have the opportunity to dance (including myself). I'm definitely not trying to hit on anyone or make them uncomfortable, but I don't think I've ever been turned down.
@@natb4491 well done Nat, dancing is learning a skill and having fun , you keep doing that 😇
Salsa is mostly not sensual.