What are the differences between Zouk, Kizomba, and Brazilian Zouk?

When most people hear or see the word Zouk, it's synonymous with Brazilian Zouk.  However, Zouk and Brazilian Zouk are two separate dances and it's important that dancers understand "Zouk" and it's history/origins. 

Zouk is why we dance Kizomba and Brazilian Zouk today.  Zouk as a music and dance genre originated from Martinique and Guadalupe which eventually traveled across oceans and developed into new dances.

People are often confused about Brazilian Zouk and Kizomba music.  Can you dance Kizomba to Brazilian Zouk, and viceversa?  Please note: we are generalizing to keep this as simple as possible so the majority of people can understand the basic differences. 

Zouk - Zouk originated from the Caribbean Islands of Guadeloupe and Martinique (see map below).   Zouk is what you would dance at a family bbq on the weekends.   There were no classes or formal moves, it was just something that you grew up doing and was part of every day life.  This music genre grew in popularity by a French Antillean band in the 1980s called Kassav'.

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Kizomba - Kizomba is an Angolan dance with heavy influence from Cape Verde.  It's a closed danced where you embrace your partner closely and is danced slower than Zouk.  There was  influence from the group Kassav', along with Semba and other influences.  This too, was a low-key dance that every one grew up dancing to.  Many new sub-styles of Kizomba have since emerged like Tarraxinha and Urban Kiz.

Kizomba grew as a music/dance genre when dancers moved to different parts of Europe.  Since then, Kizomba has grown tremendously and is spreading rapidly all over the world.

Brazilian Zouk - This partner dance originated from lambada music which became popular in the 1980s in Northern Brazil.  The most well known song is Lambada by Kaoma.  Due to the lack of Lambada music, dancers turned to Zouk music which sounded similar to lambada music.  Brazilians fused/incorporated Zouk music into their zouk-lambada dance.  

Brazilian Zouk is a dance genre, not a music genre.  You can dance Brazilian Zouk to anything with a 4/4 beat.  Popular genres include hip hop, rap, trap, electronic, lyrical, indie, rock, pop - and of course, kizomba and zouk like the examples above. 

In the Brazilian Zouk scene, there are many DJs that produce and create remixes of popular songs.  Popular DJs/producers: DJ Kakah, Mafie Zouker, Lord Feifer, Arkkanjo, DJ Allan Z, and DJ Amigo. 

Some DJs play tracks that have a Zouk beat or "boom chic chic boom" while others play "zoukable" music (an entire blog post can be written on this).

Some points we want to emphasize:

• You can dance Brazilian Zouk to any music genre with a 4/4 beat if you really wanted to.

• Zouk music is traditional music from the Caribbean Islands.

• You can usually dance Brazilian Zouk to Kizomba.

• You can’t dance Kizomba to Brazilian Zouk music unless the DJ is playing Ghetto Zouk, Kizomba, Tarraxinha, Cabo-Zouk, Zouk.

• Brazilian Zouk is a completely different dance than Zouk and Kizomba

• Zouk has become synonymous with Brazilian Zouk. Promoters, artists, DJs, should promote Brazilian Zouk by emphasizing that it is from Brazil. "Brazilian" should be present.

• Kizomba and Brazilian Zouk are completely different dances. There should not be a mixed Kizomba and Brazilian Zouk room.

Popular Kizomba festivals we've filmed: Kizomba Luxembourg & Miami Beach Kizomba Festival

Popular Brazilian Zouk festivals we've filmed: Dutch Zouk Congress & Elevation Zouk Festival

Brazilian Zouk in Mexico

It's only a matter of time before we see Brazilian Zouk festivals in major cities in Mexico.  Salsa and Bachata have ruled the scene for years, and now we are seeing Kizomba make it's way into the scene and it's growing faster and stronger than ever.

This year, Brazilian Zouk made it's way to Puerto Vallarta, Mexico.  It's a beautiful city located on the coast about a three hour drive from Guadalajara.  The event was located in a small and intimate hotel with mostly Mexican tourists.  

Many of the dancers traveled from Mexico City and Guadalajara.  Brazilian Zouk is relatively new to Mexico, so the level of dancing was not very high.   However, dancers were eager to learn and picked up the basics in no time.  By the end of the congress, many were dancing well and had learned the fundamentals.

Brazilian Zouk may seem difficult at first.  However, if you learn fast and put your mind to it, it's really not that difficult - whether you are a lead or follow.  The biggest tip I can give is don't be intimidated.  Treat Zouk like any other partner dance and focus on building the basics.  The advanced patterns and head movements will follow later.

Overall, the turnout was great even with poor weather and the earthquake that took place a couple weeks before the event.  The organizers are very friendly and are excited about 2018 being even bigger and more fun.   Small, intimate, and creative festivals are always more fun than bigger festivals.

Here is the recap from the 2017 Zoukadise Festival, enjoy!!!

Latin-Dance Festival Awareness

Every festival is different depending on the country, promoter, local dance scene, artists, djs, and vendors they hire.  I've been fortunate enough to see many different types of dance festivals and congresses as a dancer, performer, and currently - videographer.

I really think it's important that dancers are aware of what makes a festival good or bad.  At the end of the day, dancers are consumers, and they pay money to make the festival happen.  What the promoters do with that money matters.  Festival promoters can improve their festival year-over-year, enhancing the dancer's experience.  Or, they can pocket the money and do the same thing every year, not worrying about improving the experience.  

Unfortunately, in today's market, there are hoards of promoters that are happy where they're at.  They don't care about bringing in talent from abroad and don't see value.  Sound systems and flooring is mediocre and people end up dancing on the carpet.  Volunteers work long hours in exchange for a full pass.   Sometimes, vendors and artists aren't paid for their work.   The artist lineup is made up of all locals with no outside talent.  Rooms are not setup with sound or flooring and the artist is nowhere to be found on the day of the workshop.  Last-minute announcements saying artists won't attend the festival due to visa issues (lack of prep from promoter).  This is all too common in today's dance scene.

The great thing about the world we will live in, is that is a free market when it comes to dance festivals.  You can pick your scene, your style, and go to the salsa/bachata/kizomba/zouk festival of your choice in whichever state or country you desire!  

As a videographer, I've worked with many different promoters.  Some have teams of individuals working together to run the festival, and some are couples or individuals.  Some promoters pride themselves in having a small, intimate festival, versus a large festival.  Whether big or small, there are certain things that need to be in place for the festival to be successful.

1. Personality -  The personality of the promoter needs to be genuine and forward-thinking.  They need to have a passion for their dance and want to improve/enhance the scene.  They shouldn't have a festival because it's fun or they can.  Sure, it can make them popular/money/etc - however, they should want to enhance and it and improve the scene for the better.  The best promoters I've worked with aren't stressing about the festival.  They are interacting with dancers/artists, social dancing/partying, and discussing current trends/ideas to improve the scene/event the following year.

2. Organizational skills -  This is the easiest one yet the most difficult for some.  The festival needs to be organized, classes need to start on time, and information needs to be conveyed.  Typically, promoters that have a team of individuals dedicated to certain parts of the festival have an easier time.  The more organized the festival is, the smoother things will run overall, and they can focus on putting out fires elsewhere.  If there is no organization, then the dancers, artists, and vendors are all lost and confused.

3. DJ/Artist Selection -  The music played at the festival will determine whether the dancers and artists will want to dance.  This is EXTREMELY important.  It's important for artists to social dance with people who paid for the event.  It's important for the artist to identify with the DJ and enjoy the music they are mixing.  Artist selection is important too.  If I'm in Los Angeles for a festival and everyone who is attending the festival is from California and one artist is from Italy, is it really worth it?  If I'm in Los Angeles and there is a festival in San Francisco and this festival has 5 artists from Europe, I would go.  How often do I get to see artists from Europe in California? Same goes for DJs as well. 

4. Vendor Selection - Have you been to a festival with a cheap sound system when they have a live singer?  I have.  It's probably the worst experience ever, and my ears are probably still damaged from the event.  Stage, sound, lighting, and floor is very important.  How inconvenient is it to dance on carpet?  Or, spinning the girl only to find that she can't spin because the floor is too slippery or sticky?  Photography and videography is also vital.  Most of the time, these two vendors are last on the promoter's list of items and usually provided by volunteers.  This is where the good ol' phrase "what you pay for is what you get" comes into play.  If you're giving volunteers a free pass in exchange for media, most of the time you're going to get low-quality.  

Unfortunately, most promoters/artists don't know how to properly market/brand themselves.  How many artists have 2-5 Facebook profiles, groups, and fan pages?  How many promoters tag your name when they promote an event and you don't know them or go to their event?  Yes, these is extremely annoying and another problem in the dance scene.  Everyone is fighting for attention online and it's very frustrating as a consumer.  

Dancers attend festivals for different reasons.  Some go to perform, social dance, take workshops,  watch shows, or just to party.  Whatever the case may be, just be aware of where your money is going and how it's being used.  If you attend the same festival every year and it hasn't changed at all, something is wrong.  The festival doesn't necessarily need to get bigger and better.  However, they should be bringing in different talent and improving on small things.  It can be as small as a welcome gift or an improved sound system from the previous year.  For me, it's the small things that count when I attend a festival.

Montreal is Kizomba 2016

This was the 2nd edition of Montreal is Kizomba aka Kizomba Sem Limite hosted in Montreal.  It was a pleasure working with the two amazing promoters - Gerry and Marie.  

The weather was perfect on the weekend of the event.  The location of the workshops and social dancing is situated in the heart of downtown Montreal.  We stayed at a nice, urban hotel located walking distance to the event and Chinatown.  Many dancers stayed at Air Bnbs in the area.  

SBKZ Media managed Montreal is Kizomba's Facebook page during the event.  We updated demos and next-day edits as the event was unfolding.  You can see all the videos we uploaded here: Facebook // Youtube

The festival was extremely successful.  The energy was next-level and everyone I talked to during the event was enjoying it.  I had the opportunity to spend time with Ricardo and Paula from Afrolatin Connection.  Filming Sara and Jojo was also another highlight.

The event was a success due to the promoters.  They are extremely friendly and warm-hearted individuals who truly love the dance, community, and music.  They know how to have a good time and throw a good event.  It all starts from the top down when running a large festival.  I foresee positive challenges for 2017 as they will be faced with the decision to find a larger location to meet the increase in dancers.

Here some videos from the festival.  Until next year Montreal!!!