hey everyone! welcome back to lavendaire. today's video is an episode of artist of life, a series where we feature real people whoare actively creating their dream life. so we explore how they got to where they areand what they've learned in their journey
how to start my own dance studio, that you can apply to your life. my name's aileen and i'm so excited to introduce the lovely, the talented, and the very fiercesorah yang. sorah: hello!
aileen: so sorah yang is a dance teacher,choreographer, and singer from the bay area, currently living in la. and she is like a ball of energy. she's a beam of light. i love her so much. she’s super inspiring. so a little backstory: we actually went tousc together and we danced on a hip hop team together, and it's justso amazing to see how far she's come. so i'm so excited to have you here.
s: i'm excited to be here. a: i'm so excited! s: thank you for having me. a: thank you for being-yeah, see? s: okay, yep. yep, that's going to be the whole time. a: you want to leave that? s: yeah, why not? yeah.
a: let's talk about your story a little bit,because i know you went to school for business. s: yes. a: but you've been dancing since high school,and ever since i've met you, you've been an amazing dancer so can you talkabout your path, how you decided to take dance more seriously? s: my motive was just to have fun. i was still really serious about basketball. i was playing since i was a little girl and still superinto it, playing in high school.
and then my friend and i were like, "let's just do something extra,that's fun, together." and we just found a local dance studio, and we signed up fora beginning hip hop class once a week. i started dancing once a week and just prettysoon realized that i could kind of dance. it was like, "okay, i'm not terrible at this." there's some-yeah, anyway i really just fell in love with itinstantly. fast forward: i moved down to la for school,not for dance, to go to usc.
and i was really serious about pursuing thisbusiness career and wanted to be marketing- you know, executive, blah blah blah. and then i joined grv. still loved dancing, but i still saw my career and my educationas kind of my priority and that's the direction i was still headed. a: and you were working, right? a: so you had a job, plus you were doing grv. s: yeah, i had a work-study job all throughoutcollege, like 20 hours a week?
it was an office job. i had grv which was-we didn't have a curfewat that time so regular rehearsals would run til like 3:00or 4:00 am consistently. a: crazy, yeah. s: and i had 18 units a semester because iwanted to graduate early. a: oh my god. s: so i was juggling-still, and so i finishedschool. i graduated and i went straight into a marketing job.
all throughout this journey: yes, dance, iwas really passionate and i loved it. my passion and love for it motivated me totrain and to grow and get better, but it was never because i wanted to becomea traveling choreographer. a: yeah. s: it was just because i loved to dance. a: it was just for fun. s: yeah, for fun and for the love of it. a: and you happen to be really good at it,and a lot of people saw you, right?
s: well, i guess, yeah. so i graduated, went to a full time marketingjob and within- i think it took like two months-two months,i was just really not happy. super miserable, driving in traffic like-like in the rain,crying. the most dramatic situation, those days. and i would-at work, i would just look atthe clock and be like, "oh, i can't wait til work is over so i can go take class."
and i would often drive-because i worked outat torrance- and it would take me sometimes two, two anda half hours to drive to noho in rush hour to take the classes i wanted to take. a: oh man. s: yeah i was just, yeah, thinking about danceall day, really miserable at work. know that, having this feeling that i wasn'tdoing what i was supposed to be doing because iwas just not-it didn't feel right. and then, ironically, one of the responsibilitiesi had at my job was as a social media-
well, one of the aspects was managing thesocial media accounts. and so i had to post empowering messages everyday, and it was really- you know, like "follow your dreams!", "dowhat's in your heart!", and i would be sitting- a: when you're at this job that you don'tlike. s: at the office like, i…am not doing thesethings. but you know, posting them every day, i finally came across one-and i never saythis correctly, but it was along the lines of: if you want to know where your heart is, followyour mind when it wanders.
a: okay, yeah. s: i thought about it, and i was like, "i'mthinking about dance all the time." so that was kind of like the symbolic startof it. from there, this number started popping up everywhere. i don't want to share the exact number, but it's a really weird combination of numbers. a: okay, that's so creepy. what do you mean?
s: it started popping up everywhere, likereceipts; license plates i would be driving behind; the queue if i was in line to get food, they'dbe like, "number blah blah blah"; everything, the price of things i was payingfor. a: how many digits was this number? s: it's only two. a: oh, okay. s: but it's like-it's just the fact that isaw it everywhere, to the point where- you know sometimes, when you're looking forthings, you just see them more?
to the point where you're in traffic and youlook up, and the license plate, it ends- a: like, "again??" s: again, and then you go eat and you seethat's your number. and just everything- the number of likes. i know this sounds so silly, but the numberof likes on posts and just everything was this number like for,i would say, at least a month. and it was freaking me out. and i finally googled it.
i was like, "maybe there's some symbolic meaning behindthis, like even if it's not really valid or from a credible source, it'll give me sometype of answer." i found one really discreet website, and it talked aboutthis angel number [that]. a: i've heard of these angel number things. s: yeah, so an angel number [what my numberwas]. and the message said that, basically, whatever you want, however youwant to manifest yourself-it used manifest
as the word-yourself to the world, whateveryou want to become, it will take care of you. a: oh, that's nice. s: i think the biggest thing for me that washolding me back from taking the leap of faith into dance was just pure, 100% financial. like how would i make this work? i just graduated from a crazily expensiveuniversity. and i'm in debt. how am i- paying my rent.
you know, how am i going to make all thiswork? so that was my fear. that's kind of what held me back. that, along with not believing i was good enough to begin with. and then all these things combined, not being happy at work, this sign that keptcoming up, and then finally researching. the angel was just like the cherry on top,like, "okay, finally!" i read that
and i was like, "you know what? yeah, i need to do this." and i will say, simultaneously, a lot of choreographers that i really respectedand looked up to started handing- not handing me opportunities, but reachingout to me and bringing me in to video shoots and rehearsals and projectsand things like that. so they were showing a belief in me that i didn't have in myselfat the time. you know?
so that helped me a lot. these people i respect are telling me-givingme kind of a green light. a: yeah, they believe in you. s: encouraging me, yeah. and i thought, okay-i think the final, justto conclude my life story, the final thing that i kind of realized inmaking that final jump into quitting my full time and figuring how to make dance work, was decidingthat it wasn't about being good enough. because i always used that as an excuse, thati'm not good-i'm never going to be
this choreographer. i would look at the top choreographers andbe like, "i'm not at that level. i'll never be there. i can't do what they do." making excuses like, "i started too late. i didn't have all the training." s: then i realized, "yeah, i'm not where thosepeople are and maybe i'm not good enough
right now, but that doesn't mean that if idon't put in the work, that i won't become there." i won't get to that level that allows me todo those things, and to live out those dreams, you know? once i decided like, "yes sorah, you mightsuck right now," being overly harsh, "but that doesn't mean you need to-but thatdoesn’t prevent you from becoming great." a: from trying. s: yeah, trying. and yeah you're going to have to put in somuch work,
but i just decided it's not about being goodenough, but about wanting it bad enough, wanting to be good enough, badly enough. a: i love it. so you decided that you wanted it more thannot even trying. right? s: yeah, i just, i knew that i wasn't wherei needed to be to be like an international teacher. a: yeah, but nobody starts out that way s: right
a: there's no way! s: comparison, when we compare ourselves tosuccessful people, we look at them in the light. s: and when they're in the light, it's becausethey've succeeded, you know? they kind of reached that level of greatness. and i think just deciding, "i can't use that." i can use that as my motivation but not assomething to discourage me because i'm not close to that.
a: yeah, yeah. i mean there's a saying like, "don't compareyour chapter 1 to someone else's chapter 20." s: exactly. a: because you don't know how many steps they'vetaken to get there. so it's all about, just start where you are. s: totally. and even the way that people get to similardestinations is so different. i think not making excuses because of whereyou come from, or how much money you have,
or the mentors you may or may not have. those things should never stand in your way because you can still become successful. a: yes. s: because you can find a way to become successful. s: and it will happen the way that it's meantfor you. a: you can find a way. s: yes, you can find a way. a: okay, next question i want to ask is: sinceyou've taken that leap of faith,
what has been the biggest challenge in becomingan artist or, you know what i mean, pursuing your dreams? s: i think-i got this question a lot in, towardsthe beginning of doing dance full time. and in the beginning, the number one answerwas finances. it's just, when you decide to leave a very stable, payingjob, for something very unstable, very uncertain, not guaranteed, it's “howdo you stay afloat?â€. especially when- you know, if you're pursuing art, you're goingto have to invest.
you start out by investing, investing, investingin yourself, in your growth, and putting yourself out there. i just didn't have the luxury of having alot of money to propel me in that way, you know? in the beginning, i was juggling so many parttime jobs, just to get extra money every week. every week would be different. i think there was one year, i forget, maybe it was 2013, i think i countedand i listed all of the different random jobs
i did. a: can you give an example of what kind ofweird jobs you had? s: yeah, well-so one of them, i was a personalassistant. and it ranged from doing the very typical filing, paperwork,organizing office spaces...to going grocery shopping at trader joe's for people, or taking careof their parents. you know, kind of elderly care? s: and i always was a tutor, an academic tutor,which is not my forte in terms of-
not academics not being my forte, but justbeing patient with people, sitting next to them. but i tutored a lot. i did really random, i did random acting thingsthrough my agency but i'm the worst actor ever so don't lookthose up anywhere online. a: everyone's gonna look them up now. s: awful, i know. but i'm just telling you: i'm terrible. so i apologize.
but that was the, what else? oh, i was a pr assistant. i worked for this startup pr agency for alittle bit. so that was a lot of writing. just a lot, a lot of different things. i just found ways to make money in-yeah, i just found ways. that was just stressful because every week, you're searching, you're applying.
you're going-driving all over the place just to get an extra 200 bucks a week forwhatever expenses, for food, gas. so that was-yeah, the initial struggle wasfinancially staying afloat and supporting myself, all the while investing and making myself,you know, get to the level that i mentioned that i wanted to be at. a: so you invested in taking class. s: taking class and also, you know when you'restarting out as a dancer, it's really important that you create work.
start to build a portfolio, a presence, andthat requires a lot of investment. a: that's true. s: with making videos and stuff. if you're, you know, scraping by to make rentand stuff, you're not thinking about paying hundreds-nothundreds, but a couple hundred dollars to make videos and stuff. even that, that was difficult. but fast forward to a couple years later,i'm doing okay. a: congrats!
s: thank you. i'm just less stressed about every singlejuice i buy at the store, whatever. i would say, moving forward, the greatestchallenge is-i think it's like aligning who i am and what means a lot to me with what i do. and making sure that, as i move forward, i'm fulfilling 1000% of my gift and my potential. just because it's so uncertain. and as a freelance artist, you have to decidethings for yourself and move forward.
there's no boss telling you what to do, whereto go, what direction to head in, how you should spend your time, how you shouldexpress yourself, what methods or outlets you should be focusing on. i think it's always just that overriding,existential purpose. a: like does this align with me? s: yeah, what's the point? i think that's been a huge question with everythingi do, and it's always challenging to find the mosteffective way to use my voice and my gift and whatever opportunities i'm given to maximize,you know, that.
a: that's what i appreciate about you, becauseyou really care about your voice and the energy you put out. and you can tell by everything you post onsocial media, it's always positive. and i watched that video-i want to put a clipof it here- where you told that girl, "i am strong." remember? s: oh! a: remember the girl, and you told her torepeat?
that was so cute. sorah: amy, what did you learn today? amy: i am strong! sorah + amy: [cheering] s: yeah. a: things like that, i think it's really importantand it shows that you are an artist, which is really cool. i want to ask about that. where does that positivity or that side comefrom?
and how do you stay connected with that whenyou're going through a tough time? s: oh, gosh. a: because i know it's not easy. s: i don’t-i can't pinpoint it to one sourceor one explanation. i just feel like i've always been a fiery person. a: were you raised like that? did your parents support your-? s: yeah, my parents have always just beenlike, "you can do anything you want.
no limit." a: that's so great. s: yeah, they're the best. they're super supportive, never held backany belief in me or anything like that, with anything thati wanted to do. and i think, yeah, that has a lot to do with…i just-growingup i always have been this loud, wanted to be, you know, the leader and spread- a: the president, right?
s: yeah! a: of all years. s: class president in high school, yeah. but, i don't know where it comes from. i just feel like i've always had this-i'vefelt this responsibility, like a moral obligation, but deeper than an obligation, a responsibilityto make the world better. before i had x amount of followers and subscribers. even when no one knew who i was, i still felt like, "how can i make this worldbetter?"
i feel like people who- there are people, most people that i meetkind of align with this type of feeling. it's just a matter of taking action on it,you know? i've just always, i've always felt that way, wanting to makethe world better. i think i'm a really, maybe sensitive? i'm super sensitive, super emotional, hugestcrybaby. and when other people are in pain and sadness,i feel it really deeply.
a: empathy, a lot of empathy. s: empathy, or slash, i'll say mirror neurons. like i can't watch grey's anatomy- when someone gets a cut- a: oh, same! same. s: i'm like, "ow!" a: same. s: i just feel like i have a lot of feelings.
and it comes from being really intense. a: it’s like compassion. s: i guess you can call it-i'm making reallycomplicated. compassion, empathy. i just feel really strongly. a: i think a lot of us can relate to thatthough. s: yeah, totally. what was the question? a: it was like where does this come from?
but you answered the question. s: i don't know! a: you answered it perfectly. but also, when sorah yang's having a bad day, what does that look like? do you snap yourself out of it, or do youjust rage? s: ah, i have a lot of bad days, to be honest. i mean, i think my bad days come from- they always stem from not being productive.
i'm such a-i feel like i get a lot of fulfillment and happiness from creating things and accomplishingthings. when i feel like i'm not maximizing that day, my potentialthat day-i know this sounds really extreme, but i feel really wasteful? a: no, i get it. s: i just hate not being productive and that's-i'mget into, yeah, phases of feeling down. like, "you're wasting your life, sorah. what are you doing?"
you know, i'm really bad at just chilling. i'm really bad at it and it's not a good thing. a: it's not necessarily a weakness becauseit's good, but you're productive, you could learn to not be so hard on yourself. s: definitely that. i need to not be hard on myself for sure. but i am, just naturally. and i think, the way i get out of it is-ilove to just draw things out.
i love planning. and so i just-you know, even when i'm havinga down day, i'll just develop a plan like, "how do i getout of this? what things do you want to create? what steps do you need to take?" blah blah blah. and in terms of staying positive, i use twitter a lot. everyone makes fun of me for it because i'mjust a serial tweeter.
but a lot of the things i tweet about arethings that i realize, myself, when i get in moods that aren't so great andthey're just reminders to myself or things that i've learned that help me get out ofthose states. that are empowering and encouraging and kindof grounding. always, when i'm tweeting, it's like "noteto self", but also, if this helps anyone else get out of whatever state you’re in, thenthat's great, you know? a: so you talk yourself out of your bad mood. s: a little bit. a: you're like your own motivational coach.
s: yeah, it's just perspective, right? when you're in a down mood, oftentimes- you know sometimes we can’t control thosethings, but you can control how you choose to look at things and i think, yeah, i dotalk myself out of it. a: no, i love that! because i journal a lot too, and when i feelbad, i'm always like, "why this?" and i journal through it, and at the end it'salways at a positive note. s: right.
and it also helps that dance is so therapeutic. so it's the one thing that i love is- not the one thing i love, the only thing ilove-but a thing i love so much and it's such a huge part of my life is alwaysthe thing that ends up uplifting me anyway, you know? it's kind of awesome. even if dance is a source of stress or sadnessor frustration, it always dance that gets me out of it too,you know? a: you can't stay mad and dance right?
you just can't. s: it just gets it all out. yeah, for sure. a: so at this point, you traveled to so manyplaces around the world to teach dance. i want to ask: what has been the most memorableor impactful moment from all of those? s: one was in hong kong. the first time i went to hong kong, it wasduring a time where i was travelling a lot internationally. i had just started travelling a lot internationally,
and i felt very directionless or just kindof didn't understand the- what the point of what i was doing. i just felt kind of lost in what i was doing. yes, i was travelling. on the surface level, it looked like i wasbeing, you know, successful. but i just didn't feel quite right, fulfilled. i just felt like everything was about socialmedia and everything was like, "famous this, famousthat." and i just felt really turned off by it.
and then i-so i wasn't feeling good. i wasn't feeling good about where i was ability-wise, just down on myself. it was just a period of time where i was downon myself and a little bit lost and not fully confidentin what i was doing. then i went to hong kong and i taught a class, blah blah blah. then afterwards, students will come say thankyou, take pictures, talk to me.
there was this one girl. she was fifteen, thirteen or fifteen, a young teen. and she told me that, "because of you, i wantto be strong. and i know that i can be strong too, becauseyou're small like me and i didn't think someone like you couldbe strong." she said it way more to the point. s: it was that message for me, it was thatmoment where i realized what i do has greater implications beyond dance.
you know, it's like, when people come to class, they're learning lessons that will hopefullystay with them, you know, in their lives forever. it's not just about a step and mastering astep and whatever. this girl, you know, in asia- i've traveled to many different countriesin asia. it's still very patriarchal, so very "women are secretaries, women are the wives." and to be able to travel to a- and you know, see a young, small asian girlsay, "you know what, i've seen you.
you could be so strong. i want to be strong too." it's just… a: that's so-i would cry. s: i was going-i'm trying not to cry talkingabout it, but it was during a time where i just felt so lost and then all i didwas teach a piece and for that to impact her the way that it did? it was like, "yo, she's going to be a bossone day now." a: i know!
s: you know? ceo or whatever she wants to be. a biologist, a coder. a: anything. s: anything, a singer. she's gonna-the fact that i kind of helpedher believe she can be as strong and as big as she wantsto be, through a piece. through a dance, a routine. it was so, ahh.
a: i love that. that's so empowering. s: so that was like, "f yeah, i'm gonna keepgoing. this is why, this is why i was given this weird way that i move. this is why i'm short." a: it all comes together. it's all used up. s: so that was super defining and kind ofjust-i think about it every time i feel a
little lost or purposely directionless. you know what, this is reaching people i don'tknow beyond my own acknowledgement. i can't, i don't know who this could be reaching,i guess, is what i should say. and because of that, i should keep going youknow. that was one. a: if you get that-you see the results andthe rewards of your work,
how can you stop doing what you're doing? s: right, it's just- a: you just gotta keep going. and keep spreading the love. now let's switch over to-let's talk aboutyour dance pieces. i want to know: what is your favorite piece you've choreographed,and why? s: ohh, this is a hard question because ifeel like every week i make one that i feel like is best.
a: you make one a week? s: well, no, i don't make one a week. but i just feel like i'm constantly training outside of just teaching choreography to getbetter overall as a dancer/choreographer. so every time i create i feel like it's betterthan my last. a: oh yeah. that's great! s: not every single piece, but oftentimes,i just feel like, "okay, i've grown in, as a mover,
so this new piece is better." i would say, just in terms of one that meansa lot to me, is my "like a boy" piece because i made itfor my teammate. so yeah, it just- that one means a lot more and i think it'sgoing to be hard until i make another piece dedicated for someone. a: i guess you can't compare in that sense,what's better or what's not better. s: other than that, i just feel like i'm tryingto outdo myself all the time. and also,
once you-i feel like, once i create something,once i choreograph something, i'll love it. and then two months later, i'll be like, "that'swhack." a: you're over it. a: that's how i feel about videos. every week, when i create a video, i'm like, "this is the best. this is my best work." and then a couple weeks later, i have a- "okay, i'm over it."
you just keep moving forward. s: i think it's growth. s: it's just when you grow and you get insight. fresher insight, more informed, skilled. then you're like, "nah, that's whack." a: yeah, i love it. do you have a favorite quote? s: aw, this is so hard because i love quotes! a: well, pick one.
s: oh gosh, i love quotes so much. so hard. okay, i think one is-i don't even remember who this is by. it's "when i stand before god at the end ofmy life, i would hope-" i can't even recite this verbatim. but, basically it's like, when you get tothe end of your life, you would hope to say that you used everybit of the talent you were given, like nothing went to waste.
and i like it, not necessarily for the spiritual/religiousaspect of it, but for this idea that you're given opportunities. you're given talents. you're given gifts and thoughts and all thesereally nice, awesome things. i think it is our responsibility to make themost out of it in a positive way. i think that one is top. that aligns with what i believe in, like youshould use everything that you have. all your gifts and your life experience, nothing'swasted. it's all put to use.
s: and i just want to add, because i thinki can complain about being at a disadvantage to other successful people who had all thesehookups and money and blah blah blah. but i still have so much that i can work with. and because of that, i have a responsibility to help make the worldbetter. a: and you have the responsibility to do itin your own way. a: because every voice is unique, and everyvoice is necessary. a: or it adds to the-you know, it brings somethingto the table. s: i just read something about that.
it's another quote about how dimming someone'slight doesn't make you better, it just makes theworld darker. a: yeah! i love that. s: everyone should contribute. a: everyone should just support each otherand lift each other up. because it's not a race, right? s: it's so different. a: it's bringing everyone up.
s: everyone's so different and needs to- a: i think that took a few years for me tolearn though. like when i was in college, i would compare myself to other people, youknow what i mean? s: oh, of course. a: you're competitive. but the older you get, the more you realizeyou're in your own path. no one needs to compare. s: it’s even harder with girls.
a: yeah, it is! s: because there are less girls at the top. so it gives females this idea that there's only x amount of spots for girlsto thrive in whatever industry, and as a result you need to compete with thenext best. and i fall into that trap, like in the beginning, you know. just wanting to be the best and the only, and i just realized, man, when you're theonly girl-and for me, when i'm traveling with
ten dudes and i'm the only girl, it sucks. i wish there were more girls with me. a: i noticed that. you're always with guys. like where are the girls at? s: once i realized, i was like, "dude, womenare the best." and i want to travel with more girls, so once i realized that i can't try to bethe best-like i can try to be the best of
but i need to bring other girls up, you know? and that's what we should be doing for eachother. not what happens oftentimes which is, youknow, tearing people down because you want to get up. but you know, if you're a female and a leadershipposition, it should be your responsibility to bringothers up, not be the only girl up there, a: yes, totally. i love it. so last question: do you have any advice foraspiring dancers or artists,
people who want to be like you? s: oh god. first of all, you don't want to be like me;i'm a weirdo. i think for- i'll start really narrow with dancers andchoreographers. i think you have to find who you are. figure that out, like really hard. figure that out hard. a: how would you do that?
s: i think it's just-i mean, i've had so manydifferent periods, patches of life crises and soul-searching. i think everyone has a different way of discoveringwho they are. but i don't know, just doing things that makeyou happy and engaging yourself in areas that you're passionate about no matterhow trivial or small or random they seem. like if it's fishing, go fishing. i don't know. that sounds so silly, but just invest yourself in areas that you-that resonate with you,i guess, is how i would word it.
having really awesome talks with friends,that's always really eye-opening. i think it's-the reason why i say this, youhave to know who you are, is because if you don't know who you are,or at least what you like or have a general idea of that, it's reallyhard to be your own artist. because i think art is such a reflection of the soul and the spiritor mentality, whatever. so i think that's why you see a lot of youngerdancers and choreographers, they come out with pieces that just look likeother existing choreographers. and it's because they haven't fully developedtheir own way of moving
and their own interpretation of music, andthings like that. i think that comes from- for dance specifically, you just need to train,a lot, with the people you really like, the styles you really like, or with everyoneto figure out what you like, how you like to move. commit to that no matter how weird it is,or how unpopular it is, because that's how you're going to figureout who you are, and if you know who you are as a mover and you really are in tune withthat, then you're going to be able to create things
that reflect that, reflect you. i think that's the biggest thing that's lacking,a lot of original- a: originality? s: unique, original voices that are new. a: it's not easy. it comes with time. s: that's exactly what i was gonna say next. it takes so much time and there's always so [snapping] people wantthings to be so expedited.
a: did you have a clicking point where you'relike, "oh, this is me!"? was it when you started or a few years in? s: i've, i've always hit hard. it's always been my-it's never been my effortthing. i have always...interpretive dance like thatand that's just the way that- when i feel empowered, when i dance like that. and i think when i was first transitioning into professional-pursuing dance, a lot ofteachers would mention, "oh, don't hit so hard."
or, "you're a girl. you're a woman. you don't dance like a woman." a: oh, shit. s: which basically means like move your hipsand do body rolls. it does mean more than that but for me, i was just so confused. i was like, "but i like dancing like this. this is me."
for the longest time, i was really confused. people are telling me what i'm doing is wrong but it feels likeit's me. a: it feels right. s: and then one day, i think i was just like,"f it." i don't know, i was like- i just had an epiphany. i was like, "i-this is me. i don't care.
you can't...first of all, you can't even confine-gender roles and normsare so prehistoric now, 1990-whatever." but i get there are differences, you know. and that there are beautiful feminine qualities and beautiful masculine qualities, whatever. yes, i agree all of those exist. then i just realized i'm gonna be me. i'm gonna dance like me. i’m gonna strengthen me.
i'm also going to learn all these other thingsso that when people are like, "dance like a woman," i'll be like, "okay,fine. here. i'll move my hips." but then i would always go back to what ilove and what's true to me. once i realized i understand all the vocabularyand the terms and the variations and i respect all of it, but you have to justdo what feels- a: do you. s: do you, yeah.
a: so expand your vocabulary, go out and learneverything, but at the end of the day, you still have to do you. s: yeah, i think appreciate-my way's not thebest way, and i know that. but it's my way. it's the way that i like to move, and oncei realized it's okay to, exactly, learn everything else and have anappreciation for everything else and understanding of everything else, it actuallyhelps you. since you've kind of surveyed the field, it's like, "alright, welli've tried this.
but this is what feels best for me, you know?" and just sticking with that. a: yeah, and i think that can apply to notjust dance but all other places of life. yeah, everything. alright, that's all for today. s: yay! a: thank you so much. honestly, i love you so much.
you're so sweet and you're so empowering. s: you are! a: i can't wait to see the amazing thingsyou do in life. s: you too! a: i'll be following along. s: you're like the most skilled person i know,for real. sometimes i'm like, "i don't know how to do this, i don't knowhow to do this."
but you know how to do everything, i feel. a: oh my gosh. i admire you. everyone, make sure you check out sorah yang. i have all her links in the description. amazing, amazing person. okay, make sure you watch the next video. we have a video where sorah shares her favoritethings.
also, comment below with your favorite takeawayfrom this video.
so that's it! a: thank you. this was artist of life by lavendaire. see you next time.
