Under bright festival lights at the Great American Foodie Fest, eight-year-old Micah Casimiro stood shoulder to shoulder with the crowd, staring at a group of breakdancers spinning across the pavement. For most kids, it would’ve just been entertainment, but for Micah, that moment would become the starting point of a six-year journey defined by discipline, originality and an unshakable love for breakdancing. Today, that same crew he once watched from afar is the crew he trains and battles with.

Breakdancing, colloquially known as “breaking”, is a style of dance that originated in the Bronx in New York during the early to mid-1970’s as a blend of athleticism, creativity, musicality and personal identity. For sophomore Micah Casimiro, it has evolved into a lifestyle, shaping his confidence and ambition.

“I first got into breaking from seeing a performance at the Great American Foodie Fest when I was eight,” Casimiro said. “The crew I saw performing at the Great American Foodie Festival is the same crew I dance with now. Some of my early inspirations were my crewmates I trained along with. Just watching them got me hyped about breaking and pushed me to be a better B-boy myself.”

After years of drilling in his foundations, Casimiro didn’t fully grasp his own potential until competition pushed him beyond what he expected of himself.

“One of my first wins out of state made me realize I could take this seriously,” he said. “I wasn’t even expecting to win. Afterwards, I thought maybe I could keep doing this because it was really fun. ”

Gallery • 2 Photos

Since then, breaking has taken him across states, into packed cyphers and onto stages with some of the nation’s best young breakers. One battle, a turn-based competition in hip-hop culture between two or more dancers, stands out: his invitation to the Elite Breaking League (EBL), a nationwide top eight invitational for some of the strongest youth breakers in the country.

“The most intense battle I’ve ever been in was being invited to EBL,” Casimiro said. “It was really nerve-racking because they were some of the best kids in the United States. Preparing for this battle, I still trained for the same number of hours as I didn’t want to overdo it. Something that made it challenging for sure were the competitors, as all of them were really good.”

As Casimiro pushed himself deeper into breakdancing, his younger brother, freshman Christian Casimiro, watched closely, absorbing the changes and growth he saw in Micah.

“I enjoy practicing with Micah a lot because I enjoy that we get to give each other feedback,” Christian Casimiro said. “For doing, let’s say, windmills, he could give me feedback on what I’m doing wrong and if he’s practicing moves, I could give him feedback. The biggest thing I learned from Micah is just listening to break beats even while you’re not practicing, because he does it a lot. He’s always listening to some type of break dance music and that lets him have better musicality during competitions. Once I started doing it, my musicality improved a lot.”

As training progressed, Micah began discovering the deeper challenges of breaking, especially when tackling power moves that demanded patience and persistence.

“One challenge I have faced recently in my breaking journey is trying to learn power moves (spin moves),” Casimiro said. “For me it takes me months to at least master a new move. A way I overcame this was through consistency and encouragement by watching others do the moves effortlessly.”

As Micah continues building his foundation, exploring new styles and pushing towards more complex moves, he sees breaking not just as a skill but as a limitless space to build his future.

“Breaking is just something I really enjoy doing in general,” Casimiro said. “It keeps me in shape and helps me feel more confident. Overall, it’s just something that I look forward to doing at the end of the day. In the future, I would like to somehow make a living off of breaking through performing or competing.If I had any advice for anyone who were to get into breaking: please trust the process and give it a chance. As hard as it seems, just stay consistent and anything can become possible.”