Passinho the Brazilian dance literally means little steps or small steps and describes the short, fast, twisting style of a street dance that grew from the favela’s youths across not just the whole country but across the world even being shown during the Olympic opening ceremonies in Brazil and the UK. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
Zona Franca \u00a9️ Renato Mangolin<\/p>\n\n\n\n
From obscurity via stigmatization to international fame, in\u00a0a short amount of time, this iconic speedy foot-worked dance has grown. It may well have been around and known as ‘funk parties’ since the early 2000s but it took dedicated dance troups to spread the movement globally.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
During the early days dancers learned by word of mouth about one another and baile\u00a0funk\u00a0(funk party) became locales for inter-favela dance duels. While baile funk parties are\u00a0thought of as the\u00a0birthplace of Passinho, many battles actually occurred on\u00a0a small side road by a shopping\u00a0Mall of all places.\u00a0This historical spot\u00a0was where many dancers gained their reputations,\u00a0battling in one of the many informal\u00a0rodas\u00a0(circles)\u00a0formed every Saturday. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
By 2006 dance groups were founded but by 2008 a dancer called Bei\u00e7ola from Jacarezinho posted a\u00a0YouTube video of him and his friends dancing.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The video spread rapidly, inspiring favela youth across the city to use social media to share\u00a0similar dance videos,\u00a0and Passinho was transformed almost overnight from an insulated dance to a\u00a0full-on cultural phenomenon.<\/p>\n\n\n\n