Azonto Dance Spreads Wildly

I thought the craze about Azonto was over until I walked into one of the high profile night clubs on Victoria Island, Lagos,  Nigeria last Friday.

Two weeks before I went to the club, a friend in London sent me a message on my BlackBerry phone saying: “Azonto has taken over the UK”.

I smiled and said the British were probably just beginning to taste the flavour of the dance. But what I saw music lovers display on the dance floor in Lagos opened my eyes to the reality that Nigerians are lapping up the juice of Azonto.

Ghanaian international, Asamoah Gyan, brought the dance to limelight while celebrating a 2-1 victory over Nigeria in January 2010, securing the West African nation passage through to the African Cup of Nations final.

He also does the dance during his goal celebration for his club and during matches of the Black Stars (Ghana’s national football team).

And that was how this freestyle dance, Azonto, became a mainstay of the Ghanaian pop scene over the last ten years, danced by everyone from celebrating footballers, to toddlers, to stars.

The origins of Azonto are unclear but whatever, it seems it has come to stay. One school of thought suggests that the dance was first called Apaa, a neo-traditional dance created by the Ga communities of the Greater Accra region that sees domestic chores like washing, fishing and driving mimicked to comedic effect, while another suggests that the dance is an extension of a 1960s-era dance called Kpanlogo.

With time, Azonto (a name  given to the dance by the people of Tema)  became the toast of high schools in Ghana.

The dance requires vigorous hand, hip and leg movements and shows the creativity of the Ghanian people.

Today Azonto, like wildfire, is spreading all over the world and has not only become a household name, it has become a must-know-how-to dance for everyone.

Even the old make serious efforts to get the Azonto steps. Sixty-three-year old Mrs Oyemade, said: “I like the dance so much, its one dance that has helped to keep me feeling young.  “My grandson taught me though it took me three weeks to master the leg and hand movements,” she added as she demonstrated the dance effortlessly with a smile.

Even pregnant women do the Azonto, in spite of their condition. The recent end of the year parties organised in various schools across the state this year, presented the opportunity for pupils and students to showcase their skills in Azonto.

Every group displayed the latest Azonto steps. Habib Idris, a JSS 2 student of a secondary school in Palmgrove, Lagos, Nigeria, told our correspondent during the end of year party of the school that Azonto is the best dance. “It is the best dance because it goes with any song, not just Azonto music, even gangnam style,” he said.

Gangnam Style is a K-pop single by the South Korean musician PSY. The song was released in July 2012 as the lead single of his sixth studio album PSY 6 (Six Rules), Part 1, and debuted at number one on South Korea’s Gaon Chart.

Last month, Gangnam Style became the first online video to record a billion hits. As of last Sunday, the music video has been viewed over 1.13 billion times on YouTube, and it is the site’s most watched video after surpassing Justin Bieber’s single Baby.

Despite the love of Azonto by music lovers, especially for the crazy dance steps, some people do not see anything fantastic about the dance. “I don’t think there is anything special about this dance; for me its like every other dance, like Galala, Yahoo, Alanta and the rest. I am sure it will fade soon, though is been in vogue for long,” said Juliet Igbas, a resident of Anthony Village, Lagos.

But our research in Lagos tells a different story. It was discovered that a large number of respondents (young and old) love the dance. Many jump to the dance floor at the speed of light to show how good they are, while a few cling to their chairs perhaps due to the strength and vigour required to dance Azonto.

Sesan Ogunro, a filmmaker and director of D’Banj’s Oliver Twist video, said:  “The Azonto dance is flamboyant and innovative and different people reinvent it to suit their style and energy. It’s not too similar to anything I’ve seen before.

“Azonto is very popular outside of Ghana. It has become a dance craze and has become very popular in the UK and parts of the US,” he added.

Like Twist, Tango Swing and many others before it, the popularity of Azonto across the globe is not in doubt. So far, the dance has stood the test of time. Whether another dance will outshine it is only a question of time, but what is certain is that Azonto is ruling dancehalls in Africa and spreading well beyond its shores.

—Kashimana Beba