Interview with PJAY71 (Forever We Rock/New York City)

Kostek: Can You introduce Yourself?

PJAY71: Yes, my name is Pedro Martinez AKA PJAY71.

K: How did You started to rock? Can You tell something about the style in Your neighborhood?

P: I've first saw the dance around 1977 and started learning it that same year. I grew up in the East New York section of Brooklyn since 1975, and the Rock scene there was heavy. I used to watch the older guys dance in the parks, street corners and church parties. I then would practice with my good longtime friend Lee AKA SOR in his house or my basement. His oldest brother, who is in his early 50's now, would give us some tips as well. I also used to hang a lot with my older cousin Mike, who was down with FMD at the time. He would take me to the Ching-A-Ling's MC, Red Hook chapter in Brooklyn... I saw a lot of Outlaw Rock Style there, as well as, South Brooklyn Style... this was in the early 80's. like '81-82.

K: You are representing “Forever We Rock”, one of the best crews in the world, but people in Poland didn’t hear too much about it. Say something about Your crew, I heard that You got some new members down?

P: I was the Admin on the original Dynasty Rockers Forum by the mid 2000's, and on one of the threads Rock Bandit and I were going back and forth joking around as usual. I ended one of my posts saying "Forever We Rock". Maybe a a day a two later he called me and asked if he could rep that name and start a crew out in the West Coast. If you know me, I was immediately cool with it, and wanted to be down myself and rep out in the East Coast. The rest is history.

Here's the FWR roster:

Rock Bandit / Prez
Rob Nasty / Prez
PJAY71 / Godfather
Whacko
Pugz
EL-D
Raf
Mark Rock
Golden Arms
Koach

Thanks for the considering us to be one of the best Rock Crews out right now, we are humbled. We take this dance very seriously, and are passionate in preserving it's true essence to take it to new levels. Since day one, I've asked my Prez' to make sure FWR is top notch always!

K: What’s the connection between gang’s, motorcycle club’s and the rock dance?

P: The connection is New York City and it's ghettos. It was the 60's and 70's and the time was perfect for Rock, and of course it all had to do with the music, and the creative interpretation of NYC's Black and Latino culture... and Whites as well! The street gangs had their very raw style of "Burn and Get Burned" Rock, and the majority of dancers gravitated towards that! I have to thank the 1st Generation Rockers for blessing us with further knowledge on this, particularly Bushwick Joe, who coined the term "Burn and Get Burned".

K: Are there still some gang members rocking?

P: Yes, but not in our scene.

K: How do You see the difference between old school and new school rocking?

P: The old school Rockers came from pure Rock influences IE: Latin rhythms, Soul / Funk & Rock music, and the dances that accompanied those genres. The majority of new school Rockers come from Bboy / Breakin influences to where that pure essence of dancing was replaced with moves. With that said, it's always pretty hard for most Bboy's to learn Rock and more so understand it.

K: How serious people used to treat rocking? There was fights because of that or everybody was dancing in peace? How did people react when You burned somebody bad?

P: Rocking [in my era] was taken very seriously, especially if you Burned someone bad. You see, the ladies really loved to watch Rockers get down, and if a guy really embarrassed another guy with a Burn, it will usually get serious. In ENY, most Rock battles turned into a fight. However, it was some of the best dancing and Burning you ever seen in your life!

K: What was the rules on a rocking contest’s? Can You name some biggest contest’s in history?

P: Apache Line... in my time it was all about lining-up and Rocking, and don't touch your opponent. The best battles I've seen all happened spontaneously, and not a set-up jam or judged contest.

K: How to became a complete rocker? What You are looking for in rockers?

P: The #1 rule to Rock is knowing Rock Dance music... you cannot showcase your skills to the fullest if you do not know the music! Next is your style and flow. If you're Rocking, you better display the influences of Rock, which is Latin & Soul movements [NOT BBOY STEPS]. Salsa steps, foot shuffles, spins, drops, hand gestures [what I call pretty hands] and shoulder shakes, better ALL be in your presentation when you Rock. Next is one of the most debated freestyle steps I think ever in any dance genre - The Jerk! Your Jerk better be on time and look authentic! If you have poor freestyle at least make sure your Jerk is on point, it will save your Rock! Last is Burning. Whether you like it or not, it is part of the Rock Dance. Burning should also flow with your dancing and not overpower it to where you're just standing there throwing Burn gestures at your opponent. Again, the music is key... Rock Dance music is so full of instrumental sounds, such as cymbal crashes, drum rolls or vocals, and that's when you execute your best Burns, and not at every second.

K: What do You think about rocker’s, who don’t have enough stamina to jerk to the whole break in a battle and they return to freestyle on the breakdown?

P: Hmm, good question. Let me ask this; When the first break in "Listen to Me" drops, what other dance move would you rather see than the Jerk? Now if you have two guys Jerk-Rocking to that same break, and one stops halfway through, who is gonna shine to the crowd or the judges? See, there's no rule that you have to Jerk the entire break of a song, but it is what it is, and I know what I'll be looking for when I see cats get down with Rock. At the end of the day, you do need some level of good stamina to Rock a complete song let alone a complete break, word!

K: Some people are saying that if You are not old school rocker, You shouldn’t teach that dance. I don’t agree with that, because if for example Wary The Warrior didn’t teach in Europe, Polish rock scene could never exist. I’m curious about Your opinion.

P: I was never down with that closed-minded ideology. I was a proud supporter of Wary to be the first to go teach in Poland, when others didn't approve, and look what happened? We have some of the best Rockers coming out of that country, with you Kostek, being one of the top Rockers out right now! I personally don't think everyone should teach, especially if their skills are not up to par, but the ones that are, go for it! Rocking has to be taught right, or else we'll have too many misunderstandings... and we came too far for that to happen again. Just be wise... students should be just as wise in picking their teachers as with anything else in life.

K: Did rockers used to do a lot of down rocking/floor rocking?

P: You had Splits, Back Bridges, Dives, Freezes and Low Jerks to name a few... that was probably the most floor moves I've seen in my day.

K: Brooklyn and Bronx rocking... can You say something about that?

P: "Peace will come, this world will rest, once we have togetherness!" -Jimmy Castor RIP

K: Style or technique?

P: Free from style!

K: Which record’s You will play in a contest? Classic ones, or You will put something nobody knows and see how dancers react?

P: No... until the scene has come up with a stronger understanding, then it would be the classics. The classics have yet to be fully digested and understood.

K: Connection beetween rock dance and graffiti?

P: Graffiti is an element like Rock, that existed before the term Hip Hop was created. Back in the day you had guys that could do it all; Dance, DJ, Emcee and Write Graff. There's no direct connection to writing graffiti and Rocking, but it was what it was... It was New York.

K: That’s all questions, thank You for the interview. You want to say something for the end?

Much Love & Respect:
Kostek and the Polish Rock scene - keep doin your thing!
My FWR family... I love my bros!
All the 1st Gen Rockers... some of us became good friends and that I cherish.
West Coast... y'all really love Rock and Hip Hop in general. Y'all have what we should have here!
All my NYC & East Coast brothers & sisters - don't stop the Rock!
All Rockers & TRUE Hip Hop Heads Worldwide!

This is more than a dance for me. Through my personal pursuit over the years, to bring the best of my knowledge, the truth of the Rock Dance, I made many close friends, which over everything is priceless.
Peace!