A street dance refers to street dance styles primarily performed to hip-hop music or that have evolved as part of hip-hop culture. It includes a wide range of styles primarily breaking, locking, and popping which were created in the 1970s and made popular by dance crews in the United States. The television show Soul Train and the 1980s films Breakin', Beat Street, and Wild Style showcased these crews and dance styles in their early stages; therefore, giving hip-hop mainstream exposure. The dance industry responded with a commercial, studio-based version of hip-hop—sometimes called "new style"—and a hip-hop influenced style of jazz dance called "jazz-funk". Classically trained dancers developed these studio styles in order to choreograph from the hip-hop dances that were performed on the street. Because of this development, hip-hop dance is practiced in both dance studios and outdoor spaces. Examples of street dance include b-boying (or breakdancing), which originated in New York City, and Melbourne Shuffle which originated in Melbourne, Australia.
it is a dance, having existed since the late nineteenth century, is perhaps one of the oldest street dances of urban America. Street dance is often considered urban folk dance. Since many concepts of urbanization have existed for a long time back in history, the point of which folk dance is to be considered a more historical street dance is often broad and unknown. Street dance and folk dance are distinguished by when the terms were introduced for, the term 'street dance' as a compound noun has been believed to have existed since the beginning of the early 20th century, whereby Afro-American vernacular dance was becoming the most popular in the western world. Clogging is thought to be considered a very early form of street dance, since it evolved in the streets, factories and dance parties during the 18th century (or before) amongst dancers that were considered a part of the UK, Western Europe and Appalachian urban countercultures at the time.