Popping is a dance style based on the technique of rapid contraction and relaxation of muscles, creating the effect of a sharp flinch in the dancer’s body — a pop or a hit. It is built on isolations with various parts of the body and is enriched with additional dance substyles. Popping is called the dance of illusion, since many of its types (Robot, Waving and Strobing) create the impression of unreality of what is happening.

Popping, which originated in the streets of Fresno, California, in the 1970s, is often used in battles, designed to prove one’s primacy over other dancers. During competitions, dancers improvise to the music of Funk, Hip-Hop, etc. In the process of their dance, they create new moves, figures, images, developing and improving their freestyle.