Photo: @daniellerodas on Instagram
Professional dancer Danielle Rodas has worked with quite the roster of artists: Daddy Yankee, Don Omar, Wisin Y Yandel, J Balvin, Bad Bunny, Prince Royce, Nicky Jam, and Will Smith.
She started dancing in elementary school as an after school activity. Having a karate background helped her develop a sharp memory and remembering dance steps came easy. However, it wasn’t until high school that she decided dance would be her career. The first major gig she landed was the Daddy Yankee 2015 Tour. It was her first time traveling to Europe and considers it a major breakthrough in her career.
Since then, her hard work and passion for dance has taken her everywhere. She toured with singer Maluma for two years starting in 2016, traveling to South America, Israel, and Romania amongst other places. A stand out performance for her was the VMAS set.
“It was very different (from other performers) because he sang in Spanish and it had this crazy breakdown that people weren’t expecting. The kiss at the end. It was very, very epic and I was glad that I was a part of that,” she said.
As for performing at the 2018 FIFA World Cup Finale in Russia, the opportunity came about completely by chance. Danielle decided to accompany her mom, who is a huge soccer fan, to Russia for the World Cup. Her family is from Colombia so they wanted to support the Colombian soccer team at the biggest sporting event of the summer.
“We go to watch Colombia's games. I’m there for her and for soccer. That’s it. I’m there to enjoy this epic thing that happens every four years,” Rodas said.
Once Colombia left the 2018 FIFA World Cup, Danielle recalls coming across choreographer’s Nika Kljun’s Instagram post announcing she was traveling to Moscow. Thinking of taking classes and conventions, Danielle messaged her and discovered Nika would be holding auditions for the closing show.
“Mind you I just met her in January because I was in Miami. I decided to go to a class. It’s crazy how life works,” she said. “Life has this way of working and aligning. We both ended up in Russia and got to work in July together.”
After attending the audition, Danielle remembers wanting to be a part of the performance because it was very Latin inspired and was set to Nicky Jam’s song “X”. The next day, she found out she booked the job.
Photo: @daniellerodas on Instagram
“That whole last week that I was there was pure rehearsals on the field and that's for sure my biggest job ever. It’s something that doesn’t happen every year,” she said. “People think that I went over there for that and I’m like you don’t even know.”
Danielle has worked with a fair share of talented choreographers in the industry. As far as whose choreography she feels is most challenging to perform: Janelle Ginestra and Willdabeast Adams.
“I really enjoy doing their choreo because it asks a lot of you as an athlete, and as a performer. The first time I worked with them for Premios Lo Nuestro, I learned 6 numbers, “ she said.
Janelle and Will’s style tests a dancer's musicality, agility, memory, speed, and work ethic. Danielle loves performing her mentor Cultura’s choreography and Fefe Burgos’s dance style as well. She is inspired by strong female dancers like Diana Matos, Taya Shawki and Cat Rendic.
Photo: Andree/ @daniellerodas on Instagram
Her main advice for dancers who want to be a part of the industry is to not get caught up in the Instagram craze. She mentioned it may not be the healthiest or most nurturing practice. While the challenges are fun, she highlights that on stage, the simple dances don’t cut it.
“Know who to ask, Know who is your idol, mentor, role model and make sure that person is giving you the right information and that you give the right information down. It just depends on what avenue you want, longevity or what the hype is about,” she said.
Comments