The fourth season of America's Best Dance Crew premiered on August 9, 2009.[1] All three regular judges, host Mario Lopez, and backstage correspondent Layla Kayleigh returned. This was the last season to feature Shane Sparks as a judge. In the live finale, which aired on September 27, 2009, We Are Heroes was declared the winner.
| America's Best Dance Crew | |
|---|---|
| Season 4 | |
| Hosted by | Mario Lopez |
| Judges | JC Chasez Lil Mama Shane Sparks |
| Winner | We Are Heroes |
| Release | |
| Original network | MTV |
| Original release | August 9 – September 27, 2009 |
| Season chronology | |
Cast
Nine dance crews were selected to compete on America's Best Dance Crew.
| Dance Crew | Hometown | Region |
|---|---|---|
| AfroBoriké | San Juan, Puerto Rico | Caribbean |
| Artistry in Motion | North Hollywood, California | West |
| Beat Ya Feet Kings | Washington, D.C. | East |
| Fr3sh | Matawan, New Jersey | East |
| Massive Monkees | Seattle, Washington | West |
| Rhythm City | Bronx, New York | East |
| Southern Movement | Nashville, Tennessee | South |
| Vogue Evolution | New York, New York | East |
| We Are Heroes | Los Angeles, California | West |
Results
| Rank | Dance Crew | Episode | |||||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | ||||||||||||
| 1 | We Are Heroes | IN | IN | IN | RISK | RISK | IN | RISK | WINNER | ||||||||||
| 2 | AfroBoriké | IN | RISK | IN | IN | IN | IN | IN | RUNNER-UP | ||||||||||
| 3 | Massive Monkees | IN | IN | IN | IN | IN | RISK | OUT | |||||||||||
| 4 | Rhythm City | IN | IN | RISK | IN | IN | OUT | ||||||||||||
| 5 | Vogue Evolution | IN | IN | IN | IN | OUT | |||||||||||||
| 6 | Beat Ya Feet Kings | RISK | IN | IN | OUT | ||||||||||||||
| 7 | Southern Movement | RISK | IN | OUT | |||||||||||||||
| 8 | Artistry in Motion | IN | OUT | ||||||||||||||||
| 9 | Fr3sh | OUT | |||||||||||||||||
- Key
- (WINNER) The dance crew won the competition and was crowned "America's Best Dance Crew".
- (RUNNER-UP) The dance crew was the runner-up in the competition.
- (IN) The dance crew was safe from elimination.
- (RISK) The dance crew was at risk for elimination.
- (OUT) The dance crew was eliminated from the competition.
Episodes
Episode 1: Crew's Choice Challenge
- Original Airdate: August 9, 2009
The nine new crews chose songs that best showcased their talent in the season premiere.[2] After the bottom three was chosen by the judges, the crews had to face each other in a dance battle to "Boom Boom Pow" by The Black Eyed Peas.[3]
| Dance Crew | Song[3] |
|---|---|
| Beat Ya Feet Kings | "Skillet" by Backyard Band |
| We Are Heroes | "Waters of Nazareth" by Justice |
| AfroBoriké | "Aguanile" by Marc Anthony |
| Massive Monkees | "Kill Joy" by N.E.R.D. |
| Artistry in Motion | "SFM" by Basement Jaxx |
| Southern Movement | "Sideways" by Dierks Bentley |
| Rhythm City | "Life of a Star" by Mims |
| Fr3sh | "Ante Up" by M.O.P. |
| Vogue Evolution | "Took the Night" by Chelley |
- Safe: We Are Heroes, AfroBoriké, Massive Monkees, Artistry in Motion, Rhythm City, Vogue Evolution
- Bottom 3: Beat Ya Feet Kings, Southern Movement, Fr3sh
- Eliminated: Fr3sh
Episode 2: Beyoncé Challenge
- Original Airdate: August 16, 2009
Beyoncé stopped by to hand out the challenges for the crews, who had to use her music videos and tour performances as inspiration for their routines.[4]
| Dance Crew | Song[5] | Challenge |
|---|---|---|
| We Are Heroes | "Single Ladies (Put a Ring on It)" | Take the section of the video known as "The Grind" and create strobe effects. |
| Rhythm City | "Sweet Dreams" | Update "The Charleston" which is featured in the video. |
| Massive Monkees | "Work It Out" | Dance with hula hoops without accidentally dropping them. |
| Beat Ya Feet Kings | "Crazy In Love" | Booty-pop with never before seen flare. |
| Southern Movement | "Jumpin' Jumpin'" by Destiny's Child | Bust out all of the moves from the video with new creativity. |
| Vogue Evolution | "Déjà Vu" | Perform African-style dancing within their routine. |
| Artistry in Motion | "Diva" | Perform with chains incorporating the entire crew. |
| AfroBoriké | "Beautiful Liar" by Beyoncé and Shakira | Work exotic Shakira-like moves into the routine. |
- Safe: We Are Heroes, Rhythm City, Massive Monkees, Beat Ya Feet Kings, Southern Movement, Vogue Evolution
- Bottom 2: Artistry in Motion, AfroBoriké
- Eliminated: Artistry in Motion
Episode 3: Martial Arts Challenge
- Original Airdate: August 23, 2009
The crews had to incorporate martial arts moves into their routines. Quest Crew's Steve Terada appeared as a guest instructor.[6]
| Dance Crew | Song[7] | Challenge |
|---|---|---|
| AfroBoriké | "I Know You Want Me (Calle Ocho)" by Pitbull | Capoeira |
| We Are Heroes | "Starstrukk" by 3OH!3 | Karate |
| Vogue Evolution | "Work" by Ciara feat. Missy Elliott | Shaolin Kung Fu |
| Massive Monkees | "Bounce" by MSTRKRFT feat. NORE | Extreme Martial Arts |
| Beat Ya Feet Kings | "Chillin'" by Wale feat. Lady Gaga | Taekwondo |
| Rhythm City | "La La La" by LMFAO | Muay Thai |
| Southern Movement | "Ugly" by Bubba Sparxxx | Kali |
- Safe: AfroBoriké, We Are Heroes, Vogue Evolution, Massive Monkees, Beat Ya Feet Kings
- Bottom 2: Rhythm City, Southern Movement
- Eliminated: Southern Movement
Episode 4: Bollywood Challenge
- Original Airdate: August 30, 2009
The six remaining crews were challenged to infuse the flavor of Bollywood culture into their routines.[8] In order to learn the complex Indian-themed dance style, the crews met with Bollywood choreographer Nakul Dev Mahajan.[9]
| Dance Crew | Song[10] | Challenge |
|---|---|---|
| Massive Monkees | "Bang" by Rye Rye feat. M.I.A. | Bhangra |
| Vogue Evolution | "Calabria 2008" by Enur | Rajasthani |
| Rhythm City | "Jai Ho! (You Are My Destiny)" by A.R. Rahman and The Pussycat Dolls | Bharatanatyam |
| AfroBoriké | "Dance Bailalo" by Kat DeLuna | Kathak |
| We Are Heroes | "Arab Money" by Busta Rhymes and Ron Browz | Giddha |
| Beat Ya Feet Kings | "So Fine" by Sean Paul | Garba |
- Safe: Massive Monkees, Vogue Evolution, Rhythm City, AfroBoriké
- Bottom 2: We Are Heroes, Beat Ya Feet Kings
- Eliminated: Beat Ya Feet Kings
Episode 5: Dance Craze Challenge
- Original Airdate: September 6, 2009
The five remaining crews put their own spins on popular dance crazes.[11] In addition to the challenge, the crews also had used the trampoline built into the stage sometime during their routines.
| Dance Crew | Song[12] | Challenge |
|---|---|---|
| AfroBoriké | "Swag Surfin'" by Fast Life Yungstaz | Swag Surfin' |
| Massive Monkees | "Do the Ricky Bobby" by B-Hamp | Ricky Bobby |
| Rhythm City | "You're a Jerk" by New Boyz | Jerkin' |
| We Are Heroes | "Stanky Legg" by GS Boyz | Stanky Legg |
| Vogue Evolution | "Halle Berry" by Hurricane Chris | Halle Berry |
- Safe: AfroBoriké, Massive Monkees, Rhythm City
- Bottom 2: We Are Heroes, Vogue Evolution
- Eliminated: Vogue Evolution
Episode 6: VMA Challenge
- Original Airdate: September 13, 2009
The final four crews paid tribute to memorable performances from the MTV Video Music Awards.[13] The crews performed together in an opening number to "Smooth Criminal" by Michael Jackson.[14]
| Dance Crew | Song[15] |
|---|---|
| We Are Heroes | "Vogue" by Madonna |
| AfroBoriké | "I'm a Slave 4 U" by Britney Spears |
| Massive Monkees | "Tearin' Up My Heart" by *NSYNC |
| Rhythm City | "Wall To Wall" by Chris Brown |
- Safe: We Are Heroes, AfroBoriké
- Bottom 2: Massive Monkees, Rhythm City
- Eliminated: Rhythm City
Episode 7: Decades of Dance Challenge
- Original Airdate: September 20, 2009
The crews competed against each other in two challenges: the Decade of Dance Challenge, in which the crews danced to a mix of five songs from the past five decades, and the Last Chance Challenge.[16]
Challenge #1: Decades of Dance Challenge
The remaining three crews had to master dance styles from the last five decades. One crew was eliminated halfway through the show.
| Decade | Song[17] |
|---|---|
| 1960s | "Sex Machine" by James Brown |
| 1970s | "Uprock" by Rock Steady Crew |
| 1980s | "Cold Hearted" by Paula Abdul |
| 1990s | "You Make Me Wanna" by Usher |
| 2000s | "LoveGame" by Lady Gaga |
- Safe: AfroBoriké
- Bottom 2: Massive Monkees, We Are Heroes
- Eliminated: Massive Monkees
Challenge #2: Last Chance Challenge
The two finalists were given one last chance to perform before the lines opened for the final voting session of the season.
| Dance Crew | Performance Title |
|---|---|
| AfroBoriké | Raíces |
| We Are Heroes | Ichiban |
Episode 8: The Live Finale
- Original Airdate: September 27, 2009
All nine crews returned for a group performance in the season finale. The judges each picked three crews that complemented each other and their dance styles. Then, the winner was crowned.[18]
| Crews | Song |
|---|---|
| Lil Mama: We Are Heroes, Vogue Evolution and Artistry in Motion | "Girls On The Dance Floor" by Far East Movement feat. The Stereotypes |
| JC Chasez: AfroBoriké, Rhythm City and Fr3sh | "Fire Burning" by Sean Kingston |
| Shane Sparks: Massive Monkees, Beat Ya Feet Kings and Southern Movement | "I Do" by Lil Jon feat. Swizz Beatz and Snoop Dogg |
| We Are Heroes and AfroBoriké | "I Gotta Feeling" by The Black Eyed Peas |
| We Are Heroes | "I'm The Ish" by DJ Class feat. Lil Jon |
- Winner: We Are Heroes
- Runner-up: AfroBoriké