Top 8 Street Dance Battle Fuelled by their passion for hip-hop/StreetDance Culture and the desire to put Ireland at the forefront of the global hip-hop scene, Tobi Omoteso and Deborah O’Connor founded Top 8 Street Dance Battle in 2014.
Since then, it has become one of Ireland’s biggest hip-hop/StreetDance events and continues to grow each year. Top 8 Street Dance Battle incorporates the four elements of hip-hop culture: MCs, DJs, street dancers, and graffiti.
The Top 8 team believe hip-hop is a platform for creative expression and knowledge sharing among the Irish street dance/Hiphop community. The core values of the Top 8 team are Love, Respect, Community and having Fun.
These all-day events are for all ages and groups which bring street dancers across the country and the world together under one roof, sharing, exchanging, learning and battling.
Tobi is the curator and director of TOP 8 STREET DANCE BATTLE that brings together the best of Irish and International Street dancers and Hip-hop artist to existing and new audiences – now heading into its 8th year, the event has been part of Dublin Dance Festival since 2016.
Tobi Omoteso is an internationally acclaimed Nigerian/Irish B-boy (Breakin’ / Breakdancer) and Hip-Hop Freestyle dancer, Who has trained at Broadway Dance Centre,West Bronx, New York and Breakbeat Dance Studios, Waterford, Ireland.
Tobi has been dancing for over 20 years and supports the foundations of this dynamic and Influential dance form with his B-boy crew – RECESSION SQUAD NINJAS.
As a dance facilitator Tobi has designed and delivered youth programmes teaching in schools, youth groups and established dance organizations, he has brought his knowledge of Hip-Hop and breakin’ culture into a wide variety of youth and academic contexts.
As a choreographer and performer, Tobi’s work has been presented across Ireland, including at Dublin Dance Festival (Dublin), WHAT NEXT dance festival (Limerick), Cork Midsummer Festival (Cork), Glor Dance Platform (Co. Clare), Sproi Festival (Waterford), Irish Arts Center (New York), Eva Bianual International Contemporary Arts Festival, SODEA Festival, 1916 Easter Rising Commemorations in Croke Park (TG4 & Tyrone Production LAOCHRA), Dancers from the Dancer Irish and International Festival & Bloodlines, RTE’s Commissioned “I am Ireland”, WHEN I Visual (Carlow). On screen he has performed on Sky one Got to Dance, hit US TV show Penny Dreadful, Apple TV, RTE, and in numerous music videos and commercials.
Deborah
Deborah O’Connor is co-founder and Executive Producer of the hugely popular TOP 8 STREET DANCE BATTLE.
A former dancer and a choreographer, she has performed at national and international level at events including Sky One’s Got to Dance, the Childline Concert and the IDO World Hip-Hop Championships, and she has won multiple All Ireland Hip-Hop Championships.
As a dancer and teacher, she has over 20 years’ experience as part of High Voltage Dance Studio.
She is also Head of the Competition Committee for the National Breaking Council Ireland, and Administrator and Finance Manager for Limerockers Breaking Academy.