A STROLL WITH KAFAYAT SHAFAU-AMEH (For World Dance Day)

"Those who dance are considered insane by those who cannot hear the music" ~ George Carlin

So you think you can dance? Well, if you can dance with a 7-month-old baby bump, then you can dance. This is the bar my guest today has set for the global dance community. Kaffy, as she is popularly called by her fans, also holds a World record for the longest dance party ever. She--alongside her group, 'The Imagnetos'--danced for over 2 days. Precisely, 55 hours and 40 minutes and that record has been with her in Nigeria since 2006.

For Kaffy, dance is beyound body movements and stunts. It's the rhythm of her life. It's the kick in her drive. It's the next step she takes; and I was really lucky to get her for this stroll because she's currently in between running her dance company and nursing her second baby. However, in course of our stroll we talked about dance, her life, fitness, and why on earth she decided to risk having a miscarriage on National TV by dancing with her baby bump during a performance on stage. You might need to put on your dancing shoes for this one (hehe). Here's we go;

Ebenezar: Thanks for having this stroll with me, Kaffy.

Kaffy: You're welcome bro.

Ebenezar: The dictionary defines dance as a series of movements performed to music, but to you as a professional dancer, is there any special definition you'll like to give your craft?

Kaffy: Well, to me, dance is all those things that the dictionary defines it as. But, dance is deeper than that. Dance is a way of life; it’s an art. An art of emotional interpretation of feelings that have been generated into physical interpretation through body movements, really, and this is to rhythm of sound and rhythm of…any form of rhythm at all. Sometimes, it’s your heartbeat. It’s a drive. It’s a kick. So, for me, dance is a way of life. Dance is life itself because it absorbs the essence of life and puts it, like an artist paints a picture. This is dance to me.

Ebenezar: Now, I'll like to know, at what point in your life did you decide to become a Professional dancer? Because from what I gathered, you were a science student in secondary school right?

Kaffy: For me, it didn’t come as a decision as much as it came as a situation that was borne out of the consequence of the way life was dealing its hand at me. Yes, being a Science student, I was hoping I would become an Aeronautic Engineer. I had a knack for fixing things, I had a knack for Sciences and dance was just something I did by the side. But, I had my philosophy of giving back to humanity, and it took over me. 

Kaffy, Sagna, Podolski, and Mertesacker on the dance floor

I used to be a fitness trainer and got to be in front of a lot of people,changing their lives, changing them into their fit selves, using dance as a tool to make them enjoy the journey of getting back in shape. It just dawned on me to keep pursuing it and one thing led to the other, one show led to the other, one video led to the other, and boom! I’m in the dance industry.

Ebenezar: In 2006, alongside your group Imagneto, you broke a world record for 'The Longest dance party ever'. You danced for 55 hours and 40 minutes. Well over 2 days! Wow! what inspired you to take up this kind of challenge?

Kaffy: Well, first of all, breaking the world record came about because Uncle Ben Bruce, Ben Murray-Bruce—the CEO of Silverbird Groups—believed in me and he thought that there must be something (about me) that I had not yet attained. He asked me,“Do you know how long you can dance?” I said, “trust me, I don’t know. I know I have the potential to do things way beyond my imagination but until I am pushed to do it, I really cannot tell.”The month after that, he already organized the event, and got in touch with the Guinness World Record establishment and before I knew it…boom! (laughs).

Ebenezar: (hahah) No going back...

Kaffy: Yeah, They were already setting it up. And for me, once you put a challenge like that out in front of me, I don’t have any choice. I don’t go back. So, I decided to go ahead and do it. But, it wasn’t what I wanted to do by myself. I wanted my dance company to be involved. We had to run a mile out to qualify. Then, I realized that a lot of them are not athletes and they will need help. I’m used to long-distance running so I decided to join the line, get a number tag, get registered for it just to see them through the miles…and that is how I got involved all the way to the very end. The inspiration came in doses; I just kept on doing it especially as I knew it would put our country in the good books.

Kaffy dancing with her Baby bump   (Image Credit: Project Fame)

Ebenezar: Wow, that was really great. Congrats on that feat. Now, few years ago you also broke a widely accepted belief that, women during pregnancy are supposed to be fragile, weak, and lazy. I had my hands on my head and my heart in my mouth when I saw you doing dance routines on stage with a baby bump. I mean, wasn't that too risky? How did your husband react to it?

Kaffy: Well, I’m an advocate for women empowerment and youth empowerment and development, and for me, I believe that the African woman has been underestimated a lot.The African woman has been undermined, and in this part of the country, especially when an African woman is pregnant, she is subject to a lot of things. Yeah, a lot of care, but also a lot of restrictions and sometimes, they lose their jobs because they are pregnant, and I’m like look, Pregnancy is not a disease, it is part of life so let women enjoy it as well.

Ebenezar: Okay? I've also been thinking, how do you manage to stay fit during and after pregnancy? Because I notice you shed off your baby fat in a very short time. What's the secret?

Kaffy: As for sticking to a great body (chuckles) especially after pregnancy, it is great determination, consistency, and diligence. You know you want it. If you want it, you get it. That’s basically my rule. And, I am a fitness trainer as well. I’ve designed fitness programmes; I’m also my own guinea pig. Whenever I think of something that could work for other women, I try it on myself first and see the progress report and then, I advertise it and tell other women to come join me because it works, and, based on their lifestyle, while I consult with them, I can decide and say, “this will work perfectly for you”. There are two programmes. One called, 'Ijoda', which is my own version of Naija dance burn-out and the other is 'Koloarmy' and with these two intensive work-outs, I’ve been able to shed a lot of the weight and also share it with other people to come join these programmes as well. 

Sean and Eliana

Ebenezar: That's great, talking about babies, your marriage is blessed with two kids; Elaina was born few months ago, and Sean, your son, is 2. Very soon he'll be saying "Mummy, help me do my homework", and you've got Eliana to nurse, and still have to be a wife to your husband, and your dance company to run, and... I mean, how do you even stay sane and keep everything balanced?

Kaffy: (hahah) wow, what keeps me sane running company, attending to my kids, attending to my family, attending to my husband, attending to myself… Love. Love keeps me sane. Love for my kids keeps me sane, love for my husband, love for my work, love for my body, love for myself, love for life… without love, I don’t think I’ll be able to cope with it because sometimes, it gets really tough and knotted like a web of so many things going on around you, so many things depend on the other so love keeps me sane and God holds us together as one vessel.

Ebenezar: In 2013 we heard about a Dance Reality TV show you were about to start, any word on that?

Kaffy: Yes, it is called “Dare to Dance”. And, I am still working on it and I’ve been gathering footage; travelling around the world to bring the dance, the reality behind dancers and the daring factors that these dancers face to achieve the pressures of their hearts and the passions in it. I shot a lot of footage and I lost everything early last year. The whole work I've been gathering for 2 years...

Ebenezar: Oh No, that's sad... sorry about that.

Kaffy: Yeah, thanks. I’m now shooting all over again so it’ll definitely be out again soon. I’m bringing it to TV, to cable, to YouTube; so people can view. I’m still working on it, and no doubt, people would definitely see it. It’s amazing.

Ebenezar: Today is World Dance Day and one aim of this Observance is to persuade governments all over the world to provide a proper place for dance in all systems of education. How do you think this can be done? Can we work out a way to make dance part of the school curriculum?

Kaffy: I believe the government of every nation should find a way to put dance in their curriculum because the youths of today are very energetic; they are very innovative and they love music and they love art, and you can say that 9 out of 10 young people have some form of art that they love. Dance and music is one thing that catches young people fast and if we can use that to teach them morals, if we can use that to get them to be disciplined, to get them to be dedicated, to get them to believe in themselves, and groom their self-confidence and self-esteem, then, I think we have a better chance at building a better nation of young people who are ready to do what is right.

So, just as you put physical education in the curriculum and you put other abstract forms of educating kids into curriculum, and apart from the Sciences and the Englishes and all the ‘ishes’ that is there,

Ebenezar: (hahah) We have so many 'ishes' these days...

Kaffy: (haha) Yeah, Dance should be considered because a lot of young people are going into it despite what they are going to study in school. So, I think it’s a good way of reformation; it’s a good way to cajole these young people into doing what is right. So, if it works, why not?Let’s try it, let’s put it in the system and let’s use it to get these young people into the right path.

Ebenezar: Okay, I was surfing the web recently and I saw an ad for 'Kaffy Dance School'. Is registration still open? And how can interested persons get in?

Kaffy: Yes, registration is now on and people can join the Imagneto Dance Company. All they need to do is to send a mail to kaffydanceworld@gmail.com or ijoda9jadance@gmail.com, and they can also call +2348024719869 to talk to our representative that works for the Admin Department, and to get registered. Our website is under construction at the moment and that is www.imagnetodc.com and when it is up, in a couple of weeks, more information will be put up there.

Ebenezar: What will you like posterity to remember you for?

Kaffy: For me, giving back to humanity is one of the greatest legacies and is the greatest gift I can give with my life. I feel it’s a waste of life or precious soul when you come to this earth, you grow up on this earth and there is nothing that you can be remembered for. For me, I want to be remembered as somebody who gave hope to people and an opportunity to believe in themselves, grow their self-confidence and use what they have in supportive productivity for their environment, their nation, their country and for the whole earth at the end of the day. Not to waste energy (chuckles) that God has given us and our brain that has so much to give. Let us contribute to the earth’s growth by doing good for everybody else. That’s my legacy; that’s what I want to be remembered for.

Ebenezar: Wow, Great... On a final note, What's your advice for young people out there who wish to become professional dancers in the nearest future? How do they pursue this dream?

Kaffy and her son, Sean.

Kaffy: Advice for people who want to be dancers…for me as I said, being a professional dancer requires determination, focus, and also realizing that you have the responsibility of upholding how dancers are being seen just by how you behave when you are at work. Being a professional dancer goes way beyond knowing how to dance. You need to understand the business ethics, you need to understand the professional ethics, and you need to understand that whatever you do reflects on every other dancer around you.

People judge dancers by just what they see from one dancer and sometimes, it makes it really difficult. This profession is quite difficult for people to take you serious and see you as an intelligent and serious minded person let alone a proper business man or woman. And so, if you want to get people to believe in you and trust you with their business in entertainment or whatever sector of dance you find yourself in, you need to be ready. It is not a child’s play. Dance has evolved and it is not just about dancing for artists in videos anymore. Dance productions are getting bigger. You know, it is better for people who have experience in dance to be the ones steering the ship of dance productions so if you are not enlightened enough, educated enough, and if you are not ready for the big picture, don’t even start it. That’s my advice.

Ebenezar: Thank you so much once again for making out time--despite the fact that you're nursing a baby--to have this stroll with me, I wish you all the best in your endeavours.

Kaffy: Thanks for having me.
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For more about Kaffy, you can follow her on twitter @Kaffydancequeen

I wouldn't say I'm much of a dancer even though I try to burst some really fast hand-current moves here and there--Yeah, I know that's cliche. But people like Kaffy make me wish I could, but at least I can stroll right?--Lol, I know I'm consoling myself.

Dance is an art, and I think it's pretty lame that we've not found a way to formally incorporate dance into our school curriculum--especially in developing and under-developed countries. We just need to! There are many talented dancers out there who are forced to suppress their shine to do one professional career or the other just because there's no provision for them in the educational system. I hope the bodies that need to work on this, act fast because, a buried talent is a loss worth more than crude oil and gold.

Till my next stroll; The music is on, Keep dancing. Jesus loves you.

"Praise him with tambourines and dancing..." (Psalm 149v4 CEV)

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