Combining dreaming and doing is the only way to build the life you want. It’s definitely not about luck. Your work, dedication, failure and patience determine your life.
In addition to his exciting dance path, reading Hsan Naat’s story will undoubtedly take you on an adventurous journey that will inspire you to unlock your potential and start working on your dreams. Hsan’s limitless passion for dance has taken him to one of the most active and innovative dance hubs in the world that is Los Angeles and join the Coachella Festival as a dance performer.
“My actual vision is to create an empire, to represent and create a platform for artists, specially dancers, where we are all a strong unique nation. That’s how the world should see us.”
On this week’s #BreakreateBlogs, we interviewed Hsan Naat, a hardworking dance talent: Winner of the Tunisia Championship Choreographer’s 1st place, recognized as one of the Top 14 best dancers in North Africa & Middle East and as a Buildabeast member in 2017, also a winner of the Dancerpalooza Award 2016.
During our interview, Hsan has revealed some exclusive information about his Road to Success project while providing his insights on the Tunisian Hip-Hop scene as well as the LA dance industry.
Now, let us feed your soul and curiosity!
RTS Project and moving to LA
Breakreate team: What is the vision behind the Road to Success project ?
Hsan Naat: “When I came to LA, I had the idea of making my experience in here an exemple of how real this life is and how it’s not impossible to achieve what ever you had in the mind as a goal. RTS (Road to Success) is where I share the keys and the process of learning, evolving, creating and living. My actual vision is to create an empire, to represent and create a platform for artists specially dancers where we are all a strong unique nation. That’s how the world should see us.”
As Hsan has just moved to Los Angles, we made sure to dig up information about his main goals for the current year: Dancing with his idols and putting his name among the best performers and creators are on the top of Hsan’s 2019 goals. He has also declared that he works on some non-Dance goals, besides his RTS project ,that revolves around being an artist.
To this point, you must want to know more about the process followed by Hsan Naat to start a dance career in LA:
Buildabeast was everything I expected!
H.N: “It was a long process but blessed to have the chance. One of the best talent agencies in LA saw my work and signed me as an artist among their long list of legendary creators and now I’m a verified and certified Professional Dancer/Choreographer in USA/LA.”
Breakreate team: How did the Buildabeast Experience impact your artistry and dance career?
H.N: “ Buildabeast was everything I expected because I’ve been following their work since 2011 then being there in 2017 taught me a lot. Such an experience sets your life to an other dimension after seeing so much and upgrading so fast when it comes to learning.”
With Sean Lew 
With Josh Price 
With Twitch 
With Jade Chynoweth 
With Alexander Chung
Dance journey’s Firsts & Achievements
Breakreate team: How did it all start, how did you get into dancing?
H.N: “ I’ve always loved the MTV show ‘America’s Best Dance Crew’ but it wasn’t until 2011 that I’ve started dancing, watching a lot of Youtube videos of Phillip Chbeeb, Salah, Les Twins, Soreal Crew with Brian Puspos and Ian Eastwood as well as Willdabeast and Janelle Ginestra and a lot of other names then I started freestyling in the room and sometimes in the streets.”
Breakreate team: What are your dance journey’s Firsts ?
Hsan Naat: “ Popping was my first dance then my first Hip-Hop choreography class was in Lebanon. I did a lot of shows but my first big stage and show was SYTYCD and my first dance camp was BUILDABEAST.”
INSPIRATIONS
BK team: Who’s your current/main mentor? Why?
H.N: “Now, I don’t have a ‘Main Mentor’ because I am on the level of only following my personal vision and decisions in the art that I make as I have proved to myself that everything I stood and fought for is actually right and true so I’m going to keep on doing it that way.”
BK team: What’s your next move on your dance journey?
H.N: “I just did my first ever performance in LA wich was the biggest and my dream job for a while. I had the chance to perform on Coachella wich is the biggest Music Festival and alongside with one of the biggest artists in the world ‘JUICE WRLD’ and we are also performing this weekend. I don’t have plans when it comes to the next dance move. I just speak my biggest moves to the univers then I get to live them.”
Insights about the Tunisian and LA Hip-Hop dance communities
Our curiosity has also led us to ask Hsan Naat about the Tunisian and LA Hip-Hop dance communities describing them both in three words: Hsan thinks of the Tunisian dance community as a slow environment that lacks creativity and therefore a place where it’s hard to build a great career. Unlike the LA one that Hsan perceives as an industry filled with opportunities. Surprinsingly, Hsan also finds that the LA Hip-Hop dance scene can be sometimes confusing.
BK team: What can we learn from the LA dance industry and do you think we can implement it within the Tunisian context?
H.N: “Productivity is the first thing to start the journey with, break the chain of ‘underground’ as there is more in dance than just ‘Battles, Robot, Popping and Solos…’ and if our Tunisian dance community mixes what we have of originality and techniques in Popping, Locking and Hip-Hop with choreographing and storytelling…to be honest, it’s a lot to work on but it’s not impossible, it includes the work of dancers, directors, brands, commercial, work on the industry as well as theatrical work but all this starts with the fight of dancers.”
Finding all answers. Experiencing life with ‘the eye’ and ride the wave to deliver the vision.
These are Hsan Naat’s words as he described his artist’s dreams. Hsan Naat has also identified 4 challenges encountred by the Tunisian Hip-Hop dance community that mainly revolve around education, marketing and career-building, followed by solutions. In order to turn these challenges into opportunities, Hsan suggested 4 solutions essentially related to acquiring soft skills such as self-branding and communication.
BK team: Any advices to share with dancers ?
H.N: “I’m always open to talk and support dancers or to advise them. Feel free to reach out if you wanna talk. but I would just say.. everything you have now of knowledge and skills is just a ‘’DROP of an OCEAN’’, stay hungry, always look for what you don’t know and never stay comfortable.”
More about Hsan Naat
I already have an ‘almost’ Finished album.
Breakreate team: What are you passionate about other than dancing? Do you see yourself including it into your artistic journey ?
H.N: “I started writing poetry in 2013 then now it turned to rap/RnB songs so I’m focusing on Music specially that I’m in LA, I already have an ‘almost’ Finished album. I also write concepts and direct . I’m a man with a vision, I have ‘ the eye’ so I’m trying to put all my artistic skills out to the univers. I believe it’s needed.”
This is everything about Hsan Naat’s projects, journey & mindset!