Lil’ Cesar is a giant in the world of Hip Hop. Born Julio Cesar Rivas into war and poverty in his native El Salvador, Lil’ Cesar escaped his country as a young boy only to land in the gang turf wars of the mean streets of Los Angeles. Guns, drugs, violence and crime were his way of life and a one-way ticket to jail or the city morgue. Salvation came to him in the form of dance.
One evening Lil’ Cesar encountered an older group of youngsters gathered at a neighborhood auto body shop. They were practicing a new form of dance called breakdancing. This was the first time Lil’ Cesar had laid his eyes upon the dance form, and as he watched the practice session, he envisioned himself performing the moves. “I wanted to learn it,” he recalls. “I imagined that was me spinning. I wanted to learn it so bad.” Joining the local youth center, Lil’ Cesar improved his skills and moves, becoming one of the pioneers of the Hip Hop movement. The center, later to become known as Radiotron, provided a safe haven for Lil’ Cesar and his peers, who called themselves Air Force Crew. The center allowed them to practice their craft and channel their energies into a positive and creative outlet to display their burgeoning dance skills. Sadly, the local city budget cuts of the late 1980’s put an end to the youth center. Without the stability of a safe and organized facility to gather and inspire them, the local youth, including Lil’ Cesar, fell back into the street with no where to practice his dance. Many ended up dead or incarcerated. Others were maimed for life by guns and drugs.
After yet another stint in jail, Lil’ Cesar was set back to his rough neighborhood where he was surrounded by gangs, prostitution, violence and drugs, but upon his release, he learned that tapes of his dancing at Radiotron had been released in Europe and other places abroad and his beloved dance movement was winning over a whole new generation of fans and participants. Lil’ Cesar and Air Force Crew were invited by Clear Channel to travel the world and dance before an audience of millions. They jumped at it.
That fortuitous opportunity opened up the world to Lil’ Cesar. Over the years, he has traveled to 37 countries, leading children and teens from areas of blight and misery into a world of hope and opportunity through dance. Using his life experience as a guide, Lil’ Cesar provides the road map for today’s youth to empower themselves through self-expression in art, music, dance and education.
Lil’ Cesar has dedicated himself to re-creating the safe haven of his youth that allowed him to develop the tools that lifted him from poverty to international dance phenomenon. The Hip Hop School of the Arts is his vision come to life. HHSA will once again provide at-risk youth with a safe venue to shine and hone their individual talents and skills. Through the opportunities afforded them at HHSA, Lil’ Cesar will help today’s challenged youth out of a world of despair and into the spotlight of hope by showing them that their destinies and magnificence lie within themselves.
