Krump is carving out space in Pennsylvania. What started in South Central Los Angeles—an explosive street dance built on chest pops, jabs, arm swings, stomps, and raw emotional release—has found new footholds in cities hundreds of miles from its birthplace. Across the Keystone State, independent studios and community spaces are introducing Krump to new generations of dancers, many of whom are discovering the style for the first time.
This article highlights three Pennsylvania-based dance organizations actively teaching Krump, fostering local sessions, and connecting their students to the wider street-dance community. Each operates in a distinct city and context; together, they illustrate how Krump is spreading not as a monoculture, but through dispersed, grassroots effort.
1. RIZE Movement Philadelphia
Location: Philadelphia, PA
Focus: Krump fundamentals, youth mentorship, community sessions
In North Philadelphia, RIZE Movement Philadelphia runs weekly Krump classes for ages 12 to 24, with sliding-scale tuition starting at $15 per session. Founder and director Darnell Bishop, known in session circles as "Bishop the Rize," began teaching informally in 2016 before renting studio space through a partnership with a local recreation center in 2019.
The curriculum centers on Krump's core mechanics—chest pops, jabs, arm swings, and stomps—while emphasizing freestyle development and battle etiquette. Bishop also hosts monthly "lab sessions," informal gatherings where students practice cyphers and receive feedback from more experienced dancers.
"Most of the kids who walk in have never seen Krump live," Bishop said in a 2023 interview with Philadelphia Dance Journal. "They know it from TikTok or Step Up movies. Our job is to show them it's not just aggression—it's storytelling, it's release, it's church for some of us."
RIZE has sent several students to East Coast street-dance competitions, including Break Ya Neck in Baltimore and The Beast in New York City. In 2022, the organization received a small project grant from the Philadelphia Cultural Fund to expand its summer intensive program.
2. Steel City Street Dance
Location: Pittsburgh, PA
Focus: Krump and contemporary fusion, cross-training, adult beginners
Pittsburgh's dance ecosystem has long been dominated by ballet and modern companies. Steel City Street Dance, launched in 2021, is part of a newer wave of studios making room for hip-hop and its offshoots. Co-founder Marina Okonkwo, who operates under the name "Titan," teaches two Krump-specific classes per week: one for teens and one for adults with no prior street-dance experience.
Okonkwo's background is unusual in the Krump world—she trained in Graham-based modern dance before discovering street styles in her mid-twenties. That hybrid influence shows up in her teaching. Steel City's Krump classes incorporate conditioning drills drawn from contemporary floorwork, which Okonkwo uses to build the core strength and joint stability that Krump demands.
"We're not trying to water Krump down," Okonkwo said in a 2024 podcast interview with Pittsburgh Arts & Lectures. "But we also recognize that a 35-year-old accountant with a desk job needs a different entry point than a teenager who's been battling since middle school."
The studio operates out of a converted warehouse in Lawrenceville. Monthly memberships run $110 for unlimited classes; drop-in rates are $20. Steel City has begun collaborating with the Kelly Strayhorn Theater on informal showcases that mix Krump with other street and concert dance forms.
3. Lehigh Valley Dance Collective
Location: Allentown, PA
Focus: Intensive workshops, guest instruction, regional community-building
The Lehigh Valley Dance Collective (LVDC) is not exclusively a Krump organization. Founded in 2015 as a multi-genre hub, it began regularly programming Krump workshops in 2019 after several local dancers expressed interest in deepening their practice beyond what general hip-hop classes offered.
Director Carlos Mendez, called "Katalyst" in the dance community, coordinates two to three Krump intensives per year. These typically run six to eight hours over a single weekend and feature guest instructors from cities including Baltimore, Newark, and New York. Past guests have included members of Street Kingdom and Fam Bam, two established Krump crews with national recognition.
LVDC rents space from the Baum School of Art in downtown Allentown. Workshop fees range from $75 to $120 depending on length and instructor travel costs. The organization maintains an active Instagram presence where it documents sessions and announces upcoming labs.
Because Allentown sits roughly 90 minutes from both Philadelphia and New York City, Mendez sees LVDC's role as bridging gaps between scenes. "We're not big enough to have a session every week," he noted in a recent social media post. "But we can
