Lady C Holds It Down for Women in Hip Hop

In honour of International Women’s History Month, we are starting our PULSE MVP features with Okotok’s very own, Caroline “Lady C” Fraser. As one of PULSE’s first instructors, Lady C has now blossomed into an established global figure, holding titles at Red Bull’s Dance Your Style, Juste Debout, and the recipient of 2 Dora Mavor Moore Awards as well as Canadian Dancer of the Year. 

Now based in Toronto, Lady C is repping street dance culture in a real way through dance, music, and apparel. We sat down to talk about her dance origins, her ascension in the international battle scene as a woman, and the state of women in Hip Hop in the future. 

Lady C. First off, thank you for your time and presence as we dive into who you are as a person and dancer.

I’m honoured to share my story, so the feeling is mutual.

Awesome. Let’s start from the top. How did you get into dance?

I come from a lineage of dancers. My mom, grandmother, great-grandmother, aunts and uncles, and even my grandmother on my father's side were all dancers. 

Growing up, my older sister, Saxon, was fully immersed in dance, so naturally, my mom put me in dance lessons at a young age. I took ballet, jazz, and tap early on, but it wasn’t until Saxon came home from a dance program taught by Tara that I was introduced to Hip Hop. 

She introduced her to Popping, Locking, and choreographed a Hip Hop routine. Saxon came home excited and told me all the cool things she learned, which led us to Tara’s summer dance camp called “The Get Down”. 

Tara brought the Electric Boogaloos to Calgary, who we learned taught Michael Jackson. YouTube and Google weren’t a thing back then, so I discovered Popping, Locking, House, real Hip Hop, and Breaking for the first time at that camp. 

Lady C at the 2007 Get Down Dance Camp with Ken Swift and the 7 Gems Rock Division (Nako, Burn 1, and Mr. Loose)

It was sensory overloaded, but Hip Hop intrigued me into this other side of dance that I didn’t know existed. Tara introduced me to the Hip Hop community in Calgary and the community embraced me back because I had a bit of an old soul. 

By the time PULSE came around, Tara and I had a kindred bond and she invited me to be one of the first teachers at the studio. 

“I carry myself [with] this juxtaposition of raw and masculine and the essence that goes with it. When a lady enters the room, you take notice. Hence, Lady C.”

It’s amazing how many dancers Tara introduced to Hip Hop in Calgary, including Lady C herself. By the way, how did that nickname come about?

People just started calling me ‘C’ for short. I specifically remember Tony “Bboy Rein” Rebel calling me ‘C’ a lot. When I entered one of my first battles, I had to come up with a name. Because I did a variety of styles, I didn’t want my name to be specific, like ‘Popping C’ or ‘B-Girl C.’ And then I remembered artists that had ‘Lady’ in front of their names. I thought it represented me in how I carry myself and this juxtaposition of raw and masculine and the essence that goes with it. When a lady enters the room, you take notice. Hence, Lady C. 

The nickname suits you well. So coming up in the Calgary Hip Hop scene, winning local battles and making a name for yourself as Lady C, when was your breakout year to start battling internationally and how did that come about? 

My first international battle was in 2010 at the U.S. preliminaries for an international b-boy tournament called R-16. I had no intention of going, but a San Francisco B-boy by the name of Lucid was living in Calgary at the time and was championing me to enter. He kept on me, inviting me to get down with his crew, messaging me daily, bugging me if I bought my ticket, and even when I told him I wasn’t sure if I was going, he was like, “No, you’re coming.”

I ended up going to the preliminaries in San Francisco, only signing up for the Popping battle. Little did I know, Lucid signed me up for Locking behind my back. I was shocked at first, but never backing down from a challenge, I locked in (no pun intended). 

I ended up making it all the way to the finals against one of my favourite Lockers to this day, Dennis Infante. I got smoked in the end but it was really good for my confidence because that’s when I knew I could hang with the greats. But I also learned the value of preparation and themes because Dennis came in with this whole Fred Astaire vibe and I was kind of winging it. That battle opened my eyes to coming in with a game plan.

Wait, time out. So, in your first ever international battle, you were in the finals?! 

In Locking, yes. And top 8 in Popping. 

That’s amazing. What a memorable experience.

That battle was a really pivotal moment for me. When Lucid introduced me to his crew, SoulShifters, the person who he had me stay with was a guy by the name of Coflo, who is now a brother to me going on 15 years and produced my whole music album. 

Is that the “SLP” album?

Yeah, but I go by “CEE.” for my music, “Lady C” when I dance. Coflo produced the whole album and we've been making a lot of different types of music ever since. 

We’ll be sure to look for it on Spotify and Apple Music. 

Much appreciated.

“It’s less about being more girly and moreso finding the masculine and feminine textures in these dances.”

Let’s shift gears for a second. In honour of International Women’s History Month, we would love for you to share some of your experiences as a woman establishing yourself in a male-dominated culture.

Sounds good.

How do you balance embracing your femininity while maintaining your authenticity in your dancing? 

I feel like in the last 5-8 years I've started to feel more comfortable with who I am and feeling good with how I'm blending femininity and authenticity. As a woman, it's a tricky balance because the styles I’m focusing on were created by men in male spaces. For the most part, it’s still a male-dominant culture. 

Finding my femininity in these dances is walking a fine line because there’s a breaking point before you start to compromise the integrity and foundation of these styles. 

With time, confidence, and growth, I can toe the line between being myself and being true to the form. It’s less about being more girly and moreso finding the masculine and feminine textures in these dances. 

So yeah, although I think it's tricky for women to adapt to these male dance forms, it's definitely possible and we're seeing more of it today and it's beautiful. 

What is the biggest challenge that women face in the Hip Hop dance scene? 

One of the biggest challenges is the time it takes for women to reach the same skill level as the men. I think has a lot to do with just male spaces and how these dances are passed down and exchanged in these spaces. 

It’s not uncommon for mentors to host their mentees for months, sleeping on their couch, and practicing with them all day and night. 

I think about what that would be like as 16, 17, or even early 20-something-year-old girl or young woman. You can’t be staying at a 40-50-something-year-old man’s house and expect the same treatment. It’s hard (and a bit awkward) for a man to teach me how to pop my chest with the right technique.

Part of that challenge is re-creating the same space for female mentors and mentees. Admittedly, we are not at the skill level to pass down the same quality of knowledge to other females. 

I feel like we need to learn from some of these guys and share space without having to worry about safety or getting hit on. It’s going to take time, but there are good men out there who genuinely want to pass on their wisdom, whether you’re a guy or a girl. 

“Be who you are and be unapologetic about it.”

What poignant insight. So what direction are women taking with Hip Hop in 2024? 

I think we are definitely in the right direction. I went to an all-female battle in Paris and I didn't even make the top eight, which is dope. Women out here are not to be taken lightly. I went to another battle in LA recently and probably half the top 32 were women. This is a far departure from when I used to be the only girl in these Popping battles. 

I’ve noticed a difference in the last 5-10 years. Women are lasting longer in these battles and their skill level and technique are more solid than ever. Again, I think a contributing factor is the top male Poppers, Lockers, and B-Boys mentoring younger girls and really taking them seriously. 

This inspires other women and younger girls who are coming up to realize it is possible to be just as good, and sometimes better than men. 

Speaking of young women on the come up, what advice can you give to these aspiring female dancers? 

Work hard. Take yourself seriously, then other people will too. Be careful and aware of your surroundings. Most importantly, be who you are and be unapologetic about it. 

Great advice, Lady C. Final Question. What are you currently working on and what can we expect from you in the future?

Dance-wise, I'm currently working on a one-woman show that will be performed at a festival in Toronto. I’m still continuing to do what I do, travelling, judging, and battling when and where I can. 

Music-wise, I just finished a live performance of my album, SLP, and a few performances in and around the Toronto area. I’m also gearing up to work on my next album – which I’m super excited about. 

And lastly, I have the first run of my new clothing line, INSIDEOUT, which is called “Free Your Style.” These shirts and mock necks are sold at PULSE Studios so get yours while you still can. The next design will be released in the summer so look out for that.

Thank you so much for your time, Lady C, and best of luck in your future endeavours. Keep repping PULSE and Calgary for the rest of the world to see!

You can visit https://www.ladyc.ca/ to learn more about her journey and check out her album, “SLP” (as CEE.), available on Spotify and Apple Music.