MANILA, Philippines — Dhztine Bernardino was crowned the second-ever winner of the Red Bull Dance Your Style Philippine Finals and will represent the country at the World Finals in Frankfurt, Germany this November.
Bernardino, who goes by JXYB onstage, was the crowd favorite of 16 competitors — eight from qualifiers, eight wild card selections — hailing from different parts of the Philippines, each with their own unique dance style.
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Unlike most dance competitions where winners are selected by a panel of judges, each dance battle winner are chosen by popular vote meaning contestants must not just dance well but win the crowd's favor.
JXYB went up against wild card entries Heidra and O-shady enroute to the semifinal where he faced last year's winner Mickey Yatar from Baguio, himself a wild card entry and was heavily favored by the audience.
However JXYB managed to dethrone Mickey in a tight battle to set up a finale with fellow krumper Juan "BLVCKZIK" Carlo De Leon, where both men literally took off their shirts and energetically engaged with the crowd — almost a repeat of last year's final — which ultimately chose JXYB as the winner.
The newly crowd Red Bull Dance Your Style Philippines winner spoke to several media outlets, including Philstar.com, after his coronation, noting that he'd been waiting a year for this "surreal" moment as all the contestants last year like were pre-selected.
JXYB's preparation was not easy as he had other personal commitments, "In and out of training ako, may mga off-season because I'm a father of two kids already and at the same time primary job is coaching. So even if nagsasayaw ako almost everyday, hindi siya freestyle training. Kapag may time akong mag-training, pinapatay ko sarili ko."
WATCH: The winning battles & crowning moment of this year’s Red Bull Dance Your Style Philippines champion Dhztine Bernardino (JXYB)
— PhilstarShowbiz (@PhilstarShowbiz) September 3, 2023
He will represent the country at the World Finals this November in Frankfurt, Germany | via @kjpurneII pic.twitter.com/VwGCrhPVV6
The dancer shared that krumping has been his primary style since 2010 which he has developed and honed through the years, though admits he needs to improve on the other aspects required for Red Bull Dance Your Style.
"Everyday kong papatayin ang sarili ko para manalo sa Germany, 'yan ang plan. I think I will maintain my style, but marami pa akong kailangan i-enhance when it comes to crowd-pleasing and crowd interactions. Gusto ko pa sana ma-enjoy pa ang dance ko para tuloy-tuloy," said JXYB.
His plan at the month is push himself in daily trainings for a month, insert other skills or techniques he could use in October, and enhance everything he's learned come November before flying out.
JXYB dedicated his win to the Philippine dance community which has been heavily supportive of its members ever since the Philippine All-Stars put the country on the global hip-hop stage as World Hip Hop Dance Champions (HHI Worlds) in 2006 and 2008, with a bronze finish in between.
"Sobrang advanced natin, every competition na sasalihin dito marami kang matututunan. 'Yung panalo ko rito it doesn't mean mananalo o matatalo ako sa ibang competition," JXYB said praising the Filipino dance community.
The Philippines recently found success once more at HHI Worlds as HQ won in the adult divison — the country's first gold in the category in over a decade — Legit Status finally winning gold in the megacrew divison after two bronzes (and silver in the varsity division), and the UP Streetdance Club getting a third bronze megacrew finish.
JXYB admits there is pressure to follow up the Philippines' 2023 success at HHI Worlds, especially as he has little international experience in solo battles; he was, however, a member of the A-Team that won HHI Worlds gold and bronze in back-to-back years.
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"Sa freestyle and one-on-one, kaunti pa experience ko outside the country. Pressured ako pero sasamahan ko ng maraming dasal. I know na kahit anong mangyari, I will be true to myself," JXYB told Philstar.com.
Philstar.com also asked JXYB about his semi-final battle with Mickey, for whom he had nothing but praise even if he initially did not know how to face him especially with Mickey's background in waacking.
"Grabe mag-please ng crowd at pagiging entertainer ni Kuya Mickey. Sobrang, sobrang idol ko siya when it comes that field," he told Philstar.com. "I just did my part, in-enjoy ang sayaw, at nag-try maglabas ng baon kong sets para matapatan yung pagiging entertainer niya because mahirap sa krump mag-entertain ng crowd. With that I think nalabas ko 'yung soul na gusto kong ilabas, at nakuha natin ang panalo."
JXYB will hope to improve on Mickey's finish last year in South Africa where the first Philippine representative went out at the Round of 16 (Pre-Finals 1) in just his second battle.
A member of Philippine All-Stars and Red Bull dance consultant Lema Diaz said that Red Bull will cover all of JXYB's expenses for his training and preparations for the World Finals, on top of other giveaways and support from incoming partners.
Lema defended the inclusion of Mickey as a wild card not just to defend his title but because of his immense skills, "If you put back Mickey you know he's gonna be a great contender. It's not just about who is coming from where or what team, it's someone who is embodying our lifestyle, the person who is one of us who knows our pain."
Asked by Philstar.com if the Philippine All-Stars would return to the HHI stage, Lema simply said, "I don't know, maybe if we feel it. We're always open for competition, but definitely you're gonna see All-Stars on the world stage very soon."
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