Dance Mogul Magazine · Exclusive Interview · Breaking
Bgirl Bonita: “My Heart Is So Strong in Education”
A classically trained Phoenix dancer who became a Rock Steady Crew b-girl told DMM in 2013 that teaching was her heart. A decade later, she coached the U.S. breaking team in its first Olympic era.
Originally published July 23, 2013 · Updated November 12, 2026 · Dance Mogul Magazine
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File // At a Glance
Name — Bonita Lovett, known as “Bgirl Bonita” (now Bonita Saldaña)
Home base — Phoenix, Arizona
Crews — Rock Steady Crew (from 2006), The Groovaloos, The Beat Freaks
Mentors — Crazy Legs, Mr. Wiggles, Popmaster Fabel; House & Furious Styles Crew
Built — Automatic Response dance company (2005) and the All the Right Moves hip-hop after-school program
Today — Studio owner, judge and coach with Breaking for Gold USA, the breaking division of USA Dance
3
Age she started dance class
2006
Joined Rock Steady Crew
100+
Dancers at the first Automatic Response audition
2024
Paris, breaking’s Olympic debut
Who Is Bgirl Bonita?
From the DMM Archive · July 23, 2013
Coming from a classically trained dance background in Phoenix, Arizona, Bonita began her professional career performing with and choreographing for the Phoenix Mercury Hip-Hop Squad and the Phoenix Suns Dance Team. Since then she has performed with artists such as Jason Derulo, P. Diddy, Black Eyed Peas, Sean Kingston, Fergie, Jamiroquai, Wyclef Jean, Midnight Red, Stooshe, Bon Qui Qui, Redman, Q-Tip, Erick Sermon, Biz Markie, KRS-One and Doug E. Fresh. Not only has she had the opportunity to perform with such artists, but she has also been featured on Disney’s Shake It Up, Nickelodeon’s The Fresh Beat Band and American Idol, and has worked as an animation dancer on the movie Rio. Additionally, she has performed in corporate events for Nike, Adidas, Skechers, Dillard’s, Toshiba, Red Bull and many more.
Before moving to Los Angeles to pursue her dance career further, Bonita co-founded and directed Automatic Response, a nonprofit dance company that was featured on the first season of America’s Best Dance Crew. During her involvement with Automatic Response, she wrote, directed, produced and performed in several theater productions featuring AR as well as other top names in dance. Through her creativity, drive and positive influence, she helped establish a united dance scene in Phoenix. Bonita was highly instrumental in forming Phoenix’s first hip-hop after-school program, All the Right Moves, which designed a curriculum to teach students the four elements of hip-hop.
She has been a member of the legendary Rock Steady Crew since 2006, whom she credits for her hip-hop knowledge and education. She has trained closely under many pioneers such as Crazy Legs, Mr. Wiggles and Popmaster Fabel. She has won a number of national battles, both individually and with her crew, RSC, and can be seen battling all over the world among the top b-boys and b-girls of this generation. Bonita has traveled to Mexico and South America as a member of humanitarian teams, volunteering her time to teach, perform and judge. Her belief and commitment to the community and volunteer programs will continue to be a high priority throughout her career.
After moving to LA, she became a member of the Groovaloos, an LA-based hip-hop company recently featured on Dancing with the Stars. She completed a U.S. tour as well as an Off-Broadway run performing in their theater production of Groovaloo. Bonita has been teaching professionally for 12 years, nationally and internationally. She has traveled to spread her knowledge of hip-hop and dance to countries such as Indonesia, Taiwan, Australia, Singapore, England, Japan, Nicaragua, El Salvador and Mexico. She was recently featured on MTV’s MADE, where she mentored a young girl in her dream of becoming a hip-hop dancer. Bonita teaches, choreographs and judges for both the Universal Dance Association and USASF.
She is a faculty member for The Groove Expo and Word in Motion, both well-known national dance conventions. She currently teaches and lectures at colleges, universities, community centers, schools and studios all over the world. She is recognized by her fellow dancers for being extremely diverse as a performer and choreographer. She has bridged her classic studio training with the culture of hip-hop to produce her unique and dynamic style. Bonita recently became the newest member of the world-famous female dance group The Beat Freaks, and can also be seen performing with them on a number of upcoming projects. She is very thankful for the opportunities she has been blessed with and will continue to share her philosophy and insight into dance everywhere she goes. Dance Mogul Magazine is honored to uplift another woman in our culture leading the way for the next generation.
DMM’s original 2013 bio, reproduced in full with spelling and punctuation corrected.
The 2013 Interview
Dance Mogul: At what age did you develop a passion for dance?
Bonita Lovett: I was definitely forced into class in the very beginning, being taken to ballet classes as every young girl is. The more I was exposed to it, the more I learned and the better I got, my passion began to grow. I would say my sophomore year in high school is when I knew that I wanted to be a dancer. I couldn’t see myself spending my time doing anything else, even though I had no idea exactly what it meant to be a professional dancer.
Dance Mogul: Who were some of your early inspirations?
Bonita Lovett: I started dancing at the very young age of 3, taking dance classes at a dance studio in my neighborhood. At that time, my inspirations became the older dancers I saw at the studio as well as my family, who were always dancing at our house parties, gatherings and celebrations. I do remember watching dancers like Gregory Hines, Janet Jackson, Michael Jackson and, of course, the dancers on Soul Train every Saturday morning!
Dance Mogul: Were your parents supportive of your dancing?
Bonita Lovett: My parents have always been extremely supportive of my dancing, which has been an incredible blessing. My parents, as well as my Nana, sacrificed financially to keep me in dance school, allowing me to travel, to compete, to perform and to excel in my art. They have always been my biggest fans, and they remain that until this day!
Dance Mogul: How did you develop the discipline to train?
Bonita Lovett: I developed the discipline to train in the dance studio, definitely. I spent hours there every day after school, doing homework, in classes until late hours and waking up to do it all over again. I absolutely loved every minute of it and I didn’t want to be anywhere else. When I began training and really coming into my own as a b-girl, I approached it the same way, because I was determined to get better. We all gotta start somewhere, but the worst feeling is being wack! Haha. So I had to put in that work, and I still do every day. 🙂
Dance Mogul: Did you go through any hardship wanting to be a female dancer?
Bonita Lovett: I think before I really dove into the hip-hop scene, I had never really faced any hardship being a female dancer, because the majority of the dancers in the studio world are female. In the b-boy/b-girl scene, the ratio of b-boys to b-girls is significantly higher, so we’re definitely a minority. I would say the hardship is really just that there are not as many girls to connect with, but there is also a big advantage with training alongside the b-boys and being pushed to unimaginable levels. When crossing over to the mainstream/commercial scene, I would say the biggest hardship is the stigma that females have to be half-naked and use their sexiness to sell anything. This is also challenging, but you have a choice to feed in and compromise or not. 🙂
You have a choice to feed in and compromise or not.
— Bgirl Bonita to Dance Mogul Magazine, 2013
Dance Mogul: What was the Phoenix Suns experience like?
Bonita Lovett: My first professional dance job in AZ was actually dancing for the Phoenix Mercury Hip-Hop Squad, which was very instrumental because I met a lot of freestyle dancers in the scene. I saw dancers locking, popping, breaking and just bugging out! My coach knew that I had an extensive background in jazz and ballet and asked me to audition for the Phoenix Suns. I decided to audition and made the team, coming in as the youngest member that year, performing and also choreographing for them. I remember thinking that all the “perks” like nail care, tanning, dental work, hair styling, etc. were so over the top and had nothing to do with the dancing. It really discouraged me and I almost quit. I ended up sticking it out, had a great season, learned a lot and built some great friendships. Funny thing is, my dad sees me dancing for the Phoenix Suns as my biggest dance accomplishment to date! Lol.
Dance Mogul: How were you able to mobilize the dance scene in AZ?
Bonita Lovett: Automatic Response, originally AZ’s Finest, was created in 2005 out of a mission to bring together dancers to rock shows and to just have an outlet to perform. In Arizona, so many talented dancers are bred, but you have to either move to LA to pursue dance or you become a teacher at a younger age to start making money. The need was so great that we (Ryan Ingram and me) ended up holding an audition, and over 100 dancers came out! Since I had come from the studio scene years before (but was now heavily involved in the underground battle scene), I was able to connect with both scenes, and I saw the potential to bridge these two worlds together. It was the beginning of merging scenes in AZ, from studio dancers to freestyle dancers, from battlers to performers, and putting them all on one stage together. The company ended up doing the first season of MTV’s America’s Best Dance Crew and became a well-known name in the AZ dance community. 🙂
Dance Mogul: Tell us about the after-school hip-hop program.
Bonita Lovett: All the Right Moves is a hip-hop after-school program birthed out of the need to have the culture exposed to kids throughout the Valley. I worked closely with Ryan Ingram in creating a curriculum that teaches the four elements of hip-hop. There was a big need, and schools from Gilbert to the West Valley adopted it and brought it into their districts. It was incredible to be a part of launching such an instrumental program that is still alive and continues to teach kids about hip-hop throughout the Phoenix area.
Dance Mogul: Why are you so committed to volunteering in communities?
Bonita Lovett: Well, hip-hop is a community movement, and I wouldn’t be where I’m at without the love and support of my own community, so I feel in my heart that it will always be important to me. I recently taught at an arts festival in Surprise, Arizona, called WHAM, that was exposing kids to the arts. It was fun to be a part of and to help ignite that love in kids that don’t even know it’s inside them yet. I teach all over the world, and I can tell when kids really latch on to it and when they don’t or they can’t relate. Like I’ve always said, I would rather there be 10 people in my class that have a true desire to learn instead of 300 students that couldn’t care less! My heart is so strong in education and really giving the students something to walk away with, not only in dancing but in life in general.
My heart is so strong in education.
— Bgirl Bonita to Dance Mogul Magazine, 2013
Dance Mogul: You have had numerous experiences, like with the Groovaloos and even on MTV. What have been some of your favorites?
Bonita Lovett: Well, the one that stands out by far is when the Groovaloos performed on Dancing with the Stars shortly after Steelo’s recovery from being in the hospital for six months. That was such a powerful performance, full of emotion. It was incredible for the world to hear his story and to be able to share the stage with him again. I did enjoy being a coach on MTV’s MADE and schooling a young girl into becoming a b-girl. That was cool for me because I didn’t have to fit a character or be something I’m not. I could be myself, and I’m glad that came across successfully on the show. 🙂
Dance Mogul: Do you feel Dance Mogul Magazine is needed to help shine the light more on the culture and showcase the positive side of it with a unified voice to present to the masses?
Bonita Lovett: Yes, I think what Dance Mogul Magazine is doing is incredible and is so necessary to shine a light on a side that many people don’t really know. Thank you for giving us the opportunity to share our voice!
Dance Mogul: In 2006 you became a member of the legendary Rock Steady Crew. How did that happen, and how has RSC helped you grow?
Bonita Lovett: My first memories of RSC live (not on Beat Street) were watching Ervin and T-Rock catching wreck at the Furious Styles anniversary. I think it was ’02 or ’03. I met Koolski that year too. Being taught under House and FSC in the beginning, Rock Steady was talked about on a regular basis, and understanding how this legendary crew did things. I never thought that was a reality for me, just a distant dream. I met Crazy Legs in 2004 and would cross paths with RSC members over the years at jams. In 2005 I was at Mighty 4 in San Francisco, and Rock Steady Crew had a tremendous presence. I remember cyphering with them and at that point realizing I wanted to be down. In 2006, Legs put me down in the crew, and the journey had just begun. Legs saw my potential and I got schooled left and right. I remember saying to myself, I feel like I just started breaking all over again because there was so much I had to relearn! Haha. RSC definitely shaped me into the b-girl everyone sees today.
Dance Mogul: Is there anyone you would like to thank for helping you on your journey?
Bonita Lovett: Oh man… hahaha, I’m just gonna list it: Jesus Christ; my mom, Gloria; my dad, Tony; my brother, Anthony; my Nana Belen; my sister, Mindy; my whole family for being my biggest support since I was a girl; Christine Gonzales, my first dance teacher to have a big impact on my life; Chris Wakimoto; House & Furious Styles Crew; Rock Steady Crew past, present and future; Crazy Legs for believing in me; Mr. Wiggles; YNOT; Feenx; Bradley; The Groovaloos; Teresa Espinosa, for being an inspiration before she knew it; The Beat Freaks; Steelo & Penni; and everyone who has ever taught me something or guided me at some point in my life. That list would really be everyone I’ve had an encounter with, but these people stick out in my mind greatly. Thank you all again. I can never repay you, but I want you to know how grateful I am for your love!
Interview reproduced in full from DMM’s July 23, 2013 feature, with spelling and punctuation corrected.
Watch: The Videos From the Original Feature
DMM’s 2013 feature listed these videos as links. They are embedded here so they can be watched in place.
Bgirl Bonita Throw Downs. Listed in DMM’s original 2013 feature. Video: YouTube.
Funk’d Up TV Interview. Listed in DMM’s original 2013 feature. Video: YouTube.
Dance Reel. Listed in DMM’s original 2013 feature. Video: YouTube.
Fan Tribute. Listed in DMM’s original 2013 feature. Video: YouTube.
Her MTV MADE episode was linked in the original feature as MTV’s MADE (MTV link; it may no longer play).
Career Timeline
CULTURE = the scene · CAREER = the work · TEACHING = passing it on · DMM = our coverage
Age 3 · CULTURE
Starts dance classes at a neighborhood studio in Phoenix; watches Gregory Hines, Janet and Michael Jackson and Soul Train.
High school · CAREER
Knows by her sophomore year that she wants to be a dancer.
Early 2000s · CAREER
Dances for the Phoenix Mercury Hip-Hop Squad, then the Phoenix Suns Dance Team as its youngest member; trains in breaking under House & Furious Styles Crew.
2004 · CULTURE
Meets Rock Steady Crew president Crazy Legs.
2005 · TEACHING
Co-founds Automatic Response (originally AZ’s Finest) with Ryan Ingram; more than 100 dancers attend the first audition. They also create the All the Right Moves after-school curriculum on the four elements of hip-hop.
2006 · CULTURE
Crazy Legs brings her into the Rock Steady Crew.
2008 · CAREER
Automatic Response appears on the first season of MTV’s America’s Best Dance Crew.
LA years · CAREER
Joins the Groovaloos, tours and plays Off-Broadway in Groovaloo; coaches on MTV’s MADE.
2010s · CAREER
Joins The Beat Freaks, the all-female crew that finished runner-up on America’s Best Dance Crew Season 3.
July 2013 · DMM
Dance Mogul Magazine publishes this exclusive interview.
Later · TEACHING
Opens The Studance Lab in Phoenix and judges national events for the Universal Dance Association.
2024 · TEACHING
Coaches with Breaking for Gold USA, the official breaking division of USA Dance, as breaking makes its Olympic debut in Paris.
Where Is Bgirl Bonita Now?
In 2013, Bonita told DMM that her heart was in education. Everything she has done since proves it.
Coaching on the national stage. Now known as Bonita Saldaña, she is described in Varsity’s 2024 judges’ biographies as a judge, mentor, studio owner and hip-hop ambassador, notably coaching with Breaking for Gold USA, the official breaking division of USA Dance. USA Dance is the national governing member for DanceSport and the path U.S. breakers took toward the Olympic Games. In 2024, a podcast for dance-studio owners introduced her as the coach of the first U.S. Olympic breaking team. Breaking debuted at the Paris Olympics in August 2024, where B-Boy Victor Montalvo won bronze for Team USA.
Back home in Phoenix. She runs her own studio, The Studance Lab, in Phoenix. It brings her career full circle: the studio kid who later built Arizona’s first hip-hop after-school curriculum now runs a studio of her own.
Still judging. Varsity lists her among the judges for its national dance team championships, connecting the studio world she grew up in with the breaking culture she helped bring to Arizona.
A note on her name: DMM’s 2013 feature used Bonita Lovett. Event and coaching bios today use Bonita Saldaña, with the same Phoenix Suns, Rock Steady Crew and “Bgirl Bonita” history. To add to this story, reach us through our contact page.
What the Next Generation Should Learn
1. Bridge your worlds. She came from the studio and the battle scene and used both to unite Phoenix dancers on one stage.
2. Ten hungry students beat 300 bored ones. Teach the ones who want it, and give them something for life, not only for dance.
3. You choose what you sell. She faced pressure to sell sexiness in commercial work, and she named the choice plainly: compromise or not.
4. Being humbled is part of growing. Joining Rock Steady Crew felt like starting over. She relearned, and it made her the b-girl people know.
Why It Matters to DMM
In 2013, DMM said it was honored to uplift a woman in the culture leading the way for the next generation. Bonita’s story is a model of what DMM believes: a dancer who built community, created programs for kids, honored her teachers, and then carried hip-hop culture onto the Olympic stage as a coach.
Her lineage runs through the pioneers she trained under, including Mr. Wiggles, whose legacy feature is in our collection. Explore more in The Legacy, our Dance Styles Hub and Exclusive Interviews.
Continue Your Journey
See how street dance became a global competition circuit in Hip Hop International: The Olympics of Street Dance, and find more updated stories in The DMM Archive.
Bgirl Bonita: Frequently Asked Questions
Who is Bgirl Bonita?
Bgirl Bonita (Bonita Lovett, now Bonita Saldaña) is a Phoenix-based b-girl, teacher and coach. She joined Rock Steady Crew in 2006 and has been a member of the Groovaloos and The Beat Freaks.
Did Bgirl Bonita coach Team USA breaking?
Varsity’s 2024 judges’ bios describe her coaching with Breaking for Gold USA, the official breaking division of USA Dance, and a 2024 podcast introduced her as coach of the first U.S. Olympic breaking team.
What is Automatic Response?
Automatic Response, originally AZ’s Finest, is a Phoenix dance company Bonita co-founded with Ryan Ingram in 2005. It appeared on the first season of MTV’s America’s Best Dance Crew.
When did Bonita join Rock Steady Crew?
She told DMM that Crazy Legs brought her into Rock Steady Crew in 2006, after she met him in 2004 and cyphered with the crew at Mighty 4 in San Francisco in 2005.
Where does Bgirl Bonita teach?
She runs The Studance Lab in Phoenix, and judges and teaches at national events.
The Story Continues
In 2013, Bonita said she would rather teach ten students who truly want to learn than 300 who don’t care. A decade later, she was coaching some of the most driven breakers in the country.
The girl who was “forced into ballet class” became a Rock Steady Crew b-girl, a builder of Arizona’s dance community and a coach in breaking’s first Olympic era. Her heart is still in education.
Sources & Further Viewing
Varsity / UDA: 2024 National Dance Team Championship judges’ bios (PDF)
Varsity / UDA: 2020 NDTC judges’ bios (PDF)
Transform My Dance Studio podcast: Coaching the first-ever USA Olympic breaking team
© 2026 Dance Mogul Magazine LLC · From the Archive, Updated · A Black-owned dance and empowerment publication since 2010
