We recently brought Marquese Scott a.k.a. Nonstop into the Fullscreen family and our World of Dance network. You may have seen him with his dance crew RemoteKontrol on “So You Think You Can Dance,” “America’s Got Talent,” “The Ellen Degeneres Show,” NBA commercials and halftime shows, or on his YouTube channel WHZGUD2. Hit him up on his twitter @officialwhzgud and please give him a warm Fullscreen welcome!
Fullscreen: Your Pumped Up Kicks video is at over 76 million views now. Do you still remember the first week the video went viral? What was that like?
Marquese: It was really unbelievable. I knew about viral videos on YouTube but I didn’t know how it would actually happen. That video went more viral than any other dance video. It was really unbelievable. The amount of views we got in that given time…we got like 5 million in a week. It was crazy.
Why did you start putting videos on YouTube?
It started out as a hobby at first to get views so people could see the work that we do. I wasn’t even trying to go viral, I just did it because I love dancing so much. It naturally progressed into getting a following. My first viral video, well it wasn’t that viral, but it was to “Eyes on Fire” called How to Dubstep. That one got like 2 million views. That was what helped Pumped Up Kicks go viral.
When you first started dancing, it all started at a skating rink in Indianapolis.
Yeah, the skating rink was somewhere we always went on the weekends. We’d go to the skating rink at night and at 12 we’d take our skates off, and it’d turn into a party.There was one time a battle was going on in the middle of the rink. Not knowing anything at the time, I tried to imitate the dancing going on.
What kind of music were they playing?
Regular hip hop, rap, whatever was hot on the radio at the time.
Back then there wasn’t YouTube so this was a huge part of your inspiration. Where else did you go to find inspiration from other dancers besides this rink?
Back then, there really weren’t that many dance groups around so I was basically doing it by myself. I didn’t know the people at that rink that I met that night while dancing, so I didn’t hang out with them after that. So I started watching breaking movies and stuff like that, like Breakin’ and Breakin’ 2. I’d watch Michael Jackson on TV and learn from him too.
Now do you watch a lot of dancers on YouTube?
I actually don’t watch that much dancing on YouTube. I like watching viral videos of like cats on skateboards, but I don’t spend too much time watching other dancers unless I’m prepping for a collaboration with somebody. When you watch other dancers too much, you end up looking like other dancers. I want my style to be different from everyone.
Do you need a mirror to practice dancing?
Sometimes I use a mirror but most of the time I don’t because you end up being reliant on it. When you practice without a mirror, you can get more familiar your body and you’re more aware of what you’re doing.
I know you spent some time at the Navy as a navigator on the USS Constellation.
Yes, four years.
How would you describe your experience? Do you feel any of your travels and experiences have influenced your art now?
It influenced my discipline. My experiences influence the whole way I think of life in general, you know. Everything goes into dancing, it’s all a part of you. I was still dancing even when I was in the military.
Who are some of your favorite musicians and what type of music inspires you the most?
The type of music that inspires me the most is R&B because it’s so emotional. It has more feeling than rap and dubstep because dubstep is more like organized sound whereas R&B is about real human emotion that you can feel when you’re dancing to it.
Who are your favorite musicians?
For rap, the hot stuff on the radio like Flo-Rida, and older stuff like Timbaland and Magoo, Ginuwine, Lloyd. For R&B, The Weekend, Miguel, Delilah and underground stuff. For dubstep, I like Butch Clancy, Adventure Club, Skrillex, Zeds Dead.
What does your practice schedule look like?
Right now it’s changed a lot because I’m performing so much, which is good because performing is also practicing. So mostly I’m going out to clubs because there’s nothing quite like loud music. When you’re in your room it’s not the same because the music is not as loud, so I like going to parties and clubs and dancing to the music the DJ plays.
If you could collaborate with any other YouTube, who would it be?
I would like to collaborate with this guy named Swody. He’s another guy that dances dubstep on Youtube well before my video even went viral. At first we were fighting for views, it was him and me. But now I want to do a collaboration with him because I think all the people watching dancing on YouTube would appreciate that.
Any advice for other dancers thinking about putting their stuff on YouTube?
A lot of times people send me their videos and their videos have their bedrooms and kitchens in their background. Videos on YouTube are more visual. People want a complete visual experience. If you’re going to shoot a dance video, go find a location that looks good. You need more than one element in your video besides just dancing.
Any last words?
I’m happy to be with Fullscreen and I’m looking forward to a future with you guys.
Excited to have you with us. Welcome to the family!
