Who are JabbaWockeeZ members? History, photos, who died?
Grooving to the sound of music is something most people do for fun and stress relief. For some, it is a well-paying career. JabbaWockeeZ, a renowned dance group, attracted global attention after winning the first season of America's Best Dance Crew. The group has remained united and consistent over the years and is known for its masked dancers. As a result, many people are curious to know who JabbaWockeeZ members are.
Source: Instagram
TABLE OF CONTENTS
Who are JabbaWockeeZ members? The dance group has grown over the years, and today, it is made about 20 members. Out of these, eight are considered the core members. Unlike before, when the group was made of all male members, it now has one female teammate.
Background of JabbaWockeeZ
JabbaWockeeZ is a dance crew that was founded in 2003. The dancers are known for adorning white ski masks and gloves during performances. They adopted the white ski masks and gloves as a tribute to Medea Sirkas, a renowned San Francisco-based strutting crew.
Initially, the group was known as 3 Muskee. The members were Kevin "KB" Brewer, Phil "Swagger Boy" Tayag, and Joe "Punkee" Larot. Larot coined the name JabbaWockeeZ after drawing inspiration from the poem Jabberwocky by Lewis Carroll.
Later, the trio decided to enlarge the group. The new lineup was made of Gary "Gee" Kendall, Randy "DJ Wish One" Bernal, Jeff "Phi" Nguyen, Phil "Swagger Boy" Tayag, Kevin “KB” Brewer, Joe "Punkee" Larot, Rynan Paguio, and Chris "Cristyle" Gatdula.
Sadly, the group lost one of its members named Gary "Gee" Kendall to meningitis. Chris "Cristyle" Gatdula and Randy "DJ Wish One" Bernal have also left the group to pursue personal endeavours.
How many original JabbaWockeeZ are left?
Following Gee's demise and the exit of two others, five original members are left.
The unique thing about the group is that it does not have an official leader. Instead, all members are treated equally, and each contributes to the success of the group. They all engage in choreographic work as a unit. The group has participated in dance competitions, commercials, and various dance tours.
Who are the JabbaWockeeZ members?
Since winning America's Best Dance Crew, the Jabbawockeez have gone on to perform in numerous shows and events around the world, including headlining their own show.
Members
- Kevin "Kb" Brewer
- Joe "Punkee" Larot
- Jeff "Phi" Nguyen
- Rynan "Kid Rainen" Paguio
- Management: Nick Ngo
Past members
- Gary "Gee" Kendall
- Chris "Christyle" Gatdula
- Ben "B-Tek" Chung
- Phil "SB" Tayag
- Eddie "Eddie Styles" Gutierrez
- Saso "King Saso" Jimenez
- Randy "Wish One" Bernal
- Tony "Transformer" Tran
In the past, some have joined and exited from the team. Each of the known member's profiles will be explored below.
Kevin “KB” Brewer
Source: Instagram
- Full name: Kevin Brewer
- Gender: Male
- Date of birth: 19th December 1976
- Age: 46 years (as of 2023)
- Place of birth: Long Beach, California, United States of America
- Current residence: Los Angeles, California, United States of America
- Nationality: American
- Ethnicity: African-American
- Zodiac sign: Sagittarius
- Religion: Christianity
- Sexuality: Straight
- Hair colour: Black
- Eye colour: Black
- Marital status: Married
- Spouse: Cherylynne Rubia-Brewer
- Children: 4
- Profession: Music producer, emcee, and dance coach
Kevin Brewer is one of the original members of the dance crew. He was born in Long Beach, California, United States of America, on 19th December 1976. His nationality is American, his ethnicity is African-American, and he started his dancing career in 1995.
The dancer is married to Cherylynne Rubia-Brewer, a lady of Filipino descent. Together, the couple has four kids. Besides dancing, Kevin is the founder of Beat Kune Do and is also a music producer, emcee, and dance coach. He is an Apple-certified technician.
The dancer's inspiration comes from God, his family, Bruce Lee, and other members of the crew.
Joe "Punkee" Larot
Source: Instagram
- Full name: Joseph Larot, alias Joe "Punkee" Larot
- Gender: Male
- Date of birth: 29th June 1979
- Age: 43 years (as of 2023)
- Place of birth: Sacramento, California, United States of America
- Nationality: American
- Ethnicity: Filipino-American
- Zodiac sign: Cancer
- Religion: Christianity
- Sexuality: Straight
- Hair colour: Black
- Eye colour: Dark brown
- Marital status: Married
- Spouse: Sofia Tabujara Larot
- Children: 3
- Profession: Dancer, director, entrepreneur, and choreographer
- Instagram: @punkee_jbwkz
Joe "Punkee" Larot is one of the founding members of the dance crew. He was born in Sacramento, California, United States of America, on 29th June 1979.
The dancer's nationality is American, and he is of Filipino descent. Besides dancing, he is a talented choreographer, company director, and entrepreneur. Together with the crew, he runs JBWKZ company, which does brand management and dance move creation. He is also a PRISM Co-Director and original cast member.
Away from work, he is married to Sofia Tabujara Larot. He is the father of three children, one of whom is a teenager.
Phil "Swagger Boy" Tayag
Source: Instagram
- Full name: Phil "Swagger Boy" Tayag
- Gender: Male
- Date of birth: 9th October
- Place of birth: Sacramento, California, United States of America
- Nationality: American
- Ethnicity: Filipino
- Zodiac sign: Libra
- Religion: Christianity
- Sexuality: Straight
- Hair colour: Black
- Eye colour: Dark brown
- Marital status: Married
- Children: 3
- Profession: Dancer and choreographer
- Instagram: @swagpitt
Phil "Swagger Boy" Tayag was born on 9th October in Sacramento, California, United States of America. His year of birth is yet to be disclosed, but it is presumed that he is in his forties. His nationality is American, and his Zodiac sign is Libra. He is of Filipino descent.
Besides dancing, Phil is a choreographer. Away from his dancing career, he is a family man. He is married and has three children. His oldest daughter, Peach, will be turning 21 in December 2023.
Jeff “Phi” Nguyen
Source: Instagram
- Full name: Jeff “Phi” Nguyen
- Gender: Male
- Date of birth: 15th September 1981
- Age: 41 years (as of 2023)
- Place of birth: Phoenix, Arizona, United States of America
- Current residence: Los Angeles, California, United States of America
- Nationality: American
- Ethnicity: Filipino
- Zodiac sign: Virgo
- Religion: Christianity
- Sexuality: Straight
- Hair colour: Black
- Eye colour: Black
- Marital status: Single
- Profession: Dancer, choreographer, and dance instructor
- Twitter: @PHI_JBWKZ
On 15th September 2021, Jeff “Phi” Nguyen celebrated his 40th birthday. The dancer, choreographer, and dance instructor was born on 15th September 1981 in Phoenix, Arizona, United States of America. He resides in Los Angeles, California, United States of America.
His nationality is American, and he is of Filipino descent. He is the last child in a family of four. The talented artist started dancing at the age of 15, and he normally draws inspiration from other members of the JabbaWockeeZ crew.
Rynan Shawn Paguio, alias Kid Rainen
Source: Instagram
- Full name: Rynan Shawn Paguio, alias Kid Rainen
- Gender: Male
- Date of birth: 26th March 1981
- Age: 41 years (as of 2023)
- Place of birth: Inglewood, California, United States of America
- Nationality: American
- Ethnicity: Filipino
- Zodiac sign: Aries
- Religion: Christianity
- Sexuality: Straight
- Hair colour: Black
- Eye colour: Brown
- Marital status: Married
- Children: 1
- Profession: Dancer and choreographer
- Instagram: @kidrainen_
Rynan Shawn Paguio, alias Kid Rainen, was born on 26th March 1981 in Inglewood, California, United States of America. His Zodiac sign is Aries, his nationality is American, and his ancestry is Filipino.
Kid Rainen is married to Belle Abuyo, a gifted break-dancer. Together, the couple has a son.
Gary "Gee" Kendall
- Full name: Gary "Gee" Kendall
- Gender: Male
- Date of birth: 7th November 1970
- Date of death: 14th December 2007
- Cause of death: Pneumonia and meningitis
- Age at time of demise: 37 years
- Place of birth: California, United States of America
- Place of demise: Denver, Colorado, United States of America
- Nationality: American
- Ethnicity: African-American
- Zodiac sign: Scorpio
- Religion: Christianity
- Profession: Dancer, teacher, director, producer, and entertainer
Which Jabbawockeez member died? Gary "Gee" Kendall, one of the initial eight members of the JabbaWockeeZ, died on 14th December 2007. Gary was born on 7th November 1970 and was raised in Seaside, California, United States of America. His nationality was American, and he was of African-American descent.
Besides dancing, he taught hip-hop music at All The Right Moves in Santa Cruz. He also organised workshops at DanceCenter and DanceSynergy.
The dancer was 37 years old at the time of his demise. He lost his life in Denver, Colorado, United States of America, after battling pneumonia and meningitis. He is fondly remembered by the rest of the Jabbawockeez crew.
Other JabbaWockeeZ members
Besides the four founding members, namely Kevin Brewer, Joe Larot, Rynan Paguio, and Jeff Nguyen, the crew has about 20 more members. The crew recruited them because the co-creators are much older now and need to build a succession team.
While the four are still active, they no longer participate in all dance events and competitions. Instead, the younger crew members represent the entire team.
What is the nationality of JabbaWockeeZ?
The group is made of members of Asian and/ or American nationality. The members are drawn from different ethnic backgrounds, including Asian-American (Filipino-American, Korean American, and Vietnamese American), African-American, and Mexican-American.
What is JabbaWockeeZ's net worth?
The dancers have a combined net worth of $25 million. Read on to learn more about the different group members.
Are the JabbaWockeeZ all male?
Initially, the group was made of all-male dancers. In 2014, the crew welcomed its first female member named Ariah Tsukada-Aka. Ariah had a great desire to join the crew since she was three years old.
She spotted the crew on the reality show American Best Dance Crew and started practising the moves she saw. When she was five, Kevin Brewer invited her to perform on the finale of season six of the same show. She was nicknamed Little Babywockee. Years later, she joined the crew as an official member.
JabbaWockeeZ members are known for their insane choreography, perfect synchronisation, and unique dance style. The crew normally appears on stage in white ski masks and gloves, its signature look.
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