98 cents duo Kylah Ashwell and Paul Hawaikirangi performed a robotic piece of choreography at the Hip Hop Unite World Championships in Prague, where they placed seventh in their category.
98 cents duo Kylah Ashwell and Paul Hawaikirangi performed a robotic piece of choreography at the Hip Hop Unite World Championships in Prague, where they placed seventh in their category.
Gisborne hip-hop duo Kylah Ashwell and Paul Hawaikirangi, aka 98 Cents, earned a top-10 placing at the Hip Hop Unite World Championships in the Czech Republic.
The pair were seventh in the adult-duo section finals.
Ashwell said simply making the finals was a highlight but to finish seventh out of20 pairs was beyond what they expected.
“That’s a really hard thing to do,” she said. “Not everyone gets to go through all the rounds like that and we did so much better than when we competed in the worlds in 2023, so I’m proud of that.
“Last time, when we went to Portugal, we came 11th, so our main goal was to improve on that. This time we made it all the way to the finals, which exceeded our expectations.”
The picturesque city of Prague provided the perfect backdrop for a selfie or two when 98 Cents went to the Hip Hop Unite World Championships in the Czech Republic.
The couple qualified for the world championships by winning their section at the nationals in June.
They then set about fundraising to help them travel to the Czech Republic’s capital city.
Hawaikirangi said the standard at the competition was extremely high and he got a lot of inspiration from watching dancers from around the world in action.
“There’s a lot to unpack, but it’s given us new ideas. It was great to see different styles and flavours – to see how they use the stage and ways to elevate the dance.
“We saw how groups utilised different levels and executed transitions and the different techniques they used to make the choreography more exciting and interesting to watch.”
98 Cents performed a new routine in the competition. It involved a robotic style of choreography to music Hawaikirangi mixed himself.
“My highlight was just being onstage and making it to worlds – just being there was amazing,” he said.
“We always like to challenge ourselves and try to bring out a new routine at each competition,” Ashwell said.
A duo from Belgium won the adult-duo section with choreography that was funky and acrobatic.
“It was cool to see their level of skill and their flavour. It’s good to see people dancing in different ways,” Hawaikirangi said.
“With our routine, we just tried to make the music come to life with our movement.”
The pair were part of a 99-strong Team NZ contingent at the champs.
After several long flights, including stop-offs in Singapore and Germany, the couple arrived in the Czech Republic feeling jet-lagged. But after a few days of rest they were ready to give their best performance in the heats.
They managed to fit in some sightseeing in Prague and tried some of the local cuisine. A favourite was chimney cake, which they described as tasting “like a cinnamon croissant”.
Kylah Ashwell and Paul Hawaikirangi take in the sights in the Czech Republic's capital city of Prague.
Earlier this year they raised money for the trip through dance workshops, raffles and a quiz night.
They appreciated the support they got from the community.
While they enjoy travelling, they are happy the next Hip Hop Unite World Championships are in Tauranga in 2026.
Their next big competition this year is Battle in the Bay in Hastings at the end of the month.
They will be performing with their crew Club 98 and are working on a new piece of choreography for it.
