Antonio, a former american footballer, a heavymetal rocker claims he had been the worst dancer who he had never seen before has now become a zouk performer at Brazil and an inspiring zouk instrutor and event organiser in Barcelona while running a popular live porn website company!! Here is his interesting life story.
1. You are nominated by Yasmin from Holland as a special zouker, would you tell me what is the relation with Yasmin from Holland and you and how did you know each other?
I cannot remember when and where I met Yasmin for the first time, but I do remember my feeling about her: passionate dancer! She mentioned one of the things I use to tell to the people attending my classes: when dancing zouk you should feel like you're in a movie, you should take the dancer into your movie. With her I could definitely go into that mood easily!
I didn't know either that she was into jiu-jitsu, but I guess now it's evident how she was able to follow the trickiest moves on the dance floor.
I feel honored that she nominated me, it's always a good feeling knowing that you inspired a good and positive feeling in a fellow dancer.
2. I was told that you used to be a professional American footballer. How long ago was it? where did you used to play? How did you achieved as an American Footballer?
Well, not really a professional, since here in Spain there's no such as professional american football teams, but anyway I played for a few years on the highest level in Spain.
Why I started playing football? Well, I guess we should talk a little about my childhood. When I was a small kid I use to be bullied a lot. And I mean A LOT. I was the scary little kid, a bit nerdy, interested in computers, bad at sports, fat... All of the attributes to be the victim of the "cool" guys.
But since I was like 8 years old I was interested in that sport I could see on TV. At the beginning I didn't understand the sport, but watching game after game I started to understand the rules and to enjoy more and more watching it. And then, when I was 14 years old I found out that there was a recently founded team in my city!
So making the story short, because I could write a couple of books about my football years, I entered the team when I was 14 years old, with some friends, but we had to play against older and bigger guys. In the process I became a strong young man, not only physically but mentally too.
We managed to win some epic games, and in the year 2000 we even won the National Spanish American Football League, with an amazing team of "iron man" players (the team with the fewer players in all the history of spanish american football to win the league).
3. If you no longer do American Football as a profession, would you mind asking you what make your career change?
As I said, that was not my professional career. I'm actually a nerd, computer programmer. I started programming at the age of 12. When I was 19 years old I founded my own firm with two friends (while I was playing football and studying in college). Ten years ago I got tired of the stress, sold my part in the firm, and went to live on the beach, working as a freelance programmer.
After three years working at home and getting suntanned while working at the beach, I got tired of the relaxed way of life, of being alone at home all work-day, and wanted to push my professional career up, so I joined a company base in Barcelona. I spent one year at that company before finally going to the company I now work for.
Right now I'm the deputy director of the company, an "adult-oriented" business, or what you could plainly call: a live porn website. Surprise! ( hmmm...interesting...)
4. I read you encountered zouk in Spain in 2002 and so decided to take up zouk, could you tell me why you were draw into with zouk since then as it seems completely different of playing football and dancing with zouk?
Well, in fact the year was 2004, more specifically on december the 5th. I was on holidays on the island of Mallorca, and I was going out to party with a girl I knew from there. My intention was to go to a heavy metal pub, since I'm a proud headbanger. But the girl tricked me into going first to a brazilian place: "Made in Brazil". Later I would learn that this was the bar where the MZouk style came to existence.
So I was there, leaning against the wall with all my chains and leather thingies, and one guy came to ask the girl for dancing. I do remember that the song was a french zouk, I was intrigued by that music I never heard before. It seemed to me utterly beautiful. But when I saw the girl dancing: OH-MY-GOD! That dance was not like any other dance I had seen before: smooth, sensual, spectacular, all at once!
After the girl finished the dance I told her: I will deny having said what I'm about to say, but I want to dance that. And after explaining to me the origin of the dance, she told me that the best teachers were in fact living in Barcelona: Daniel & Leticia.
So as soon as I could I went to their school and started learning their amazing style.
And a year and a half later, I came back to Mallorca to dance with the lady that first got me in love with zouk: Cristina Lama.
5. It seems you have been dancing zouk a quite long time, what make you so fascinate of doing zouk for a long time? What was the best memory during your zouk history?
For me zouk has been life-changing. It's part of a journey that began with american football, a journey to self-discovery and to becoming who you really are. Some people ask me how can I love zouk so much being a heavy metal music lover, but for me both have so much in common... The main thing in common about american football, heavy metal, and zouk is one simple but deep word: feeling.
I'm a deeply sensitive person, although I try to keep my hard and cool biker looks (bikes, that's another one of my things). But I hate preconceptions, and that's why I don't hesitate to do so many different things, as long as they excite my feelings. That's why I loved american football, and that's why I love Zouk, and heavy metal, and custom bikes, and soft-medieval-combat (for more on the last subject, check the website of my medieval fighting association: www.lahermandaddelacero.com)
So about the memories, I couldn't pick just one, so I will name a few:
- Fall of 2007, at a party on Spiral Dance school: my future wife was leaning on a wall, watching me dance. I saw her for the first time but I knew I would love that woman.
- 2008 Br Danças congress in Rio de Janeiro, where I performed together with my teachers, Daniel & Leticia, and beautiful Anna Castellví, one of the finest zouk dancers I've had the privilege to dance with.
- 2009 Galicia Zouk Congress, where I performed with the Spiral Dancers amateur company. I miss so much Lluïsa and Anna, since they both are not dancing anymore.
- 2012 Dubai congress, where I found the greatest bunch of people who inspired me to organize my own event.
- 2013 ZoukDevils Summer Weekend. The event I organized and that made me so proud of being a zouker, and happy to see I had so many friends that wanted to enjoy with me.
6. I heard you have set up new zouk studio in 2012, how do you wish to take your dance studio in future? Any ambition?
I built my studio for two main reasons: I wanted to have an space to develop my zouk classes without any pressure, even allowing myself to lose money on the process. Zouk is not profitable still in Spain, so I didn't want to be under the mercy of monetary issues. That's why in the studio there are many other disciplines, but my main goal was to have the space to work with and for zouk without worrying about money.
I don't see it as a business, I have my main job as a huge nerd working for porn (as a programmer, of course, my acting skills are only for the zouk dancing), and it's paying well, so there are no goals and ambitions going beyond enjoying zouk, trying to inspire other people to join our wonderful dance, and trying to take the most out of life.
8. Any message for zoukers?(or any advice to zokers who started to get bored?)
Dancing zouk is a cry for freedom. There's nothing wrong as long as you enjoy and nobody gets hurt, so never, and I say NEVER stop dancing zouk because you feel it's too difficult, or that you are not doing it right.
I always say this, and nobody believes me but it's true: I was the worst dancer I've ever known. I was so bad that even my teachers thought I was going to quit eventually. So, as long as you enjoy it keep dancing!
But anyway, if you don't enjoy it anymore QUIT! Go find another passion. Football was my life, but I quitted football and met zouk, so who knows! You only live once!
9. Please nominate great zoker with interesting profile in your circle but in different country please? And tell us reason why?
I would like to nominate Sandeep Samuel, a great zouker from Abu Dhabi. He is one of the most inspiring dancers I've met lately because of his great heart.
I was shocked when I first saw his show with Samantha Ho in Abu Dhabi, one of the best zouk shows I've ever seen. I love his passion for zouk, his cool looks and personality, but most of all, he's a humble dancer that makes girls feel like a dancing angel. And that's all you can ask from a good male zouk dancer!
And finally, I'd like to thank you very much for this interview, I enjoyed very much answering your questions. Thanks to Jasmine for nominating me, and I wish you a big success with this project.
By the way! Don't miss our second Summer Weekend this July. If you want more info about me or this event, juto www.zoukdevils.com
From Kazouk
Such a intereting profile and kazouk felt his likable personality without seeing him. I asked him about how he developed with his future wife then, but there is no space to write here. I include link of his wedding video, so beautiful and wonderfully made!
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GQbVqF6rjQY
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