JOBY BRAVA SALSA — Many who visit SalsaHook.com tend to realize that I often write about the magnitude of importance and influence that Salsa Brava Dance Company had in the global popularization of the Los Angeles Style of Salsa Dancing. Salsa Brava not only performed and taught worldwide, but they also were the foundation of most of the L.A. professionals who, in part, went on to teach other dancers that also became key players in one way or another, and so forth. It all starts with the Vazquez name. 

Salsa Brava Dance Company officially dissolved on June 1st, 2004, after ten years of success in Salsa dancing. But still to this day, the name of the main female director of the company: "Joby Vazquez", is one that many cannot and do not forget - as she remains an ic

Joby went on to take up the name of "Joby Brava" after the dissolution of the Salsa Brava Dance Company, and eventually moved to the State of Georgia to continue spreading her talent and the L.A. Style Salsa. 

Joby Brava is a dancer that truly deserves to be immortalized for her immense contributions to our beloved dance of Salsa. Nobody should ever forget that Joby was a pioneer in the salsa scene in Los Angeles, which at the time was NOT known as "L.A. Style Salsa" -- to them it was just how they danced, the nickname came after and it was based on them - the pro dancers at the time, of which Joby Brava was a major player. 

Joby was also one of the first salsa dancers to travel globally while being paid for her talents to teach and perform Salsa, and participated in Puerto Rico's 1st Annual Salsa Congress in the year 1997. Many of today's dancers were babies, toddlers, or just kids back then. That's how impactful her contributions to our dance are!

Another major contribution that Joby Brava provided the world of Salsa was the production of some of the best Salsa dance instructional DVDs on the market. The Salsa Brava collection DVDs, ranging from beginner salsa partnering, to intermediate and advanced combos, and Men's and Ladie's Styling, were sold globally and represented the foundation of many dancers everywhere. Joby always had a keen business sense and seemed to have been the brains of the whole Salsa Brava operation (no offense to Luis, her partner and co-director at the time). 

In one way or another, all of today's L.A. professional and/or social dancers, and so many more around the world, were at some point and through some lineage, taught through Salsa Brava's Dance Company. Just to give an example, the list of professionals in L.A. that stem from Salsa Brava Dance Company includes, but is not limited to: Edie 'The SalsaFreak', Rudy Zalez, Liz Lira, Jeanette Valenzuela, Cindy and Stephanie Stevenson (sisters), Joel Hernandez, Rogelio Moreno, Cristian Oviedo, and plenty more.

Joby has appeard in popular dance Hollywood films, such as: "Dance With Me" and "Looking for Lola." She has done commercials for Coca Cola, Bud Light, California Lottery, and MAD TV. She has also worked with legends and iconic personalities, such as Tito Puente, Sinbad, Thalia, John Leguizamo, Jennifer Lopez, Rosanne Bar, and many more. 

All in all, Joby Brava deserves to always be recognized and remembered as the iconic figure that she is in our "L.A. Style Salsa." Dancers everywhere should know that without her beauty and appeal, as well as talent and charisma, maybe Salsa would have never been given such great acceptance by global dance markets. She looks like a star and what she was selling must've been accepted as gold by those buying it! 

Today, Joby continues to promote Salsa dancing through her dance productions company, Joby Brava Productions. To get more information on her classes, events, and to purchase her DVDs, go to her website www.jobybrava.com.