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What’s up capoeira nation! welcome back to the Capoeira Experience podcast, where we connect our capoeira community and help motivate in a very positive way our community to help with tips and advice to help you understand this beautiful art. This is your host Inst. Caxixi and I just want to say thank you so much to the capoeira community for the support.
So I get very happy when the capoeira community reach out to me to connect and talk about our beautiful capoeira, and I hope one day you out there reach out to me so we can have you on the podcast!!! that been said for today’s episode I’m very excited because it is my very first time that I will interview here on the podcast an Angoleiro, so he started capoeira in 1997 in Detroit after 7 years he knew that there was more than he could be tapped in, during that time he met Mestre Caboclinho Aruanda at his first workshop in Michigan falling in love with capoeira Angola so in 2007 he decided to start over in Capoeira Angola “Centro Tabcat” thanks to the blessing of Mestre Caboclinho Aruanda. Right now he has a nonprofit called “Creative Movement Brazil” helping kids, teens and even adults in Capoeira Angola, music, dance, and culture, so let me introduce you to Contra Mestre Pequinininho from Detroit, Michigan.
Caxixi: How are you doing man?
Pequinininho: Alright, how about yourself?
Caxixi: pretty good, pretty good, sorry for such a long intro
Pequinininho: oh no problem, muito obrigado!
Caxixi: of course! of course! our capoeira community how we were talking before you know this podcast is for our capoeira community and I strongly believe that capoeira was created to bring people together
Caxixi: so, before we jump into the interview and all the questions, what are your social media?
Pequinininho:
Facebook Here @tabcatdetroit
Instagram Here
Website Here http://www.detroitcapoeira.com/
Caxixi: the show consists of 2 parts, to people to understand so people can stay a lit bit longer they can hear the whole story the first part is going to be about your story, capoeira story, your journey and everything till now then we are gonna jump to how you handle you no for-profit there and it works for the community there.
—- > Part 1 – Capoeira
Caxixi: Now that been said tell us more about yourself, who is Contra Mestre Pequinininho? and you can start however you want
Pequinininho: ok well let’s see, everything much started in my past I’m an artist ever since my mother would always make sure I was in some type of creative aspect so if it wasn’t science it was art by birth I’m an artist I like to draw that actually transpired into actual physical creativity from martial art itself so mostly everybody around we all grow up seen Bruce Lee as our martial artist but it is great I was like oh this is something unique that the actual body can do however there was always a thing that always itched me that is just I feel is something you know my culture actually has not just to say you know I never saw anybody like me then it came around when I saw couple different thing like James Kelly Raven Kleve different martial artist as well that we know now in the actual black community and then they were inspirations for me wow something different
but later on, I’m gonna give you a good laugh this is about my capoeira journey, I actually came across my first movie everybody always will say sometimes that the first movie that inspire me was only the strong and the you know I heard the berimbau playing and then and I was like wow this is, like wow, so I’m 13 and I was looking at this I was like oh my god I want to learn this so bad and this is like so long ago when yahoo groups existed so it was a limit so the only time that I can research it so I was like is in brazil, well my mother is not gonna let go to a whole other country and been 13, yeah exactly and I was like aaahh so I was just like you know look at it try to mimic some things but later on in high school I actually met one of still one of my best friend his name is Tertius so we’re both in art class and he came in and he introduce himself and hey you do anime art work, and you do videogame art work and I was like yeah is cool then here comes the actually funny part, so I’m riding my bike back home and I heard you know at the distance I heard like “hold one second was is that” I heard the berimbau in the distance but then I heard they sinigang the chores “Parana e, parana e Parana” and I heard and soon as I turned really quick I saw somebody in the corner doing ginga doing au and a bunch of different things and I’m like wow now the funny part is that I turned really sharp that I flipped off my bike.
Caxixi: so, did you start with capoeira contemporanea in 1997?
Pequinininho: yeah it was contemporanea and it was like a lot of different things like again it wasn’t like a solid base like I couldn’t understand it was a little bit more like topical it almost felt like you know getting get out, you know get in get out, yeah yeah you know it’s like we are doing ginga from doing ginga what about the history of ginga, what about you know what was the past of meia lua, what’s meia lua de compasso you know, I’m American I don’t speak Portuguese so even that so a lot of the time where the question that I had there were never answered.
Caxixi: What made you fall in love with capoeira Angola?
Pequinininho: well it was that I was able to find out more about the past, the history that you know wasn’t just Brazil, but it was more or even going back to the diaspora the whole transitions of everything, that really calls me because like I said as myself you know for me and couple of my friends we all grow and we didn’t really have that individuals that we can look like martial arts thing like this and that and this show that has a history that came from slaves and the something that was powerful that whole experience was like wow
Caxixi: how do you think capoeira Angola can help people or our community?
Pequinininho: I feel like a benefit for the community here is do something different and unique because more around here in Detroit, or Michigan itself we have different cultures here, we have someone teach dance, some teach Afro Cuban dance, some teach African dance, you know some teach we actually have a Philippine community, we have all kind of community, and Brazilian community here as well, except I fell that capoeira Angola can help everybody because how the community at large needs something different and needs something that has a rich history in it so they can know you know is not just this art but you as individual your story doesn’t end at the corner.
Caxixi: what do you think we can make our capoeira community stronger?
Pequinininho: I feel that what can makes stronger is that individual can leave their ego at the door, yeah because is not again it doesn’t matter what you title is it doesn’t matter what cardio you have doesn’t matter you know that you buy capoeira all the time it doesn’t matter you get to the roda and you gave 10 rasteira you mention rasteira for the game you know it doesn’t matter what matter is everybody is happy everybody is in peace everybody is learning is becoming a more infinite individual I feel that will make the capoeira community stronger
—- > Part 2 – Behind curtains
Caxixi: why nonprofit instead of LLC?
Pequinininho: well the nonprofit spoke to me more you know one I’m not really good with administration and everything as much so wife stepped in so she doesn’t hear me talking about her well which is a good thing but we sat down we talked about it initially we talk about the corporation part and the nonprofit we both came to an agreement one day you know something more for the community
Caxixi: how do you set the nonprofit up if you are by yourself?
Pequinininho: well the first thing I would say is that you really do know exactly what you want to do you have to know what exactly want you want to do you know my wife says oh we can do this oh we can do that and I’m like babe focus in this one thing so you have to have one thing, even if you want to make a nonprofit and teach people how you know paint just make sure you focus in this one aspect but there many things that creative mind wants to do
Caxixi: how are you promoting your classes?
Pequinininho: oh let see we use social media newsletter systems actual printed flyers word of mouth you know actual community events you know have vendor booth and give up flyers you know performances we actually are performing coming up this Friday for the city of Detroit at the spirit plaza is a lot of different individuals so thing like that
Caxixi: capoeira events coming soon?
Pequinininho: ah let’s see, we have our annual Brazilian festival Michigan coming up that’s September the 14th from noon to 7 here in Detroit
Caxixi: let’s break this in 2 parts, so the first part one advice to people that haven’t done capoeira, or they started capoeira what advice do you give?
Pequinininho: I would say know that is not going to be easy but you know just have a lot of patience a lot of faith not just into capoeira but in yourself you are gonna be able to grow, just have an open mind and just remember to that you are gonna be using muscles in your body that you don’t use on you on a regular basis
Caxixi: and the second advice that would be for that already do capoeira or teach capoeira what advice would you give to them?
Pequinininho: I would say don’t let ego take over, don’t let ego take over and remember that you are always an student a title is just something that yes you came to the time but remember all somewhere you have the responsibility to pass on to the next person make sure you pass on something that’s positive to the person don’t pass on you know your bad experiences you know anything like that because you can create another generation that’s not going to grow, they are gonna be static remember that you are still a student
Caxixi: tell me again your social medias
Facebook Here @tabcatdetroit
Instagram Here
Website Here http://www.detroitcapoeira.com/
Hey thank you so much for your time and sharing your experience!!!