Juste Debout

Juste Debout: The Global Reference for Standing Hip-Hop Dance

The story of Juste Debout begins in 2002, when Bruce Ykanji (real name Bruce Soné), a Franco-Cameroonian dancer and choreographer born in Paris in 1976, organized the first edition at the Gymnase du Nesle in Champs-sur-Marne, Seine-et-Marne. His concept was innovative: to create a competition exclusively dedicated to standing hip-hop dances—popping, locking, house dance, and hip-hop new style—at a time when breakdance battles dominated the scene. The name "Juste Debout" ("Just Standing") encapsulates this philosophy with striking simplicity.

Bruce Ykanji, who started hip-hop dance at eight and performed alongside MC Solaar in 1997 before founding the Ykanji Crew, drew on his experience as a professional dancer to design an event worthy of the artistic demands of these disciplines, which were often little-known to the general public.

From Suburban Youth Center to Bercy: A Meteoric Rise

Supported by the City of Paris from 2004, Juste Debout experienced spectacular growth. From suburban gymnasiums, the festival moved to the Palais Omnisports de Paris-Bercy in 2008, and then to the Accor Arena (formerly AccorHotels Arena) in 2016, attracting up to 12,000 spectators for the world final. The event spread across five continents, with preliminary rounds held in over thirty countries, making Juste Debout the largest hip-hop dance battle circuit in the world.

After a five-year hiatus (2020-2024), Juste Debout made a triumphant return on March 2, 2025, at the Accor Arena in Paris-Bercy, confirming the public's and dancers' attachment to this legendary event.

Battle Categories

The competition is structured around two main categories:

• Classic: popping, locking, house dance, and hip-hop new style—the four historical disciplines of Juste Debout
• Afro Descendant: afro, dancehall, krump, and electro—a more recent category reflecting the evolution and diversity of urban cultures

Dancers compete in duos (2 vs 2), going through three rounds of battles judged by a panel of internationally renowned judges.

The Juste Debout School and the Hip-Hop Ecosystem

In 2009, Bruce Ykanji and Guy Weladji founded the Juste Debout School, a hip-hop dance school based in Paris, open to amateurs and professionals alike. The school offers daily classes taught by internationally acclaimed dancers, contributing to the training and professionalization of hip-hop dancers in France.

The Juste Debout ecosystem also includes a week of workshops preceding the final (the Hip-Hop Dance Week), featuring masterclasses, conferences, events, and parties hosted by international and local dancers.