B-boy: 'You really have to pursue your passions in life'

Well, OK, maybe it is about the money. Just not yet.

Wicked-fx is a group of “b-boys” – also known as breakdancers – who perform with a beat boxer and a violinist. The members range in age from 16 to 26.

The seven members combine classical and contemporary themes to put on high-energy shows filled with flips, twists and contortions. >>> Watch a video

“Most of the time we throw the CD and iPod out of the window, and we have live music playing in our routine while it’s going on,” said Wicked-fx founder Luis Rodriguez. “The beatboxer, you know, he’ll flip some of the guys, and the violinist dances along with us.”

The group started dancing together several years ago by practicing once a week at a local high school.

Wicked-fx is now headed to Portland to compete at one of the biggest dancing competitions in the Northwest, the Mighty Four.

“Every time we step on stage and the curtains open, we come to life,” said Rodriguez. “And it’s like all that hard work that we put into it, we get to share it with other people. Everybody seems to really enjoy what we do, and it makes us happy that we can share that and entertain people.”

The group hopes to make their mark at the competition and start appearing in television shows and commercials and to teach dancing workshops abroad.

“It took me a long time to realize that money is not everything,” said Rodriguez about quitting a full-time job to establish Wicked-fx. “Obviously it’s important, but I think I’ve learned that you really have to pursue your passions in life. And that’s what I’m doing now and like I said, I couldn’t be any happier.”