About Jackie

Jackie “Miss Funk” Lopez is a first-generation Latina Los Angeles native. Jackie graduated Summa Cum Laude from UCLA’s Dept. of World Arts and Cultures, with a concentration in Dance in 2004. Miss Funk found her love for Hip Hop/Streetdance since the late 90’s and her movement and historical content that she teaches is reflective of her personal experience as a teacher, professional dancer, choreographer, and participant/practitioner in Hip Hop and Streetdance culture, in which she has trained extensively and has served for over 25 yrs.

Some of her accomplishments are; First Latina Woman to teach and build the Hip Hop/Streetdance curriculum at the University of Los Angeles (UCLA) 2009 – present, a recipient of the Lester Horton Artist Appreciation Award presented by the Dance Resource Center Los Angeles and recipient of the Hip Hop Impact Achievement Award presented by Ladies of Hip Hop. Most recently, Miss Funk served as Cultural Ambassador for the U.S. through the Arts Envoy Cultural Exchange Program to teach and choreograph at the Suzanne Dellal Centre in Tel Aviv, Israel. As part of the 3-week residency, Miss Funk was the first woman of color to choreograph a full Hip Hop/Streetdance piece, while also teaching the history of Hip Hop/Streetdance culture. Furthermore, Miss Funk has gained respect by entering and judging several popular battle events, such as; All Styles Judge for Freestyle Session Los Angeles (2014, 2017 & 2019), Popping Judge for Ladies of Hip-hop NYC and the first woman judge for Cypher Connection in Tel Aviv, Israel.

Most notably, Miss Funk is the Co-Founder/Co-Artistic Director of Versa-Style Dance Company (VSDC), a certified 501 (c) (3) non-profit Hip Hop/Streetdance organization founded in 2005. VSDC’s mission is two-fold; they are a professional touring Hip Hop dance company providing dancers from the inner city the tools to thrive as full dance professionals, while also providing arts programing to the youth in underserved communities in Los Angeles. Versa-Style Dance Company are recipients of the New England Foundation for the Arts (National Dance Project) and have performed at prestigious theaters such as the Joyce Theater in NYC, The Ford Amphitheater in LA and Jacob’s Pillow in MA. Lastly, The Red Bulletin (Red Bull Magazine) featured Versa-Style Dance Company as “Heroes of the Year” in 2019, highlighting their commitment to elevating and celebrating Hip Hop/Streetdance Culture in Los Angeles.

Lastly, Miss Funk is fascinated by the diverse and rich African-American and Latinx traditions of the past, while simultaneously presenting the voice of a new generation through its ever-evolving interpretations of dance. Most importantly, she is committed to providing our world with a sincere view of the essence and spirit of Hip Hop/Streetdance rather than the commercially exploited stereotypes portrayed by the media.