As I was watching different vlogs on YouTube (NoJumper, NorxVlog, Sweets life, etc.), I realize that the dama community intersects with other, similar "communities" such as the BMX and Streetwear communities. An example of this is the newly released Reed Stark mod. In your opinion, what are other communities that Dama intersects or has interactions with, and how can we further the reach of kendama through these communites? Further thoughts are also welcome here!
Yoyos FTW! Buddy of mine improved his game, by simply learning the importance of knees, and there's been many things we've learnt from yoyos too
True! A lot of yoyo players also play kendama to some degree from my experience. Also, players of other skill toys (begleri, jugglers) also play dama, so there's that!
One community that has intersected with the Kendama community is cardistry. Recently, Matt Sweets and Cooper Eddy went to CC17 (cardistry con '17). Yesterday, during the event, Coop performed tricks like BB and tightrope while Sweets talked about kendama. Also, I just started doing cardistry yesterday.
Well I hear kendama kinda came to America because of skiing, not sure how true this is but I think I read this from @htimSxelA on a previous post. It was almost certainlt in America before that but the skiing community helped make it popular.
Difinitely true. Skiing was one of the first things that brought kendama to the US, and the two communities intersect. JP Auclaire was a very well known skier (rest in peace) that was also known for always carrying a kendama with him. Plus, I'm a skier and some of my skiing friends also play. One thing I would add though is that blading brought kendama to the US before skiing. Those guys are seriously OG There is a separate thread from a while ago that is about pre kendama interests, and a lot was discussed about other communities there.
Skateboarding, Snow riding, rock climbing, yo-yo, hell even vape... Getting kendamas into any of those sort of stores would be a great way to expand the out-reach. But i think its very important to have them sold by people/stores that are involved in the kendama community, cuz i dont think kendama would be half of what it is now without the human interaction aspects; having someone help you and encourage you when learning, meeting new people, etc.. is really important. So i think that getting it any store with someone who will do that stuff is huge. And us knowing how to introduce people to kendama / help build on interest.
Well, we build up our influence to the anime community here in the PH since kendama is japanese, so as anime. We go to conventions to teach & we slowly getting more people involved it's kind of a stretch, but we keep doing our best to spread dama love <3 <3 <3
I think one of our biggest ins would be teachers and aides in school. I've had some ridiculous success and like 4 of the 20 or so kids have already landed lighthouse flips and they only started around 3 weeks ago.
I think Kendama has a natural intersect with other skill toy/hand skill communities like yoyo, juggling, begleri, balisong, pen spinning, cardistry, etc. But Kendama also finds people who do action sports because of the satisfying feeling of landing a trick - and without the physical risk/injuries (which is appreciated by athletes who get too torn up by their sport to do it as extensively as before). It's now spreading in BMX quickly because of Sweets' involvement in the scene and Reed Stark. Hopefully it only continues to spread! I think there's a magic to Kendama as a hobby. I've connected with more diverse people, made long distance friends, and found more community in it than any other activity or thing I've been involved in, ever.
I remember dama used to be so huge in the dance community (not so much now though) that's how i got into it! there's even a World of Dance x KUSA dama out there haha I've seen a couple introductions to kendama from schools. Like one of the homies in Houston teaches an art camp for kids and he brings damas for them to play with and have unicorn battles during their downtime and his clips of 1st time spikes are so cute And then i just found out my alma mater's Japanese club brings kendamas to their freshman orientation/welcome week booths for potential members to try! Hopefully that build interests and spreading the dama love rooted in an interest in japanese culture. On the flipside, the kendama community is how i get to hear about all the other communities out there! lol like begleri, cardistry, balisong, hooping (and other flowarts, juggling, etc
Was playing dama in Breckinridge Colorado and my waiter was a real boss. Busted out a few nasty tricks, said him and his ski buddies used to play all the time. My favorite comparison is the skate and dama community. A lot similarities with sponsorships and what not. I feel like the style of it is similar too in a fashion sense and an activity sense. Meet up w/ ur homies (smoke weed) and jam.
Sadly I've already heard of kendama being banned in some schools in the Philippines and it's not even that well known yet. On the other hand we've also worked with schools/colleges in the past and have a few potential upcoming events that will hopefully get us in with the education crowd. Another group that seems to be connected is the rock climbing crowd, not a ton of them but it's good to see that link to an old pursuit of mine.
Hey I fit in both these categories. I work at an elementary school and have shown a few kids , hopefully this new year I can get a few more into it. I rock climb as well! I know there's some pro players that are also climbers, Colin sanders and Haley Bishoff are the only ones that come to mind though.
BUMP! Reviving this thread. Is there any group out there, online or physical, that functions as common ground for people who play all manner of skill toys (say, a Skilltoy Collective?)? I'm asking this cause the kendama community in the PH is being invited to jam with some Cardists and Yoyo Players, and this concept of intercommunity interaction piques my interest.