Good Neighbor Podcast: Cobb County
Bringing together local businesses and neighbors of Cobb County. Good Neighbor Podcast hosted by Milli M. helps residents discover and connect with your local business owners in and around Cobb County, Georgia.
Is your business serving the residents of Cobb County? Then, we need to talk! Visit gnpCobbCounty.com to schedule your free interview.
Good Neighbor Podcast: Cobb County
E51: Dancing Through Life's Rhythms with Phoenix Dance36
Dance becomes a transformative force in the hands of Phoenix Aquino-Sabino, founder of Phoenix Dance 36. Far from just teaching steps and counts, Phoenix delivers cultural education, physical therapy, and profound human connection through movement.
Phoenix's journey began with music. Her uncle, a bass guitarist, instilled in her a deep appreciation for musical structure and composition that naturally evolved into dance later in life. This foundation led her to create a business that goes beyond typical dance instruction. "When you come to a Phoenix Dance 36 class, you're not just coming to learn steps," Phoenix explains. "You're going to get education." She dispels myths about Latin dance forms like salsa, diving into their history and cultural significance while helping students find joy through movement.
The name "Phoenix Dance 36" carries deep meaning, with the "36" referencing the martial arts film "36 Chambers," where complete mind-body training precedes mastery. This philosophy perfectly aligns with Phoenix's holistic approach to movement. Her business uniquely combines Latin dance with elements of martial arts (her husband is an instructor) and somatic therapy, creating a comprehensive experience that connects mind, body, and spirit.
Perhaps most remarkable is Phoenix's personal story of resilience. In 2017, she experienced homelessness in New York City with her young son, unknowingly pregnant with her second child. She recalls carrying her tired eight-year-old on her back to school each morning from the shelter. Yet through it all, she maintained such positivity that her son remembers only "a fun time in New York." This journey fostered tremendous empathy that now enhances her teaching. Phoenix lives by her "three C's" philosophy: connection to your body, connection to the music, and connection to your partner. Ready to experience the joy of movement? Find Phoenix on YouTube and Instagram as PhoenixDance36 and discover how dance can transform your life.
This is the Good Neighbor Podcast, the place where local businesses and neighbors come together. Here's your host, Millie M.
Speaker 2:Hello everybody, welcome to the Good Neighbor Podcast. I'm your host, millie M. Are you in need of dance instruction, choreography or someone to lead you through brand new, exciting somatic therapy? Well, I have just the person for you Phoenix Aquino, sabino of Phoenix Dance 36. How are you today?
Speaker 3:I am doing wonderful. I'm happy to be here.
Speaker 2:So glad to have you. We're excited to learn all about you and your business. Tell us more about Phoenix Dance 36.
Speaker 3:Oh my gosh, okay. So Phoenix Dance 36 was designed. I created this company because I wanted a fusion of my Latin dance experience and I wanted to have a way to really connect with communities when it comes to culture, when it comes to the arts, the performing arts, when it comes to the arts, the performing arts, and I wanted to just find a way where I could really tap into that joy of dance for people. A lot of people do not think that, oh, I don't have money for lessons, oh, I can't do this, oh, I got two left feet. No, so that's all right now. Yeah, just spell all that. Nobody has two left feet, so that's all right now. Yes, well, all that, nobody has two left feet. So I really wanted a way just to to foster connection within the communities that I was in and even greater communities around me, and that's how it started Just that love of music, that joy of dance and wanting to connect with people.
Speaker 2:Absolutely. How did you get into this business? Have you been a dancer all your life?
Speaker 3:No, I have not been a dancer all my life, but I have been a lover of music all my life and I have to thank my uncle. He was really big on giving me the foundations of music, music structure, music composition, and that sparked a natural tendency to listen to all different types of music, what I was exposed to when my uncle his name was Anthony Holmes and he was a bass guitarist so he really gave me a gift, the gift of music, and I used that and I just found my own path with dance and sometimes for people it happens later in life, sometimes it happens early on and for me that music bug hit me early on, the dance bug hit later on.
Speaker 2:Right, right, I love that. I love that we're very similar in that regard. I'm a radio baby. My dad, you know, has had a stellar career in the radio industry, so I grew up in a studio and it's just one of those things where you find yourself. You can't be still after a certain point in time, especially with live music. So you can understand that. So, what are some of the myths? You touched on them earlier myths and misconceptions about your industry and what you do.
Speaker 3:Oh gosh, I think for Latin dance, and I'm using that with specificity because a lot of people come to see me for salsa.
Speaker 2:They know me as the grand maestra of salsa, love it.
Speaker 3:What are the misconceptions? Some of the misconceptions are where, what is salsa when? Where does it come from? So a large part of my classes is really just giving that culture aspect. You're, when you come to a Phoenix dance 36 class, you're not just coming to learn steps, you're going to get a little bit of education. And I love that because I ask questions, I engage with the people who walk through the doors of the studio Like, hey, do you know where salsa came from? Do you know the origins? Do you know some Latin American artists? Do you know, like, what's your favorite salsa song? So those are some connection points that I use to dispel all of the myths surrounding. Oh, I'm just going to take a salsa class and I heard you just wiggle your hips.
Speaker 2:It's deeper than that.
Speaker 3:It's deeper. It's so much deeper and there's a greater connection to history and cultural relativity that I use and I definitely think that's what sets me apart as an instructor. When you come to one of my classes, you didn't know you were going to get all that, but you get it.
Speaker 2:Right, right. So who are your target customers and how do you attract them?
Speaker 3:your target customers and how do you attract them? So my target audience is anybody that is looking for an outlet to express themselves through movement. I find that even with the somatic therapy, people are looking for a way to release, express and connect, and so for that I say those people are my target audience. I love connecting with people. I love getting people to connect to music in different ways that they never thought they would before, and I think that anybody who just loves music is also my. If you love music, you're gonna love my class. If you love movement and dance, you're gonna love my class.
Speaker 3:If you love, just like a release and stretching, flexibility, mobility. You'll love my somatic therapy classes and I just try to stay really aligned with that, with more connecting.
Speaker 2:Absolutely Connecting mind, body and spirit. It sounds like a very holistic thing because I love how you're combining dance and yoga, because I think people are under the misconception that meditation you're just sitting still in a room, quiet, doing a mantra. But I feel like there are certain practices like yoga and like dance that can be meditative. The whole point is to clear your mind. The whole point is to be centered. Just very quickly, I took a couple of Afro-Haitian dance classes. Oh, I love that classes.
Speaker 2:There were times where we would do spins and if I was stressed out or if my mind wasn't right, if I was worried about a test, my spins would always be wobbly and it was almost like a barometer to how centered I was. But when I was calm, when my mind was clear, when I was focused, my turns would be on point. So there is definitely that mind, body, spirit connection and I love how you're combining that yoga and that dance for that somatic therapy that I think people who need their minds clear but need to move a little bit with it too, is a better option than just sitting and meditating. So we talked about music. Dance is what you do. What do you do for fun, or is it the same thing? It's kind of the same thing.
Speaker 3:For fun. I love experimenting with different sounds and wherever that takes me. I'm not much of a singer, but I love karaoke. Yes, we don't even know it.
Speaker 2:That's the hilarious part about this.
Speaker 3:So I just love anything that can bring joy to my heart. The other aspect of Phoenix Dance 36 is the martial arts component. My husband, he's a martial artist, so we connect on a lot of different things, and that's the 36 part of Phoenix Dance 36. A lot of people don't realize what that 36 stands for. They're like what is 36? Is that how old you are? No, it actually comes from a very old martial arts movie called 36 Chambers with Gordon Liu, and in the movie a pupil decides to go to a Shaolin temple to learn everything there is to know about Shaolin martial arts. Right, but they wouldn't let them in. You can't even begin to learn unless you start training every facet of your mind and body. So, if you notice, that connection just kind of weaves into Phoenix Dance 36.
Speaker 3:So for me, what I like to do when I'm having fun, I like to train. I go over kickboxing. I actually teach a kickboxing class too. I do martial arts with my husband and I like to kick butt. I love that. I love that I like to kick butt and I like to listen to music.
Speaker 2:Look we delicate and strong. How about that? Absolutely so, tell me, no, no, you, you got more fun than you.
Speaker 3:I got a little bit well, it's kind of nerdy. I do love to read, um, for me that's fun and I guess because I'm such a book worm like I love just consuming different types of books and, um, I love that facet of myself. I love that I can separate. I can have the lively side but I can also have the very internal side and I derive fun from that, like just getting in a quiet place with a good book.
Speaker 2:Love the dichotomy of it the vibrant person, the delicate person. Then there's the kick butt person and the quiet bookworm. You are a very complex person. That's beautiful to see. So can you describe a hardship or a life challenge you overcame and how it made you stronger?
Speaker 3:So, yeah, this is a doozy. Um, in 2017, I was living in New York. I had already had my son and my husband. We decided to move back to New York after living some time in Atlanta and we were staying with family members and, all of a sudden, there was a situation where we couldn't stay there any longer, so we were automatically homeless. And going through homelessness or displaced in New York City was very challenging for me as a mother. Mother at the time, I believe my son was eight and just having to still create joy in his life despite our circumstances. Even now, if you talk to my son, he does. He just remembers a fun time in New York. He doesn't remember right he has no idea how challenging it was.
Speaker 3:So I have to say what made it challenging? When you are displaced in New York City, when you are going through any type of homelessness, you are no longer a person, you're a number in the system and it's kind of like you're. You're shuffled from one place to the next. Nobody cares about your story, nobody cares how much of a good mother you want to be. The first thing that they want to know, obviously, is are your kids safe? If they're not, we're going to remove them from you. And the other thing is are you going to sponge off the system? It's no type of care, or yeah, there's no.
Speaker 3:And when you are homeless in New York, you are in facilities where there's people with different issues aside from what you're going to.
Speaker 3:So where you might be of sane mind and healthy, you're housed with people in shelter systems who maybe have mental issues or maybe they have violent criminal history. So I think that was the one challenging thing for me as a mother just having to keep my children protected, to find a way to keep pushing forward. And at the time when we were in the shelter, I just remember I have to get my son to school every morning and I would carry him on the bus walking to school for about a mile. I would carry him on my back because he would say Mommy, I'm so tired I can't walk because we have to leave so early. So going from a queen shelter to a school in South Bronx it was hard for him. We would have to get up super early and at the time I had no idea that I was pregnant. I had no idea I was pregnant with my second, my girl, and so I was doing all of this.
Speaker 2:Wow.
Speaker 3:When you're a mother, you have strength beyond compare, and I just remember music saving me.
Speaker 3:I remember just you know, tapping, putting my headphones on and just praying a whole lot, tapping into my faith, my spirituality, and for a while I felt like music left me. I wasn't teaching at the time, we were just trying to get ourselves out of our financial situation and it was definitely challenging. I felt like at that moment I wanted to give up and for me, what resonated with me was my faith and getting stronger in that fostered a deeper connection to music, a deeper connection to dance. So now, when anybody walks through my doors, I'm able to connect with a lot of different people for a lot of different reasons that they may not necessarily know upon first meeting me. So I feel like it did me well. It taught me an extreme amount of empathy. It taught me an extreme amount of care and compassion when it comes to talking with people. I don't like to say I needed to go through that experience.
Speaker 2:Of course my child didn't need to go through that, but I feel like I can draw so many lessons from that experience and it's made me a more in tune person today for you to be able to get those lessons and and like I said, like you said I wouldn't say that you needed to go through that, but because you went through that, now you're able to continue to bless others, including me today here with this conversation.
Speaker 2:So if you want, if you would want it to leave one thing with our listeners that you wanted them to remember about Phoenix, dance 36, what would that be?
Speaker 3:Connection, connection, connection, connection. I have a mantra, a mantra when you come into the doors for dance, before you leave here today, I want you to know and understand the three C's. You ready?
Speaker 2:Ready.
Speaker 3:All right Connection to your body, connection to the music and connection to your partner. So every class has a curriculum and we focus on those three C's Getting connected in the present moment you're telling your body what to do and then connecting to the music what are you hearing? What is your body responding to? The tempo, the pace, all the different instrumentation, and then that final connection is the person that you're dancing with. Connection to your partner. So I would say, if anything, know me for the three Cs, know me for connection. Connection. Even in somatic therapy I focus on getting people connected to their bodies, their minds and their spirits so beautiful.
Speaker 2:My mantra is dance is joy manifest in the body, so I love to see people dance because I feel like that's just their body being joyous. I really do appreciate you. I've enjoyed this conversation. I'm going to connect with you soon. I promise you you'll see me. Thank you so much for being here and best of luck to you and your business moving forward. Thank you for having me. Before we go, though, how can people connect with you and get in touch with you?
Speaker 3:Yes, you can find me on YouTube. You can find me PhoenixDance36. Do a quick search, for I am PhoenixDance36. You'll see the black, red and white logo, and you'll see a bunch of shorts of me dancing everything from salsa bachata. I also have an online course for those of you who like to learn in the comfort of your home, and so that's available. And you can also find me on Instagram. I am Phoenix Dance 36 and also Phoenix Dance 36. So there's no reason not to find me.
Speaker 2:Connect with her in all the ways. Thank you so much, Phoenix. Thank you.
Speaker 1:Thank you for listening to the Good Neighbor podcast. To nominate your favorite local businesses to be featured on the show, go to gnpcobbcountycom. That's gnpcobbcountycom, or call 470-470-4506.