Recommended club and dance music

[2026] Iconic and Popular Songs for Super-Cool Breakdance [Breaking]

music writerKOH-1
Started working as a music writer as a side job while employed at a record shop, and for over 18 years I’ve contributed to music magazines, disc guide books, mooks, and web media. As a writer my main field is Western music, but as a listener for over 35 years, I always try to keep my curiosity alive with the motto “I like what I like.” I have experience playing in bands, where I was a bassist who handled songwriting and composition. Instruments I’ve played include bass, guitar, and piano. I began studying English in my mid-40s and continue to do so today.
Former vocal coach specializing in Western musicRyo
With the motto “Learn the basics and enjoy putting them into practice,” I worked as a vocal coach specializing in Western music. As a teen, I questioned the idea that “Western music equals English,” and started listening to songs from around the world. Today, I devour music from over 80 countries and run a personal blog introducing tracks. I often listen to genres like nuevo flamenco, bolero, canzone, and R&B. I’ll keep updating articles daily to find the one perfect song you’re looking for!

Born in the South Bronx of New York in the 1970s, the street dance known as breaking.

Also widely known as breakdancing, breaking has deep ties to music—especially hip-hop—and has played an important role in street culture.

More recently, it was officially recognized as a competition at the Paris 2024 Olympics.

Some younger people may have become interested in breakdancing after watching the Olympics.

For those readers, this article rounds up essential classic tracks that are inseparable from the history of breaking.

We also feature many of the songs used at the Paris Olympics, so be sure to check them out!

[2026] Super Cool Breakdance Classics and Popular Tracks [Breakin’] (11–20)

Brooklyn is BurningHead Automatica

Brooklyn Is Burning

Brooklyn is BurningHead Automatica

Head Automatica is a Brooklyn-based rock band.

Fronted by Daryl Palumbo of the renowned post-hardcore group Glassjaw, the project was launched to pursue his interests in hip-hop and electro.

This track, released early from their 2004 debut album Decadence, was co-produced with Dan the Automator and embodies the essence of dance rock, where fierce breaks coexist with pop hooks.

Featured on the EA SPORTS FIFA Soccer 2005 soundtrack, it helped the band gain international recognition.

It actually samples “Satan Superstar,” released in 1972 by Bob Elger And His Orchestra, and as B-boy background music, its fresh fusion of electro beats and rock’s kinetic energy is especially compelling.

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Funky LoverEruption

Eruption – Funky Lover

Funky LoverEruption

This is a B-side track recorded during Eruption’s early RCA era, by the funk-soul band forged in mid-1970s London.

Written and composed by guitarist Greg Perrineau, it was released in July 1975 as the flip side of a single.

Its bouncing bassline, crisp choppy guitar, and short electric piano riffs lock into a groove tailor-made for breakdance battles.

While it didn’t chart, its tight rhythm and well-placed breaks spread by word of mouth among B-boys and have long been cherished as a go-to beat on the scene.

It captures the raw, straight-ahead band groove from before their disco-leaning international breakthrough.

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PoisonKool G Rap & DJ Polo

Kool G Rap – Poison (Hip Hop Version)

PoisonKool G Rap & DJ Polo

The legendary duo from Queens, New York, Kool G Rap & DJ Polo.

Active since the mid-1980s as members of the Juice Crew, this track—produced by Marley Marl—was released as a 12-inch single in 1988 and stands as one of their early signature works.

Built on a hard-hitting drum break sampled from James Brown’s “Get Up, Get Into It, Get Involved,” its barrage of Kool G Rap’s multisyllabic rhymes established a blueprint for East Coast hardcore that’s still cited today.

With a distinctly SP-1200 texture foregrounded, the Golden Age sound here delivers exceptional drive on breakdance floors.

It’s also renowned for being sampled years later in a smash hit by Bell Biv DeVoe.

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KillingThe Apples

The Apples – Killing

KillingThe Apples

Released in 2007 by Israel’s brass-and-turntable collective The Apples, this work is a stunning instrumental cover that reconstructs a rock classic in a brass-funk style.

It powerfully conveys the original’s anger and exhilaration through wordless horns and scratching, transforming it into a truly danceable protest anthem.

It gets so hyped on the floor that it sparks mass sing-alongs with the audience—there’s even video proof of that shared energy from a Spanish festival in 2012.

It’s perfect for hitting freezes or flashy power moves, and highly recommended for battle scenes where you want overwhelming collective energy on your side.

Definitely try dancing to this groove!

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Squeeze MeKraak & Smaak

Kraak & Smaak – Squeeze Me (feat. Ben Westbeech) (Official Video)

Squeeze MeKraak & Smaak

Clark & Smaark are a Dutch producer/DJ trio.

Active since 2003, they’re known for a crossover sound that freely spans breakbeats, house, funk, and disco.

This 2008 release is one of their signature tracks, featuring UK singer Ben Westbeech.

Centered on an intimate, heartwarming love-song theme—where a lover’s warmth turns everything around—it fuses soulful vocals with breakbeats to striking effect.

It became a top 10 hit in the Netherlands, and its innovative flipbook-style music video earned international acclaim.

The song was also used in a trailer by UK sports broadcaster BT Sport, and it continues to be celebrated as a track that opened up new horizons in club pop.

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