Our Story

Our Mission

To Promote the Japanese parapara dance style as well as the fun-loving, electronic music it accompanies and to embrace all parapara enthusiasts regardless of skill level.

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Our Approach

EKS-D strives to promote parapara with a casual, socially-focused approach.  After all, what is a hobby if it isn’t fun?  We encourage noncritical, self-paced learning and improvement, and remain supportive of our members both on the dance floor and off.  Rather than being a results-driven machine, we aim to remain a network of friends joined by a common love of the dance.

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About the Team

EKS-D ParaPara was founded in November 2006 by high school friends Neko² and Ali after disbanding their previous parapara group Kikimo-dan in March 2006 following a nearly two year hiatus.  The focus of this new team was to reach out and become an inclusive network for the North Texas parapara community and to provide a resource for those interested in learning more about the dance style and the music it accompanies.

The name “EKS-D” was chosen as a phonetic spelling of the letters in the internet emoticon “XD”, which reflects the general lighthearted nature of the parapara community.  A joking bacronym, Energetic Kinetic Synchronous Dance, was later created in response to questions about the name’s meaning.  Since its founding, EKS-D has more than doubled its core membership, chartered a sister team in Atlanta, GA, and has been privileged to join Swedish bubblegum pop group SMiLE.dk in their performances at SanJapan (San Antonio, TX – Aug. 2008) and Sakura-con (Seattle, WA – April 2009).

Our regular activities include parapara-centered gatherings, annual workshops at numerous conventions, and the choreography and filming of several new and existing parapara routines.  EKS-D is a hobbyist, social group with open membership and is created by fans, for fans.  So come and dance with us and ask yourself…

“CAN YOU FEEL THE BEAT?”

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Credits / Accomplishments