This morning I had the pleasure of chatting with Legacy Perez, the latest dancer to be eliminated from So You Think You Can Dance. We didn't imagine we'd be talking to Legacy until after the finale, but Legacy seemed content with how things played out. Truthfully he says, he's still surprised and thankful he made it into the Top 20 at all.

Legacy chatted about his time on So You Think You Can Dance, last night's results, his love for contemporary, and what he hopes is next for him.


Do you think people voted for Ryan and Ashleigh dancing together rather than against you last night?

"Absolutely. Nobody gets voted against. People have their moments where they want to vote for something. I have think they have the option to, it's a free world.  Unfortunately I was the one in the bottom. I'm actually very excited I left at this point in the competition."

Was their a specific style of dance you learned the most from?

"I just learned I learned my body more than anything. With every genre I feel like I can apply everything to my genre. So there wasn't a specific genre, I just felt like everything as a unit made me understand dance in a better light."

Tell us about your journey from Miami to LA and dancing on the street:

"I was in Miami living at the moment. I saw a movie which everybody was a part of and me and my friend were like, why aren't we in this movie? Let's move out to LA and become famous. I had about 240 dollars in my pocket and we drove from Miami to Los Angeles, to the Santa Monica 3rd Street promenade. And we started dancing on the street to make money and try and earn a living and be successful. That was in April 2004."

Your contemporary pieces were beautiful, do you plan on continuing contemporary dancing after the show?

"I love contemporary. Because it comes from the heart and it makes it so that the movement doesn't have to be perfect, the why you do it has to be perfect. I want to be able to incorporate contemporary in my breaking and choreography something amazing one day that hasn't been seen by the world."

What was your favorite routine that you got to perform?

"It had to be both of my contemporary pieces. It was something once again, I was able to dance freely as far as not worrying about my foot being exactly there. It was more about the feeling and what it made me feel when I danced which made it more enjoyable than anything else."

Do you think it's harder for b-boys to succeed on So You Think You Can Dance?

"Well, absolutely. The adaptability factor plays a big role. As b-boys, we don't like to copy anybody's movement, while contemporary dancers are trained to watch movement and mimic it to the best of their ability and they do it very well. To adapt to other people's styles is almost virtually impossible for a b-boy unless they have a want and desire to do it. But I don't consider myself just a b-boyer, I'm a dancer."

Have you lost street cred in the b-boy community for your time on the show?

"I have not. I gained respect in the perspective and people were inspired before by the movement that I've created for myself. Other b-boys that have been inspired by me, they're the people who text me and say through So You Think You Can Dance I've inspired them to take classes and become a better dancer. And for me, that's the ultimate. People wanting to do that because I've opened that door, it's very exciting for me."

Did you feel one of your partnerships was the most compatible?

"I felt that every partner I had, I had a special way of connecting with them. Some people liked different partnerships that I had. I felt they were all equally amazing. It was just the way you connected to them personally instead of trying to just be good yourself."

What was the most difficult dance for you?

"It was the Viennese Waltz. it was so slow and melodic and beautiful and it's everything against what I would normally do. But I think the actual opportunity to take that obstacle is amazing, and it helped me out in my last solo. I was spinning lyrically."

Did you ever imagine you'd make it so far on the show?

"Going into the competition I didn't  even think I would make top 20. And it's not thinking negatively, but just logistically. How everybody else was technical and can pick up choreography with ease. What I found out was the dynamic of taking a piece and adding your own personal flavor to it is what made people enjoy a contestants pieces. I think that's what I had to bring to the table. Dancing with my heart and passion. I was surprised, but I am glad to have made it this far."

What's next for you?

I want to pursue acting for sure. That's on my list. I want to choreograph and then get into directing. I think my b-boy creativity has opened up my mind to create pieces that are going to be different and impacting."