Your Movement Team

Community Commitments

BODY EMPOWERMENT / We believe bodies of any shape and size deserve to move in an empowered way. We are committed to combating anti-fat bias and toxic beauty standards by leaving diet and negative body talk at the studio door, and reimagining a movement space that uplifts all bodies.

GENDER / We are a community of women and marginalized gendered people. We welcome anyone on the gender spectrum who has experienced any form of gender oppression.

BIPOC / We are committed to providing an unequivocally safe space across all our classes for BIPOC bodies. We respect and value the pluralism of our community and we require that everyone here does the same.

ACCESS / Our space is not completely physically accessible. We are committed to improving our facility access and offering indoor and livestream classes that include members of the community with a visible or non-visible disability, as we believe this is a part of a community’s diversity. Service dogs are allowed.

CENSORSHIP / We are culture creators & culture keepers. We feel a responsibility to ensure that we all feel safe & empowered within Hipline's walls. With that in mind, we have a firm policy in place to unequivocally mute: Any lyric containing the "n-word" (in class / in the common areas) Songs by or featuring R. Kelly / Chris Brown / Michael Jackson

LOVE CLUB

Hipline is committed to ensuring everyone feels welcome on its premises regardless of economic status. If our class pass pricing is a barrier to joining, please consider applying for our Love Club Membership. Love Club Membership qualifies a Hipliner to purchase classes at the rate of $8 per class for one year.

If you would like to participate in LOVE CLUB, please fill out this <strong><em>form</em></strong>.

Ariel (she/her)

Left cheek right cheek left cheek right cheek

- Booty Werk | T Pain

Ariel (she/her)

Born and raised in the Bay Area, Ariel’s dance journey began when she took her first tap class at the age of 5. As she grew so did her love for dance, so she joined her high school dance team and her church’s praise dance team. After graduating, Ariel went straight into becoming the Captain of her church’s dance team, and a full time dance teacher at a studio for children. She also is part of a Bay Area hip hop group based out of Oakland where she serves as the Assistant Choreographer.

Current Classes
  • Power Pop
View Schedule
Favorite Bands
  • Ying Yang Twins
  • Goapele
  • Beyonce'
  • Ciara
  • Eryka Badu
Blair (she/her)

Headed in the right direction
I can see the light of day
I've got faith and intuition telling me that I will be okay

- Headed In The Right Direction | India Arie

Blair (she/her)

Blair (she/her) grew up in Detroit, Michigan where she began her first ballet class at 7 years old through a program at her childhood church. This inspired an upbringing of opportunities in expressive movement leading to minoring in dance in college and studying at The Ailey School in NYC. With training in Modern dance (Graham, Horton), West & Central African, Ballet, Jazz, Improvisation, Methods in Teaching, and Creative Dance – she has continued dancing till today and is thrilled to share her love for freedom in dance with you.

Current Classes
  • Shimmy Pop
View Schedule
Favorite Bands
  • Nina Simone
  • Rihanna
  • Avicii
  • J Balvin
  • D'Banj
Dalia (she/her/ella)

We’re gonna spread the love, we’re gonna spread it ‘round.

- Shungudzo

Dalia (she/her/ella)

Dalia grew up in a household where dancing was always a celebration of being alive. Her mamá taught her from a young age that even dancing with your thumbs at good news was a way to gozar! Dalia’s formal relationship with dance began with her love of musical theater at a young age and has since expanded into including modern dance and finding any opportunity to be on a dance floor with her pals. She invites you to bring your silliest, bravest, most dramatic selves to the dance floor!

Dalia creció en un hogar en que bailando siempre era una celebración de estar viva. Su mamá le enseñó que hasta bailando con sus pulgares a buenas noticias es una manera de gozar. La relación formal que Dalia desarrolló con baile empezó con su amor por el teatro musical en su niñez y ha expandido a incluir danza moderna y buscando cualquier oportunidad para bailar con sus amigues. ¡Ella te invita a llevar tu versión más creativo, valiente, y dramática a la pista de baile!

Current Classes
  • Shimmy Pop
View Schedule
Favorite Bands
  • Florence + The Machine
  • Halsey
  • Janelle Monae
  • Carla Morrison
  • Bad Bunny
View Playlist
Talia (she/her)

If you want to live your life
Live it all the way and don't waste it
Every feelin' every beat
Can be so very sweet you gotta taste it

- Let's Get Loud | Jennifer Lopez

Talia (she/her)

Starting at a young age in the worlds of Ballet and Modern, Talia also found love in Jazz, Hip Hop, Contact/Improv, African, and various latin dance styles. After getting her B.A. in dance, she has been performing, choreographing and teaching for the past 13 years. In addition to Power Pop, Talia teaches various dance classes, Zumba, Yoga, Pilates, PIYO, strength training and is excited to bring her passion for movement, music and health to the Hipline community!

Current Classes
  • Power Pop
  • The Mix
  • Shimmy Pop
View Schedule
Favorite Bands
  • Missy Elliot
  • Salt n Pepa
  • Rihanna
  • Britney Spears
  • Janet Jackson
View Playlist
Nadiah (she/her)

They love the way I walk, cause I walk with a vengeance

- Grown Woman | Beyoncé

Nadiah (she/her)

Nadiah began training as a gymnast at the young age of 5, which gave her the confidence to try many sports and pursue dance. She has explored jazz, tap, and hip hop, but she found her calling in Salvador Bahia Brazil in 2008 when she tried Capoeira, Afro-Brazilian dance and Samba for the first time. She has been training capoeira for over 9 year has been pursuing her passion for Samba since 2012. Nadia has invested countless hours taking classes both here in the United States and in Brazil and all of that hard work paid off when she competed in 2017 at the USA national Samba King and Queen competition where she came in 3rd place winning the title of Diva Do Samba USA 2017/2018. Along with dancing weekly with the lovely ladies of Hipline, Nadiah also teaches Samba Classes and is the assistant director of the Bay Area’s very own Samba Sensation, Brazilian Dance Entertainment Group. She had the honor of Parading in Brazil’s Carnaval in 2018 and looks forward to returning every year that she can!

Current Classes
  • Samba No Pé
  • Shimmy Pop
View Schedule
Favorite Bands
  • MC Koringa
  • Beyonce'
  • Drake
  • Mavado
  • Janelle Monae
View Playlist
Kat (she/they)

If I’m shinin’, everybody gonna shine. I was born like this, don’t even gotta try.

- Lizzo | Juice

Kat (she/they)

Kat (she/her) has been dancing her whole life. She trained in Jazz, Ballet, Tap, Hiphop, Contemporary, and Modern dance and has taught and performed with local companies in Alabama, South Carolina, and the Bay Area (since she moved here in 2012). Most recently she taught a virtual, fat-positive dance class promoting body liberation. Kat knows that many dance and fitness spaces can be exclusionary and harsh on the body and body image. She wants to tap into the side of dance that is self-care, catharsis, embodiment, pleasure, and empowerment. Her Shimmy Pop is low impact on joints, but high energy and expression. Kat loves biking, cats, being an aunt, and learning more about her Assyrian Lebanese ancestry.

Current Classes
  • The Mix
  • Shimmy Pop
  • Pop-Up Classes
View Schedule
Favorite Bands
  • Lizzo
  • Toddrick Hall
  • Alabama Shakes
  • Doja Cat
  • Princess Nokia
View Playlist
Lili (she/her/hers)

I don't get dehydrated
I moisturize it daily
I am my inspiration
I am my inspiration

- Water Me | Lizzo

Lili (she/her/hers)

Lili’s interest in the arts started as a child - initially with drawing and painting, shortly after expanding into dance and theater. While she does not have formal training in dance, it has been a constant thread throughout her life. She is constantly inspired by the people and places she encounters. If there is music, there is dancing!

Current Classes
  • Shimmy Pop
View Schedule
Favorite Bands
  • Little Dragon
  • Shakira
  • Lizzo
  • Rihanna
  • Bomba Estereo
View Playlist
Tiffany (she/her)

We will carve our place into time and space.

- Wild Things | Alessia Cara | Know-It-All

Tiffany (she/her)

Dance is one of the great joys in my life and has definitely shaped me into the person I am today. My dance teachers growing up always said to take as many classes you can from whoever you can. Thankfully I took their advice! From ballet, tap, jazz, lyrical, modern, hip hop, pom/cheerleading, and gymnastics - each of these forms of dance and movement have made a lasting impression in my mind and body, each building upon each other, each making me fall in love again and again. I'm super excited and honored to share my love of dance with you!

Current Classes
  • Sunday Dance Moves: Short Combos w/ Tiffany
View Schedule
Favorite Bands
  • Janet Jackson
  • Dua Lipa
  • Britney Spears
  • Kaskade
  • Paula Abdul
View Playlist
Alicia (she/her)

I'm Far From Finished...Love the Life that I'm Living

- Far From Finished | Voice

Alicia (she/her)

Alicia Langlais is a Bay Area Dancer, instructor, and dance inspiration coach. Hailing from Bronx, NY, Hip-Hop and Caribbean culture were apart of her household and community which informed her passion for movement and dance, even as she began ballet training at the age of seven. In addition to over 15 years of dance training, teaching, and performing in New York and the Bay Area, Alicia also has a Master's of Education Degree in School Counseling and Master's of Art Degree in Transpersonal Psychology. Her M.A. degree concentration in Creative Expression with studies and research focused on Dance Therapy allows Alicia to meld her dance training, personal experience with dance trauma, and mental wellness backgrounds to help students slay dance related insecurities or trauma, which she calls "Dance Dragons."

Current Classes
  • Shimmy Pop
View Schedule
Favorite Bands
  • Wiz Kid
  • Machel Montano
  • Reminisce
  • Toofan
  • Angela Hunte
Tammy (she/her)

I let my music take me where my heart wants to go

- The Wind | Cat Stevens

Tammy (she/her)

Tammy grew up in Ohio and moved to the Bay Area to explore nutrition, capoeira, and life! Teaching others to get in touch with their bodies: both through movement and nutrition is a passion that continues to grow and expand. She currently runs a private nutrition practice called The Nourished Belly and runs Capoeira Brasil East Bay in Oakland.

Current Classes
  • Power Pop
  • Pop-Up Classes
View Schedule
Favorite Bands
  • Sean Paul
  • Ledisi
  • Fifth Harmony
  • Justin Bieber
  • Santigold
View Playlist
Christie (she/her)

Here comes the sun, and I say
It's all right

- Here Comes The Sun | The Beatles

Christie (she/her)

Christie Makanna is a East Bay native, an OG Hipliner, a classical yoga teacher and a staunch believer in our innate power. She has been practicing and teaching yoga for 20 years while dancing and healing through physical enterprise her whole life. Christie focuses on movement and strength training based on feminine power. She believes physical awareness is a steadying force in an unsteady world. Come explore, you’ll leave rejuvenated, centered and strong.

Current Classes
  • Power Pop
View Schedule
Favorite Bands
  • Solange
  • Lizzo
  • Sister Nancy
  • Rihanna
  • Billie Eilish
View Playlist
Isabelle (they/them)

And when you're ready sis, we'll be right here

- Us , Ruby Ibarra (feat. Rocky Rivera, Klassy & Faith Santilla), Circa91

Isabelle (they/them)

Isabelle was born and raised in Oakland and a proud first generation immigrant.

Isabelle studied dance at Oakland School for the Arts, started attending classes at Hipline in 2016 and began teaching in 2019. Isabelle is community and collective justice oriented while dedicated to creating a radical space that feels both heart-opening and empowering. Their class is focused on movement as it was originally intended : as medicine, not punishment. There will be ass shaking, laughing, releasing, pushing, breathing and a healthy dose of tantrum throwing. Isabelle invites all of you to the dance floor and firmly believes the feelings that come up when moving in community can help us better understand what we need as a whole - as well as our own personal roles in building towards collective liberation!

Current Classes
  • Shimmy Pop
  • Pop-Up Classes
View Schedule
Favorite Bands
  • Rihanna
  • Beyonce
  • Rosalia
  • Missy Elliot
  • Grimes
Emma (she/her)

I am brave, I am bruised, I am who I'm meant to be
This is me.

- Keala Settle (This is Me from the Greatest Showman soundtrack)

Emma (she/her)

Emma (she/her) started gymnastics at the age of 4 and fell in love with dance (mostly hip hop) and musical theater through the following years. She was in her high school's theater company and was dance team captain, and with the exception of learning TikTok dances during the pandemic, had lost touch with her passion for teaching and performing over the past decade. She credits Hipline for bringing her closer to her love of movement and music, and is absolutely thrilled to be part of this inclusive community. Her favorite things include delicious Asian food, comedy, live music, and exploring a new national park or foreign city. Emma was born and raised in Vancouver, Canada and moved to the Bay Area in 2014 to pursue a career in marketing and events.

Current Classes
  • Power Pop
View Schedule
Favorite Bands
  • Kelly Clarkson
  • Celine Dion
  • Beyonce
  • P!nk
  • Jessie J
View Playlist
Gabriela (she/her)

What will we do when we get old? Will we walk down the same road? Will you be there by my side? Standing strong as the waves roll over

- Lean On | DJ Snake & Major Lazer

Gabriela (she/her)

Since I was little, all I ever wanted to do was dance. I guess you could say that I had to patiently wait until I was 27 for the stars to align and the opportunity to really present itself. Sure, I got my dance in at The Sound Factory with my fake ID way before I was 21, and maybe you even saw me at City Nights in my halter top and clunky black shoes; I lived for jumping in the car with my girlfriends, crossing that bridge and getting into the city to dance all night. And now, (many) years later, as a grateful mama of two tiny dancers, the magic isn’t lost on me that I get to be a part of Hipline seven days a week. I’m proud of what we’ve built over the last ten years. I am a first generation Lebanese Peruvian, and it has taken a lot of hard work to build a sustainable business in the Bay. I have a deep respect and love for everyone that comes to try us out and all the clients that have been with us over the years. I believe with all my heart (and my heart is huge) that we gotta keep dancing to make the change we want to see in this world.

Current Classes
  • Power Pop
  • The Mix
  • Shimmy Pop
View Schedule
Favorite Bands
  • E-40
  • Major Lazer
  • J.Lo
  • Danza Kaduro
  • Qveen Herby
View Playlist
Archaa (she/her)

i found god in myself
& i loved her / i loved her fiercely

- Ntozake Shange

Archaa (she/her)

Archaa's earliest memories of doing yoga involve a sheet spread onto her carpeted living room floor and comfy pj's- no yoga mat or yoga pants in sight. Archaa spent 6 years as a classroom teacher and teaching yoga combines 2 of her greatest passions. Yoga - and its associated postures and breath techniques - tie deeply to her cultural roots and help her connect to her spirit.

Current Classes
  • Pop-Up Classes
View Schedule
Favorite Bands
  • Indian instrumental music
  • Bansari

Vision. Mission. Values.

VISION Shimmy. Connect. Love.

MISSION Hipline is a brave space for belonging. We are a community of women and marginalized gendered people of different backgrounds, races, and abilities. Together, we celebrate the connection with ourselves and each other through dance, movement, fitness, and creativity. Est. 2008 | Women of color owned.

VALUES

Learning / We come to terms with what we don’t know and embrace the tension of growth, admit harm done, and commit to active healing.

Accountability / We take impact seriously and have a shared responsibility in reaching resolution and agreement.

Justice / We reflect on the privilege we bring to the space to create an environment of equity across gender, race, and bodies.

Community / We recognize that the community is our backbone. We work to create mutual understanding by bridging relationships across identities and upholding each person’s voice.

Pleasure / We value the healing energy of movement. We encourage dancers to tap into desires, joy, body empowerment and creative expression for the liberation of self and the broader community.

Em (he/she/they)

Music heals too.

- | Björk

Em (he/she/they)

Em (he/she/they) didn't discover dance until 2016, when she first stepped foot on the Hipline dance floor and found their life forever changed. Dance was a way to fuse Em's lifelong loves of music, creative expression and physicality. Over the past years, Em's been a dancing fiend and a devoted student of movement, taking lessons in Jamaican dancehall, hip hop, bellydance and more to add finesse and artistic dimension on top of his background in kickboxing, martial arts, wrestling and rockclimbing. Em is beyond excited to join the Shimmy Pop team and hopes to share her warmth and passion with dancers of all skill levels.

Current Classes
  • Shimmy Pop
View Schedule
Favorite Bands
  • Charli XCX
  • Carrie Underwood
  • FKA twigs
  • MUNA
  • Gallant
View Playlist
Stacy (she/her/hers)

Nothing cooler than the wrong moves when you do 'em to the right song

- Particula | Major Lazer | Know No Better

Stacy (she/her/hers)

Stacy eagerly started dance classes at age 3, falling in love with tap, ballet, jazz and eventually bellydance (thanks Hipline!) She stayed active with tennis, track and dance team in high school, and continued her pursuit of dance and choreography in college, including 2 years as a Tap teaching assistant in the UC Berkeley PE dept. She found Hipline in early 2009 and was inspired by the amazing classes and supportive environment. After a 6 year move to NYC she returned to the Bay Area and into the open shimmy embrace of Hipline in 2016 and never looked back. She's excited to share her love of movement with this strong women-centered community she so dearly loves.

Current Classes
  • Power Pop
  • The Mix
View Schedule
Favorite Bands
  • Enrique Iglesias
  • M.I.A.
  • Mayer Hawthorne
  • Major Lazer
  • Dua Lipa
View Playlist
Tamoshie (she/her)

Peace Begins with a smile.

- Mother Teresa

Tamoshie (she/her)

Tamoshie began dancing before she even knew what dance was! She eagerly stood atop her grandmothers dining room table, turning the speakers full blast, and popping them while singing and dancing to some of the most memorable 90s R&B hits. Tamoshie took jazz classes in elementary school and eagerly joined a dance team in middle school. In between dancing, Tamoshie cheered for a short while in middle and high school. In college Tamoshie continued to keep dancing to the beat of her life, involved in jazz classes and teaching dance and cheer to middle school youth in Southern California. She also taught dance to preschool age children. Tamoshie believes that she was just born to dance and can’t see her life without it. Join Tamoshie on the dancefloor!

Current Classes
  • Shimmy Pop
View Schedule
Favorite Bands
  • Sam Smith
  • Beyonce
  • Miguel
  • Jungle
  • Corrine Bailey Rae
View Playlist
Lisha (she/her)

Get the point? Good, let’s dance.

- Rhythm Nation 1814 | Janet Jackson

Lisha (she/her)

Lisha Yates is a Virginia native and gymnast-turned-dancer. She has performed and choreographed contemporary, jazz, and hip hop styles over the years for her college dance team and several adult dance companies on the East Coast. After 3.5 years in the Bay Area, she has finally gotten her dance groove back and loves shimmying with the Hipline community!

Current Classes
  • Shimmy Pop
View Schedule
Favorite Bands
  • Janelle Monae
  • Kendrick Lamar
  • James Brown
  • Solange
  • Prince
View Playlist
Madisyn (she/her)

The things that excite you are not random; they are connected to your purpose. Follow them.

- anonymous

Madisyn (she/her)

Born and raised in Prince George's County Maryland, Madisyn began her journey exploring movement at the tender age of 5 when she was enrolled in her first jazz dance class. After 9-months of preparation, she hit the stage in her bright yellow rubber ducky costume and discovered that dance was not just an after-school activity but a calling. After that performance, she was enrolled in a pre-professional training program at age 6 and trained in the styles of ballet, African, jazz, tap, modern, contemporary, and acrobatics until age 18 under some of the most notable figures in dance. Madisyn currently works as a professional dancer and choreographer and has worked on a number of staged performances in both capacities. Madisyn loves to share her love of movement with others and help them explore the gift of healing through movement for themselves. Madisyn cannot wait to share space with you in class as she leads us through movement that promotes healing, confidence, mind-body connection, and reconnecting to our joy through play!

Current Classes
  • Shimmy Pop
View Schedule
Favorite Bands
  • Qveen Herby
  • Beyonce
  • Jhene Aiko
  • Janelle Monae
  • Erykah Badu
View Playlist
I need a witness

Testimonials

Just go. Beautiful community, great space, very welcoming. I felt so welcomed.

fitness community welcoming
Carly she/her

This place is a safe space. I have always felt very welcome and happy being there. The owner is wonderful, and so are the instructors. I wish my schedule allowed me more time slots to go to more classes. If you have a flexible schedule, getting the monthly membership is awesome!
Try out all the classes you want. That's the best.

friendly fitness community
Deyanira she/her

Hipline has literally saved me during the COVID shutdown. The online livestream classes are amazing -- the instructors have great energy and personal interactions, and the choreography is challenging and fun. Thank you for keeping us dancing, Hipline team!

Sejal  she/her
Sejal she/her

I’ll admit, I passed by the studio for 10 years on my way to TJs, and thought it wasn’t for me — is it a cult? But once I tried it, I quickly found out that it IS a cult — a cult of positive energy and encouragement, body and color positivity, and embracing movement of all types. My kind of cult.

Adriane she/her
Adriane she/her

Since 2010, I've been re-energizing my mind, body and spirit at Hipline. This creative dance/exercise studio is a community that welcomes ALL female spirits/bodies while creatively welcoming evolution of the mind and spirit through workshops, and meaningful conversations.

Liz she/her
Liz she/her

I started attending classes at Hipline in 2019, & discovered an opportunity to re-connect with my body for the first time since I became a mother in 2014, a safe space for expression & release, & a structure that invited me to experience movement authentically, bringing whoever I might be on any given day. I am a member because it has literally changed the way I think about myself & my body, & because I get not just physical benefits, but emotional & mental health benefits, too. Hipline is a true gift, and I'm so grateful for all of it.

Genie she/her/hers
Genie she/her/hers

I am so grateful for Hipline. I grew up with dance and stopped when I was 18, because I couldn't find classes where the emphasis was more on fun rather than technique and perfection. Grateful is the only word I can think of - so thank you thank you!

Paige she/her
Paige she/her

I appreciate Hipline and everything that you do for our community. I just finished class & it made me think of how much Sunday class has helped me through the pandemic when I was feeling pretty low during shelter-in-place. Hipline is truly an amazing space for all of us and I'm so thankful for this wonderful studio!

Hipline Great Fitness space BIPOC
Bronwyn she/her