Origins of the 'Detroit Hustle' dance, a staple of any good wedding

8/1/2016

If you’ve been to a wedding in Michigan, or really any party, you’ve probably seen or joined in the dance called the Detroit Hustle. You know the one: usually set to Stevie Wonder’s “My Eyes Don’t Cry No More,” it’s right up there with cake and chairs as a wedding reception essential.

For the uninitiated, the Detroit Hustle is a popular line dance that brings the whole crowd together. Over the years, other dances like the Cha Cha Slide and the Cupid Shuffle have joined the rotation, but the Hustle remains the most familiar across generations.

Interestingly, this dance isn’t known everywhere in the same way. Locally, it’s often just called The Hustle, but in other parts of the country, it goes by names like The Electric Slide. Even when the name matches, the soundtrack doesn’t. Ask a Michigander, and they’ll swear the song is Stevie Wonder. Tell that to someone from Chicago or Minnesota, and they’ll probably insist it’s Van McCoy’s “The Hustle” or Marcia Griffiths’ “Electric Boogie.”

So how did Stevie Wonder get attached to this local tradition? While no one can say for sure, it’s likely thanks to Motown’s roots in Detroit and Stevie’s lifelong career with the label. Somewhere along the way, DJs here gave a Motown spin to a classic party dance.

Though the Hustle’s popularity peaked in the 90s, and yes, some brides I meet can’t stand it, it’s still a crowd-pleaser. From a DJ’s perspective, group dances like this are the easiest way to get people moving. Guests feel more comfortable in a group, and the dance floor fills up fast. And for DJs, a seven-minute line dance also doubles as a much-needed break.

At your next wedding, try asking an out-of-town guest which song goes with the Hustle and watch their reaction.

14 Comments

Author

Tom Santilli has been in the Detroit wedding industry since 2002, and in that time has established himself as one of the top in his field. His company, Complete Video Solutions , was named as the #1 Best Wedding Videographer in Detroit by local brides and Channel 4 FIVE consecutive years and is currently inducted into TheKnot.com's "Vendor Hall of Fame." He also has won several awards for his wedding production, and is a member of WEVA (Wedding & Event Videographers Association.) As the Detroit Wedding Examiner, he has helped hundreds of brides with their weddings, with a local knowledge not found anywhere else. Being in the industry for so long, he is an expert in all areas of wedding planning, not just videography. He welcomes your questions, article suggestions, or feedback, and he can be reached
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María

8/28/2018 07:49:01 pm

The Hustle originated in NYC in the 70s - what you’re talking about is the Electric Slide. How ever did that get to be called the Hustle?

Dubh

9/2/2018 02:04:27 am

Back in the '70s, there were several regional Hustle variants. The New York, L.A., Chicago, and Detroit Hustle come to Mind.

All of these were variants on a basic dance theme, and each was known, nationwide, but more popular in its own region.

I learned them all, back in the day, but can't remember how to do any of them, now. It's been so long....

RENEE YOUNG

9/22/2023 09:27:29 am

The hustle was put long beige the 70s. Black folks are the original people who did it. Van McCoy did not start this dance. Once Hite people started doing it then it became main stream. But if you were to go to parties at a black home or dance hall you'd see how it's really done.

Ilar

2/1/2020 02:19:02 pm

There are initially two Hustles. The one done to Van McCoy's song in the 70's. and the one some people call the Detroit Hustle (with different dance steps from the original, except for the first grapevine part) that became popular around the late 80's. People in Michigan were used to doing the dance to Stevie Wonder's My Eyes Don't Cry No More. However, the same dance was being done across the rest of the country to The Electric Boogie by Griffiths and called the ElectricElectric Slide. I found this out in person when I traveled to different places during that time. It was the exact same dance.

Joyce Stoughton-kim link

10/14/2020 11:12:47 pm

Correct on the line dance history however, there is m ore to the Hustle.
Detroit Hustle refers to a couples partner dance that is a cross between the original Lindy swing of the 1930's and Latin dances that date back to the 1940''s. When music changes then the dance need to change to create a new style to fit the new sound. In the mid to late 1950's a new dance was formed from the new music mixing the 2 previous dance styles to create the Hustle. The couple version of the Hustle is now regional, New Your Hustle, Detroit Hustle, etc. But thought the years there were many more styles of hustle. The Foxy Trot Hustle, the Tango Hustle as seen in the finale dance scene of Saturday Night Fever with John Travolta, and many more style thatch be found In the social dance worlds of swing and ballroom. While Hustle is a partner dance it is also the line dance that was born from Van McCoys song from the 1970's "Do the Hustle. You can YouTube (me) Joyce Stoughton and Barry Douglas for a video view of the partner dance the Detroit Hustle then check out Alex Kim for some latin Hustle, and Maria Torres for some great New York Style. Enjoy the Hustle!

Melanie link

4/16/2019 09:18:47 pm

Look at them all shaking it!

Dave Doobin

7/22/2019 04:44:16 pm

This is how white people party.

joyce stoughton-kim link

2/20/2020 09:55:06 pm

Please let me hustle on in to this Detroit Hustle conversation.

Detroit Hustle as we know it here in Detroit is a couples partner dance based on a 3-count step base where the dancers begin forward on one instead of a rock back on the &1.
In the Detroit version of Hustle, dancers use the count 1,2,& 3 and dance the dance is danced on a slot rather than circular.

This style of Hustle is dated back to the mid 1960's when a group of Cuban dancers come from Miami to a dance club in Metro Detroit(14 mile & Van Dyke) then called the Butterfly Suite and later Characters.

For more information on the Detroit Hustle, contact Joyce Stoughton-Kim at the Center for Social Dance in Okemos, Michigan or visit Detroit Hustle with Joyce Stoughton-Kim

Keep on Hustling everyone and remember, it's not your sisters line dance...

Gloria Braden

8/6/2022 01:11:29 pm

I used to hustle with BJ, can you tell me where they are doing the Hustle Dance now in Detroit. I said B J because he is the best in the city of Southfield/Detroit.

Alex Bogue

1/3/2022 03:55:57 pm

Au contraire on the decline. It’s been played at every wedding I’ve been to in the last 25 years.

Dubs link

9/21/2022 12:38:06 am

thanks

Tino Maggio

9/6/2023 02:02:44 am

The "Detroit Hustle" is NOT a line dance. It is a partner dance that was developed from Latin Hustle by the top dancers here in Detroit. In 1984, a Symposium was held which included EVERY top dancer in Michigan. We discussed, debated, consulted, conferred, argued, analyzed, and finally agreed, on what Detroit Hustle was going to be, and we standardized it with specific principals and criteria. I was one of the 40 or so dancers at this historic Symposium.
First and foremost, it's a slot dance without the use of the turning basic as you'd see in New York or Latin Hustle. It works off of a side basic, thus eliminating the need for a turning basic.
We count it 1, 2, & 3 which eliminates the frantic hopping action that we see so often in NY and Latin Hustle on their & 1 count.
With the exception of the free spin, the lady ALWAYS goes back on 2, closes her feet on &, and steps forward on 3. This is known as a Coaster step. There is NO rock backwards in Detroit Hustle, which eliminates the woman's torso moving too far backward and yanking the man's arms out of his sockets.
The free spin is executed as a Chaînes Turn on 1 2, followed by a Soutenu Turn on the & 3, which keeps the consistency of the lady closing her feet on every "&" count.
Free Spins travel from one end of the slot to the other. They do not double back to the origination point of the turns, as they do in NY or Latin Hustle.
There are only FOUR patterns that a lady needs to learn to be able to follow 95% of the dance. The other 5% are steps found in other dances like swivels, grapevines, etc. There are only 7-10 patterns that the man needs to learn. All of the steps in Detroit Hustle are made up of these simple patterns.
There is also NEVER a time in Detroit Hustle where the man just points his left foot for his & 3 counts. If his foot is to the side (like in a throwout), he ALWAYS dances a side break with hip action. Pointing on & 3 is a major no-no because you've just abandoned one of the 2 things a man is supposed to provide the lady in dancing (timing). With no hip or foot action for the lady to feel, he has just surrendered the duty of keeping time to the lady. NEVER a good idea. Ladies don't have as good a sense of timing as you'd think they have.
Detroit Hustle almost always beats NY or Latin Hustle in competition because it is cleaner and more stylized. I can say this because I have had 77 United States Hustle Champion students, along with 2 World Champion Students, always while dancing against NY and Latin Hustle dancers.....and we are the current World Champions in Hustle. And no, I'm not talking about some arbitrary Hustle or WCS organization, I'm talking about the World Championship as recognized by the N.D.C.A. (National Dance Council of America), the governing body of dance in the United States. I'd have more World Champion Hustle students, but I've only gone to the World Championships twice.....but we won both times :)~
If anyone would like to discuss this in more detail, feel free to contact me through Facebook.

Wedding MC Hire link

10/25/2023 06:57:11 am

The "Detroit Hustle" – a dance floor classic born in Motown's rhythm. From Stevie Wonder's beats to its diverse national identities, it's a Michigan wedding essential. While its popularity has shifted, the dance remains a timeless crowd-pleaser, giving DJs the perfect segue into the dance-filled night. And let's not forget the unsung hero – the Wedding MC, orchestrating seamless celebrations. So, at your wedding, ask about the "Hustle" song, and watch the dance unite generations, making memories to last a lifetime!

Jenae Rubin link

8/25/2024 07:20:17 am

You’re coming about the electric slide being a hustle is 100% incorrect. It’s a line dance. It’s a line dance to hustle music. It is not the hustle.

The difference between the Detroit hustle, and all of the other hustles is the count. The Detroit hustle is 12 and three. The New York hustle, Latin hustle or just the hustle count is: and 123. This means that where you put the emphasis on the steps with the music is different. Other than that, the dances identical.

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