Before the activism, trips around the world and movie appearances Richard “Crazy Legs” Colón Born January 1, 1966 in the Bronx was just another kid coming of age during hip-hop’s formative years of breaking, at a time when the Bronx and New York City were going through an extraordinarily difficult period. The city was facing severe economic hardship, disinvestment, crime and social upheaval that had many neighborhoods struggling with limited resources and opportunities that would ultimately put a huge strain on families across the city, but particularly the Bronx.
Yet amid those circumstances, a generation of young talent created something entirely new. Breaking, DJing, graffiti and MCing became forms of identity and expression—giving young people a way to define themselves and their communities on their own terms, enter the Rock Steady Crew.
For more than five decades, the Rock Steady Crew has stood at the heart of B-boy culture and the global history of hip-hop. Crazy Legs would go on to become one of the culture’s most recognizable figures and, ultimately, the president of Rock Steady Crew. But the story of Rock Steady begins even earlier, with Joe-Joe and Jimmy Dee, who founded the crew in the Bronx in 1977. In 1981, Dee would pass leadership of the crew to Crazy Legs.
Now, current Rock Steady President Richard “Crazy Legs” Colón takes us back to the earliest days of that history while offering an intimate look into his own childhood for his new book, Rock Steady for Life: Bringing Breakdancing to the World, published by Rizzoli.
Through Crazy Legs’ personal perspective, rare photographs and previously unpublished material, Rock Steady for Life chronicles the people, places and moments that helped take breaking from the streets of the Bronx to audiences around the world.
The book offers an intimate look at legendary members of the crew, including Frosty Freeze, Ken Swift, Mr. Freeze, Devious Doze, Buck 4, Kuriaki, Baby Love and many more, while recounting the historic tours and performances that helped introduce B-boy culture to a global audience.
But Rock Steady for Life is about much more than dance. It is a document of New York City, the Bronx and the people who helped build hip-hop culture from the ground up—a story about a generation of young New Yorkers who transformed the streets, music, movement and creativity of their communities into a culture that would eventually reach the entire world and lay the ground work for generations to come.
For DeFY., this history runs especially deep. The story of Rock Steady is inseparable from the streets, creativity and communities of New York that helped shape the culture we know today.
Rock Steady for Life: Bringing Breakdancing to the World is available tomorrow September 22, 2026, via Rizzoli and Amazon.
There will be an in store book signing and Q&A with Crazy Legs from 6-8 pm on September 28, 2026 at The Rizzoli Bookstore 1133 Broadway, New York, NY 10010 followed by an after party at Hidden Tiger NYC