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Naimah Naimah is the artistic director and choreographer for Las Vegas-based Ethnophonica and the award winning Cobras Youth Troupe. Her dancing is diverse and multicultural, just like her British and Grenadan heritage. Growing up in a environment filled with West Indian rhythms, she has always loved the energy and spirit of the islands - especially the vibrance of Afro-Caribbean carnivals. Like most spectators, she is mesmerized by the explosion of dazzling color and fantasy, the pounding drum beat, and the frenzied dancing and celebrating. Naimah enjoys bringing that type of intense,heart-pounding, sexy stylization to her belly dancing. She specializes in an Afro-Tribal dance style, fusing belly dance with West African and Afro-Caribbean movements and music. The signature style of Ethnophonica is certainly a bolder, more aggressive interpretation of tribal fusion, and Naimah is known for expressing a strong, empowered female energy in her performances. The goal is to leave the audience breathless and invigorated! There are strong ritual elements to African music invoking symbolic and spiritual energies, and Ethnophonica's dances are a "call to the spirits." This emphasis on ritual expression in dance comes from Naimah's background in cultural anthropology and women's studies. She has a Master's of the Arts Degree in Education, and her life's passion is teaching. In fact, her first introduction to belly dance was not through the arts, but through academia! While completing a graduate-level course in anthropology and organizing a women's altars exhibit at California State University, Northridge, Naimah met belly dancers who viewed their dance as ritual expression and their bodies as altars. After seeing their performances, she was hooked! Now, after more than five years of belly dance training under her hip belt and numerous professional performances, she travels the United States teaching workshops to other belly dance goddesses!
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