The fifth season of America's Best Dance Crew premiered on January 28, 2010. Similar to the live casting specials featured in the first two seasons, the first three episodes consisted of separate regional auditions before proceeding to the official national-level competition. Shane Sparks did not return as a judge this season, due to his arrest, and was replaced by Omarion in his only season as a judge.[1] In the live finale, which aired on April 8, 2010, Poreotix was declared the winner.
For the fifth season of America's Best Dance Crew, auditions were held in six cities: Atlanta, Houston, Denver, Los Angeles, Boston, and New York City. Fifteen dance crews were selected and then categorized into three regions: South, East Coast, and West Coast. Following the regional competitions, the initial pool of dance crews was narrowed down to nine.
| Dance Crew | Hometown | Region | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Blended Projekt | West Covina, California | West | |
| Blueprint Cru | Montreal, Canada | East | |
| BreakEFX | Denver, Colorado | West | |
| draZtik | Providence, Rhode Island | East | |
| Ghost | Houston, Texas | South | |
| Heavy Impact | Los Angeles, California | West | |
| Hype 5-0 | Honolulu, Hawaii | West | |
| Jungle Boogie | Stone Mountain, Georgia | South | |
| Legendary Seven | Boston, Massachusetts | East | |
| Poreotix | Westminster, California | West | |
| Royal Flush | Atlanta, Georgia | South | |
| Saltare | Raleigh, North Carolina | East | |
| Static Noyze | Cambridge, Massachusetts | East | |
| Swagger Crew | Atlanta, Georgia | South | |
| X-treme Motion | Houston, Texas | South |
| Rank | Dance Crew | Episodes | |||||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | |||||||||
| 1 | SAFE | SAFE | SAFE | SAFE | SAFE | SAFE | SAFE | ||||||||||||
| 2 | SAFE | SAFE | SAFE | SAFE | |||||||||||||||
| 3 | SAFE | SAFE | SAFE | SAFE | SAFE | ELIM | |||||||||||||
| 4 | SAFE | SAFE | SAFE | SAFE | SAFE | ELIM | |||||||||||||
| 5 | SAFE | SAFE | SAFE | SAFE | SAFE | ELIM | |||||||||||||
| 7 | SAFE | SAFE | SAFE | SAFE | ELIM | ||||||||||||||
| SAFE | SAFE | ELIM | |||||||||||||||||
| 8 | SAFE | ELIM | |||||||||||||||||
| 9 | SAFE | ELIM | |||||||||||||||||
| ELIM | |||||||||||||||||||
| ELIM | |||||||||||||||||||
| ELIM | |||||||||||||||||||
| ELIM | |||||||||||||||||||
| ELIM | |||||||||||||||||||
| ELIM | |||||||||||||||||||
No crews were eliminated due to technical errors in voting.
Blueprint Cru received immunity from the double-elimination for having the judges' favorite performance during the previous episode.
The five top dance crews from the South, selected by Lil Mama, JC Chasez, and guest judge Hokuto Konishi from Quest Crew, competed to represent their region in the Season 5 opener.[2] After the Bottom 3 was chosen, each crew had to face off in a dance battle to "Outta Control" by Baby Bash featuring Pitbull.
| Dance Crew | Song[3] | |
|---|---|---|
| Jungle Boogie | "Bounce" by Busta Rhymes | |
| Ghost | "Android Porn" by Kraddy | |
| X-treme Motion | "She Ain't Got..." by LeToya Luckett | |
| Swagger Crew | "Ice Cream Paint Job" by Dorrough | |
| Royal Flush | "Wasted" by Gucci Mane feat. Plies |
The five top dance crews from the East Coast, selected by Lil Mama and guest judge Kevin "KB" Brewer from the JabbaWockeeZ, auditioned for a chance to move on in the competition.[4] After the Bottom 3 was chosen, the crews participated in a dance battle to "Hip Hop Is Dead" by Nas featuring will.i.am.
| Dance Crew | Song[5] | |
|---|---|---|
| Legendary Seven | "I Can Transform Ya" by Chris Brown feat. Lil Wayne and Swizz Beatz | |
| draZtik | "Shattered Glass" by Britney Spears | |
| Blueprint Cru | "Feel On It" by Bishop Lamont | |
| Static Noyze | "On to the Next One" by Jay-Z feat. Swizz Beatz | |
| Saltare | "I'mma Shine" by YoungBloodZ |
The five top dance crews from the West Coast, selected by JC Chasez, Omarion, and guest judge Nichelle Thrower from We Are Heroes, performed for the opportunity to win a spot on the show.[6] After the Bottom 3 was chosen, the crews battled each other to "Showdown" by The Black Eyed Peas.
| Dance Crew | Song[7] | |
|---|---|---|
| Hype 5-0 | "Drop It Low" by Ester Dean feat. Chris Brown | |
| Heavy Impact | "Raindrops" by Jeremih | |
| Blended Projekt | "Get Involved" by Ginuwine feat. Missy Elliott and Timbaland | |
| BreakEFX | "All Eyes on Me" by Clipse feat. Keri Hilson | |
| Poreotix | "Love Story" by Taylor Swift |
Each crew was assigned a hit song that served as inspiration for their dance routines.[8] The lowest ranked crew in each region danced in a battle for 30 seconds each to "TiK ToK" by Ke$ha.
| Dance Crew | Song[9] | |
|---|---|---|
| Hype 5-0 | "Imma Be" by The Black Eyed Peas | |
| Heavy Impact | "Say Aah" by Trey Songz feat. Fabolous | |
| Poreotix | "Day 'n' Nite" by Kid Cudi | |
| Swagger Crew | "Hard" by Rihanna feat. Young Jeezy | |
| Jungle Boogie | "How Low" by Ludacris feat. Shawnna | |
| Royal Flush | "Down" by Jay Sean feat. Lil Wayne | |
| Saltare | "Hotel Room Service" by Pitbull | |
| Static Noyze | "Whatcha Say" by Jason Derülo | |
| Blueprint Cru | "That's Not My Name" by The Ting Tings |
The eight remaining crews emulated popular music videos from the past decade, featuring videos from artists such as Britney Spears, Shakira, Rihanna, and Omarion.[10]
| Dance Crew | Song[11] | |
|---|---|---|
| Poreotix | "Umbrella" by Rihanna feat. Jay-Z | |
| Jungle Boogie | "Give It Up to Me" by Shakira feat. Lil Wayne | |
| Static Noyze | "New in Town" by Little Boots | |
| Saltare | "Shake It" by Metro Station | |
| Heavy Impact | "What You Got" by Colby O'Donis | |
| Hype 5-0 | "3" by Britney Spears | |
| Royal Flush | "Evacuate the Dancefloor" by Cascada feat. Carlprit | |
| Blueprint Cru | "I Get It In" by Omarion feat. Gucci Mane |
The seven remaining crews choreographed routines inspired by Lady Gaga.[12] There were no eliminations due to voting issues.[13] At the end of the episode, the judges chose the crew with the best performance to receive immunity from the double-elimination next week.
| Dance Crew | Song[14] | |
|---|---|---|
| Static Noyze | "Beautiful, Dirty, Rich" | |
| Blueprint Cru | "Bad Romance" | |
| Jungle Boogie | "Video Phone" by Beyoncé | |
| Heavy Impact | "LoveGame" | |
| Hype 5-0 | "Poker Face" | |
| Poreotix | "Paparazzi" | |
| Saltare | "Just Dance" feat. Colby O'Donis |
The seven remaining crews incorporated classic disco moves into their dance routines.[15] In addition to the challenge, all the crews had to incorporate a lift into their routines. This week featured a double-elimination due to last week's non-elimination episode.
| Dance Crew | Song[16] | Challenge | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Blueprint Cru | "Le Freak" by Chic | Funky guitar | |
| Saltare | "Disco Inferno" by The Trammps | Hustle | |
| Poreotix | "Dancing Machine" by The Jackson 5 | Robot | |
| Hype 5-0 | "Shake Your Groove Thing" by Peaches & Herb | Electric slide | |
| Heavy Impact | "You Should Be Dancing" by The Bee Gees | Strut | |
| Static Noyze | "A Fifth of Beethoven" by Walter Murphy | Finger point | |
| Jungle Boogie | "Jungle Boogie" by Kool & the Gang | Bump |
The five remaining crews took inspiration from Usher's music videos.[17] Usher himself gave each crew their challenges through video.
| Dance Crew | Song[18] | Challenge | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Jungle Boogie | "Love in This Club" feat. Young Jeezy | Incorporate glides into the routine. | |
| Poreotix | "Yeah!" feat. Lil Jon and Ludacris | Incorporate some of Usher's moves in reverse. | |
| Hype 5-0 | "U Don't Have to Call" | Start the routine with a grand entrance and incorporate choreography using Heelys. | |
| Blueprint Cru | "Hey Daddy (Daddy's Home)" feat. Plies | Incorporate a hand section that highlights one of the members in their crew. | |
| Saltare | "Caught Up" | Incorporate fight choreography from the video. |
Just like its predecessor in Season 3, the remaining four crews incorporated an illusion or magic act into their performance set.[19] The crews kicked off the show with a group performance to "Take It Off" by Ke$ha with judge Lil Mama performing in the routine. Magician Franz Harary returned as the magic instructor for the crews.
| Dance Crew | Song[20] | Challenge | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Hype 5-0 | "Morning After Dark" by Timbaland feat. Nelly Furtado and SoShy | Make an object come to life. | |
| Poreotix | "Right Hand Hi" by Kid Sister | Move an object with their minds. | |
| Blueprint Cru | "Funhouse" by P!nk | Become lighter than air. | |
| Jungle Boogie | "Da Da Da" by Lil Wayne | Pass their bodies through a solid surface. |
The three remaining crews demonstrated hip hop styles from across the country in the penultimate challenge of the season.[21] For both challenges, the crews got to collaborate with producer Swizz Beatz.
The remaining crews displayed their mastery of hip hop styles from around the nation. One crew was eliminated halfway through the show. The crews received help from three guest ABDC alumni from past seasons. Each alumnus was assigned to one of the dance styles the crews were responsible for.
| Song[22] | Style | Guest | |
|---|---|---|---|
| "Blow The Whistle" by Too $hort | Turfing | Mitch Sanedrin from Supreme Soul | |
| "I'm The Ish" by DJ Class feat. Lil Jon | Baltimore house | Porché Anthony from Beat Ya Feet Kings | |
| "Get Me Bodied" by Beyoncé | New Orleans bounce | Riquel Olander from We Are Heroes |
The two finalists were given one last chance to perform before the lines opened for the final voting session of the season.
| Dance Crew | Performance Title | |
|---|---|---|
| Blueprint Cru | Come to Life | |
| Poreotix | Tetreotix |
The eliminated crews returned and performed with the finalists for a regional collaboration.[23] Instead of going head-to-head, Poreotix and Blueprint Cru teamed up for their last performance.
| Dance Crew(s) | Song[24] | |
|---|---|---|
| West: Poreotix, Hype 5-0, and Heavy Impact | "Blah Blah Blah" by Ke$ha | |
| East: Blueprint Cru, Saltare, and Static Noyze | "Hot Mess" by Cobra Starship | |
| South: Jungle Boogie, Royal Flush, and Swagger Crew | "Take Your Shirt Off" by T-Pain | |
| Poreotix and Blueprint Cru | Pulse Percussion | |
| Poreotix | "I Made It" by Kevin Rudolf feat. Birdman, Jay Sean, and Lil Wayne |
America's Best Dance Crew hosted a charity event featuring all five champions. The five crews opened up the show with a group performance to "All I Do Is Win" by DJ Khaled.[25]
| Season | Winner | Song[26] | Charity | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Season 1 | JabbaWockeeZ | "The Final Countdown" by Europe and "Robot Remains" by The Bangerz | Less Than Four | |
| Season 2 | Super CR3W | "ABCs" by K'naan | Marvelous Connections | |
| Season 3 | Quest Crew | "Sing, Sing, Sing" by Swing Kids | Say It Loud | |
| Season 4 | We Are Heroes | "Rock That Body" by The Black Eyed Peas | The Sparkle Effect | |
| Season 5 | Poreotix | "Witch Doctor" by Alvin and the Chipmunks | Everybody Dance Now |