Meet 26-year-old dancer and choreographer Allison Claire.
Allison, who lives in LA, dances full time.
"I started dancing when I was two," she told BuzzFeed.
"My mom asked my dad if she could sign me up for dance classes, and he told her 'no' because it was too expensive. But she signed me up anyway," she said.
After years of tap, jazz, lyrical, and ballet, Allison got more interested in hop hop when she moved to LA.
"When I first moved to LA, I got a little discouraged because you go from being big fish in a little pond to a place where everyone's a big fish," she said. "But you have to be confident in yourself."
When it comes to rejection, she keeps her head up.
"It's not like I've never heard 'no' before," she said.
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"I've even been told that I'm not going to work, and that just fuels my fire," she said.
"None of these big dancers started getting work overnight."
Allison, who was recently on tour with Janet Jackson, said there's room for everyone to find work in the dance community.
"If a music video is casting for a school, they know that not everyone is going to be stick-thin with blue eyes," she said.
Oh, and did I mention HER ~MOVES~?
Her list of fave choreographers doesn't stop at one. "I love Brian Friedman, Hi-Hat, Fatima Robinson, and Tricia Miranda to name a few," she said.
For Allison, dance is also crucial for her mental health.
"Dance is like therapy for me," she said. "It's the one place where you can throw yourself around a room and get applauded for it."
Her advice for young dancers: "If you're willing to push, you can get there."
"You always have to remember that you have worth," she said.
Get it. GET. IT.
