#148 Dancing Like Yourself - with Sanna Leinonen | Tampere, Finland | Balboa

In this episode I sit with Sanna, a Balboa dancer from Finland with more than twenty years on the dance floor.We talk about how she began, what kept her in the scene, and what she wants to see more of on the dancefloor. Sanna shares how jazz music shaped her dancing, how community became her safe bubble, and why she wants dancers to believe in their own style.We also talk about lighting, teaching, and the small shifts that help people feel brave enough to try something new.See this episode as a reminder that you CAN (and maybe SHOULD) embrace your way of moving, not someone else's.Subscribe & review the podcast to help me grow 🌟Connect with me on Instagram @SiaDancing ✅#SiaDancing #DanceStories #SocialDanceCulture #Balboa #SocialDancing

In this cosy and sleepy‑morning conversation, we meet a dancer and biologist from Bergen who loves nature, rhythm, and the quiet joy of moving with another person.We talk about:• why dance brings joy• how different styles share the same roots• what low light does to our attention• how breath can change a whole danceThere is a lovely moment about strobe lights at an electronic concert, and how lighting can lift us into a dreamy, hypnotic state.Subscribe & ReviewFollow the podcast and leave a review to help me grow 🌟Share Your ThoughtsTag me on Instagram @SiaDancing and tell me your favorite moment from this episode 💃Join the ConversationWhat is the craziest move you have seen on tha dancefloor?✨#SiaDancing #DanceStories #SocialDanceCulture #LazyRiver #SocialDancing

In this gentle and honest conversation, Jenna shares what dancing has meant in her life. She talks about growing up in the U.S., dancing for the first time when someone accidentally has invited her to dance at prom when “Big Bad Voodoo Daddy” song came up, and how it slowly shaped everything from her friendships to the place she now calls home.We explore what it’s like to dance with poor low‑light vision, how lighting can change safety and comfort on the floor, and why inclusive environments matter more than most people realize.Jenna also opens up about:• why she dances• how she builds connection when leading and following• the influence of other dance styles• the beauty of bringing your whole self into the dance• what she wishes more dancers understoodThis episode is soft, thoughtful, and full of insight for anyone who cares about community and connection on the dance floor.Subscribe & ReviewFollow the podcast and leave a review to help me grow 🌟Share Your ThoughtsTag me on Instagram @SiaDancing and tell me your favorite moment from this episode 💃Join the ConversationWhat is a dream that you would like to see come true? ✨#SiaDancing #DanceStories #SocialDanceCulture #LazyRiver #SocialDancing

Here we are in Stockholm talking with Raya, who is based in Tallinn. We have shared a warm, honest conversation with Raya Bouslah: born in Tunisia, now building a dancing life in Estonia, and finding her way across lindy hop and blues.Raya started right before Covid and never stopped (well, apart from when the Covid was in its bloom). She talks about how dancing helps her stay sane and how social dance became a special way to meet people and bond. She gives a shout‑out to Rostom, who first nudged her into the scene. We also talk openly about social anxiety: the first class felt great until the moment everyone was asked to grab a partner, then everything tightened. She stayed anyway. Which she reflects on as being a great way of moving through ansxiety. Classes being in Estonian sometimes felt alienating, yet social dancing opened a different part of her brain, almost like a contract of safe space.We look at human connection on the dance floor and how often it gets sexualised, then turn toward the kind of connection that feels respectful, joyful, and clear. Raya shares memories from Bluesila and leaves thoughtful advice about finding your own language of dancing.Subscribe & ReviewFollow the podcast and leave a review to help me grow 🌟Share Your ThoughtsTag me on Instagram @SiaDancing and tell me your favorite moment from this episode 💃Join the ConversationWhat is a dream that you would like to see come true? ✨#SiaDancing #DanceStories #SocialDanceCulture #Herräng #SocialDancing

Here we are at Snowball in Stockholm, sitting with Lindsey Ngo and Krystel Chevallier for an opposite of a small-talk. We had an open-hearted conversation about how swing dancing can become a place of belonging.Krystel shares how she began dancing balboa ten years ago in Australia and how the dance community stepped into her life at a moment when she felt alone after her divorce. Dancing became the thing that stopped her mind from overthinking, the thing that made her feel alone. She talks about the partnership side of swing dancing, the joy of building Jurassic Bal event, and the sweet story of her future life partner taking a photo of her at her first dance event, in a moment of pure joy and that he later printed for her.Lindsey came to Australia from the USA ten years ago and found her way into dancing six years back. She now helps run a small but warm local scene of about fifty dancers. For her, dancing began with loving the music as a kid, and it is the moment when she feels fully present. She shares a beautiful memory from a no shoe event, dancing softly to the music of Jessie Gordon and Mark Turner, in a room so quiet it felt almost magical.They both share inspiring tips & stories, and answer Kristyna’s question from the previous episode about their very first memories of dancing swing.Subscribe & ReviewFollow the podcast and leave a review to help me grow 🌟Share Your ThoughtsTag me on Instagram @SiaDancing and tell me your favorite moment from this episode 💃Join the ConversationWhat is a dream that you would like to see come true? ✨#SiaDancing #DanceStories #SocialDanceCulture #Herräng #SocialDancing

Here we are at Snowball in Stockholm, finally sitting down to record this long-awaited episode with Kristýna Krejzlová.Kristýna is a swing and blues dancer from Brno in the Czech Republic, a growing teacher, and a fresh trombone player who is falling even deeper in love with the music and community around these dances.She shares how discovering Lindy Hop just weeks after being diagnosed with multiple sclerosis gave her one hour every week where she felt “normal” and fully alive again - and how dance still helps her stay active, present, and connected. We talk about feeling most yourself on the dance floor, blues rooms, secret Herräng parties with dim lights and colorful dots on the ceiling, and why “never stop dancing” might be the best advice of all.Kristýna also reflects on sensitivity and that “sixth sense” dancers develop, plus how the Brno scene works to honor the roots of the dance through culture-focused teaching, talks, and even a little dance library. And, of course, she passes on a beautiful chain question for the next guest: what is your very first memory of dancing Lindy Hop, blues, or another swing dance? What's yours?Subscribe & ReviewFollow the podcast and leave a review to help me grow 🌟Share Your ThoughtsTag me on Instagram @SiaDancing and tell me your favorite moment from this episode 💃Join the ConversationWhat is a dream that you would like to see come true? ✨#SiaDancing #DanceStories #SocialDanceCulture #Herräng #SocialDancing

Here we are having a relaxed chat with Mattias Dahl & Jessica Malmberg — a warm, funny, and honest conversation about how dancing can change a life.Mattias shares how he’d been convinced his whole life that he couldn’t dance (because he was a drummer… apparently the Swedish dansband culture has "rules" on that), and Jessica opens up about being very shy — until August 16th, 2009, when they walked into their first dance class and everything shifted.We talk about dance as therapy: joy, community, and something that’s good for both body and brain — and for Jessica, a way to be closer to the music she loves. We also explore dancing as a practice in taking up space, and what it’s like to step out of an immersive place where you truly feel you belong (Herräng comes up as an example).Plus: their grounded advice — listen to your own limits, and don’t chase levels and titles.Subscribe & ReviewFollow the podcast and leave a review to help me grow 🌟Share Your ThoughtsTag me on Instagram @SiaDancing and tell me your favorite moment from this episode 💃Join the ConversationWhat is a dream that you would like to see come true? ✨#SiaDancing #DanceStories #SocialDanceCulture #Herräng #SocialDancing

Here we are sitting at The Snowball festival in Stockholm, and having a relaxed chat with Jennifer Thompson (from Texas) - a warm and thoughtful chat about why we dance.Jenn shares how she started Lindy Hop in 2014, how dancing became a way to connect with people and cultures without words, and why dancing feels like a universal language even when you don’t share the same mother tongue.​We also explore “light” as more than just a spotlight: as a metaphor for what dance illuminates in us, and how it can “light up your life.”​Plus: Jenn’s advice to fellow dancers: take the chances (classes, auditions, competitions, grants).Subscribe & ReviewFollow the podcast and leave a review to help me grow 🌟Share Your ThoughtsTag me on Instagram @SiaDancing and tell me your favorite moment from this episode 💃Join the ConversationWhat is a dream that you would like to see come true? ✨#SiaDancing #DanceStories #SocialDanceCulture #Herräng #SocialDancing

Celeste’s story is an international one, allowing us to meet at Herräng Dance Camp. In this conversation, she opens up about how dance became her therapy, the patterns she notices in different dance communities, and why lighting can completely change the way we move. From belly dance to tango to Lindy Hop, her journey is full of rhythm, resilience, and unexpected turns.Subscribe & ReviewFollow the podcast and leave a review to help me grow 🌟Share Your ThoughtsTag me on Instagram @SiaDancing and tell me your favorite moment from this episode 💃Join the ConversationWhat is a dream that you would like to see come true? ✨#SiaDancing #DanceStories #SocialDanceCulture #Herräng #SocialDancing

Darold Alexander is from New Orleans, Louisiana, and we have met at Herräng.He is a MC and a frontman for a few bands & a very prominent person of Herräng 2024, as you might recall.We talked about dance as escape (from responsibilities, work, dealing with people), about ageism on the dance floor and about drinking a lot on the dancefloor.Enjoy and keep the city dancing!