ST. LOUIS — Professional dancer Delaney Glazer knows how to bust a move.
The Wildwood native has 1.4 million followers on Instagram who watch her boogie. She said the moves give her the ability to express herself.
“The reason I love dancing so much is that it’s just a way to express myself," she told 5 On Your Side. "Sometimes I’m not really good at expressing myself with words."
The moves aren’t necessarily planned, she sort of moves as the music moves her.
“It allows me to become a different character. When a certain song comes on it’s like a certain vibe. I become that character,” she said.
She started dancing at the age of 3 and her mom was her first teacher. She’s now 24 and living in Los Angeles.
She has performed on stage with celebrities like Justin Bieber and Chris Brown. She said the competition to land those spots is fierce.
“It’s obviously a small world with a lot of people in it,” she said.
And when she doesn’t land a part, she tries not to let it get her down.
“You can dwell on something like, ‘Oh I didn’t get that job’ and be sad about it for a while, or you can be like ‘OK, it wasn’t meant for me.’ I’m going to keep going, keep vibin’,” she said.
But the self-confidence to keep pushing on did not come overnight. She gives credit to her mom for keeping her positive spirit.
“I would just call her and be so upset. And she’s like, ‘Delaney, it’s going to be OK,’” she said.
The calls to mom kept her from thinking too long about a bad audition.
“She would be like, ‘Go get something to eat, go hang out with your friends,’ and within the next hour I already forgot I got cut from the audition. I’m already waiting for the email to my next audition,” she said.
Glazer works hard to perfect her moves, practicing for hours at a time. She said she is living her dream and is quick to credit everyone who helped her along the way.
“It’s a journey that I couldn’t go through alone. There are so many things. But I’m just so thankful to have an incredible support team with me at all times,” she said.
Glazer has also come out with a clothing line called “Focus on the Good.” You can find it at lilshop.com.
