Get To Know The Man Behind The Moves: Nico Archambault

The Man Behind the Moves of The Next Star SuperGroup

You may recognize Nico Archambault as the incredible dancer who won the first season of So You Think You Can Dance Canada. Now, he’s a choreographer on YTV’s hit show The Next Star SuperGroup. But there’s a lot more to Nico than his French accent, love for dance and great coaching skills.

Faze sat down with Nico while on set of SupeGroup to talk about overcoming bullies, his experience on SYTYCDC, his new role as performance coach extraordinaire and so much more.

When did you know that you wanted to pursue a dancing/choreographer career?

Nico: I was in a music video for a French artist; I must have been like 12 or 13. I just remember having so much fun and being so excited. All of the dancers were older; they were dancers that I was looking up to. I was the kid on set and it felt amazing. At that time I was like, “Yeah, I like this. I want to do this.” I always knew that I loved dancing, but it didn’t really occur to me that I could make it a career.

What do you love about dancing?

Nico: I like how it is constantly renewed and how you can constantly renew it for yourself. It’s an art form that keeps changing and evolving as long as you keep changing and evolving yourself. The main thing for me was that I’ve always been a big, big music lover. I can’t be a good musician, I don’t have a good ear and I can’t sing, I can’t harmonize… yeah, I’m pretty much tone deaf. I learned that you can express emotion and have people feel something through dance.

Why is being involved in anti-bullying campaigns and speaking up about bullying so important to you?

Nico: When I was in high school, I was a bit different. I was spending a lot of time in my own head and a bit of a dreamer. I was slightly socially awkward. Small talk doesn’t come naturally to me and it became worst when I was a teenager. I was really, really shy. On top of all of that, I was a dancer. I think it’s perceived a little bit better now, but back then it was not for guys; it was very girly thing to do. So all of that put together really created a misunderstanding, which turned into bullying. I haven’t done a campaign in a few years but I’m still very involved. I go into schools and talk about it, but it’s kind of any everyday thing even if I’m not a conference talking about it. If I see it, I’ll definitely speak up.

What made you decide to audition for So You Think You Can Dance Canada?

Nico: It was a really last minute, spontaneous idea. I didn’t really want to go at first. I had the spirit of “well everyone’s going so I’m not going” kind of thing. I don’t like competitions. To me, dance is an art form and I don’t think that it should be in a contest format. But last minute my girlfriend, who is now my wife, told me she thought I should go. So the day of I showed up and got in. And then I realized that it’s not really a contest. Yes, the format is like a contest, but there is no competition among the dancers. There are tons of dancers that are all happy to share and exchange their experiences throughout every part of the process.

What’s your role on The Next Star SuperGroup?

Nico: Officially, I’m the choreographer. It is a bit wider than just doing the choreography, though, because these guys are not dancers; they’re not trained and it’s not a dance competition. Dance is a part of what they have to do to perform as singers, so my job is to make them look good.

What advice would you give to someone who’s about to embark on a live competition show?

Nico: I would say come ready and prepared. First thing is first, learn how to work, do your homework, be humble and be open and then great things are going to happen. If you care about what you’re doing, then don’t cut corners and do it right.