Founder Herbbie Jenkins grew up between South Los Angeles and survival mode. Dance became the thing that helped him hold on. It is now the thing he is using to build something larger than himself.
On September 23, 2025, Herbbie survived a shooting in the same streets that shaped him. Soon after coming home from the hospital, he lost his father, a Vietnam Veteran. The grief changed the timeline. Waiting for the perfect moment no longer made sense.
Move with purpose.
The relocation to Dallas happened quickly, with the safety of the company and the work ahead at the center of the decision. LAX BLaaK carries its Los Angeles roots forward while building its next chapter in Dallas.
LAX BLaaK Dance Collective does not ask young people to leave their culture at the door. It puts ballet discipline in conversation with hip-hop, jazz, African dance, modern movement, street culture, and lived experience.
The vision is a professional touring company with high-level training at its center, made for communities too often excluded from elite arts spaces.
A place to become.
The collective is being built to open a creative path for young people navigating poverty, violence, and hopelessness, without ever romanticizing those realities.
- Free and low-cost dance training for underserved youth
- Paid opportunities for dancers and choreographers of color
- Community outreach performances
- A safe creative space with real standards and real possibility