Jamile McGee (born August 2, 1984, in

Columbus, Ohio Columbus () is the state capital and the most populous city in the U.S. state of Ohio. With a 2020 census population of 905,748, it is the 14th-most populous city in the U.S., the second-most populous city in the Midwest, after Chicago, and t ...

) is an American

b-boy Breakdancing, also called breaking or b-boying/b-girling, is an athletic style of street dance originating from the African American and Puerto Rican communities in the United States. While diverse in the amount of variation available in ...

and hip hop dancer. He is also known by his dancing name 'Jamz'. Jamile performed on the first season of ''

So You Think You Can Dance ''So You Think You Can Dance'' is a franchise of reality television shows in which contestants compete in dance. The first series of the franchise, created by '' Idols'' producers Simon Fuller and Nigel Lythgoe, premiered in July 2005 and has ...

''.

Biography

Jamile began dancing at the age of 4. When he was younger, doctors diagnosed Jamile with

Juvenile Rheumatoid Arthritis Juvenile may refer to: *Juvenile status, or minor (law), prior to adulthood * Juvenile (organism) *Juvenile (rapper) (born 1975), American rapper * ''Juvenile'' (2000 film), Japanese film * ''Juvenile'' (2017 film) *Juvenile (greyhounds), a greyh ...

and predicted that he would most probably be wheel-chair bound for the rest of his life. He was trained at Wright State Dance Department in

Dayton, Ohio Dayton () is the sixth-largest city in the U.S. state of Ohio and the county seat of Montgomery County. A small part of the city extends into Greene County. The 2020 U.S. census estimate put the city population at 137,644, while Greater Day ...

in addition to several years of dance training in studios across the east coast, and utilizes a wide variety of dance styles. He moved to

Baltimore Baltimore ( , locally: or ) is the List of municipalities in Maryland, most populous city in the U.S. state of Maryland, fourth most populous city in the Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic, and List of United States cities by popula ...

Maryland Maryland ( ) is a state in the Mid-Atlantic region of the United States. It shares borders with Virginia, West Virginia, and the District of Columbia to its south and west; Pennsylvania to its north; and Delaware and the Atlantic Ocean to ...

from Ohio and continued to dance. He works with the Headliners Competition as a judge and instructor for their National Championships and Legends Conventions. He auditioned for ''So You Think You Can Dance'' in

Silver Spring, Maryland Silver Spring is a census-designated place (CDP) in southeastern Montgomery County, Maryland, United States, near Washington, D.C. Although officially unincorporated, in practice it is an edge city, with a population of 81,015 at the 2020 censu ...

and then went on to

New York City New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the List of United States cities by population, most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the L ...

to win a spot on the Fox reality show. He finished number three, just after

Nick Lazzarini Nick Lazzarini (born August 4, 1984) is an American dancer. He is best known as the first season winner on the Fox reality show ''So You Think You Can Dance''. He is a trained dancer in jazz, lyrical, hip hop, ballet and modern dance styles. ...

and Melody Lacayanga. He has since appeared in numerous music videos, including

Nelly Furtado Nelly Kim Furtado (; ; born December 2, 1978) is a Canadian singer and songwriter. Furtado has sold over 40 million records worldwide making her one of the most successful Canadian artists. She first gained fame with her trip hop-inspired deb ...

's " Maneater",

Mariah Carey Mariah Carey (; born March 27, 1969) is an American singer, songwriter, actress, and record producer. Referred to as the " Songbird Supreme", she is noted for her five-octave vocal range, melismatic singing style and signature use of the whi ...

's "

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Commercial",

Chris Brown Christopher Maurice Brown (born May 5, 1989) is an American singer, songwriter, dancer, and actor. According to '' Billboard'', Brown is one of the most successful R&B singers of his generation, having often been referred to by many contempo ...

's "

Gimme That "Gimme That" is a song written by Scott Storch and Sean Garrett and recorded by American singer Chris Brown for his eponymous debut album. The official remix, featuring American rapper Lil Wayne, was released as the third single from the album i ...

", and

Rihanna Robyn Rihanna Fenty ( ; born February 20, 1988) is a Barbadian singer, actress, and businesswoman. Born in Saint Michael and raised in Bridgetown, Barbados, Rihanna auditioned for American record producer Evan Rogers who invited her to the ...

's " SOS". Recently performed on VH1 Diva's Salute to the Troops. Jamile is the 3rd dancer in th
remake of Bobby Brown's "Every Little Step"
featuring Wayne Brady and Mike Tyson, which was released on

Funny or Die Funny or Die is a comedy video website and film/television production company owned by Henry R. Muñoz III that was founded by Will Ferrell, Adam McKay, Mark Kvamme, and Chris Henchy in 2007. The website contained exclusive material from a reg ...

on September 28, 2010. He was on tour with Wayne Brady since February 2009. He had been travelling with Wayne Brady, performing on his improv show in Africa, Europe, and other places around the world. He had been on tour in Las Vegas with Wayne Brady performing weekly until late 2010.

References

1984 births Living people Musicians from Columbus, Ohio So You Think You Can Dance (American TV series) contestants American male dancers Wright State University alumni 21st-century American dancers {{US-entertainer-stub