For as long as she can remember, dancing has always been a big part of Melika Gillard's life.
Whether it was at school with friends or choreographing her own techniques with her sister, once there was music, Gillard always found a reason to bust a move.
Better known by her stage name Luna, Gillard has emerged as one of Trinidad and Tobago's most popular freestyle dancers.
Her bold but smooth technique has earned her a spot at the XO Dance Label, which is often contracted to support top soca artistes in everything – from live performances to music videos and commercials.
But while a career in performing can be rewarding, Luna said she has dealt with her fair share of challenges getting people to understand her passion while overcoming her personal insecurities in the process.
Speaking with WMN at the XO Dance Label's Curepe studio last week, the 24-year-old explained how a fun pastime developed into a rewarding career which she now uses to empower other women.
A San Juan native, Luna said while other dancers usually begin formal training as children, she is largely self taught, mimicking the movements of some popular dancers while adding her own signature flair.
"I was always the person who had all of my friends in school dancing, so dance for me I definitely started at a very young age.
"I was self-taught but I got training in the XO Dance Label, the company I'm with now. But prior to that it was just my sister and I dancing in the bedroom, creating little dance groups, competing in competitions and building the growth and skill in there."
For Luna, what began as a casual hobby flourished into a full obsession as she studied the movements of other dancers while feeling the flow of the music. Her dedication to her craft led her to record videos of her dancing and critique it on what movements looked good and which didn't. But even with such a determined approach to dance, Luna said she continued to entertain other career paths while she sharpened her skills as a dancer. With an interests in language, she briefly flirted with becoming a flight attendant, then she came full circle to dance. Her love for languages, though, influenced her stage name, which means moon in Spanish.
But this decision to focus on dance did not sit well with her mother, who wanted her to pursue a more conventional career.
"It was pressure! She was not having it, she was upset, she didn't understand. She was like 'You wasting my money, all of the effort I put into getting you into school, you're wasting your brightness!' and now that I look back at the situation it was understandable because she didn't have a lot of information, and I didn't have a lot of information to give her in terms of how lucrative the field is and how I could sustain a real career. It was a journey for both of us."
She said while her mother grew to eventually accept her decision, she continued to stress the importance of academics, maintaining a strict schedule as she performed while attending Bishop's Anstey High School East.
"Sometimes she
