Watch New York figure skater perform hip-hop routine to ‘Turn Down for What’

Forget everything you know about figure skating because it clearly has a new look and sound in 2018.

While most skaters decide to perform graceful routines to classical music, a skater from Queens, New York decided to take an untraditional route.

Jimmy Ma performed a hip-hop routine on skates to DJ Snake and Lil Jon’s 2013 collaborative hit “Turn Down for What” at the United States Figure Skating Championships on Thursday in San Jose, California.

NBC commentators were clearly caught off guard, while spectators loved the must-see performance.

The commentators remained silent for the majority of the routine. At the end, one analyst was clearly distraught at the lyrics.

“Is he talking about shots at the end of that song?” one asked.

It’s safe to say, Ma’s song choice is not your classical Jan Garbarek’s “Brother Wind March,” but it might be a little more fun.

After competing, Ma told USA Today Sports he wanted to express himself on the ice and give a performance fans can enjoy.

“Figure skating is an extreme sport,” said Ma, who is in 11th place in the men’s competition, with only Saturday’s free skate remaining before the committee places three Olympic offers. “I want the most amount of people to see that it is both an awesome art form and also an awesome sport. The whole point was to get people hyped. Get older people hyped and for younger people to think it is cool.”

Ma choosing an untraditional song incorporating today’s modern hip hop is becoming increasingly popular among choreographed sports.

LSU gymnast Llmoimincia Hall caught the attention of many after scoring a 10.0 on the floor exercise in 2014 with a hip-hop themed routine that included the “Nae Nae” at the end.

Another gymnast channeled her inner Queen B last year. UCLA gymnast Hallie Mossett chose a Beyonce compilation for her floor routine, which included snippets from “Formation” and “Single Ladies.”

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