Potterville dancer, Grand Ledge graduate, realizes dream of performing with Lizzo

POTTERVILLE - When Collin Smith posted a dance he choreographed to Lizzo's song "Grrls" last month he'd hoped it would start a TikTok trend. He never dreamed it would boost his career.

But a day after the less-than-30-second video went up on the social media platform, Lizzo saw it and paired her own video of herself dancing his steps - .

Smith, 22, woke up to the news and watched the video Lizzo had posted to her TikTok account — a side-by-side view of her doing his dance alongside his video, a practice known as "dueting" to fellow TikTok users.

"THIS DANCE IS TOO FUN," read the Grammy-winning artist's caption.

For Smith, a Potterville resident and Grand Ledge High School graduate who has been dancing since age 3, Lizzo is an inspiration. 

After being subjected to harsh bullying over his size and coming to terms with his sexuality as a young teenager, Smith, who is gay, found solace in dance.

He's pursued it seriously for nearly a decade.

"It's been a dream of mine ever since Lizzo started coming out with music and everything to work with her because she has just been the epitome of body positivity," Smith said. "She's been the biggest influence for me, being a bigger person as well."

A few days after Lizzo dueted his dance video, her staff contacted him about performing with her on stage at the BET Awards show. Smith took the stage with her during the event at Microsoft Theater on June 26 in Los Angeles.

Turning to dance at a young age

Smith started taking dance lessons as a toddler, enrolling in Rising Star Studio of Dance Arts in Lansing, where his sisters were already taking classes. He stayed with the studio through high school.

"I think it just sparked something in him," his mother Diane Smith said. "I think dance was an outlet of letting everything go and just putting it all in an expression of happiness."

Dance and choreography helped him become "as authentically me as possible," Smith said.

"It was a way that I could write a whole narrative and take what life was giving me and really just flip it into a whole narrative and a story that related to me," he said. "Then I get to just express it and share it with as many people as possible."

Smith joined the INstitute of Dancers, an Okemos-based dance company of 40 dancers throughout Michigan, three years ago.

"He's one of our top dancers," said Glenn Douglas Packard, the company's CEO and founder, citing Smith's "commitment, putting in the hard work and his individuality."

And everyone who has worked with him knew performing on stage with Lizzo was a dream realized for Smith, Packard said.

"His dance dreams since day one when we met him was to dance for Lizzo," he said. "That was his dream from day one."

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Opening doors

It's been nearly a month since Smith's TikTok dance to Lizzo's song was posted online. The video has nearly a million views.

Smith spent several days in Los Angeles last month before flying back to Michigan after dancing on stage with Lizzo during the televised awards show.

His trip was extended by a few days after he was offered another opportunity to dance in a music video, Smith said, adding he can't disclose which artist offered it.

He didn't begin to process the experience and the doors the video helped open until after he got home.

"It was a lot of firsts for me," Smith said. "It was my first time being on TV, my first time doing an award show, my first time being on the West Coast. I just wanted to take every moment in as they came."

He's hopeful the experience can lead to more opportunities to dance with Lizzo, and says what happened is proof that everyone's dreams are achievable.

"No matter where you come from, even if it's a small town, these opportunities are available as long as you just put hard work and dedication into what you're doing," Smith said. "Dreams like these are possible."

Contact Rachel Greco at rgreco@lsj.com. Follow her on Twitter @GrecoatLSJ .