KABA Modern is a dance group originating from Irvine, California. Kaba Modern is a spin-off of the University of California, Irvine Filipino cultural club, Kababayan, which means "countrymen" in Tagalog. Created by Arnel Calvario in 1992, Kaba Modern began as dancers that performed the hip-hop portion or the "Modern Suite" of Kababayan's annual Pilipino Cultural Night (PCN) at UCI. Since then, Kaba Modern has entered multinational competitions and gained recognition in the media. For instance, few Kaba Modern members helped choreograph the "dance battle" scene in The Debut in 1997 while 3 members were shown onscreen during the Making of Featurette of the DVD.
The Kaba Modern family is divided into three sub-teams. Kreative Movement (formerly known as Kaba Kids) are for members 18 and under. Kaba Modern is the UCI competitive team for college-level students. Kaba Modern Legacy is an exhibition team for Kaba Modern alumni and special guests. The KM Legacy Roster includes all 6 members that appeared on MTV's America's Best Dance Crew (Mike Song, Jia Huang, Cindy Minowa, Tony Tran, Yuri Tag, and Lawrence Kao) and several other Kaba Modern legends who no longer dance for the UCI team.
