Following announcements of her retirement from Australia's Rachel Gunn, aka 'b-girl Raygun', the Olympic hopeful made a surprise appearance on stage with fellow Aussie Tones And I at the latter's show in Melbourne on Saturday (November 9).
Performing at the Rod Laver Arena, Tones And I's penultimate song was “Dance With Me”, the fourth single from their 2024 album, Pretty ordinary.
While the album topped the ARIA chart in Australia, Tones And I had no success in the US apart from its lead single “Dance Monkey”, which peaked at No. 4 on the Hot 100 i 2019.
Rousing the crowd, Tones And I urged the audience to “please give it up for an Aussie icon, the most iconic break dancer out there, Raygun!”
The controversial Olympian took to the stage to share her heartbreaking skills throughout the show, with memories of her viral appearance at the Paris Olympics flooding back for everyone in attendance.
Taking to social media after Raygun's appearance, Tones And I shared a video of the encounter and expressed her gratitude for the breakup, referring to her as “the most beautiful and kindest person I've ever met.”
“It was an honor to celebrate you last night,” he added. “Thank you for sharing the stage with me and bringing smiles to so many faces. You always have a friend in me.”
Raygun, a 37-year-old university lecturer from Sydney, rose to prominence in August when he failed to score points at the Paris Olympics in routines that included a kangaroo dance. The following month, the World Federation of Dance Sports released a statement to “provide clarity” on why Raygun was able to reach the top of the sport's latest world rankings.
Their explanation revealed that the methodology for the rankings was based on each athlete's top four performances over the past 12 months — but excluded Olympic events, including the Paris Games and Olympic qualifiers in Shanghai and Budapest.
Earlier this month, the rift hit the headlines once again when reports surfaced that she had announced her retirement from the sport.
He later went on the record to clarify that he would no longer be competing, although he would not retire from breaking entirely.
