The US city where twerking began and you can lock down the main street on a whim

THERE is a city in the US that encourages you to lock down the main street and have a party. Where twerking began and the music never stops.

The ultimate party city

THERE is no city like New Orleans. It feels like its own country, separate from the US.

And it’s known as a party town but it’s so much more. The reason everybody is partying (beyond the fact you can drink ‘Hurricanes’ — giant, colourful, extremely alcoholic slushies — in the street 24/7) is because they are celebrating the richest, most diverse, colourful and exciting culture in the United States.

Evolving from a distinctive mixture of migrant cultures the uniqueness of New Orleans is palpable as soon as you cross one of its long swamp bridges (passing disconcerting alligator roadkill) and enter the gulf city.

Food is a central part of the identity of New Orleans, and the dish that is not only its most famous one but also acts as a metaphor of the cultural mishmash of the whole joint is gumbo. A rich and colourful soup/stew combining seafood, sausage and vegetables, gumbo is a culinary combination of West African, French, Spanish, German and Native American tastes. And this mix is reflected in the heritage of the city’s population.

Pistol Pete's Food & Blues Owner Peter Raimondo. Corn Bread and Gumbo. Picture: Mike Dugdale

Alongside food, at the middle of the New Orleans melting pot, is its music and that’s what lured us to the city. Having its roots in Africa, Europe and Latin America, the city’s musical evolution has culminated in today’s line up of world-class music of many genres. The rhythm of the brass bands is the beating heart of the music scene, pumping proudly and loudly in houses, clubs and in the streets.

Australian cities could learn a lot from New Orleans. Loud, live music is not only tolerated but prioritised and valued, as an integral part of the peoples’ identity and the city’s economy.

Without a doubt the most eye-opening of the music movements we found ourselves immersed in was the New Orleans bounce scene.

This is not only a unique genre of hip-hop music but also a way of life for many in New Orleans with the dance style associated with this music, twerking, recently reaching global fame through the co-opting of the style by mainstream musicians, most notably with Miley Cyrus’ infamous attempts at shaking her ass.

File - In this Aug. 25, 2013 file photo, Miley Cyrus performs a move known as "twerking" at the MTV Video Music Awards at the Barclays Center in New York. Twerking may be older than you think. The provocative dance that gained global fame thanks to an attention-grabbing performance by Miley Cyrus has been admitted to the venerable Oxford English Dictionary _ and lexicographers say its origins go back almost 200 years. (AP Photo/Charles Sykes, Invision, File)

The club the Unplanned America boys visited.

The club we visited was by far the most raucous we’d ever attended but a party can be found somewhere in New Orleans every day. In fact, on a whim, myself and my Unplanned America colleagues shut down bustling Bourbon Street one busy Saturday with our own boozy parade. Legally.

The Unplanned America boys shut down Bourbon Street in New Orleans.

Yep three Aussie boys were able to take over one of the most historic main streets in America. We were led by a four-vehicle police escort and tailed by a marching brass band right in the middle of the day.

With a permit for the low price of $300 and giving only 24 hours notice, we became the raucous centrepoint of the celebration culture of New Orleans for a 45 whole minutes. It was a once-in-a-lifetime experience and anyone can do it! The city encourages it!

The permit to shut down the main street and bring in a brass band was only $300.

In many ways the painful memory of Hurricane Katrina, which decimated large parts of New Orleans 10 years ago, still lingers but it’s as if this has made the people more defiantly proud of their rich culture, more determined to fight for it.

And the way these folks fight is on the street, with the blow of a trumpet; with the camaraderie of a shared delicious meal; with a full heart, a spring in their step and a shake of the arse. Because they know how unique, valuable and damn cool this culture is.

Unplanned America screens tonight at 9pm on SBS2 and is available on SBS OnDemand. Series One is on Netflix.