Olympic breakdancing sensation Rachael ‘Raygun’ Gunn has lost her taxpayer-funded university job she had for almost 20 years.
The 38-year-old has fallen victim to a round of redundancies at Sydney‘s Macquarie University, where she enrolled to study at 18 years of age before going on to become a lecturer in media and cultural studies.
Gunn, who has a bachelor of arts with honours and a PhD in cultural studies, was one of the academics who lost out due to cost-cutting in the university’s arts department.
Macquarie University wouldn’t comment on the development due to privacy concerns, according to Nine Newspapers, but Gunn’s staff profile has been deleted from the institution’s website.
At the time of writing, Gunn’s LinkedIn profile still lists her vocation as a lecturer, researcher and speaker, and her website www.raygunofficial.com is currently not accessible to the public.
Gunn completed the thesis for her PhD on the gender politics of Sydney’s breakdancing culture in 2017.
Rachael Gunn is pictured during the breakdancing routine that turned her into an online sensation at the 2024 Paris Olympics
Now ‘Raygun’ has been dealt a huge setback with the news that she’s been made redundant from her role at Sydney’s Macquarie University
Gunn – who has a PhD in cultural studies and goes by the title Doctor – has been at Macquarie since she was 18, first as a student, then as a lecturer
She became one of the biggest stories of the 2024 Paris Olympics when she went viral for her routine in the breakdancing competition, which was widely mocked after she failed to score a single point with the judges.
Many Aussies were left fuming when they discovered she received taxpayer funding to study the dance form.
Queensland Senator Gerard Rennick quoted Raygun’s official Macquarie University profile in a Facebook post after she went viral and wrote, ‘In the same way breakdancing doesn’t belong in the Olympics it’s fair to say taxpayers shouldn’t be subsidising Universities to study or teach it.’
Senator Rennick’s post attracted thousands of comments slamming the university – and other tertiary institutions – for wasting taxpayer money on frivolous studies.
While Gunn’s specifics had not been made public at the time, PhD students like the breakdancer can get up to $56,000 a year in tax-free government funding.
That includes living stipends of up to $35,000 a year, plus an additional top-up scholarship of approximately $21,000 a year.
Fortunately for ‘Raygun’ – whose publications on breaking include ‘Nocturnal Paradox: How Breakdancing Reveals the Potentials of the Night’ – she recently started developing a new income stream.
She is now charging her fans $68.24 for a personalised clip on the Cameo video platform.
Gunn’s time at the university saw her write publications like ‘Nocturnal Paradox: How Breakdancing Reveals the Potentials of the Night’
Fortunately for Gunn, she recently started developing a new source of income by charging her fans for personalised videos
The Chicago-based company, which is valued at $1billion, has steadily grown its celebrity presence and fans have been quick to follow.
The likes of former soap stars, AFL greats, models and even former jailbirds-turned-reality stars are on the platform – despite already bringing in the big bucks with their respective careers.
She joined Cameo on March 2 and promised her personalised videos would be ‘unforgettable’.
‘You’ll have the chance to customise your request for Raygun, like asking them to mention inside jokes, share words of wisdom, or work in their signature catchphrases,’ her page reads.
‘Don’t be afraid to get creative with your request, especially for celebrations like weddings, retirements, or bachelor and bachelorette parties that call for a good laugh.
‘No matter the occasion, the video will be yours to keep, share the fun and relive the moment for years to come.’
In September 2024, Raygun was ranked by the World DanceSport Federation as the world’s number one breakdancer.
In November 2024, she announced she was retiring from competitive breakdancing after receiving overwhelming global criticism for her performance at the Olympics.
Gunn has a history of protecting and taking advantage of her brand.
In 2024 she sent a cease-and-desist letter to the organisers of ‘Breaking: The Musical’ which was to be shown at Sydney’s famous Kinselas venue.
The production was originally billed as ‘a parody exploration of a breakdancer’s journey to the 2024 Paris Olympics’.
Gunn’s lawyers threatened legal action against the venue and its promoter in order to protect their client’s ‘intellectual property’ and ensure ‘her brand remains strong and respected’.
In a trademark filing, Gunn managed to trademark a silhouette image of her performing the kangaroo dance at the Olympics.
