Shortly thereafter, she started rhythmic gymnastics , joining the French national team at the age of She began dancing in film and television shows, as well as in commercials and concerts.
She was one of Madonna 's backup dancers for six years, performing in numerous music videos and at the Super Bowl. As a model, Boutella has featured in a series of Nike ads and videos, choreographed by creative director Jamie King.
She was raised in a fairly secular household that cultivated artistic expression and creativity. Boutella described her childhood as a happy one, stating that she was "blessed to be born into a family that allowed me to express myself, to be myself and let out all sorts of colours that were living in my imagination and in my heart. With her family's encouragement, Boutella started classical dance education when she was five years old.
In , at the age of 10, she left Algeria with her family in the midst of the Algerian Civil War and moved to France. Growing up in Paris, Boutella was exposed to many more forms of dance, particularly hip hop and street-dance , which intrigued her for offering more "freedom" compared to the more disciplined styles of ballet and gymnastics.
Her breakthrough as a dancer came in , when she was picked for the Jamie King choreography for Nike Women's "Keep Up" campaign, serving as a role model of femininity and hip-hop. Boutella successfully auditioned for the Michael Jackson This Is It tour, but could not attend due to the extension of the Madonna tour, whose dates coincided with the Jackson tour.
