Children's Cheer "Our Team Is Red Hot"

Edited by Azizi Powell

This post provides four videos of the children's cheerleader cheer "Our Team Is Red Hot" (also known as "Red Hot"). These videos showcase some of the differences between three children's cheerleading styles - mainstream cheerleading, modified mainstream cheerleading, and stomp & shake cheereading.

The basic words to "Our Team Is Red Hot" are in the summary of Video #4. Click http://cocojams.com/content/childrens-cheerleader-cheers for more text examples of "Red Hot".

The content of this post is provided for folkloric and recreational purposes.

All copyrights remain with their owners.

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FEATURED TEXT EXAMPLES
(These examples are presented in chronological order based on the date of their internet posting date with the oldest dates presented first).

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TYPES OF CHILDREN & YOUTH CHEERLEADING ROUTINES
Here are three simplified descriptions of the categories I use for children's cheerleading routines:

Mainstream cheerleading - traditional cheerleading routines that don't include any element/s of stomp & shake cheerleading and/or foot stomping cheer.

Modified mainstream cheerleading - cheerleading routines that include one or more elements of stomp & shake cheerleading but those movements are only slightly performed, i.e. only a slight hip swing

Stomp & shake cheerleading - cheerleading routines that include movements such as foot stomping, up stomps (foot stomps with the leg lifted], hip swings, and chest pops)

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FEATURED VIDEO EXAMPLES
(These examples are presented in chronological order based on the date of their internet posting date with the oldest dates presented first).

Video #1: Red Hot Cheer



sara3330123, Uploaded on Oct 2, 2008

hhs jv redhot cheer. :]
-snip-
This is an example of a minimally modified mainstream cheerleading routine. I categorized this routine as "modified mainstream" because of the cheerleaders' very slight hip swing. Traditional (what I call "mainstream") cheerleading doesn't permit hip swings -or "chest pops".

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Video #2: HHS Cheerleaders "Red Hot"

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YuRmbuysVNk

HHSCheeringFalcons,Uploaded on Mar 6, 2010

Huguenot Cheerleaders performing "Red Hot" on the sideline at Cosby.

[embedding disabled by request]
-snip-
This video is an example of stomp & shake cheerleading. Click http://cocojams.com/content/stomp-and-shake-cheerleader-cheers for more information & examples of stomp & shake cheerleading.

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Example #3: Bethune Elementary Cheer Team - Red Hot Cheer



Kevin Ho Uploaded on Dec 19, 2010

...another awesome cheer from our BES Cheer Team!
-snip-
This is an example of a modified mainstream cheerleading routine. I categorized this routine as "modified mainstream" because of the cheerleaders' hip swing and chest pop (chest pumps). In particular, notice the way the African American squad members do the hip swing and the chest pop movements compared with their White squad members.

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Video #4: Red Hot



LionsClubCheer·Uploaded on Aug 24, 2011

Our team is red hot. Our team is red hot. Our team is R-E-D red, H-O-T hot, once we start we can't be stopped!
-snip-
This is an example of mainstream cheerleading. Notice that there's not even a slight hip swing and there's no chest pop.

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Thanks to those who are featured in these videos.

Thanks for visiting pancocojams.

Visitor comments are welcome.

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What "Getting Up In Someone's Face" Means (in African American Vernacular English)

Edited by Azizi Powell

This post provides definitions for the phrases "getting up in your face" & "getting all up in [someone's] face". Examples of that body gesture are presented in this post from videos of stomp & shake battle cheers & from a compilation video of scenes from the movie Bring It On: In It To Win It.

The content of this post is presented for sociological and cultural purposes.

All copyrights remain with their owners.

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DEFINITIONS
[Additions & corrections of these definitions are welcome.]

“To get up in someone’ face" is an African American derived slang phrase that means to literally or figuratively disrespect and confront another person by putting your face very close to that peerson's face. A person can "get [up] in someone else's face" by leaning his body over towards a person. Or a person can actually move into his or her opponent's personal space until they are standing eye to eye.

A person who gets in another person's face may have different facial expressions. She or he may be smirking, or my have a closed mouth slightly smiling face as if to say that what she or he is doing is of little importance to her or him. People who get in someone's face can also have a mean, angry look which is similar to one of the looks people wear when they are "grittin on" someone, except that th African American derived term "grittin" usually is connected with staring for a long period of time with an ugly [dirty] look on one's face.

In addition to one's facial expression and how one hold his or her torso, a person who is silently, saying insulting or challenging comments ["instigating"], or yelling in another person's face may also make insulting or challenging finger gestures or hand gestures at that person ("give the person the finger", or do the "don't even go there" hand gesture that is the same as or very similar to the "talk to the hand" gesture.) "Putting your hand in someone's face" commonly ignites a physical confrontation.

The word "all" in the phrase "gettin all up in someone's face" acts as an intensifier. Although it's not necessarily the case, the word "all" means that the person puts his or her entire body in his or her opponent's face [personal space].

“Getting up in someone's grill” is a synonym from African American English for "Getting [all] [up] in someone's face". "Grill" means "face".

Note that "to get up in someone's face" is similar but not the same as the phrase "in your face". Here's a definition of that phrase from http://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/in-your-face

"Definition of “in your face” - characterized by or expressive of bold and often defiant aggressiveness ; also: aggressively intrusive
-snip-
Also, the phrase "in your face" may refer to something that is very obvious. Click http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4GVWIaESSWA for a vlog whose title reflects that usage, and whose commentater uses "in your face" to mean something "is so obvious that if it was a snake it would bite you."

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CHEERLEADING VIDEOS THAT SHOW THE LEAN FORWARD "GETTING UP IN SOMEONE'S FACE" BODY GESTURE

Example #1: WSSU CHEERLEADERS 2010-11 Basketball BATTLE

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XkpOiVssR0s

[embedding disabled by request]

cavettaj, Uploaded on Jun 11, 2011

RAMS BACK IN THE CIAA... taking names!
:::: finishing off Livingstone in a friendly battle::::
WSSU vs Livingstone 2010-11 [WSSU=Winston Salem State University]
-snip-
That cheer is entitled "You Get No Respect In Here". It is given as the third cheer in this video: WSSU CHEERLEADERS GETTIN' CRUNK http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GyRaRAge3PE
"Getting Crunk" means to get hyped [excited], to be hard (in the street sense of that word), to act "real", without any polite restraints] Click http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Crunk for information about the word "crunk".

Also, click http://cocojams.com/content/stomp-and-shake-cheerleader-cheers for the words to that "You Get No Respect In Here" cheer.

Example #2: BEN L. SMITH AND EASTERN GUILFORD CHEER OFF



ORIGINALCHEERPHI, Uploaded on Feb 21, 2008

THE EAGLES LETTIN' THE WILDCASTS KNOW THEY AINT READY TO ROCK WITH THEM AT THE ULTIMATE CHEER & DANCE EXPERIENCE TRIAD HIGH SCHOOL CHEERLEADING COMPETITION 2007
-snip-
“Wildcasts” is probably a typo for “Wildcats”.

Click http://pancocojams.blogspot.com/2013/05/rock-steady-childrens-cheer-examples.html for the words to that squad's second cheer "Rock Steady".

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Example #3: Brooke \ Bring it on 4 \ In it to win it [scenes that include "getting in someone's face"]



Badsa2406, Uploaded on Nov 7, 2011

...Video about the girl Brooke from a film Bring it on: In it to win it....
-snip-
This movie is #4 in the American Bring It On cheerleader movie series. The song is in Russian. Comments from this videeo's viewer comment thread identified that song in English as "Fashionable Girl” by Evgenya Randa.

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RELATED LINK
http://pancocojams.blogspot.com/2013/06/what-grittin-on-someone-means.html

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Thanks to all those featured in these videos. Thanks to the producers of these videos & their publishers on YouTube.

Thank you for visiting pancocojams.

Visitor comments are welcome.

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Overview of Stomp & Shake Cheerleading

Edited by Azizi Powell

This is Part III of a three part series that compares three different but closely related African American originated performance movement arts: historically Black fraternities & sororities steppin (stepping); foot stomping [cheers]; and stomp & shake cheerleading.

Part III of this series provides an overview of stomp & shake cheerleading.

Part I provides an overview of historically Black (African American) Greek letted fraternities & sororities. Click http://pancocojams.blogspot.com/2013/05/an-overview-of-black-greek-letter.html for Part I of this series.

Part II provides an overview of foot stomping cheers.
Click
http://pancocojams.blogspot.com/2013/05/an-overview-of-foot-stomping-movement.html for Part II.

The content of this post is presented for folkloric, cultural, entertainment, and aesthetic purposes.

All copyrights remain with their owners.

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PART III
WHAT IS STOMP & SHAKE CHEERLEADING
Stomp & shake is a referent for an African American originated style of cheerleading (first mention of these cheers that I've found is early 1970, but most of the earliest mention I've found is mid 1970s, the same time frame as the first documentation that I've found for foot stomping cheers.

Although there are some male stomp & shake cheerleaders, most of the squads consist of females. The synchronized, choreographed routines that the squad does while chanting include upstomps foot stomping movements. ("Upstomps" are "high kicks" such as those popularized by Black University marching bands). Those cheerleaders also performd "jigga pops", a rhythmical, fast double shake of their hips that is best shown off when the cheerleaders wear pleated cheerleader skirts.

Stomp & shake cheer routines may include some body patting but that isn't necessarily a part of stomp & shake routines.

These movements are done while the squad is reciting cheers. These cheers are usually introduced by one squad members, who says the name of the cheer, but unlike foot stomping cheers, they are unison cheers. Also, many stomp & shake cheers are similar in tone-but not in structure-to the insult/bragging foot stomping cheers. However, stomp & shake cheerleaders may also perform their routines to recorded music.

It's important to remember that drama (role playing) is supposed to be an important part of chanting insult/bragging stomp & shake cheers. The cheer performance fails if the stomper/chanter doesn't act as if she is confident, strong, assertive, and unafraid of the members of the rival cheerleading squad. The facial expression and persona of stomp & cheer cheerleaders is almost diametrically the opposite of the perky, always smiling mainstream cheerleader, particularly when it comes to battle cheers. "Battle cheers" are chanted to big up (brag about) your athletic team and/or your cheerleading squad. The name refers to the fact that the cheerleaders use their words and their movement routines in a contest as to which squad can succeed the most in getting their fans "hyped".

Although there appears to be a certain amount of stigma and disapproval associated with cheerleading squads who use other squad's cheers and cheer routines without permission, thanks to the internet and YouTube in particular, certain stomp & shake cheers & their routines have become part of the cheer repertoire of pre-university cheerleading squads.

Here's a video of a widely replicated "battle cheer":

Howard University Bison Cheerleaders 2



CoachSpence, Uploaded on Oct 19, 2006

Howard University Battle Cheer "Sit Back Down"
-snip-
The words to this cheer & the university stomp & shake cheer given as example #1 below are found on this page of my cocojams website: http://cocojams.com/content/stomp-and-shake-cheerleader-cheers.

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VIDEOS OF TWO ADDITIONAL UNIVERSITY STOMP & SHAKE CHEERLEADING SQUADS

Example #1: The World Renown Woo Woos of Virginia State University



GoTrojans·Uploaded on Sep 30, 2010

2009 Freedom Classic
January 2009
Richmond, VA

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Example #2: WSSU Red Team Cheerleaders NC Stomp & Shake Competition



Kiaerica Krishelle, Published on Feb 23, 2013

WSSU opening up the show at the FIRST annual Stomp n Shake cheerleading competition on Saturday 2/23/2013
-snip-
The way the cheerleaders held their hands when they eentered the gym reminds me of the way that the Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority, Inc step teams perform their signature cheer "It's A Serious Matter". That post and other sorority & fraternity posts can be found on pancocojams by clicking the "steppin" or "fraternity and sorority chants" tags.

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VIDEO OF A HIGH SCHOOL STOMP & SHAKE CHEERLEADING SQUAD

SASSY (We Shake The Best)



woowooworkit·Uploaded on Feb 17, 2007

JV And Varsity SASSY cheerleaders cheer at the last game against bluestone
-snip-
The words to each of this cheer and other pre-university cheerleader cheers, including several stomp & shake cheers are found on this page of my cocojams website: http://cocojams.com/content/childrens-cheerleader-cheers.

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RELATED LINK
Click http://thesocietypages.org/socimages/2011/07/21/race-and-the-changing-shape-of-cheerleading/ for a post on stomp & shake cheerleading that I wrote which was published on the sociological images blog.

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This concludes Part III of this series.

Thanks to the composer/s of these cheers and the performers of these featured stomp & shake cheer routines. Thanks also to the publishers of these videos on YouTube.

Thanks for visiting pancocojams.

Visitor comments are welcome.

Read More

An Overview Of Foot Stomping & Foot Stomping Cheers

Edited by Azizi Powell

This is Part II of a three part series that compares three different but closely related African American originated performance movement arts: historically Black fraternities & sororities steppin (stepping); foot stomping [cheers]; and stomp & shake cheerleading.

Part II provides an overview of foot stomping cheers and also provides information about the syncopated, choreographed performance movement of "foot stomping".

Part I provides an overview of historically Black (African American) Greek letted fraternities & sororities.

Click http://pancocojams.blogspot.com/2013/05/an-overview-of-black-greek-letter.html for Part I of this series.

Part III of this series provides an overview of stomp & shake cheerleading.
Click http://pancocojams.blogspot.com/2013/05/overview-of-stomp-shake-cheerleading.html for Part III.

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The content of this post is presented for folkloric, cultural, entertainment, and aesthetic purposes.

All copyrights remain with their owners.

Another longer version of this post is found as an introduction to this page of my cocojams website: http://cocojams.com/content/foot-stomping-cheers-0.

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PART II
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WHAT ARE FOOT STOMPING CHEERS?
Foot stomping cheers are a category of children's cheerleading cheers that have a characteristic call & response structure. Unlike other children's playground rhymes & cheers, rhyming verses may only make up a small portion of a foot stomping cheer.

Since at least the beginning of the 21st century, foot stomping cheers have been adapted & integrated into the repertoire of mainstream children's cheerleading & team cheer activities. That integration means that in discussing those cheers it may be best to refer to "traditional foot stomping cheers" and "mainstream" foot stomping cheers. For instance, traditionally, foot stomping cheers were chanted by two or more girls who performed synchronized, choreographed foot stomp routines similar to historically Black Greek letter organizations' steppin. However, the performance of foot stomps need not be, and often appears not to be, a part of mainstream cheerleaders or team cheers' experiences of foot stomping cheers.

Traditionally, foot stomping cheers start with the group voice. The group may begin by chanting the name of the cheer, and then calls on a member of the group. Or the cheer may begin with the group calling that person & stating their demand. Usually, the soloist responds to the group in a surly manner, and initially refuses to comply with their demand. However, the soloist eventually complies and chants a soloist portion & performs a brief foot stomping routine/dance. At the conclusion of that portion, that rendition of the cheer ends.

However, in other examples of foot stomping cheers, the group chants the same words as the soloist did, and then the cheer ends- only to immediately start again from the beginning with a new soloist. In some foot stomping cheers the soloist's lines are exactly the same, with the exception of the soloist's name or some personal information such as her astrological sign, or her favorite color. In other foot stomping cheers, the soloist's lines can be different, but must fit into the same theme as the cheer, and must follow the same cheer's metronome style beat.

In contrast to that traditional model, in mainstream cheer performances, there's likely not to be any soloist foot stomping or dance performance, and the foot stomping cheer itself may end before every member of the group has a turn as soloist.

Here's an example of a foot stomping cheer that begins with the group call & is followed by the group demand:

GET DOWN
Group- Hey, Shayla
Shayla - What?
Group- Hey, Shayla.
Shayla - What
Group - Show me how you get down.
Shayla - No way.
Group- Show me how you get down.
Shayla - Okay.
[Shayla does a hip swinging dance while saying]
I saida D. O. WN.
And that's the way
And that's the way
And that's the way I get down.
[Group does dance with Shayla and says]
Group - She saida D. O. WN.
And that's the way
And that's the way
And that's the way she gets down.
-T.M.P, mid 1980s, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania; collected by Azizi Powell

-snip-
This foot stomping cheer starts again from the beginning with the next soloist who says the same soloist lines but traditionally isn't supposed to repeat the same foot stomping/dance routine. This pattern continues until every member has had one turn as soloist.

In the version of same cheer that begins with the title of the chant, prior to the group calling the soloist by name, the entire group (including the first soloist) chants:
"I saida D. O. WN and that's the way we get down.
D. O. WN and that's the way we get down."

My term for this distinctive modified call & response structure is "group/consecutive soloists". Foot stomping cheers that don't start with the group speaking in unison are called "modified foot stomping cheers". A crucial characteristic of foot stomping cheers- the cheer immediately starts again with the next designated soloist. This pattern is supposed to continue without pause until every member of the group gets one turn as soloist for that particular cheer.

Traditionally, foot stomping cheers were chanted while girls performed a synchronized, choreographed foot stomping routine.
Children who performed foot stomping cheers as an informal leisure time activity were able to perform these cheers in the consecutive soloist format where every member of the group has an equal turn as the soloist. However, actual cheerleaders aren't able to do that, given the time constraints that they face during an actual game or during half-time.

One result of the limited time that cheerleaders have to perform during half-time is that modified forms of stomping cheers and perhaps even modified forms of stomping performances have been integrated into many pre-university cheerleader squads in African American communities as well as in non-African American communities. Read my comments about the changes that may be occuring to "stomps" in my comments after the video given below as Example #3.

Also, since at least the late 20th century and the beginning of the 21st century, a number of foot stomping cheers have retained their distinctive structure but have been separated from their foot stomping movement activity. These cheers have become part of mainstream repertoires of children's softball cheers & other cheers for children's sports games.

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TWO TYPES OF FOOT STOMPING CHEERS
While there are a number of different categories of foot stomping cheers, "insult & bragging cheers" & "dance" foot stomping cheers are the ones that are most widely known. The most widely known foot stomping cheer, "Shabooya Roll Call" is an example of a insult/bragging cheer. A video clip of that cheer is found below.

It's important to remember that drama (role playing) is supposed to be an important part of chanting insult/bragging foot stomping cheers. The chant performance fails if the stomper/chanter doesn't act as if she is confident and unafraid of her (imaginary, unnamed) opponent.

Another widely found (although not very well recognized) category of foot stomping cheers is what I call "dance style" cheers. These cheers provide an opportunity for their performers to stomp and do particular dance movements. Many of these cheers can be immediately recognizable by what I call the "Hey (person's name)" line that is found early in that cheer. "Get Down" is an example of a dance style foot stomping cheer.

Unlike the prohibition that is attached to the performance of step routines & chants of historically Black Greek lettered organization, and the disapproval that is associated with performing a stomp & shake cheerleader squad's cheers or routines without permission, there's no prohibition or social disapproval attached to chanting any particular foot stomping cheer. Since the synchronized, choreographed movements in foot stomping are formulaic, there can be no prohibition against any other group performing those routines.

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WHAT IS FOOT STOMPING?
"Foot stomping" is an African American originated performance art in which two or more persons (usually girls) chant a distinctive type of cheer while doing a synchronized, choreographed, rehearsed routine. That routine emphasizes the creation of bass sounding foot stomps that alternate with (individual) hand claps. In many foot stomping cheer routines the foot stomps alternate with body pats (chest, thigh, or foot pats, meaning the soles of the shoe). Unlike hand games, there are no partners in foot stomping, and there is rarely if ever any physical touching of another person.

The main pattern for traditional foot stomp routines is stomp clap stomp stomp clap )stomp x stomp stomp x). Another common fiit stomping routine is stomp stomp clap stomp stomp (stomp stomp x stomp stomp x). While the words to foot stomping cheers is important, the most important thing in the performance of foot stomping cheers is keeping the beat. Foot stomping is performed in a metronome like manner throughout the entire cheer. Once the beat starts, it continues until the end of the cheer.

The idea of a metronome beat can best be demonstrated by the Pop group Queen's 1977 hit song "We Will Rock You":

Queen - We Will Rock You



d4v1s, Uploaded on Apr 13, 2006
-snip-
The "We will we will rock you" words of that song are used in a number of mainstream cheerleader cheers. Examples of those cheers can be found on Cocojams's Children's Cheerleader Cheers page http://cocojams.com/content/childrens-cheerleader-cheers. However, in this post, the focus is on that song's beat pattern.

Notice that the beat pattern for this song continues without change throughout the entire song. Since people are often seated when singing this song on school buses or in the stands at football games, they might use their two hands at the same time to pat both of their thighs (body pat body pat clap (pat pat x).

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FEATURED VIDEOS
Example #1: Shabooya Roll Call
Editor's note:
"Shabooya Roll Call" is undoubtedly the most widely known example of a foot stomping cheer. Although "Shabooya Roll Call" is included in Spike Lee's 1996 movie Get On The Bus, it is best known from the 2006 cheerleader movie series Bring It On: All Or Nothing.

Here's the video of the Bring It On-All Or Nothing cafeteria dance scene with the words to the Shabooya cheer superimposed on the video screen. (Warning! There is a curse word used prior to the cheer starting.)

bring it on roll call



Uploaded by LoVee2MusiC on Jul 16, 2009
-snip-
In my opinion, the movement performance for this foot stomping cheer was greatly exagerrated. However, this clip shows the similarity between the foot stomping movements & stepping, and the foot stomping movements and stomp & shake cheerleading.

Again, traditionally, it's the cheer pattern with its consecutive soloists & the group voice being heard first & the soloist responding to that group voice that makes a cheer a foot stomping cheer.

Click http://pancocojams.blogspot.com/2012/01/right-rhyming-pattern-for-shabooya-roll.html for a pancocojams post on Shabooya Roll Call.

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Example #2: Dailey Tigers "Rock Steady"



daileytigers, Published on Nov 17, 2012

Cheerleaders
-snip-
This video is an example of a dance style foot stomping cheer. However, unlike the "standard" structure for foot stomping cheers, the cheer begins with a soloist's voice.

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Example #3: Stomp Cheer



kmt122181, Uploaded on Jul 14, 2008

Stomp Cheer
-anip-
The narrator says "You have to remember that the most difficult thing about this cheer is keeping the beat".

Here's the pattern these girls are using for this routine:
"stomp x stomp stomp x stomp stomp xx stomp stomp x"
**
"x" stands for "hand clap".

I'm curious if this pattern of stomps & handclaps is or was used by found in formal cheerleader squads, or in informal groups of African Americans. As shown in the video, this pattern works, but it seems different to me.

Overall, I consider this to be a pretty decent basic tutorial video for how to do "stomps". However, I continue to think that these stompers and a number of other stompers in videos I've watched of non-African Americans performing this type of cheers aren't raising their feet off the ground high enough. Consequently, their "stomps" don't produce a bass sound.

I've also noticed in a large number of videos of the "Shabooya Roll Call" cheer that many non-African Americans are substituting miming type actions or swaying back and forth instead of actual foot stomping routines. Those kinds of changes to the ways foot stomping cheers are performed were heralded in the first 2000 Bring It On cheerleader cheer movie when the majority Black & Latina cheerleading squad's routine was modified for the majority White cheerleading squad. In that movie, the performance of the foot stomping cheer "Introduce Yourself" was simplified and much of its foot stomping activity was removed, perhaps because it was difficult to do for those persons who weren't surrounded by that cultural rhythm & beat a much as many African Americans have been. Click http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MWG4AX09mqQ for a video of the "Introduce Yourself" scene. Text examples of that cheer are found on my Cocojams Foot Stomping Cheers page. A link for that page is given in this post.

It should be expected that the integration of foot stomping into mainstream cheerleading is resulting in changes to that performance art. However, it seems to me that some critiquing should be done abou certain ways that "stomps" and "steps" are being performed by mainstream cheerleading squads, unless we wake up one morning and anything that can be called "stomps" and "steps" and accepted as being high quality when those routines actually fail to meet the standards of what high quality stepping and high quality foot stomping (as well as what high quality stomp & shake cheerleading) used to be.

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RELATED LINK
Click http://cocojams.com/content/foot-stomping-cheers-0 for more information and examples of foot stomping and foot stomping cheers.

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This concludes Part II of this series.

Thanks to the composer/s of these cheers and the performers of these featured foot stomping cheer routines. Thanks also to the publishers of these videos on YouTube.

Thanks for visiting pancocojams.

Visitor comments are welcome.

Read More

An Overview Of Black Greek Letter Organization Steppin & Step Cheers

Edited by Azizi Powell

This is Part I of a three part series that compares three different but closely related African American originated performance movement arts: historically Black fraternities & sororities steppin (stepping); foot stomping [cheers]; and stomp & shake cheerleading.

Part I provides an overview of historically Black (African American) Greek letted fraternities & sororities.

Part II provides an overview of foot stomping cheers.

Click http://pancocojams.blogspot.com/2013/05/an-overview-of-foot-stomping-movement.html for Part II.

Part III of this series provides an overview of stomp & shake cheerleading.

Click http://pancocojams.blogspot.com/2013/05/overview-of-stomp-shake-cheerleading.html for Part III.

The content of this post is presented for folkloric, cultural, entertainment, and aesthetic purposes.

All copyrights remain with their owners.

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PART I
OVERVIEW OF STEPPIN'
Steppin, foot stomping, and stomp & shake cheerleading are three closely related but distinct movement performance arts. Each of these performance art forms originated among African Americans. Steppin (stepping) is the oldest of these performance arts.

Steppin (Stepping) is a syncopated, choreographed performance art that occurs at competitive "step shows" and other venues. The performance art of steppin originated among historically Black (African American) university based Greek lettered fraternities & sororities.

Click http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=A34OD4eA17o for a video demonstration of 19th century Buck dances, Wing dances, and Jigs. Duke University professor Thomas F. DeFrantz describes Buck dances as those which were very percussive, and weighted down into the foot. It seems clear from that description & his demonstration that Buck dances is one of the sources of Steppin.

I've seen the 1940s given as the date that historically Black Greek lettered organizations began steppin'. I'm willing to accept that 1940s date as long as it's understood that the beginning of what steppin has become didn't look like steppin now.

in her book Soul Stepping Elizabeth Fine quotes a 1924 Howard University student newspaper The Hilltop article entitled "Hell-Week" in which members of Omega Psi Phi and Kappa Alpha Psi fraternites are described as pledges "dancing about the campus..." (p.15).

However that dancing or that marching on campus that is also documented didn't look the same as the Black Greek letted organizations' steppin' styles that developed in the 1980s and 1990s. Elizabeth Fine also wrote that "The shift from the old-style circular stepping of the 1940s and 1950s to the increasingly complex synchronized movement style of the 1980s and 1990s attests to the new role stepping has in asserting black cultural identity" (p. 6).

Since at least the 1990s among historically Black Greek lettered organizations (BGLO), the performance art of strolls (party walks) has been added to most step routines, particularly at the end of those routines. "Strolls" (party walks) are done in a vertical line to recorded music, usually from the R&B/Hip-Hop genres, Those referents describe the strutting, dancing walk that the organizations' members informally do at dances/parties. While steppin is almost always a competitive performance, fraternities against fraternities, and sororities against sororities, "strolls" can be either competitive within those gender groupings, or non-competitive.

Each fraternity & sorority, including those which belong to The National Pan-Hellenic Council (NPHC), a collaborative organization of nine historically African American, international Greek lettered fraternities and sororities NPHC, has its own distinctive way of stepping. Some organizations usually step with props such as canes while others never use canes. One of those organizations, Omega Psi Phi Fraternity, Inc. has a distinctive hopping movement to its steppin routines, and actually prefers the reference "Hops" rather than steps to describe their routines. Body patting ("Hambone", pattin Juba") can be but is not necessarily an element of the steppin routines of each of "Divine Nine" members of the NPHC.

Since at least the 1990s among historically Black Greek lettered organizations (BGLO), the performance art of strolls (party walks) has been added to most step routines, particularly at the end of those routines. "Strolls" (party walks) are done in a vertical line to recorded music, usually from the R&B/Hip-Hop genres. The names "strolls" and "party walks" refer to the strutting, dancing walk that the organizations' members informally do at dances/parties. While steppin is almost always a competitive performance, fraternities against fraternities, and sororities against sororities, "strolls" can be either competitive within those gender groupings, or non-competitive

Click http://cocojams.com/content/fraternity-sorority-step-stroll-related-videos for an expanded version of this Overview

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SUMMARY DESCRIPTION OF CATEGORIES OF BLACK FRATERNITY & SORORITY CHANTS
Historically Black Greek lettered fraternity & sorority chants are composed in two lined rhyming verses. These verses are usually chanted or sung in unison but may also be in call & response style. The lyrics of the chants are usually adapted from other song genres such as Spirituals, R&B, and other popular music. There are at least three types of fraternity & sorority chants & songs. In the first category are chants/songs that praise & profess their love for a specific organization, provide information about that organization's history, and/or extol the public persona of that organization's members.

The second category of fraternity & sorority chants is "pledging" chants/songs, These chants/songs express the desire for membership in & the commitment to a specific organization that persons striving for membership in that organization have.

The third category of fraternity & sorority chants & songs are those in which a particular fraternity compares itself favorably with other fraternities and/or insults (disses) other fraternities or a specific fraternity, or a sorority does the same toward other sororities or a specific sorority. This category also includes chants/song is one in which a fraternity praises a sorority with which it has informal or formal ties and vice versa.

Traditionally, persons who aren't associated with a specific fraternity or sorority are prohibited against doing that organization's stepping routines or performing songs and chants that are associated with that specififc organization. That prohibition is still in place today.

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TWO EXAMPLES OF HISTORICALLY BLACK GREEK LETTERED ORGANIZATION STEPPIN & CHANTING
Below is one steppin & step chant example from the first historically Black (African American) Greek lettered fraternity that is still in existence - Alpha Phi Alpha Fraternity, Inc. (Alphas; founded 1906]. Below also is one example of the first historically Black (African American Greek lettered sorority that is still in existence [Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority, Inc, (AKA; founded 1908.]

Click http://cocojams.com/content/fraternity-and-sorority-chants for more text examples & videos of fraternity & sorority chants.

Also click http://cocojams.com/content/fraternity-sorority-step-stroll-related-videos for videos of fraternity & sorority stepping.

Example #1: King Tut and Finale - Spring 2011 - Beta Iota Chapter of Alpha Phi Alpha Fraternity, Inc



Theophilus Woodley,Uploaded on May 17, 2011

Recorded on March 18, 2011 using a Flip Video camcorder.
-snip-
Here's one version of this signature chant by an Alpha Phi Alpha Fraternity, Inc. step team.

King Tut went to Egypt the other day
To Check out the greeks that were coming his way
He saw the Ques, and he said thay acted like a fool
He saw the Kappas, and he said that they were not cute
He saw the Sigmas, and he said that they made him sick
Then he saw the A-PHI!, and he made his pick
-ENewton; http://www.stophazing.org/cgi-bin/ultimatebb.cgi?ubb=get_topic;f=7;t=000243 ; 09-30-2005

Click this page of my Cocojams website for a longer example of this chant http://cocojams.com/content/fraternity-and-sorority-chants.

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FEATURED EXAMPLE #2: Alpha Kappa Alpha



Uploaded by MissAmariG on Aug 30, 2010

Fall 2009 Yard Show (San Diego Undergraduate City Wide (UCSD, SDSU, USD). The Mu Iota Chapter)
-snip-
I'm particularly interested in the first example which was chanted when the step team entered the plaza. That chant is clearly based on the Duckworth chant ("Sound Off"). Here's my transcription of that sorority chant. A lead chants the first line and the rest of the group chants the words that are in parenthesis.

I don't know what you've been told
[I don't know what you've been told]
AKA's my heart and soul.
[AKA's my heart and soul]
One thing that I know for sure
[One thing that I know for sure]
Don't want no red, no blue, no gold*
Don't want no red, no blue, no gold*
19
[08]
19
[08]
1908
1908!
-Fall 2009 Yard Show (San Diego Undergraduate City Wide (UCSD, SDSU, USD). The Mu Iota Chapter) ; video uploaded by MissAmariG on Aug 30, 2010

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This concludes Part I of this series.

Thanks to the composer/s of this chant & the performers of this featured step routine. Thanks also to the publisher of this video on YouTube.

Thanks for visiting pancocojams.

Visitor comments are welcome.

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"Rock Steady" Children's Cheers (Examples & Comments)

Edited by Azizi Powell

This post is Part II of a two part series on the American R&B songs & children's cheerleader cheers that have the title "Rock Steady".

Part II of this series features videos & transcriptions of five examples of the children's cheerleader cheer with the name "Rock Steady". Part II also includes my comments about the inspiration for the name of those cheers, the meaning of "rock steady" in those cheerleader cheers, and information about how those cheers might be performed.

Part I features videos of Aretha Franklin's 1971 dance song "Rock Steady" and The Whispers' 1987 dance song "Rock Steady". Part I also includes my comments about the inspiration for the title of those two songs, the meaning of the term "rock steady" in those two songs, and information about a dance movement that was usually performed for those two songs.

Click http://pancocojams.blogspot.com/2013/05/examples-of-comments-about-aretha.html for Part I of this series.

The content of this post is presented for folkloric, cultural, entertainment, and aesthetic purposes.

All copyrights remain with their owners.

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HOW "ROCK STEADY" CHEERS GOT THEIR NAME
It's very likely that the name of the children's "Rock Steady" cheerleader cheers was inspired by the 1987 "Rock Steady" song by The Whispers instead of the 1971 "Rock Steady" song by Aretha Franklin. I believe this because I've yet to come across any examples of children's cheerleading cheers* with the phrase "rock steady" (and not just "rock"), or any remembrances of such cheers prior to 1987. If you remember any such cheers prior to 1987, please add a comment below or contact me via cocojams17@yahoo.com.

I'm almost certain that "Rock Steady" children's cheerleader cheers did not get their name from the Jamaican Rocksteady music genre. I think that's doubtful in large part because of the still relative unfamiliarity that people from the United States have about Rocksteady music.

*By "children's cheerleader cheers", I mean cheerleader cheers & chants that are performed by children and teens in community cheerleader squads and/or in school cheerleader squads prior to colleges or universities.

Click this pancocojams post for information about Rocksteady music: http://pancocojams.blogspot.com/2013/05/classic-jamaican-rocksteady-songs-sound.html.

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THE MEANING OF THE TERM "ROCK STEADY" IN CHEERLEADING CHEERS
In children's cheerleader cheers, "rock steady" means "to consistently excell on the athletic field." In those cheers "rock steady" is either given as a compliment "The [name of the athletic team] rocks steady", of as a diss (insult) "Your team don't rock steady"/ Your team "ain't even ready" (isn't prepared to best our team). In its complimentary form, "rock steady" is related to the American colloquial expression "You rock!" (meaning "You excel".) [You are the greatest person" or "You do something very well".]

Aside from societal imposed gender expectations (that males would swing their hips much less than females), whether any hip swinging is done while performing the "rock steady" cheer or how much hip swinging is done while performing that cheer depends on the type of cheerleading squad. If the cheerleading squad adheres to mainstream cheerleading, that squad is much less likely to perform this cheer or others like it which are either of African American origin or have been influenced by African American songs. Furthermore, even if that squad were to perform a "Rock Steady" cheer, because of the admonition in mainstream cheerleading against cheerleaders swinging their hips, very little to no hip swinging would be done.

In contrast, in a stomp & shake cheerleading squad, hip swinging is an integral feature of cheerleading routines, and hip swinging would be performed while chanting the Rock Steady cheer and other cheers like it.

It appears from YouTube videos that a significant number of American children's cheerleading squads have adopted some degree of hip shaking into their cheer routines. That is particularly the case with chants such as "Rock Steady" which are inspired by if not originated from African American culture.

Click http://cocojams.com/content/stomp-and-shake-cheerleader-cheers for information about and examples of "stomp & shake" cheerleading.

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FEATURED VIDEOS & TEXT TRANSCRIPTIONS
(These examples are presented in chronological order based on the date of their YouTube posting, with the oldest dated example posted first. The transcriptions are done by me from the videos. Additions & corrections are very welcome.)

Example #1: "Rock Steady" cheer



Sydney Calloway, Uploaded on Jan 16, 2010

Jv cheerleaders preforming rock steady at an away game during a quater at the boys basketball game.

CHEER LYRICS (Example #1)
Rock, rock steady
Cause your team
Ain't even ready
To rock rock rock rock
Steady eddy eddy eddy rock
Rock steady

[repeat several times]
-posted by Sydney Calloway, Uploaded on Jan 16, 2010
-snip-
The words "Steady eddy eddy" are included in many but not all of the "Rock Steady" cheerleading cheers. That phrase isn't found in either Aretha Franklin 1971 "Rock Steady" song or The Whispers' 1987 "Rock Steady" song. My guess is that the phrase "steady eddy eddy eddy" was coined for its rhythmic value.

Another real possibility is that that "ready eddy eddy" phrase could have been based on the "ready ready ready" or "ready steady steady" phrase that is found in some examples of the "Rock Steady" military cadence.

Other lines in certain examples of the "Rock Steady" military cadence also remind me of Rock Steady children's cheers. For instance, one such example includes the line "Charlie Rock is always ready". That reminds me of the children's cheer line "cause our team is always ready" or the line "cause your team ain't even ready".

Click http://pancocojams.blogspot.com/2013/05/rock-steady-military-cadence-with-sound.html for examples of these Rock Steady military cadences.

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Example #2: Rock Steady



markus gray, Uploaded on Jun 8, 2010

"Rock Steady"....you know!!!!

CHEER LYRICS (Example #2)
Squad: Rock (clap clap clap) steady (clap clap clap)
YES we rock, we rock, we rock steady
One person: So what's up girl?
Squad: Rock, (clap clap clap) steady (clap clap clap)
YES we rock, we rock, we rock steady
I said we like to rock.
We like to rock steady.
I said we like to rock.
We like to rock steady.
Hit it. Steddy eddy eddy eddy
Rock.
-posted by markus gray, Uploaded on Jun 8, 2010

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Example #3: PHS CHEERLEADERS Rock Steady



PHSExtraordinary, Uploaded on Nov 14, 2010

ROCK....STEADY......CAUSE YOUR TEAM......AINT EVEN READY!!!!! Lets go Rockets!!!!!! Varsity Cheerleaders

CHEER LYRICS (Example #3)
Rock, rock steady
Cause your team
Ain't even ready
To rock rock rock rock
Rock rock steady
Your team ain’t even ready
To rock rock rock rock
Rock rock steady
Cause our team is always ready
To rock rock rock rock.
-posted by PHSExtraordinary, Uploaded on Nov 14, 2010

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Example #4: Rocksteady cheer



Babydoll5432, Published on Jul 7, 2012
Na na looks crazy

CHEER LYRICS (Example #4)
Rock rock steady
The angels are ready
To rock rock rock rock
Steady eddy eddy eddy
Rock
[repeat multiple times]
-posted by Babydoll5432, Published on Jul 7, 2012

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Example #5: Dailey Tigers "Rock Steady"

.

daileytigers, Published on Nov 17, 2012

CHEER LYRICS (Example #5)
Lead girl- Hey Tigers are you ready
Entire squad: Well get down and rock steady
Well Tigers are ready.
Well get down and rock steady.
Well Tigers are ready.
Well get down and rock steady.
[Do a body patting and foot stomping routine with a sideways body wave movement]

[Same Lead girl] –Rock steady! Ready. Okay.
[Entire squad]
We,
we
are
ready
To
rock rock rock rock
Steady eddy eddy

Rock, rock steady
Your team ain't even ready
To rock rock rock rock
Steady eddy eddy eddy
Rock steady
Your team ain't even ready
To rock rock rock rock
Steady eddy eddy eddy
Rock.
-posted by dailytigers, Published on Nov 17, 2012
-snip-
This transcription doesn't include a description of the squad's entire routine.

This cheerleading squad includes a great deal of foot stomping & body patting in its cheerleading routines.

Click this page of my cocojams website for information about "foot stomping cheers": http://cocojams.com/content/foot-stomping-cheers-0

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UPDATE June 6, 2013 [added example]

Example #6: BEN L. SMITH AND EASTERN GUILFORD CHEER OFF



ORIGINALCHEERPHI, Uploaded on Feb 21, 2008

THE EAGLES LETTIN' THE WILDCASTS KNOW THEY AINT READY TO ROCK WITH THEM AT THE ULTIMATE CHEER & DANCE EXPERIENCE TRIAD HIGH SCHOOL CHEERLEADING COMPETITION 2007
-snip-
“Wildcasts” is probably a typo for “Wildcats”.
-snip-
Second cheer “rock steady” [.042-1:16]

CHEER LYRICS (Example #6)
Say what, what, what, what*
Your team ain't even ready.
We rock
Steady.
'Cause your team
Ain't even ready
To rock, rock, rock, rock
To rock
steady
'Cause your team
Ain't even ready
To rock, rock, rock, rock.
Your team ain't even ready
To ROCK.
-snip-
*I'm unsure of this transcription. The squad might be saying "We rock, rock, rock, rock."
O(

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RELATED LINKS
Click http://cocojams.com/content/childrens-cheerleader-cheers for additional examples of children's Rock Steady cheers. That page of my cocojams' website also includes other examples of children's cheerleader cheers, including other cheers that include the word "rock" (as in "Rock the [school colors]" such as "rock the blue and white").

Click this page of my cocojams website for information and examples of college/university level stomp & shake cheers: http://cocojams.com/content/stomp-and-shake-cheerleader-cheers.

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ACKNOWLEDGEMENT AND THANKS
Thanks to those cheerleaders who are featured in this post. Thanks also to the YouTube publishers of these videos.

Thanks for visiting pancocojams.

Visitor comments are welcome.

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"Be Aggressive" Cheerleading Cheer (Videos)

Edited by Azizi Powell

[revised 3/18/2013]

This post showcases the children's & teenagers' cheerleader chant "Be Aggressive".

These video examples were selected to demonstrate the differences between the performance of three different styles of cheerleading - mainsteam sports style cheerleading, stomp & shake cheerleading, and modified mainstream sports/stomp and shake cheerleading.

The content of this post is presented for folkloric, entertainment, and aesthetic purposes.

All copyrights remain with their owners.

[This post was formerly titled "Different Performance Styles For The "Be Aggressive".]

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INFORMATION ABOUT THE "BE AGRESSIVE" CHANT
Technically, "Be Agressive" is a cheerleader cheer
*A cheerleader chant is shorter and more repetitive than a cheerleader cheer. However, cheerleader "chants" are commonly referred to as "cheers".

I don't know when the "Be Aggressive" cheer was first created. However, that cheer appears to be a standard part of the cheer repertoire of many children's & teens' cheerleading squads. One reason that "Be Aggressive" is well known is its inclusion in two American cheerleader movies: the first movie of the Bring It On series [2000] and the 2009 movie Fired Up. In that later movie, attendees of a cheer camp watch scenes from that 2000 Bring It On movie, recite the words from those scenes, and then chant adaptations of the "Be Aggressive" cheer.

Click http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JWV_zMaQFEw "be aggressive - cheerleaders - bring it on - fired" up to find the video of those scenes from that 2009 movie.

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TEXT EXAMPLE OF "BE AGGRESSIVE"

Be Aggressive
Be Be Aggressive.
B-E-A-G-G-R-E-S-S-I-V-E.
Be Aggressive.
Be Be Aggressive.

[repeat several times]

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FEATURED VIDEO EXAMPLES OF "BE AGGRESSIVE"
(These examples represent some of the ways that "Be Aggressive" has been performed.

Brief explanation for the terms that I use to categorize the different styles of children's & teenagers' cheerleading:

"Mainstream cheerleading" is the type of cheerleading that is most known in the United States & elsewhere. That style of cheerleading includes to a greater or lesser degree cheers (chanting), tumbling, dance, jumps, and stunting.

Cheer Dance emphasizes incorporates more contemporary dance routines than mainstream cheerleading usually does.

Modified Mainstream Cheerleading/Cheer Dance - incorporates some aspects of Stomp and Shake cheerleading

"Smiling" is the core part of the image of the cheerleader in the three categories mentioned thus far. Also, the cheers (and chants) that are performed focus on the sports team with which the cheerleading squad is affiliated, and not the squad itself.

Stomp and Shake Cheerleading - includes cheers (chanting) and incorporates more hip shaking and foot stomping in their dance routines. The cheerleaders' image is more confrontational than any other form of cheerleading and the cheerleading squad itself may be the focus of some of its cheers/chants. Stomp & Shake cheerleading squads may also include stunting.

Visit my Cocojams.com website for more information on Stomp and Shake cheerleading. Also, click this page of my cultural website http://cocojams.com/content/childrens-cheerleader-cheers information about these categories of children's cheerleading. That website page also features additional text examples (words only) and videos of children's and teenagers' cheerleading cheers.

MAINSTREAM CHEERLEADER AND/OR DANCE STYLE CHEERLEADING
Example #1: 2008-09 Varsity Galway cheerleaders



Uploaded by greendayanni on Feb 14, 2010

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Example #2: Be Aggressive



Uploaded by dancechick1008 on Sep 4, 2010

Be Aggressive vs. Ames

Uploaded by dancechick1008 on Sep 4, 2010

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MODIFIED MAINSTREAM CHEERLEADING AND/OR DANCE STYLE CHEERLEADING
Example #1: 5th Orange Cheer "Be Aggressive"



Uploaded by ChrissyCLP70 on Aug 24, 2010
-snip-
Notice the beginning words "Hit it" in this cheer performance. Those words are lifted from African American music jargon where they meant to perfectly hit a note. In the context of cheerleader cheers "hit it" serves the same purpose as "Ready" or "Read, set go" or "1,2,3 go!". However, those words really mean to be very good at what you are going to do".

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Example #2: Be Aggressive



Uploaded by andilyn7272 on Sep 11, 2010

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STOMP AND SHAKE CHEERLEADING
Example #1: JVC Diamonds



Uploaded by bhskingofva2007 on Feb 3, 2008
the jvc diamonds doin "be aggressive"

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Example #2: Be Aggressive! GMS Cheer



GMS Cheer, Published on Jan 8, 2013

Githens Middle School Cheerleaders cheering at a basketball game vs. DSA on 1/8/13. This is their original take on a traditional cheer, "be aggressive".

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RELATED LINKS
Click http://www.cocojams.com/content/foot-stomping-cheers-0 for information about & for examples of foot stomping cheers. The very well known cheer "Shabooya Roll Call" is an exaggerated example of a foot stomping cheer.

Click http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bring_It_On_(film) for information about the Bring It On series of cheerleading movies.

ACKNOWLEDGEMENT AND THANKS
Thanks to all those cheerleading squads who are featured in this post and thanks to the uploaders of these videos.

Thank you for visiting pancocojams.

Viewer comments are welcome.

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