Edited by Azizi Powell
This is Part IV of a five part series that showcases a pre-2013 video of the majorette dance line of a Historical Black Colleges and University (HBCU) and includes selected comments from that video's discussion thread.
Part IV provides information about Southern University's "Dancing Dolls" and showcases a 2010 video and a 2012 video of that dance squad. I'm showcasing two videos because they both are brief.
Click http://pancocojams.blogspot.com/2016/07/jackson-state-university-jsettes-loose.html for Part I of this series. That post includes links to all of the other posts in this series.
Part I focuses on Jackson State University's "Prancing J-Settes."
Part II focuses on Alabama State University's "Stingettes."
Part III focuses on Alcorn State University's 'Golden Girls".
and
Part V focuses on Texas Southern University's "Motion of the Ocean".
Except for the majorette dance line showcased in Part I, these dance lines aren't given in any particular order. Additional HBCU dance lines will be showcased in subsequent pancocojams posts.
The content of this post is presented for historical, cultural, entertainment, and aesthetic purposes.
All copyrights remain with their owners.
Thanks to members of Southern University's Dancing Dolls now and in the past. Thanks to all those who featured in this video and thanks to all those who are quoted in this post. Thanks also to the publisher of this video on YouTube.
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INFORMATION AND COMMENTS ABOUT SOUTHERN UNIVERSITY
From https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Southern_University
"Southern University and A&M College (often referred to as Southern University, SUBR or SU) is a historically black college in Baton Rouge, Louisiana. The campus is on Scott’s Bluff overlooking the Mississippi River in the northern section of the city. The campus encompasses 512 acres, with an agricultural experimental station on an additional 372-acre site, five miles north of the main campus. The university is a member-school of the Thurgood Marshall College Fund and the flagship institution of the Southern University System...
At the 1879 Louisiana State Constitutional Convention, African-American political leaders P.B.S. Pinchback, T.T. Allain and Henry Demas proposed founding a higher education institution "for the education of persons of color." Louisiana before the American Civil War had an established class of free people of color, who were often property owners and educated; they kept that tradition for their children.
In April 1880, the Louisiana General Assembly chartered what was then called Southern College, originally located in New Orleans. Southern opened its doors on March 7, 1881 with 12 students. The school was held for a time at the former Israel Sinai Temple on Calliope Street, between St. Charles and Camp streets.
In 1890 the legislature designated Southern as a land grant college for blacks, in order to continue to satisfy federal requirements under the land grant program to support higher education for all students in the state, despite having a segregated system...
Southern University Marching Band
The Southern University marching band, known as the Human Jukebox , has been featured in numerous television commercials, music videos and invited to participate in the annual Rose Parade in Pasadena, California, Presidential Inauguration ceremonies and 6 Super Bowl halftime presentations...
The band is well known for their powerful and dominating sound in the stands, precise, show stopping, high stepping, and entertaining drills on the field, and as being the only HBCU marching band to feature one drum major during performances.
-snip-
It's surprising that, except for a photograph of the marching band and the Dancing Dolls, this Wikipedia page [retrieved on July 20, 2016 at 10:30 AM) doesn't include any mention of the Dancing Dolls.
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SHOWCASE VIDEOS
Example #1: Southern University Marching Band (Game 2, Season 2010)
ajpania, Uploaded on Sep 15, 2010
Southern vs. Arkansas Monticello
(Game 2, Season 2010)
Southern University Marching Band Postgame Performance
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Example #2: Southern University (2012) @ Boombox Classic X - Nobody's Perfect
HBCUBANDS.COM, Published on Sep 23, 2012
Southern University (2012) @ Boombox Classic X
-snip-
DISCLAIMER: I arbitrarily chose these videos through YouTube surfing. I don't mean to imply that two videos could be representative of the entire history of this or any dance squad.
****
SELECTED COMMENTS
These comments are given in relative chronological order, with the oldest dated comments given first, except for responses. However, these comments may not be in consecutive order.
In this comment section and others in this series I'm particularly interested in documenting vernacular terms that are used about j-setting such as "buck", "throw counts", "stands" (meaning "counts" and not stadium bleachers), "field shows", "tail" and "crabs".
I'm also interested in presenting comments that refer to the history of that particular HBCU majorette dance line and/or the changes that have been made in what has come to be known as "j-setting".
I've assigned numbers for referencing purposes only.
VIDEO #1
2010
1. blaxtraordinaire
"Southern University's band ensemble is starting this season of 2010 off very strong! I love it when the director says, "One-two bring that mustard!" The band has a well balanced sound and the "Dolls" look diverse, which is what a lot of HBCU marching bands need. Also the the leader of the "Dolls" is very consistent with her movements in the stands. Excellent job SU!"
**
2. Kendrick Jones
"I Love the Dolls... Just Beautiful... they're style of dancing is really something else... i just love them"
**
3. Kendrick Jones
"And for those who are hating on the dolls u just dont yet... if u cant beat them join them... we the only squad out of any jsettes that actually dances... all the other squads out there doing nothing but pussy popping and not giving the Fans what they want to see"
**
4. J.Wesley
"As a former member of the Human Jukebox and Doll fanatic....this captain did the DAMN THANG!!! Threw all the right counts with energy and attitude! I have not seen a captain this dedicated since my crab sister Davique..."
**
5. cocoblk504
"Even though I dont really like the Dolls dancing style I <3 this captain! So much precise moves! Work out!"
**
6. valleyboy010
"This year dolls gave those counts a fresh look to them the past couple of years those counts was starting to look run down...that captain was something serious i love her look can't wait for the boombox classics the dolls are going to be the stand out dance line this year"
**
7. Cheqerdflag
"I would like to congratulate the Dancing Dolls for being the ONLY dancers alive that dance the entire song! Who came up with throwing a cadence then resting till you throw another one? Big waste of music. Looking good Meagan the Strikette."
**
8. waterandheadphones19
"Was is rainin or somethin this game cause everybodies hair is messed up lol"
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9. superstuntmanBJ
"one time for BROWNSKIN
,,.the captain is on point, what a body"
**
10. DeOne Gregg
"That captain is a lil too dark for SU huh?"
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Reply
11. Jarrett Goer
"i understand why people came up with the light skin myth of the dancing dolls, back in the day, most of the line were light skinned, but im happy that they have all shades of color, this is by far one of the best dancing dolls lines and they have some beautiful women on the line, beautiful black and hispanic women!! gotta love it, lol!"
**
Reply
12. Delaney Jordan
"THE SOUTHERN UNIVERSITY DANCING DOLLS CAME ALONG WAY FROM ONLY HAVING LIGHT SKINNED GIRLS TO ANY GIRL WHO CAN DANCE....IT WAS NEVER ABOUT THE SCHOOL IT WAS THE BAND DIRECTOR CHOICE AT THAT TIME. SU IS IN MY BLOOD"
**
Reply
13. Jarrett Goer
"beauty comes in all colors, im proud that all types of beauty are found on this danceline, dark skin is very beautiful, and the captain is too, shes amazing, im glad that they choose girls based on talent and not color, its poathetic that black people cant accept our own beauty, such a shame, slaverty ended years ago and were still talking about light skin and dark skin, black is beautiful period!!"
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14. J.Wesley, 2013
"Notice how real hair looks after four quarters of counts and a half time performance!!!! Still giving it to you in the 5th! Sexy and loving it!"
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15. MrSaitekController, 2013
"I'm guessing it was really hot out there by the looks of their hair. That humidity is brutal to a black woman's hair."
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2011
16. Shawn Rivers
"The lead dancer is phenomenal. She is captivating. She draws you into her performance. Outstanding work young lady, you derserve to be commended.."
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GEORGE FONTENO
17. "The capt on here is d.frank... The dolls look great and did more movement during this season. Of course they kept it classy, familiar, and as sexy as can be. That their style of dancing. Jsettes do more during their routines. It's not hard all the time but if they're bucking, it calls for them to be a bit wild"
-snip-
"Jsettes" refer to Jackson State University's majorette dance squad "Prancing J-Settes".
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18. Tampa0123456789
..."The lead girl in the front is a beast. I've seen like half of souther videos on you-tube and I think her and the lead girl from 2008 are just dominant."
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19. dollfacedee12
..."EX Captain now but her name is D'tara"
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20. Keith L. Bush
"This is a perfect example of how and why the Prancing Jsettes eat them alive EVERY time they meet. They cute but the Jsettes are more physical. Plus the stand routines are more involved."
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Reply
21. Keith L. Bush
"Are you serious.....no really? They in no way have to buck their way to the top, when they are already sitting at the top. There are no rules in marching band. The Jsettes are ready. SU comes us this year. Please make sure the dolls don't march up into the handicap area this year."
**
Reply
22. MrOu83
"The Jsettes are physical alright. They are raw and unrefined; no sense of polish or elegance. The Dolls are refined ladylike, elegant, sexy, yet glamorous. Much better than those wild and out of control wanna-be videod dancers and that ramp kick mess."
**
23. knowledgeincubator
"America's First and By Far the Greatest, Historically Black College/University Danceline!!!! We Love Our Dolls!!!! PS: So Does the Queen of Pop (Madonna).... :-)"
-snip-
Another comment in that discussion noted that Madonna included Southern University's Dancing Dolls in her Superbowl Half-time show.
**
24. Jasmi Burr
"This is the best I ever seen frm theses girls cause their dance routines are normally boring and old"
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25. coolblue1922
"your wrong... new stuff does not make up for showmanship.. dolls look better because they are softer and not always trying to buck their way to the top... old or new beauty and show always wins... "
****
2012
26. Lyndali Lynch
"Captain and her team looked Classic and On Point. The Best I have seen of the Dancing Dolls yet."
**
27. MrOu83
..."While they the Dancing Dolls are good, they are not te best technically trained dancers in the world. They are mostly hip-hop with occasional jazz. They are not classically trained. Let's keep it real. For example, they would not fare well if forced to compete against squads in the NCAA dance team championships. There is a different standard there. What they do, they do well."
**
28. kiara Hunter
"OMG East Feliciana a school in louisiana basically stole all dey moves like here is the name look at all there moves not only in this video but all of east felicianas dance team videos"
Name: East Feliciana- ESPN 11/17/12
**
29. Reply
Zack Brumfield, 2013
"a lot of school from around here do southern dances. as well as ASU and JSU dances."
-snip-
"ASU" is probably Alabama State University and JSU is probably Jackson State University.
**
30. kiara Hunter
"ys the lst grl always going so late for they ending pose"
-snip-
"ys" is probably a stylized form of the word "why" and lst may mean "last".
No one has answered this question yet [as of this post's publication] and I would prefer that someone directly affiliated with a jsetting squad or attending (or having attended) a HBCU answer it. However, I've learned that the last girl is the tallest member of the dance squad and is known as the "tail". From what I've read in other video's comment threads, it's traditional for the tail to extend her movements.
Btw, the tallest member of a historically Black Greek letter fraternity or sorority is also called a tail.
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VIDEO #2
My notes about the selected comments that are given above als apply to these comments.
2013
1. jbu2009
"okay..go dolls..yaw the best danceline in all hbcu of all time...lol"
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2. kgivens225
"see now these r dancers and beautiful ones at that. they dance, they don't buck jump like them girls on the other side of the damn field, rofl...."
**
3. Erica Rae
"They battle with class"
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4. Wanda Furman
"I Just Notice Somethig ??? Theres No Darkskined Girls smh"
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Reply
5. AriesBoy1988
"there is one she's just not in the camera."
**
6. Life With Essence
"There have been several "dark" skin girls on this team. Ever thought they chose the most talented girls, regardless of skin tone?"
**
7. Keith Rogers
"Lol if you look at the dancing dolls of this season you'll see that most of the girls are brown skin even some dark skin girls."
**
8. Salsadivva
"There have been plenty of dark-skinned girls as Dancing Dolls over the years. The captain of the Dolls in 2009 and 2010 was a beautful, chocolate girl who could dance her butt off!"
**
9. ThrirdWardGyal
"Lol creole' people is everywhere in Louisiana dumb ass"
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10. louisianaboi08
"Y'all get on my nerves smh do any of y'all attend Southern??? If u don't Kno these girls then don't assume cause u make an ass of yourselves... Crabs can't wear weave so yea that's all there hair and yea None of these girls were weave... Black girls can't have long hair??? Y'all sound stupid... And the Dancing Dolls have all diff shades of girls so y'all can stop that light skin crap"
**
11. jbu2009
"oh no doubt..i like the dolls...they are some nice lookiing ladies..but you can tell they are carefully picked..no big girls no where...lol"
**
12. Michael Michael
"They are very pretty but sooo boring. No type of energy."
**
13. Jerry Williams
"i would like to see one video with the captain smiling"
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14. Kendra Payne, 2014
"Why the section leader mean mugging like that"
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Reply
15. Glo Militia, 2014
"sometimes dancers don't smile if the dance is supposed to be sexy that's probably why they weren't smiling."
**
Reply
16. Jin aqi
"they are so beautiful. I think not smiling too much fits with the routine, outfit, etc."
**
17. 8thwonder0608
"They are battling the J-settes! No time for smiles."
-snip-
The j-settes" is the Jackson State University's dance line. The football teams on the field are competing with each other for the win. And, although it's unofficial, those university's marching bands, and their dance lines are also competing against each other.
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18. louisianaboi08
"The prettiest HBCU Danceline naturally pretty, no weaves!!! Everything on them is there's hair and all!!!"
-snip-
"Weave"= hair extensions
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19. later39
"dolls dont wear weave.
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Reply
20. louisianaboi08
"That's what I'm trying to tell them we go to school with these girls... DOLLS are not allowed to wear WEAVE!!! none of these girls wear tracks so don't try to pinpoint saying u saw a track... Just because these other schools wear a pound of weave DOLLS HAVE ALWAYS and will forever be natural!!!"
**
Reply
21. jbu2009
"natural?look again...support ur school...but be real.."
**
Reply
22. waterandheadphones19
"If they don't wear weave then tell me why Brittany went from having short hair one season and then hair down her back the very next. Or how Kayle went from having short hair the whole season then for the bayou classic she had hair down her back. I'm not bashing the Dolls at all they're one of my favorite dance lines but like jbu2009 said be real. "
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2015
23. QueenCoCoaMocha
"sorry I cannot dance and be half naked with elders behind looking at me naw"
**
Reply
24. kimmyw010
"Lmfaoooo elders ! I'm weak!"
**
Reply
25. uniquesongstress
"FOOL, lmao. I'm deceased now, thanks a lot. Not the elders."
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2016
26. Tee Jack2000
..."i don't think anyone will ever come to close to Kayla, Dom & Asia as SWAC captains.. Next year's captains will be great but mann that crab class of 2012 was everything!"
-snip-
"crab"= new members
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This concludes Part IV of this series.
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