Nigerian Culture: Igbo Women Dancing With White Handkerchiefs

Edited by Azizi Powell

This pancocojams post is Part IV of a four part pancocojams series on Ghanaian, Togolese, and Nigerian customs of waving or twirling white handkerchiefs while dancing or while worshipping in church.

Part IV of this series showcases five videos of the custom of dancing with white handkerchief customs among the Igbo people of Nigeria, West Africa and among the Igbo people living outside of Nigeria.

Click http://pancocojams.blogspot.com/2015/11/information-about-dancing-and-waving.html for Part I of this series. Part I presents information about traditional customs of waving and/or dancing with white handkerchiefs in certain West African cultures and also presents theories about the purposes of those customs in those cultures.

Click http://pancocojams.blogspot.com/2015/11/dancing-holding-white-handkerchiefs-in.htmlfor Part II of this series. Part II showcases videos of the Borborbor (Akpesse) dances of the Ewe people of Ghana, West Africa and of Togo, West Africa. Women traditionally perform those dances holding white handkerchiefs in both hands.

That post also provides videos of church some people in Ghana waving white handkerchiefs during church services.

Click http://pancocojams.blogspot.com/2015/12/ghanaian-culture-waving-white.html for Part III of this series. Part III showcases the custom of waving white handkerchiefs in some Ghanaian churches.

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

All copyrights remain with their owners.

Thanks to all those who are featured in the videos that are embedded in this post. Thanks also to all those who are quoted in this post and thanks to the publishers of those videos on YouTube.

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I believe that the customs of waving white handkerchiefs in New Orleans, Louisiana or elsewhere in the United States while marching in second line parades have their sources in the traditional customs of waving or dancing with white handkerchiefs in the Ewe cultures of Ghana, West Africa and Togo, West Africa, and the Igbo culture of Nigeria, West Africa.

Click http://pancocojams.blogspot.com/2015/12/probable-ghanaian-sources-for-new.html for a pancocojams post about those customs that associated with New Orleans second line parades.

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QUOTES ABOUT IGBO WOMEN DANCING WAVING WHITE HANDKERCHIEFS
Google books
African American Sacred Music: An Afrocentric Historical Narrative by C. Wilbert McCabe, 2008, p. 71-72
"In tems of Abigbo music and dance, it consists of “free medley dance” in which everyone present is free to participate. “Although dancers may be individualistic in their choreographic elaboration on a given dance theme and motif, certain characteristics movements recur, including supple hip/waist movements, alternate stepping forward and backwards, and shaking of the body, sometimes with waving of handkerchiefs. (Onyeji, 2004, p. 57). This is another example of an intensely spiritual and sacred experience for the Umuhu, Lagwa, and Ibeku communities as well as the Mbaise people in the Imo State of Iboland and many other African countries.”

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SHOWCASE EXAMPLES
These examples are given in chronological order according to their publishing dates on YouTube with the oldest dated example given first.

Example #1: IGBO WOMEN CULTURAL DANCE ,MUNICH GERMANY ( OTU IHUNANYA GROUP ) FIXED IN BY SAMPLE NWANYI,PART FOUR



MAMA B FROM PORTHACOURT NIGERIA, Uploaded on Jan 30, 2009

WE LOVE TO ENTERTAIN THE WORLD

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Example #2: Amumara Women In Dallas, Texas [Nigerian Igbo descent in the USA]



Diesel24t, Uploaded on Jun 1, 2010

Amumara women at Amumara Development Union Americas Convention in Dallas, Texas
-snip-
"Amumara" is a community in Mbaise. Mbaise is a local Government Area in Imo State, Nigeria. Read the note below the video given as Example #3 for more information on Mbaise.

Here's more information about Amumara from http://newtelegraphonline.com/lets-build-the-apostolic-church-amumara/
"Amumara is the epicenter or the administrative headquarters of The Apostolic Church, Nigeria, Igboland territory, comprising eight states of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, where faithful converge twice annually for the Area and Territorial conventions.

Secondly, Amumara is the home of the only Theological Seminary The Apostolic Church Igboland has, where pastors and leaders are trained. The degree awarding institution established almost 40yrs ago, is accredited by the National Universities Commission (NUC)and affiliated to the University of Uyo."
-snip-
Notice the Nigerian (and some other African nations) custom of spraying dancers with cash money. Also notice that one of the dancers twirls a brown handkerchief instead of a white one. Click http://pancocojams.blogspot.com/2011/09/pinning-birthday-dollars.html for one of several pancocojams posts on spraying money.

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Example #3: Mbaise Association of Maryland, 2011 Event



Diesel24t, Uploaded on Sep 18, 2011

Mbaise Women dance, Best Western Hotel in Baltimore, Maryland
Date: Sunday, September 18, 2011
-snip-
Here's some information bout Mbaise from https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mbaise
"Mbaise is a region and a people located in Imo State, southeastern Nigeria. Set in the heart of Igboland, it includes several towns and cities. The name "Mbaise" was derived from five cities: Agbaja, Ahiara, Ekwereazu, Ezi na Ihite and Oke Uvuru.... The Mbaise Slogan is Seat of Sages.

The people are Igbo. About 90% Catholics, while Protestants and other religions comprise the remaining amount."...

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Example #4: IGBO DAY 2011 - women's cultural dance



ICAC youtube channel,Uploaded on Sep 28, 2011

IGBO DAY 2011 - women's cultural dance

A traditional dance performance of the Igbo women.

Music
"Mgbogho" by Cultural Music Masters

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Example #5: URUAGU NNEWI WOMEN - Cultural Dance [Nigerian Igbos]



IGBO NATION Tv, Published on Oct 23, 2014

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Visitor comments are welcome.

Flavour - "Ada Ada" (A Nigerian Igbo Wedding Song & Video (with lyrics & explanatory comments)

Edited by Azizi Powell

This post showcases a video of the song "Ada Ada" by Nigerian Highlife singer Flavour. That video showcases traditional Igbo wedding traditions.

This post also includes selected comments from that video's discussion thread about the traditions shown in this video, as well as explanations of some of the Igbo words spoken in the video. The lyrics to Flavour's "Ada Ada" and some explanatory comments from this video's discussion thread are also included in this post.

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

All copyrights remain with their owners.

Thanks to Flavour N’abania for his musical legacy. Thanks also to all those who are quoted in this post and thanks to the YouTube publisher of the video that is embedded in this post. And to quote emecca123 (2014): "Big - up the producers, directors, cinematographers, actors, actresses, and off course Mr. Flavour, you rock as always."

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SHOWCASE VIDEO: Flavour - Ada Ada [Official Video]



Official Flavour, Published on Jun 30, 2013

The video for the most anticipated wedding theme song by Flavour is finally here. It pictures a complete Igbo traditional wedding, starring Uti Nwachukwu, Mr Ibu, KC (Limpopo), Chinedu Ikedieze (Aki) and many more.
-snip-
The people whose names are given above are Nigerian celebrities.

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LYRICS - ADA ADA
(Flavour)

(with English translations & explanations, posted by
Onyemefolu nwasi, 2015 in the discussion thread for the song's official YouTube video]
"Someone was asking for translation of the song, Well the video tells the whole story though
Below is the literal translation of the song

Have you seen my beautiful baby?
Have you seen my tomato baby oh? (iyele)
Baby softly dey cool me temper ada
Baby na sugar sugar iyo..ooo
Everybody dey wait
Come out to the gathering
What is good is beautiful
Better soup na money kill am o
Adanwa ngwa(go) pekem pekem ya(dance step)
Ada ada (oyolima)(praises)
Ada ada iyo..ooo
Ada ada (adanwa) (praises)
Ada ada (chei asanwa) (praises)
Ada ada (hey ada) (praises)
Ada n’idi ora nma (Ada that is pleasant to All- Praises)
Everybody dey wait
Puta kene na ogbo (Come to the gathering)
Ife di m mma amaka (What is good is good)
Better soup na money kill am o
Adanwa ngwa(go) pekem pekem ya(dance step)
Ada ada (hey adanwa) (Praises)
Ada ada iyo…ooo
Ada no dey lack ada
Dem get am for everywhere
Ada no dey lack ada
Dey get am for up and down
Baby na tomato baby
Too fresh like morning wine
Ada welele yi (Praises)
Iyooo ko ko ko
Everybody dey wait
Puta kene na ogbo (Come out to the gathering)
Ife di m mma amaka (What is good is good)
Better soup na money kill am o
Adanwa ngwa(go) pekem pekem ya (dance step- form of dance)
Ada ada (hey adanwa) praises
Ada ada iyo..ooo
Ada ada (adanwa) praises
Ada ada (chei asanwa) (praises- for beautiful lady)
Ada ada (hey ada)
Ada n’idi ora nma – (Ada that is pleasant to All- Praises)
Everybody dey wait (dey wait you)
Puta kene na ogbo(Come-out to the gathering)
Ife di m mma amaka (What is good is good)
Better soup na money kill am o
Adanwa ngwa(go) pekem pekem ya (dance step- form of a dance)
Ada ada (hey adanwa) (praises)
Ada ada iyo..ooo
Ada ada (adanwa) (praises)
Ada ada (chei asanwa) (praises – for a beautiful lady)
Ada ada (hey ada)
Ada n’idi ora nma (Ada that is pleasant to All- Praises)
Everybody dey wait (dey wait you)
Puta kene na ogbo (Come-out to the gathering)
Ife di m mma amaka (What is good is good)
Better soup na money kill am o
Adanwa ngwa(go) pekem pekem ya (dance step- form of a dance)
Ada ada (hey adanwa)
Ada ada iyo..ooo
Pekem pekem pekem iya (dance step- form of a dance)
Pekem pekem pekem pekemkem iya ije (dance step- form of a dance)
Pekem pekem pekem pekemkem iya ije (dance step- form of a dance)
Pekem ya ije (dance step- form of a dance)
Pekemkem ya ije (dance step- form of a dance)
Pekem pekem iya pekemkem (dance step- form of a dance)
Adanwa ngwa welu ya ngwa welu ya ngwa cho bi ya (dance step- form of a dance)
Adanwa ngwa welu ya ngwa welu ya ngwa cho bi ya (dance step- form of a dance)
Adanwa ngwa welu ya ngwa welu ya ngwa cho bi ya (dance step- form of a dance)
Adanwa ngwa welu ya ngwa welu ya ngwa cho bi ya (dance step- form of a dance)
Pekemkem pekem pekem iya ijawa ije o ka omee (dance step- form of a dance)
Mummy bye bye
Daddy bye bye
In nine months time
We will come visiting
With a boy and girl
A na-akpo ejima (That is called Twins)
Ada ada iyo…..ooo "

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SELECTED COMMENTS
These comments provide some explanation about the Igbo marriage customs, and/or the spoken Igbo words in the script for the official video for Flavour's song "Ada Ada", and/or the Igbo words in the song.

With the exception of a comment requesting translations and two comments about "Ada" and "Ada Ada", these comments are given in relative order based on their posting date with the oldest comments given first. Replies are an exception to this statement. However, these comments may not be in consecutive order. I've assigned numbers to these comments for referencing purposes only.

1. laiomo, 2013
"Can someone please translate the Igbo parts of this song? It's so beautiful, but I have ideas what it means lol"

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2. DemkoStar, 2015
"This song is a celebration of womanhood. In Igbo language (Nigeria), Ada is sort of a title name bestowed on the first daughter in the family. But you can also call any girl Ada, as a mark of affection/intimacy (it would then mean like "maiden"). A man calling an Igbo girl Ada, unless she actually goes by that name (from birth), is almost a subtle declaration of love.* Ada can be coined into various variants. In such cases, it may not necessarily be referring to the first daughter. Some popular examples: "Adaobi", literally "(first) daughter of the homestead"; "Adugo" (compaction from "Ada ugo") = Precious Daughter, or literally Golden Daughter; "Adaora" or "Adora" (from "Ada ora") = People's Daughter; "Adaeze" or "Adeze" (from "Ada eze") = Princess, or literally Daughter of the King; "Adamma" = Beautiful Daughter; "Adanna" (from "Ada nna ")= (Beloved) Daughter of her Father."
-snip-
*The commenter wrote this sentence in bold font.

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3. uzzyvick, 2015
"Ada Ada simply means a "daughter among daughters". By implication, a favoured daughter among others. Even though first daughters in Igbo custom are often referred to as "the ada", the general term for a daughter is ada just as okpara is general for a son but first sons are called "the okpara". Please ignore all these nonsense explanations about ada being a name for first daughters only, as it limits interpretation or other aspects of the word"
-snip-
Another comment about the Igbo name "Ada" is found at #20 below.
Also, as a reminder, a pancocojams post that showcases these comments and other comments about the Igbo name "Ada" from this discussion thread will be published ASAP.

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4. Chijioke Cjay, 2013 [English translation of an early scene in the video]
"Ada!! ogini (whats the problem), Ada: ha abiabero (they havent come yet (the inlaws)), ha ga-abia, okwa agwagom gi ee(they will come, I have told you that), ha gabia naw ha ga-abia oo (ther will surely come).
nne (baby) ha ga-abia ha ga-abia oo bia k'anyi pu (come lets go) bia k'anyi pu, ineediri ikwado (u need to get prepared). Bia k'ikwado (come and get prepared) bia k'ikwado. Biko biko biko (pls pls pls). Bia naw"
-snip-
These comments describe that scene:
5. Diana Adhiambo, 2015
"Why does the girl look panicky at the beginning of the video?"

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6. hyacinthdibley, 2015
Reply
"Because the groom hadn't arrived yet, I believe."

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7. odinese nwad, 2015
Reply
"Yup u right"

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8. Ojay1988, 2013
in reply to blenderella [who asked for English translations of the Igbo words in this song]
"1.Puta kene na ogbo - (Try to come out into the area/public***) [see below]
2.Ife di m mma amaka - (A good thing is good)
3.Adanwa ngwa pekem pekem iya - Encouraging her to dance
4.Adanwa ngwa weluya...ngwa chobiya - Encouraging her to "kill it" on dance floor
5.Ana akpo ejima - (literally = "referred to as twins")

***[commenter's asterisks] Same way people make a circle (ogbo) at a party and take turns jumping in the middle dancing. He is asking her to come into the middle of the "ogbo" and dance for all to admire."

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9. Uncle Ned , 2013
in reply to Ojay1988
"@ Ojay1988 thanks for translating. However you forgot to emphasise "ngwa chobiya" which is "go loook for him"; referring to the husband to be. In our traditional Igbo marriage, the Lady to be married carries the wine and goes looking for the intending husband. Ngwa weluya... ngwa chobiya therefore tells her to go look for him in the most beautiful and wonderful dance style."

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10. Yale Femi, 2013 [explanation for the song lyric "Baby na tomato baby"
"In Naija, we liken our women to the taste of our beloved and much cherished foods plus the fruits (so rich in vitamins and all the necessary goodies) coz of our very rich (food) culture. Sweet tomato, sweet banana,"

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11. Kalle Zulu, 2014
For you to have an Igbo traditional marriage....You would have to be an Igbo woman. The marriage ceremony is done at the girl's parents house not at the Broidegroom's house. If a Yoruba man marries an Igbo girl then they will have an Igbo marriage...Traditional marriage in most of Nigerian ethnic group is done at the girl's place cos a man is going to her side to beg/ask her father/her people to marry her.

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12. Abena Tiwaah, 2014
Reply
"No ...you can still do it whether you are an Igbo girl or not. I have seen it done before."

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13. Briste Belle , 2015
Reply
"If you get married to an Igbo guy, your traditional wedding will be according to YOUR own people's tradition. But if you are an Igbo girl already, then your traditional wedding could be similar to this because it is the Igbo tradition and for cultural weddings, it goes according to the girl's tradition."

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14. gloria sekhethela, 2014
"what the waweluya waweluya watshopian mean ? momibai bai nati bai bai mean? and anabejima if I can knw this word abeg ooo"

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15. Vee Oby, 2014
Reply
"@Gloria, the word is, ngwa weluya, ngwa chobiya meaning; go on, dig it! (He is encouraging Ada and the dancers to dance harder). The other statement says "in nine months time we will come visiting with a boy and girl (anakpo - called) twins (ejima).

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16. Vee Oby, 2014
Reply
"@Gloria, the second phrase you wrote is actually "mummy, bye bye" the other word you wrote at the end means "you'll have a boy and girl that are twins". So essentially, he's saying " mummy bye bye, daddy bye bye, in nine months time we'll come visiting with a boy and girl that are twins"."

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17. Busy Kasanke, 2014
"the Igbo traditional wedding is very similar to that of baganda in Uganda"

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18. Obi Beckly, 2014 [in response to a request from Margie asking about this Igbo saying]
"Margie, better soup na money killam. Meaning dating a beautiful girl or looking for beautiful things, you need money (Pesa)"

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19. King “Lasher” D.S.P., 2015
"Absolutely feeling this. Thanks for the share Empress. Where are they from? And what is Ada ada?"

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20. Uche Orji, 2015
Reply
"+King D.S.P. "Ada" is an Igbo name given to the first daughters of a family. . This song by Flavour illustrates the qualities of "Ada" the song is about how beautiful she is, and that she is worth waiting for, and taking care of..."

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21. King “Lasher” D.S.P., 2015
reply
"Understanding Empress +Uche Orji So is Igbo a language, tribe, and also what countries are Igbo.?"

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22. Uche Orji, 2015
Reply
"+King D.S.P. Igbo is an ethnic group of southeastern Nigeria, and we speak igbo language and dialects."

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23. rockii101, 2015
Reply
"+nnaamen There are influences from other ethnic groups in this video. The hat that the groom is wearing is Yoruba. The beaded head beads that the Bride is wearing are from the Bini people. Nigeria has been a country for more than 100 years and different ethnic groups within Nigeria have lived in close proximity with each other for even longer. You can't say that the ethnic groups have not influenced each other because we definitely have. To me, Igbo wedding look similar to many other ethnic groups weddings from the south south region of Nigeria. There are differences though. I think the drinking of palm wine is a solely Igbo tradition but correct me if I'm wrong. Igbos also tend to have their traditional weddings outdoors in the bride parents' house while other ethnic groups do not mind as much whether their traditional wedding is indoors or outdoors.

If the OP really wanted a traditional wedding that was similar to the one from this MV [music video], there are many ethnic groups from her to choose from."

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24. onyedum Osigwe (Edoyakaa), 2015
Reply
"+rockii101 The beads are Igbo beads, stop talking rubbish,"

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25. rockii101, 2015
Reply
"+onyedum Osigwe Coral beads are worn by many different ethic groups in Nigeria but that particular beaded crown is definitely influenced by the Bini culture. It is one of the things that they are most famous for."

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26. onyedum Osigwe (Edoyakaa), 2015
Reply
"You know nothing about beads, Bini beads got the same color with Igbo beads but they are different ."

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27. Ge MIIO , 2015
"Is it the wedding for royal people or anybody can marry like this? It looks beautiful, but they seem to be pretty rich."

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28. Victory Ekwueme, 2015
Reply
"+Ge MIIO anybody & yeah they seem to be"

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29. rockii101, 2015
Reply
"+Ge MIIO If you search up Igbo/Nigerian weddings on Youtube you can find weddings similar to this one. Regular weddings are less flashy and require only two clothes changing but the general set up is the same. All Nigerian weddings regardless of the ethnic group have many bridesmaids/groomsmen"

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30. Nosihle Gwala, 2015
"so flipping beautiful, I see so many similarities in our traditional weddings as Africans, I am from the Zulu tribe in South Africa and this just brings so much joy to my heart, traditional Igbo weddings are so beautiful"

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31. JOY AMA, 2015
"Ada in Igbo land of south East Nigeria means the first girl born to a family. Once you are the FIRST GIRL BORN, you are automatically 'ada'. Nobody takes that from you. You cannot denounce it. That is your status in that family and your younger siblings respects you. Of course you go by the christain names your parents gave you but your position in the family is ada(first girl).

Besides that ada is also used to refer to a girl. If you see a girl you don't know her name, u refer to her as ada. For instance you greet an elderly person. He replies: Ada how are you? Not because you are the first born but because you are a girl. But in the flavour context, it means the first girl of that family.
Igbo men don't joke with their 'ada'. In that part of the country, parents expect the ada's traditional marriage to be with pomp and pageantry(as can be seen in the video). It's a thing of pride and joy to her parents. So the suitor must not disappoint. That is why you see her pensiveness initially in the video. It looked like the man hadn't come at the time expected of him so ada became frantic. You want to know what was going on in her mind at that time? What if he didn't show up? Men, please be punctual and don't keep ada waiting."

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Visitor comments are welcome.

The Itch Dance Motions In Various African American Dances

Edited by Azizi Powell

This post presents information about and three* video examples of the "Itch" dance motions that has been performed in various African American non-religious dances.

*Updated on 8/22/2015 with a short video of a Nigerian dance from Ajegunle

I'm interested in finding online comments of and/or videos of other examples of "the Itch" in African American dance and in other dances throughout the world.

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

All copyrights remain with their owners.

Thanks to all those who are featured in these videos, and all those who are quoted in this post. Thanks also to the publishers of these videos on YouTube.

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INFORMATION ABOUT THE "ITCH" DANCE MOTIONS
From https://books.google.com/books?isbn=0306805537 "Jazz Dance: The Story of American Vernacular Dance" by
Marshall Winslow Stearns, ‎Jean Stearns [1968, page 27]
"A small but ubiquitous detail from another African dance has shown considerable power of survival. In Africa scratching is part of a dance to Legba, Guardian of the Crossroads who was identified with St. Peter by Negro folk in New Orleans because both are depicted carrying a bunch of keys. “Each went round and round in a circle” writes Melville and Francis Herskovitz of a Winti dance in Suriname, “arms crossed from time to time over his breast, the finger tugging at his clothes, as though scratching to relieve an itching sensation.”

This gesture became a standard routine known as the Itch in Negro dancing, accompanied by eccentric footwork. “Bull Frog Hop”, a song published in 1909 by Perry Bradford, describes the Itch as part of its routine, and the Butterbeans of the team Butterbeans and Susie used it in the teens to the tune of “Heebie Jeebies” as the climax of his vaudeville act. “I borrowed it from the great dancer named “Stringbeans” said Butterbeans.

The Itch is described by Elise Marcus as “a spasmodic placing of the hands all over the body in an agony of perfect rhythm.” It is the rhythm, of course, that makes the motions effective.

Other and later dancers adapted the Itch to suit their own purposes. Clarence “Dancing” Dotson who played the Keith circuit, combined elements of the Itch and the Quiver with singular effect to create what he announced as “Throwing A Fit”. James Barton’s “Mad Dog “ act also utilized the :Itch. By the late 1940s, at the Savoy Ballroom, the Itch was incorporated in the breakaway of the Lindy as part of the improvisation, and turned up again at the Palladium Ballroom in the fifties and sixties as an improvised addition to the Mambo. Indeed, the gesture has a universality that could lead to its appearance-with or without syncopated rhythms-almost anywhere."

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From http://www.pbs.org/wnet/freetodance/about/interviews/donald4.html "Free To Dance": About The Film by Katrina Hazzard Donald
"African-American dance really early on is organized around a narrative, around the principles of the narrative. The dances were originally danced plays. When people dance in West Africa, it's organized and it has a purpose and it tells a story and it imparts principles. It imparts the norms of the society. It has a function, a high function. And that is not lost simply because we're transported a few thousand miles across the Atlantic a few hundred years into the future.

Early on, the African-American dances are danced narratives, danced plays. And of course, we see that retained right up through the 1930s and even today when African Americans organize embellishments to a dance -- for example, we'll be doing a basic dance step and then someone will throw in a hand movement or a turn, an embellishment, something to spruce up the dance, to make it more interesting, more exciting, to outdo their partner; those embellishments are drawn from the old dance narratives. Those embellishments are running commentaries on the basic dance movement itself. This is one of the principles that's used to create and organize African-American dances. We see it most clearly in the 1920s with the "Buzzard Lope," which, of course, had a caller on the side telling the story and someone patting the music and someone actually dancing out the narrative. And of course, we see some of that on the theatrical stage. When Bill T. Jones, for example, breaks into "The Itch," he is inserting that in the narrative of that dance. He is making a statement. He is pulling from the old smallpox dances of Africa in which scratching and itching was done to ward off the smallpox deity, to ward off the coming of the smallpox god.
-snip-
This excerpt was reformmatted for this post. I also added italics to highlight that particular sentence.

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TWO EXAMPLES OF "THE ITCH" IN AFRICAN AMERICAN NON-RELIGIOUS DANCE
Example #1: Charleston -- Original Al & Leon Style!!



Trickeration Uploaded on Aug 31, 2007

Al Minns & Leon James from the Savoy Ballroom in Harlem

Filmed during the 50s-60s
-snop-
I believe that the dancers did a form of the Itch between 1:24 - 1:46 of this video.

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Example #2: The Dlow Shuffle



Bop King Dlow, Published on Dec 5, 2013

BopKing Dlow Present's the "Dlow Shuffle!" WORLD PREMIER!!!!
-snip-
The "Dlow Shuffle" is a version of the contemporary Hip-Hop dance called "the Bop".

An example of "the Itch" movements occur at 1:52-1:53 of this video to the lyrics “Now touch on yo' body like you need a sweater”
Click http://www.azlyrics.com/lyrics/dlow/thedlowshuffle.html for the complete lyrics.

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UPDATE: August 22, 2015

Ajegunle on TWF



Talk with Funmi, Uploaded on Mar 22, 2010

Selected comment from that video's discussion thread:

C Larbi, 2010
"Dat must be some serious itch. lol"

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Visitor comments are welcome.

Yoruba Andabo (Orisa Songs & Dance Videos)

Edited by Azizi Powell

This post showcases selected videos of Orisa [Orisha] (pronounced oh REE shah) religious songs & dances as performed by the Cuban group Yoruba Andabo (Friends Of Yoruba Culture). The Yorubas are a Western Nigeria ethnic group.

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

All copyrights remain with their owners.

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OVERVIEW OF THE YORUBA PEOPLE
http://www.religioustolerance.org/ifa.htm Ifa: the religion of the Yoruba peoples
"Yoruba refers to a group of cultures linked by a common language. They occupied an area bounded by the Niger River, and including what is now known as the Benin Republic, southwestern Nigeria, and part of Togo. They held a belief system in common: the Ifa religion.

Starting in the 16th century, large numbers of Yoruba natives were transported as slaves to the Caribbean and the Americas. They combined beliefs and practices from their Ifa religion with elements of Roman Catholicism to produce the syncretistic religions of Candomblé, Palo Mayombe, Santeria, Vodun, etc. These are now flourishing in the Caribbean, South America and North America, notably in Brazil, Colombia, Cuba, Grenada, the Guyanas, Jamaica, Puerto Rico, St. Kitts, St. Vincent, Tobago, and Trinidad."

-snip-
Click http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Orisha for information about specific Orisas. The dances (dance movements, clothing, mannerisms, articles carried etc) reflect the descriptions of the specific Orisa.

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INFORMATION ABOUT YORUBA ANDABO
From http://worldmusiccentral.org/artists/artist_page.php?id=4111
"Yoruba Andabo is a Cuban band and a company of 17 talented singers, percussionists and dancers, performing original sacred West African music preserved as it has been interpreted locally, after it had been brought there by slaves in the late 16th century. The ensemble takes its name from two African words loosely translated as ?the friends and followers of the Yoruba lands and culture.

Born out of spontaneous musical get-togethers held at the Havana harbor in 1961 by a group of dock workers, Yoruba Andabo - back then with another name - began performing in 1986 at the Havana seat of UNEAC (the organization grouping Cuba's professional writers and artists). Following its involvement in a recording for the local top label EGREM, the band worked in close contact with renowned singer Mercedita Vald?s, which led it to turn into a company in 1994 under the name of Compañia Folklorica Yoruba Andabo."...
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From http://www.carnegiehall.org/Calendar/2012/11/30/0930/PM/Yoruba-Andabo/
"The legendary folkloric group Yoruba Andabo ("friends of Yoruba culture") presents an evening of Cuban rumba. With singers, percussionists, and dancers, Yoruba Andabo performs ecstatic percussion-driven dances that reveal the ongoing influence of African religion and traditions in contemporary Cuba."

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FEATURED VIDEOS
(These videos are presented in no particular order.)

Video #1: Yoruba Andabo - Eleguà



AyvaMusica, Published on Dec 28, 2013

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Video #2: Yoruba Andabo - Obbatalá



AyvaMusica, Published on Jan 12, 2014

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Video #3: Yoruba Andabo - Yemayá



AyvaMusica, Published on Jan 8, 2014

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Video #4: Yoruba Andabo - Oyá Yansa



AyvaMusica, Published on Jan 6, 2014

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Video #5: Yoruba Andabo - Oggún



AyvaMusica, Published on Dec 28, 2013

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ACKNOWLEDGEMENT AND THANKS
Maferefún (Praises be) to the Orisas who shown in these videos and thosee who are not shown in these videos.

Thanks to the drummers, singers, and dancers featured in these videos, and thanks to AyvaMusica for publishing these videos on YouTube.

Thanks for visiting pancocojams.

Viewer comments are welcome.