Donald Ray's Place - August 1st, 2010
****
Edited by Azizi Powell
This is Part III of a three part pancocojams series about Zydeco music & dancing.
This post presents some information about Zydeco music and dance This post also includes three videos of Zydeco dancing at Ville Platte, Louisiana trail rides in 2010 and 2011.
Click https://pancocojams.blogspot.com/2025/08/three-2009-videos-of-zydeco-couple.htmlfor Part I of this pancocojams series. That post showcases three 2009 videos of Zydeco partner dancers Sandra and Jake Davis, a married Black American couple who are known for their skillful and artistic Zydeco dancing in Opelousas, Louisiana and elsewhere. Selected comments from the discussion threads of those videos are also included in this pancocojams post.
Click https://pancocojams.blogspot.com/2025/08/a-youtube-sound-file-for-zydeco-song.html for Part II of this pancocojams series. That post showcases several YouTube videos of line dancing to the Zydeco song "Kush Kush". Selected comments from the discussion threads of those videos are also included in this pancocojams post.
****
The content of this post is presented for historical, socio-cultural, entertainment purposes, and aesthetic purposes.
Thanks to the Zydeco dancers who are featured in these videos. Thanks to the musicians and singers who are featured in these videos. Thanks also to all those who are quoted in this post and thanks to the publishers of these videos on YouTube.
****
INFORMATION ABOUT ZYDECO MUSIC
From https://theafricanamericanfolklorist.com/arts-media/zydeco-music "Zydeco Music", By: Nascha Joli, Feb 5, 2025
"Zydeco Music or Zydeco Blues is a blend of creole music, blues and rhythm, and blues founded by the indigenous and black Creole peoples of southern Louisiana.
Similar in style to the Cajun music of their white Cajun counterparts of Southern Louisiana, Zydeco music shares its common origins and influences and also overlaps in style and repertoire. However, Zydeco music’s distinct sounds are rooted in its rural beginnings and reflect the social and economic conditions of its black and brown creators.
The very word “Zydeco” is believed to have origins in West Africa or from a term used by the mixed-blood descendants of the Atakapas indigenous nation and African slaves to describe the swaying dances they did to the “raucous music” they created. More likely, it is some combination of both of these theories which created a foundation for the term “zydeco.”
The music itself is most often fast tempo and is dominated by instruments that include an accordion (button or piano), variations of a washboard (also called a rub-board and a scrub-board), guitars, bass guitar, drums, Cajun fiddles, spoons, triangles, horns, and keyboards. Zydeco music is also associated with dances including variations of waltzes and line dancing specific to its music that gained popularity in the dance halls and social parties in the region.
The longstanding tradition, popularity and social acceptance of Zydeco music can be attributed directly to the Louisiana Creoles who have a distinct culture, a way of life and a social prominence within their regional society. It was these characteristics that afforded the Creoles certain rights under French rule and its “Code Noir.”
When these privileges shifted after the Louisiana Purchase in 1803 under the new rule of American Southern racist regimes, the Creoles began to fight back against this oppression and also to protest in song. Early Zydeco blues music used French and Creole lyrics to describe the pain and mistreatment of the members of their community.
Performed locally in house parties, its popularity spread throughout the Southern Louisiana region and was performed at Catholic church community centers, taverns, nightclubs, and dance halls. Its popularity spread throughout the state of Louisiana and into Texas and California with the help of the Great Migration where many black Creoles migrated to.”…
****
SHOWCASE VIDEOS & COMMENTS
These videos and these selected comments from those videos' discussion thread are numbered for referencing purposes only.
SELECTED COMMENTS FROM SHOWCASE VIDEO #1 - "Zydeco Trail Ride In Ville Platte" This video is found at the top of this pancocojams post.
"Have not been home in years, old Ville Platte miss it sometimes. Mostly the food....."
**
4. @wendylouise7780, 2020
"Was there no dance floor?everyone was all crammed in there and there was no place for couples to dance.why didn't the non dancers step back or move back more?"
**
5. @ardayneonherd1601, 2020
"What is the name of the song playing"
**
Reply
6. @fredozydeco, 2020
"Real short time."
****
SHOWCASE VIDEO #2 - Zydeco dancing after Ville Platte trail ride - August 2011
NY2Calif, Aug 11, 2011
-snip-
Here are some comments from the discussion thread for this video.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=svrn1AAqsyQ1. @chocolateice4u, 2011
"Interesting two step swing"
**
2. @realtorforlouisiana, 2011
"Real Men Dance !!! :-)"
**
3. @kickgscreamg, 2012
"Tradition! Love passed to young ones. Beautiful."
**
4. @TheHershee, 2013
"Love seeing ppl zydeco!"
**
Reply
5. @inmythoughts776, 2013
"Same...I'm impressed"
**
Reply
6. @kevinw.3433, 2018
"Lillie Albert zydeco baby nothing but fun good food and good drinks"
**
9. @missperodin, 2013
"I loving the younger generation getting down on the zydeco,
No Twerking!!! Love it..."
**
Reply
10. @Ronaldo-rt7hl, 2020
"I'm sure they do both and does it matter either let people dance and have fun
however they please"
**
11. @tenmilebill, 2014
"Soulwood Train is the correct title of the song. He release a live version of the song
earlier this year."
**
12. @funkybrothano.1706, 2018
"didn't know our people would find zydeco dancing cool."
**
Reply
13. @roybabineaux5353, 2019
"Why wouldn't they find something they invented cool?"
**
14.@lilliealbert3548, 2018
"Beautiful! I am in Detroit, whatever dance my brothers and sisters are dancing, its beautiful💖😍💕😍"
**
15. @mimitop6447, 2018
"Gumbo, fish frys, crab boils and boudain. LES BONTON ROLE'
my peeps."
**
16. @mimitop6447, 2018
"I remember when I was little and my mom and dad would take us to these zydeco fiestas
but back then the style was a lot faster footwork that was back in the 70's an 80's then I moved to California haven't zydecoed since but I sure miss those days 😀"
**
17. @keldholse618, 2019
"What's the name of this fantastic swingin band? wanna hear some more?
crazy about it!❤"
**
Reply
18. @NY2Calif, 2019
"Keith Frank - zydeco band"
**
19. @beautiful80sladies22, 2020
"Creole version of a Cumbia.......Ate catfish one time in that town when I was a kid.....
God bless 🙌and please be safe"
**
Reply
20. @gabrieletienne8224, 2020
"Ahhh Zydeco, where you're judged not by how good you can dance
but by how much of good time you let yourself have. Love my state.
****
SHOWCASE VIDEO #3- Zydeco dancing after Ville Platte trail ride 2 - August 2011
NY2Calif, Aug 11, 2011
-snip-
Here are some comments from the discussion thread for this video.
1. @1nonlymrsjackson, 2011
"I Like The Way Y'all Zydeco."
**
2. @NY2Calif, 2012
"Actually, if you read the title of the video it is "after the...trail ride."
People usually wear cowboy boots and hats when they are riding horses
unless they are riding English and then they wear helmets and riding boots."
**
3. @NY2Calif, 2012
"Most people use the kerchief in the back pocket to wipe the sweat off them. You get really hot dancing to zydeco music, especially in Louisiana."
**
4. @BlackRayne39, 2012
"Yes Ladies...They Did That:-)"
**
5. @missperodin, 2013
"Get it girls, very nice!!! Im such a fan of zydeco..."
**
6. @ronaldodavis1698, 2023
"anybody know the name of the song?"
**
Reply
7. @NY2Cali, 2023
"Playa 4 Life - Keith Frank"
Nooney & Zydeco Floaters' song "Kush kush' was track #6 in that Zydeco group's album "We Bringing the heat". That album was released on December 4, 2001.
****
Edited by Azizi Powell
This is Part II of a three part pancocojams series about Zydeco music & dancing.
This post showcases a sound file of the popular Zydeco song "Kush Kush" and showcases several YouTube videos of line dancing to that song. Selected comments from the discussion threads of those videos are also included in this pancocojams post.
Click https://pancocojams.blogspot.com/2025/08/three-2009-videos-of-zydeco-couple.htmlfor Part I of this pancocojams series. That post showcases three 2009 videos of Zydeco partner dancers Sandra and Jake Davis. a married Black American couple who are known for their skillful and artistic Zydeco dancing in Opelousas, Louisiana and elsewhere. Selected comments from the discussion threads of those videos are also included in this pancocojams post.
Click https://pancocojams.blogspot.com/2025/08/three-videos-of-zydeco-partner-line.html for Part III of this pancocojams series. That post presents some information about Zydeco music and dance This post also includes three videos of Zydeco dancing at Ville Platte, Louisiana trail rides in 2010 and 2011. Selected comments from the discussion threads of those videos are also included in this pancocojams post.
****
The content of this post is presented for historical, socio-cultural, entertainment purposes, and aesthetic purposes.
All copyrights remain with their owners.
The content of this post is presented for historical, socio-cultural, entertainment purposes, and aesthetic purposes.
All copyrights remain with their owners.
Thanks to the Zydeco dancers who are featured in these videos. Thanks to the musicians and singers who are featured in these videos. Thanks also to all those who are quoted in this post and thanks to the publishers of these videos on YouTube
****
SHOWCASE VIDEOS & COMMENTS
These videos and these selected comments from those videos' discussion thread are numbered for referencing purposes only.
SELECTED COMMENTS FROM SHOWCASE VIDEO #1
This video is found at the top of this pancocojams post.
1. @BoogidyBangPOW, 2016
“i use to always hear this song being played at the bar...took me 5 years to
find the name of it...lol”
**
Reply
2. @shalonda10, 2021
“Same always heard it at trail rides but could never get the name”
**
3. @dorothean631, 2020
"They use to a line dance to this song at The Gray House in Delaware. It was fun to watch them eat down."
-snip-
“Eat down” =African American Vernacular English meaning to do something exceptionally
well. "Eat down" is an extended way of saying that someone or something "eats" or "ate". It is also the latest (?) way of saying that someone is "getting down".
**
4. @thehacker4089, 2021
“Black Americans are way too connected to be so apart . Im from the DMV and I
remember my elders at these gatherings line dancing to this song. We need to
keep the tradition going . Don't let the Statelines separate us and our youth .”
-snip-
"The DMV" is an informal referent for the Washington D.C., Maryland, and Virginia area
**
Reply
5. @JoiR82, 2022
"“I’m in the DMV too and we’re still rocking this one…in the RIGHT circles!!
Some classics never die!”
**
6. @tomadams5474, 2024
"Just found it after I heard it on a tic tok video. They are jamming. A steppers song💯"
**
7. @bobbydavis8251, 2024
“Someone needs to get in touch with him and ask him to re-release this CD”
**
Reply 8. @TweetyPAK7, 2024
“It's the song everybody wants and no one can find.”
**
9. @TweetyPAK7, 2024
Everybody wants this song!
Rerelease it' please!"
**
Reply
10. @babykakes6353, 2025
“Yessss.. why is this song not available”
12. @iamshaunmarie, 2025
“This line dance still goes hard! I love this songNE DANCING”
**
13. @onemaisha, 2025
“I had been looking for this song for a few years now! I am so happy to have found it! This is a steppers song babeeeeeee!!!!"
**
14. @sharvonneljones9770, 2025
"Our traditional line dance song!!! Love it ❤❤❤❤❤"
**
15. @Ms.Brittanythankyou, 2025
"Still stepping in 2025❤❤❤"
****
SHOWCASE VIDEO #2 - Zydeco Line Dance
BK Hart, Nov 24, 2006
This is a dance done to a song called Kush Kush by Nooney
and the Zydeco Floaters.
-snip- Here are some comments from the discussion thread for this video.
1. @BKHart,2006
"The name of the song is "Kush Kush" from the album "We Bringin' The Heat".”
**
2. @sherriwestfall, 2006
"Smooth.. loved it :-)Zydeco is such happy music!”
**
3. @BKHart, 2006
"It's not a movie, but part of a local cable TV show called Dancing On Line, which I tape and direct.”
**
4. @green8man7, 2006
“wow, this is cool ! i'd no idea line dances were done to zydeco.”
**
5. @ntrlmstk,2007
“God bless New Orleans, LA so rich in culture!”
*
**
6.@MissMarie567, 2007
"“I have to agree with gbrabson1953. The brotha in the peach outfit has it together, and he's workin' the hat also. This dance is sooooooo smooth.*”
**
7. @Denise7826, 2007
"The man in the Pink outfit with the hat on in the front is Jammin..
Go ahead and do it wit your bad self..!!”
**
8. @royalxanadu, 2007
"Dude in the hat is gettin' it!”
**
9. @dawnthi, 2008
“These guys know how to jazz up the line dancing! They are fun to watch!”
**
10. @rattpoison1, 2009
“This video is cool, really. Oh, I'm going to practice that step no doubt. All of them are so confident of their steps they're not even watchin' the others feet.
Slick.”
**
11. @mommajomma1, 2009
"OMG !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! get down daddy!!”
**
12. @TweetyPAK7, 2010
“Awesome video of Zydeco Slide. The dancers are fantastic! Love this!”
**
13. @msNativegal, 2010
“OOOOOO C'EST BON!! OUI TU M'DIS PAS MEZ
AMI, THIS SURE IS THE HEART OF GOOD MUSIC. SHOUT OUT FROM OPELOUSAS, LA - THE ZYDECO CAPITAL OF THE WORLD!!! CAJUN/CREOLE COUNTRY
**
15. @BKHart, 2011
“Thank you to all who have enjoyed this video clip. It is one of several dances done for the taping of our now discontinued local cable TV show, "Dancing On Line". The song, "Kush, Kush" is part of a collection owned by the DJ for that night, and try as I might, I just cannot track him or the song down. Your best bet would be to do a search for the song, and download it from whatever source is available.
B. K. Hart
Imani Bros. Multimedia
Assoc. Producer, "Dancing On Line" TV show”
**
16. @GottaBeCarefulWhenIDip, 2017
“Wow look at Cumbia’s cousin”
-snip-
Here's some information about Cumbia from https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cumbia
"Cumbia refers to a number of musical rhythms and folk dance traditions of Latin America, generally involving musical and cultural elements from American Indigenous peoples, Europeans, and Africans during colonial times.[3] Cumbia is said to have come from funeral traditions in the Afro-Colombian community.
Most Hispanic American countries have made their own regional version of Cumbia, some of them with their own particularity.
Examples of cumbia include:
Colombian cumbia is a musical rhythm and traditional folk dance from Colombia.[6] It has elements of three different cultures, American Indigenous, African, and Spanish, being the result of the long and intense meeting of these cultures during the Conquest and the Colony.[7] The Colombian cumbia is the origin of all the other variations,[8] including the tradition of dancing it with candles in the dancers' hands.”…
**
17. @ydf2008, 2012
"This is how we do family gatherings Louisiana creole style! :)”
**
18. @suzannehedderly1331, 2014
"This is the BEST line dance EVER...and best VIDEO! I love it!!! My favorite line dance!"
**
19. @MsJae-sf2hf, 2019
"Mannnnna! my Cousin turned 60 and she had this song played at her birthday party, everybody was jamming! including the Great Great Great pickneys!!! I'm almost 70, I said, I gotta learn this Zydeco Line Dance & I did ! Thank you, Thank you and Thank you, I think I got it now for my Birthday Party next year! Stay Blessed.........Ms. Jae DC"
-snip-
“pickneys” = "children"
**
20. @SRUBigBoi, 2022
"So very proud to say that the man with the WHITE HAT is my father JAMES YOWL aka "Yall".. he passed away 12/20/14.. a military vet that was always the life of the party.. reading all these comments have me with tears of joy to see how many people world wide watching and learning the dance from him and the others..thats our culture deep down South in Louisiana (OPELOUSAS to be exact).. he was originally born in San Francisco California, moved to La. . Met his future wife from Ville Platte La. and had 5 amazing kids.. he was also a customizer and fabricator to the auto world owning a 1966 ford mustang Shelby, he would shave the foor handles adding a chain steering wheel and all kinds of other custom features to make that car 1of a kind.. hes LEGENDARY in Opelousas and now after reading these comments i see he's LEGENDARY world wide.. HAPPY HEAVENLY FATHER'S DAY.. we love you and so proud of the things you done in your lifetime (GOD IS GOOD)
RIP "YALL" your legacy lives on ❤❤❤❤❤ = kids
❤ = Mom"
**
21. @jeannecastellano7181, 2023
"What I love about Zydeco is that it's truly inter-generational. You see elderly people and teenagers dancing to the same music.
Very family friendly!"
****
SHOWCASE VIDEO #3 - Zydeco Slide Line Dance ★
soulsisterify. Mar 6, 2016
Soundtrack: Kush Kush by Nooney and the Zydeco Floaters.
1. @vickymarz6851, 2016
"how do I find this song...."
**
Reply
2. @safeway1443, 2018
"Yes I’ve been looking for it myself with no luck. Need help"
please
**
3. @walibashir102, 2018
"Classic linedance from SOUL LINE back in PHILLY early 2000s."
**
4. @RardTangler, 2019
"It’s Kush Kush by Nooney and the Zydeco Floaters"
**
5.@suzannehedderly1331, 2019
"My favorite line dance! So much fun!! "We're gonna have a funky good time!"
-snip-
Toward the end of Nooney and the Zydeco Floaters's "Kush Kush" song, you can hear the words "We're gonna have a funky good time"/ "I gotta take you higher". Those words are from James Brown's 1980 song "Funky Good Time". The tune that is used for that part of "Kush Kush" is very similar or the same as that James Brown R&B song. Click https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1Xzw5zBaePM for a YouTube sound file of "James Brown's "Funky Good Time".
**
6.@tobyroby14,2019
"We are learning this dance again with Lucia Jones here in Philly with the Mt Airy Learning Tree after about 3 years when we first learned it. LOVE THIS DANCE"
****
This concludes Part III of this three part pancocojams series.
Thanks for visiting pancocojams.
Visitor comments are welcome.
"