Grammy Award-winning R&B singer Ciara’s music video for her new song “JUMP” features cheerleaders from North Carolina-based HBCU Winston-Salem State University.
According to Fox 8, members of Winston-Salem State University’s Powerhouse Red and White cheerleaders starred in the “JUMP” video, which dropped on July 8. The Powerhouse girls and their coaches, NeSheila Washington and Tevin Allen, reportedly flew to Los Angeles to shoot the video back in spring after one of Ciara’s dancers dm’d the team on Instagram. The dancer saw them on the social media platform and felt they’d be the perfect fit for “JUMP.”
“Ciara’s team was fantastic. The thing that impressed me most is that they had watched our videos on Instagram and TikTok and were very familiar with our moves,” Washington told Fox8. “They even knew each of the cheerleaders’ names and the positions that they usually held during Powerhouse routines.”
Red Team Captain William Johnson said being on set was “very inspiring.”
“Being there was very inspiring. I’ve wanted to be a backup dancer since I was very young. I come from a small town, so the dance programs there were not great. Being so busy and focusing on my schoolwork at WSSU made me feel that I may never achieve my dream of being a professional backup dancer. This trip and the experience working with Ciara made me see that achieving my dream is really possible,” Johnson said.
Dance Captain Destiny Martin also expressed how inspiring it was to see successful dancers in the studio.
“My background is in dance, not cheer,” Martin said. “Seeing all the dancers that I’ve been watching on Instagram since middle school was incredible. Being in the studio with these dancers was amazing.”
Though presented with an amazing opportunity to dance for an international star, Powerhouse still made it their duty to focus on their academic careers before and after rehearsals for “JUMP.” Cheerleader Tiffany Jacobs said the team flew out to L.A. to shoot during finals week, so she and squad members studied hard and even completed one of their finals in an Uber on their way to the beach.
“We always have to make sure to plan and to have school be our number one priority,” Jacobs said.
Check out Powerhouse getting down in Ciara’s trending new music video below.
