Friday, Nov. 14, Emerald Elite Stomp n’ Shake Cheer hosted their fourth annual showcase. The showcase was held in the Sadler Center’s Commonwealth Auditorium. The event included performances by Emerald Elite and other stomp n’ shake teams from the surrounding area. The other teams included the Lady Broncos, Elite Rams, Atomic Gold and Churchland High School.
Upon arriving in the auditorium, guests listened to a DJ play music. As teams prepared and the audience settled in; the lights dimmed. The crowd quieted down, and then the emcee for the showcase walked onto the stage to get the crowd excited for the upcoming performances.
“Are you ready?” the emcee said.
The crowd answered with roars of applause.
“Are you ready?” she said again. The applause grew louder, and the first group of performers took the stage.
For some of the performers and audience members, the emcee was a familiar face: Amaiya Mauney ’24, the founder of Emerald Elite. Emerald Elite was created after Mauney realized that there were no stomp n’ shake cheer organizations on campus.
“I felt like there was a gap in campus, and, seeing the rise of stomp and shake and watching it grow across the nation,” Mauney said. “I really wanted to bring a piece of that here, a piece of what I love and a piece of black culture to campus.”
Stomp n’ shake cheerleading has its roots in African American and Historically Black College and University culture. Stomp n’ shake cheer is similar to traditional cheerleading, but it utilizes rhythmic clapping, stomping and dancing. Mauney knew she wanted to create an organization dedicated to stomp n’ shake cheer as a result of her own involvement in cheer throughout high school and the rising popularity of stomp n’ shake cheer.
Manuey explained how, since graduating, she always tries to come back for events and stay involved.
“I’m still connected to some of the girls who are still on the team as well, so, when they ask me to come back for stuff and I’m able, I love to come out and support my girls, my team and see how it’s grown and changed over time,” Mauney said.
The theme of this year’s showcase was “Back in the Day.” The theme was reflected in the performers’ music choices and choreography. Emerald Elite performed two sleepover-inspired numbers.
Emerald Elite opened and closed the showcase, and other teams took the stage for the middle of the show. Emerald Elite’s coach, Tiara Coles, also joined them onstage and participated in the performance. Coles spoke on how being back on stage invoked a sense of nostalgia for her.
“That experience took me back to my performing days in college, cheering for Virginia Union. I love the stage, I love to perform, and being able to perform with my girls just made it that much more of a full circle moment,” Coles said.
When the performances started, the energy in the room became electric. The booming voices of the cheerleaders announced catchy phrases and involved the audience with call and response. Each performance was different and transported the audience to a different time, offering up nostalgia.
Emerald Elite’s team captain spoke on how the showcase has changed throughout its four years.
“It is slowly and surely catching on and continues to grow,” Aamya Cheeseboro ’26 said.
Along with team performances, the showcase included solos, a sing-along with music from different decades and a battle for which team had the best set of moves in a count of eight beats. During the eight count portion of the showcase, all the teams took the stage, giving the audience a chance to see all of the cheerleaders in community together. Throughout the show, the crowd was lively and celebrated the cheerleaders.
The teams at the showcase came from a variety of institutions, which meant a lot of coordination for Emerald Elite.
“Putting on this event is both stressful and rewarding, to say the least. We have a great time bringing out local high schools, rec league teams and other colleges,” Coles said.
Cheeseboro shared a similar sentiment as Coles, describing the months of planning that went into the showcase.
“Whether it’s booking spaces, ideas for themes and different things like that, it takes a solid team, a solid group of people to make sure that everything and every detail is ironed out,” Cheeseboro said.
Along with performances, there were also vendors outside of the auditorium selling food and drinks.
Among all its features, the most noticeable thing about the showcase was the community.
“We’ve created this network of not only cheerleaders, but cheer sisters that we can talk to and connect with,” Mauney said. “It gives us an opportunity to get off campus and meet some new people, as well as share what we do with the greater communities of campus and Hampton Roads.”
That community was evident through the energy in the room, team chants and group pictures.
