"Where Them Fans At”: How Line Dancing and Fanning Celebrate Black Joy and Cultural Legacy

Black individuals dancing with fans - Credit: Lynsey Weatherspoon

Sierra Pope | Multimedia News Intern

3-minute Read

GRAND PRAIRIE, Texas – “Where them fans at,” Douglas Furtick, referred to as 803Fresh sung, unknowingly realizing its rhythm and flow would allow African Americans to let loose. As the entire globe witnesses the sway of hips and clicking of boots from Black America, the celebration of resilience, through 803Fresh’s infectious hook, outshines real difficulties and challenges.

“There is a meme or social media posts going around right now that says something like ‘The country is falling apart and Black folks are minding our business and learning new line dances,” Chimere Love told CNN. “I think that’s how it is for me right now. I just want something that will help me unload and just have some fun without thinking about the stress of what’s going on in reality.”

A countless number of popular organizations and well-known individuals have joined in on the viral line dance, utilizing hand-held fans as an instrumental element. Some include The Tuskegee University Marching Crimson Piper Band and former NBA (National Basketball Association) player and sports analyst Shaquille O'Neal.

However, Dr. Nsenga K. Burton, the founder of The Burton Wire, observed the deep historical roots of music and dance in Black communities, tracing particular movements back to America’s days of slavery.

“It was a way for them to give instructions when they were trying to do something, whether it was escape or to organize,” Dr. Burton explained. “You think about the limbo, which is actually a Caribbean form of dance, but that came out of this idea of slave ships, how tight they were and how confined they were.”

In Atlanta, Jasmine King is a current line dance instructor, and reflected on the line dance’s hidden message of perseverance amid trials and tribulations, encouraging African Americans to fully embrace their village.

Jasmine King posing before her line dance class  - Credit: Alyssa Pointer

“We’re still pushing through no matter how the odds are working against us,” King expressed. “We’re still line dancing because we’ve been through the worst already. Dance has always been a part of our healing and this is a way for us to say, ‘We’re going to leave everything at the door. I don't care about what happened at work. I don’t care about any and all odds against me. This is my moment that I get to connect with my community.”

Whether there is a cookout, baby shower, or even a casual dance class, line dancing will continue to be a vibrant thread in Black culture, inviting others to preserve the legacy and unite as one.