Soulstepping
About the Book
Stepping is a complex performance that melds folk traditions with popular culture and involves synchronized percussive movement, singing, speaking, chanting, and drama. Developed by African American fraternities and sororities, it is now practiced worldwide. Soulstepping is the first book to document the history of stepping, its roots in African and African American culture, and its transformation by churches, schools, and social groups into a powerful tool for instilling group identity and community involvement.Elizabeth C. Fine's vibrant portrayal of the cultural politics of stepping covers the spread to new venues and participants, including Latino and Asian American Greek-letter organizations. She draws on interviews with individuals on college campuses and steppers and stepping coaches from high schools, community groups, churches, and dance organizations as she traces the widespread growth of stepping and uncovers the controversies surrounding it.
About the Author
Elizabeth C. Fine is an associate professor in the Center for Interdisciplinary Studies at Virginia Tech. She is the author of The Folklore Text: From Performance to Print.Reviews
"Fine's documentation of the more recent growth of sacred and secular step teams outside of the realm of Black Greek Letter Organizations, the strength of her arts and performance-related scholarship, and her discussion of the intersections of African and African American aesthetics make this an important book that adds tremendously to our understanding of an important aspect of twentieth and twenty-first century African American and American popular culture."--Journal of African American History"The history, culture, politics, and art of this African-American performance artform is examined in-depth; black-and-white photographs embellish this impressive, scholarly, highly recommended contribution to Black American cultural studies reference collections and supplemental reading lists."--Bookwatch
Blurbs
“Elizabeth Fine takes us on a journey of discovery with Soulstepping, all the way back to its African roots and all the way up to our moment. All groups have dance steps that the group performs together for the pure joy of celebrating life. Soulstepping brings out that joy, that exhilaration, that love of life. This celebration is long overdue.”--Nikki Giovanni
“Elizabeth Fine has produced a labor of love. Soulstepping is thorough and true to the African American spirit she discovered more completely as she traveled through history to bring to light this remarkable phenomenon, one that would otherwise exist only for those fortunate enough to have been present late at night perhaps at an African American fraternity or sorority event on an American college or university campus.”--Michael V. W. Gordon, Professor of Music Emeritus at Indiana University School of Music and First Executive Director of the National Pan-Hellenic Council
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